Escala. When I hear or see that place, it's just, it brings me back to the memory lane. I have been living in Escala ever since I graduated from WSU. Somehow, fate has been good to me. After I graduated, I fortunately landed a job at Seattle Independent Publishing. I became a Personal Assistant to the Commissioning Editor. To be honest, I love my job, but I hate my boss. He's very irascible, even though that I made a job well done it seems like he's not satisfied with my work. I must say I am lucky, because my boss resigned (for the reason that he's taking a break from publishing world, and look for another opportunity), he then sincerely apologized to me for his behavior towards me, which I forgave him. What surprised me after he resigned was that I found out he gave me a wonderful recommendation to the HR to promote me as an Editor, which was then granted after a few processes and evaluation, and it seems that I am competent for the job! I couldn't be thankful for him.
The salary and the benefits are really good in working at SIP. With those, I get to managed to have an apartment at Escala.
Escala, the place where I have my very first own apartment, the place where I met my first and last dom, and the place where I met the love of my life. See, there are too memories in that place.
I met my dom when I ran in to him at the lobby at my first day at Escala, he's very hospitable, charming, and friendly. We instantly became friends. It turns out that he's in the BDSM lifestyle. To make it short, he was the one who introduced me to the BDSM lifestyle, he trained me, and I became his submissive.
Inside his playroom, he's my dom and I'm his sub, outside his playroom he's my friend, and I'm his friend, actually we're more like a best friends. I think the reason why we get to manage a good friendship despite our arrangement is that he respects me and my limits, he never gone too far, he's kind and caring to me.
One rainy afternoon, we were cuddling on his couch at his penthouse looking out to the skyline of Seattle, we were laughing around until he turned serious, that's when he told me about his past, how he had a rough start in life, how he got into the BDSM lifestyle, how he became a businessman, and then he revealed a shocking secret to me.
"I actually bought SIP" he whispered.
"What?! Why?!" I still don't get it why he would want to be involved in the publishing industry.
"Because, I want to give it to you."
"No, I can't accept it."
"Why not? This is my gift for you, this is my way to show my gratitude to you. I didn't actually have friends before, you are like my first best friend. You are wonderful Anastasia." his bore in mine. I can't accept it, and I think it's inappropriate, giving our arrangement?
"I-" I don't what to say, "I- I'm grateful to you, but I can't accept this. I think it's too much. What does the people at SIP are even going to say? Knowing that we're close friends I know they have their doubts, or they're gonna say some negative things behind my back, and I don't even know how to run a company."
"Okay." he took my hand to hold it, "I understand. Let's have a deal then, I'll run the company for the meantime, you will still have the Editor spot, but the company is in your name, in the future if ever you decide that you're ready to run the company then I'll step down."
I'm lost in my thoughts, I have a publishing company now?
"Don't argue with me in this matter Ms. Steele, or you'll have a punishment." he jokes and I let out a laugh.
"Okay fine. It's a deal." I offer my hand to shake his and he gladly accept.
"You're so infuriating." I tease.
Everything goes well between us, until one day something has changed in him.
One moment he's happy and then a few moments later he would snapped easily, he became too controlling, sometimes when we do a scene in his playroom, I felt uncomfortable and unsafe. There were times when we did a scene and then he got carried away that I immediately shouted my safe word. After that I couldn't look him in the eye anymore. He went through beyond my limit not only once but nth time.
Those great times that we had, and our friendship has fade away. I don't even know him anymore. And this all started when a man helped me with my car.
I was driving through the parking lot at Escala finding my parking spot, but then one of my tires blew off and I stopped at the middle at the parking lot. As I was checking my flat tire, I heard a honk, it turns out there's a car behind my car, and the driver went out.
"Need some help Miss? Seems you have a flat tire there." the man approached me.
"Oh, I'm fine. I have spare tire at the back. I'll just get it."
"Let me help you."
"No worries, I'm fine." This is scary, I saw this in movies, where a man pretends to be nice and it turns out he's a serial killer. I opened the back of my car, and I realize he followed me, he then took the spare tire. I see that he's already changing the flat tire. How fast he can change it? It took me hours before to change it.
"Here you go. All set." He carries the flat tire and placed it at the back of my car and he closed it.
"Uhm. Thank you."
"No problem." Before he walks away back to his car, he smiled at me. I don't know what's happening with me, but I just stared at him and smiled a little. It feels like this is the first time I have seen a man who smiles so amazing, he could be like a model or something.
I drove my car away, and parked into my parking spot. As I was waiting for the elevator, I feel a presence beside me. When I looked up: it's him again. As much as I think he's handsome, but still he might be a serial killer, he might kidnap me anytime now. Oh my god!
Stay calm, "You lived here?" I asked him.
