A/N: Thank you to xBeautyinNegativeSpaces, ChainGangHottieWithKillerLegs, my time is now, Cena's baby doll, paula and therealchamps for the amazing reviews. It's a great start for this story - at least, I think it is. Also, thank you to everyone who read the first chapter - so many hits and visitors! I hope you enjoy this new chapter.
Never Alone
Chapter Two - Run Away
Slowly opening her eyelids, Stacy's first realization was that the agonizing headache had come to an end. It still throbbed a bit when she did a brusque move while moving her head, but gratefully the pain wasn't piercing her mind as it did the previous night.
Still lying on top of a comfortable mattress and covered by the silky sheets, her fingers ran through the back of her head bit by bit and noticed a bump. The swelling was near the nape and identified the local where her head hit the wall.
Unfortunately, the bump wasn't small as she was hoping it to be, but at least her long blonde hair would hide it from the other people's eyes. It was one less mark of her boyfriend's disgusting actions against her to worry about.
Stacy's lips coiled into a petite and innocent smile when she understood it was morning. It was her second realization after welcoming a brand new day.
When was the very last time she had a full night of sleep? It had been too long ago since it happened that she had almost forgotten how her rested body felt.
When her personal hell begun, Stacy didn't feel safe to fall asleep first than the man lied at her side. When the moment to close her eyes finally arrived, the sleep would only appear hours later and when it took over her body, she habitually found herself tangled on a spiral of nightmares. Not even in her dreams she escaped from his hands.
However, her sleep was haunted too by something else; by something she didn't dare to think about or to speak out loud - if she ever did it, it would become real. This shadow never left her due to the terror infiltrated in her body. She feared it would occur once again. And again. Over and over again. The smile vanished when her mind sharply revived second by second of those moments.
The blonde woman sat upright on the bed and glimpsed the environment surrounding her. It was a hotel bedroom. By the sunbeams lighting the space she could tell it was early.
Only then it hit her she had no clue where she had spent the night. To whom belonged this room? How did she get here? Her last memory was being trapped in the elevator without knowing how to act.
As strange as it may sound, the bedroom was recognizable, but at the same time unfamiliar. It was equal to all the bedrooms in the hotel that the WWE crew was staying, but it didn't belong to any of her friends - one bed occupied the space and usually the Divas shared the bedrooms between them - and it was far from being her own bedroom, the bedroom she was obligated to split with him. Not only she didn't see her bags placed on the floor, but if he had discovered her last night, she wouldn't have had a serene night of sleep as she did.
Wherever she was, he wasn't around - lately, he was constantly near; he didn't give her a second to herself, to be alone - and it made Stacy feel relieved. For a moment she was free from his oppressive claws.
Stacy was glad for having time. The blonde Diva needed time to win courage before facing him. It was acknowledged by her what he had reserved for her when they met again, so she knew she needed to prepare herself mentally and physically to the abusive pain he would cause to her body.
Ambushed in dark thoughts, Stacy didn't hear someone approaching. One of the curtains was opened up, catching the blonde off guard.
- Good morning. - Stacy recognized the voice. It was the same voice from the previous night; the voice in the elevator.
The man who spoke had been waiting for the blonde to wake up. He couldn't leave her alone in his own bedroom without letting her know what happened first.
Her eyes met the person who spoke. It wasn't a strange as she hoped to be. Unluckily, this man worked on the same company as she and her boyfriend. Also, she could swear John Cena was friends with the guy that was making her life a living hell, but she wasn't certain if it was his name she once listened to him saying he would meet.
When he obligated her to stay inside their bedroom while he went out, he would never tell her who he would be meeting and she never dared to ask. He didn't need to give her explanations, but she had to tell him everything. If she venture to hide something - it didn't matter what it was -, he would teach her a lesson for having secrets to him.
- You better to take this. - Stacy sent him a