"Yes" he replied, smiling at me, and he went back typing something at his phone. As the doors of the elevator opened, I got on first and he followed. Oh no. It's just the two of us.
"You know what, you can relax. I can feel you are tensed, don't worry I won't bite." he winked at me, and I let out a sigh.
"I'm sorry. Watching those thriller films just gets into my head." I smiled at him, and he laughs so hard. I started to relax a bit.
"You thought I'm gonna harm you?" he just keeps on laughing, he seems amused. I don't find this amusing!
Thankfully I heard the elevator ding, and when the doors opened a pair of eyes stared at us, I just noticed that we're too close to each other, like at one glance it's like there's something between us. I got out immediately from the elevator and approached him outside my apartment door, "Are you okay?"
"Yeah" he replied dryly, "That man at the elevator. Seems like you're smitten with each other."
"He's just someone I met earlier. My car tire got flat, and he helped me." I explained, as I opened my door, he pushed me to the wall, he has his hands on each side of my shoulders.
"Do you like him?"
"Are you insane?! I don't even know that man."
"Let me remind you who do you belong." and with that he forcibly kissed me on my lips, he tightened his grip on my shoulders and it's starting to get hurt.
"Jack, you're hurting me." I tried to push him away, and so he pulled away. When I looked at him, for the first time I got scared at him. I don't recognize this man standing before me anymore. Tears starts to fall down to my cheeks.
"I'm sorry." and he walked away, leaving me alone at my apartment. I cried so hard as I hear him closed the door. I thought everything is good between us, and I was wrong. The sweet and charming Jack Hyde that I knew before is gone.
After that incident, he tried to apologize to me. He does everything in order for him to earn my forgiveness. After a month of trying, I gave in. I forgave him. Everything goes well again between us, he goes back to being this sweet and charming.
I was waiting for Jack at a coffee shop when a man came up to me.
"Oh, look. It's been a long time I haven't seen you." it's him, the man who helped me with my car.
"I actually didn't get a chance to introduce myself." he laughs, he looks so cute when he laughs. Stop it Ana!
"My name is Christian, and yours?" he hold out his hand for me to shake, I stared at it for a moment, and I shake his hand.
"Anastasia."
"Such a beautiful name. So, what do you do in life Anastasia?" and we started to get to know each other. It turns out, he's a businessman, and he owns Grey Enterprises Holdings Inc. I heard that company before from Jack, where they are competitors in acquiring an energy company, which GEH successfully acquired. Jack had set his eyes on that energy company for a really long time, and he's eager to acquire it, but failed.
We've been talking for a few minutes now, and it seems he's not that bad. I actually enjoyed his presence.
As I was laughing so hard with the story that Christian shared, I saw Jack coming up at us. Christian followed my gaze.
"Grey." Jack firmly greeted
"Hyde." Christian replied back. Oh no. They start to have a pissing contest, and so I break them, "Jack let's go. I'll see you around Christian."
After we got out from the coffee shop, Jack harshly took my hand and we went to his penthouse. That's where I received my punishment because I socialized with Christian, for the first time, I safe worded. It was too much, his punishment is just too much. This is not pleasure anymore.
I try to reason with Jack that I did nothing wrong, and that there's nothing wrong with me hanging out with Christian, as we've just hang out like what other normal people do. Then he snapped at me again, "He took everything away from me! I was the one supposedly the Greys are going to adopt, but guess what?! He's the one got adopted. I strive my way to the top, and when I was trying to acquire the best energy company, he beat me to it! His life is supposed to be mine! and you know what's next?"
I just stared at him as he continued, "he'll take you away from me!"
"Jack, you need to calm down. This is not Christian's fault, it might just be the fate-" he interrupts me, "Oh, f*ck the fate!"
What he did next scares me the most, he took a hold of my neck and threatens me, "the next time I see you with him, you'll regret it. So I suggest, if you want to still look good, or if you want to live, don't plan to see him. I don't care if it's unintentional." he let go of my neck.
I wanna run, but I can't hide. Jack is always going to find me. I have nowhere else to go.
After that day, I became like Jack's prisoner. Every move I make, he's watching me. I don't know how he does it, but he knows every move I make outside my apartment. My apartment is the only place where I feel safe.
We still go to his playroom, as much as I wanted to end it, but I can't. I'm scared.
A month have gone by, and it seems like everything became a routine, gone the sweet charming Jack, to a darker Jack. It's like I am not human anymore, I feel weak and robotic. Bruises became known on my body, that I had to put much to cover it.
Saturday, Jack told me that he will go to a business trip on Wednesday, this time he seems like in a good mood, it's maybe because the fact that this business deal is huge for him. He became switched again to the caring Jack, but I had enough, I know that this "caring" side of him will be long gone once he gets back from his business trip, and so I came up with a plan. I had to get our contract. That's the only way I could end this.
Jack will be back on Saturday after his business trip, so I have 3 days to get that contract. When Jack left, I made sure that he won't suspect anything from me, and I also made sure that I'll get an access to his penthouse. Luckily, he fell on my excuses just to get to his penthouse.
It was Thursday when I figured out where he kept our contract, Jack might be a wise man, but he can be stupid sometimes. He put our contract on a safe inside one of his drawers, and I found a note on the drawer under his desk, it's the password to his safe. I managed to get our contract, I can't help it but my tears starts to fall.
After I got the contract, I immediately went to the garage to find my car, holding the contract in my hand, suddenly I heard my name,
"Ana."
I froze in my tracks, I began to shake, 'no, this is not him'.
"What's that you're holding?"
I turned around, Jack is standing a few feet away from me, and he's holding a gun.
"Jack please." I start to tremble. He's moving towards me.
"I knew you would do something absurd like this. You see, I came back early from the trip, and to my surprise I find you in my office searching for every drawers, you may not noticed, because the room is dark and I have my ways to get unnoticed, and then I find you, holding our contract. You think you can get away from me, by destroying that damn contract?! No! You can't!" he put his hand on my neck, gripping it tightly, and I started choking.
"Jack please, I'm sorry." I gathered all my strength to kick him on his groin and I managed to get his gun as he drops it. I aimed it at him and shot him at his left side, but then I heard another gun shot, and I dropped to the floor, the last thing I saw, Jack aiming his extra gun at me, and he utter the words, "I'm sorry"
When I woke up, I was already in the hospital, and I saw a man standing near at the table. His back is facing me. But, he seems familiar.
"Christian?"
"Anastasia, you're awake!" he turns around and rushed to my bedside, "are you okay?" he asked.
Suddenly, flashbacks came to my mind, me getting the contract, Jack finding out, pointing his gun at me, I shot him, and he shot me. Realization hits me and I started to cry.
"Hey, shh. It's fine, you're safe now." Christian caressed my arms and he pulled me into his arms.
"Where's Jack?" I asked him as I pulled away from him.
"Jack died. After he shot you, he shot himself." I can't believe what I heard. "I was getting out from my car when I heard the first gun shot, and when I got to the scene, he already shot his gun at you, so I ran to check you, and I found that you got hit on your leg, the fall might got you unconscious. Then I heard Jack talking, he kept on saying 'I'm sorry, I'm so sorry Ana' and when I turn to look at him, he aimed his gun at his head, and shot him. Everything was so quick, the ambulance and the police then arrived as I called my driver to call for some help."
As I was about to speak, my doctor came in. My doctor explained my condition, turns out I wasn't that wounded from the bullet, and after a few days of recovery I can finally go home from the hospital. After my doctor checked on me, I asked Christian for my phone, I had to call my parents. But then, Christian beat me to it, as he already called my parents, and they are on their way to Seattle. Christian also told me that he would me throughout the investigation.
"Thank you Christian, for everything. We don't even know that much about each other, but you already have helped me a lot." I smiled at him.
"There's still plenty of time for that." and he smirks at me. "and you need some rest."
No, this can't be happening, Jack is here again. He's hurting me, and he has a gun.
"No! Jack! No, please!" I cried.
"I'm sorry Ana."
"No!"
"Anastasia!" I feel someone shaking me. "Anastasia! Wake up!"
Gray eyes bore into mine, I relaxed seeing his eyes, looking up at him, I feel safer. I realized, I needed to tell him the truth, I know this would come out eventually, with the investigation, I need him to hear it first from me.
"Christian." I whispered. "I need to tell you something."
He stares at me, as I go on and told him everything, by everything, it includes me being involved in a BDSM relationship, how I became a submissive, and how Jack became my dom.
"I know, it's not that usual to meet someone in this kind of lifestyle. But I thought what I have gone through with Jack was safe. At first it was. But lately, he became someone I don't know. He became dangerous."
And then suddenly, I remembered how I even got here at the hospital, "the contract!" I looked up at Christian and he got alarmed as I shouted.
"I need to get that contract Christian! That's where it all laid out, my involvement."
"Hey, hey listen to me. You have been abused. This is not your fault. Remember that. I'm gonna help you figure this all out."
"But, why are you still helping me? I am not an innocent person, I almost killed someone!"
"Anastasia, believe me or not. But the moment I saw you, I'm already captivated. I know already that something was up with Hyde, I have too many encounters with him in the corporate world. To say, he wasn't that pleasant person." he sighs "Anastasia, I have no right to judge you. It's your life, it was your decision. I admired your strength that you got through this."
He took my hand in his, "After you told me what really happened, the more I adore you."
A few days later. I was released from the hospital. True to his word. Christian helped me every step of the way. He referred his lawyer for me, and assures that my name would be clear from any of this mess. My parents were able to arrived a day after I was admitted to the hospital, and I also told them the truth. My mom cried so hard, and I thought my dad was going to scold me for getting involve in a BDSM relationship. But I didn't expect them to be so accepting. My parents told me that what I did is ridiculous, but what is important is that I am alive. My parents also met Christian, and thank him for everything.
Jack's lawyer met up with me a day after I got released from the hospital. Aside from the owner's title of SIP, which was already on my name, turns out, Jack left everything he owns to me. I was shocked. I can't accept this. I don't want to go back to his penthouse, where it reminds me of dark memories. I don't even know how to run a company, and so I have decided.
I sold the penthouse and his car. The money he left and the money from selling the penthouse and the car, I donated it to the orphanage where Jack stayed when he was a child and I also donated some to the Coping Together charity, which was founded by Christian's parents. My lawyer suggested that I should keep SIP and JHYDE Corp., or keep either of the two, and so I chose to keep SIP and sell JHYDE Corp., the proceeds of JHYDE Corp. will be for the improvement of SIP.
Christian then bought JHYDE Corp. Every operations of JHYDE Corp. is transferred now to Grey Enterprises Holdings Inc.
Three years has passed and everything had been good. I was working on myself, and I have been meeting a Psychiatrist to help me cope up with everything that I have experienced for the past months. As I go through the process, it gave me an inspiration that there is still something to look forward to the world and in life. I became a stronger person.
Christian and I got to know each other better after I got out from the hospital. It was 7 months later when he officially asked me out, and since then we have been going out. After 5 months of seeing each other, it was on the day of our 1st year anniversary as we have met where he officially asked me to be his girlfriend, and I said yes. On that same year, I took over as CEO in SIP and changed the name SIP to Realm of Paradise Publishing.
Occasionally, Christian and I fight over small things, or perhaps silly things. For the first time after my arrangement with Jack, I felt respected. Christian never pushed me too far, and when we make love, he's perfectly gentle. We treated each other as equals, inside or outside the bedroom. It was on our first year anniversary as boyfriend/girlfriend when he proposed to me. I remembered that day, where he took me to the house on the sound. When I asked him what we were doing in the house, he just shrugged. As we walk through the meadow, he turns to me, "Do you like the place?"
As I looked around, everything is just so beautiful, I fell in love with the place. I would totally buy if it was on sale. "This is really beautiful Christian, who owns this?" I asked him and when I turned to look at him, he gets down on one knee, Oh. Is this what I think it is?
"Ana, It's been 2 years since the first time we met and our start wasn't that good." he laughs nervously, "but from the moment I saw you, I saw that sparkle in your blue eyes, and immediately, I was enamored with you. We may have known each other for 2 years, and we may have been in a serious relationship for a year, but I want the years to continue by being committed to you with marriage, and raising our family in this house. I want to share every experience and every moment of my life with you. I love you so much, Anastasia Rose Steele, will you marry me?"
I can feel the tears in my eyes. "Yes. Yes, I love so much Christian Trevelyan Grey!" he slips the ring on my finger, and I cupped his cheek as I kissed him tenderly on the lips.
"Raising our family in this house." I repeated what he said and he laughs.
4 months after we got engaged, we got married. Christian and I couldn't wait any longer to be married, and so we held our wedding at our home with our family and close friends. A month later, I got pregnant. I remembered, one day on our honeymoon, the moment was too intense and hot that we didn't care to use protection. Even though it was not planned but we're still happy to welcome our blip.
Now, I am 6 months pregnant, thinking back, I am still a lucky person after everything I have gone through.
"Hey." I feel a hand slipped on my baby bump.
"You seem deep in thought." Christian said before he kisses my neck.
"Hmm." he turns my head on the side to kiss me on my lips, tongues battling, I can feel his arousal as he pushes it on my leg.
"Why don't we go to bed, Mr. Grey?" I teased, and he smirks "my pleasure, Mrs. Grey" and with that he carries me to our bedroom.
After a few rounds of making love, we are now exhausted, and ready to fall asleep.
"I love you Ana."
"I love you too Christian."
I am free from the chains. I am now with the love of my life, a son on the way, and maybe more children and grandchildren in the future. This is my happiness.
A/N: Thank you for reading my first Fifty Shades fanfic. I apologized if there are any mistakes. I had this story in my head for a quite sometime now, after listening to the song "Woman in Chains" by Tears for Fears. The inspiration for the title of this story was that song. Actually, that song was one of my favorites. In this story, Christian is not in the BDSM lifestyle. Please let me know what you think!
I do not own Fifty Shades, the characters, and the song.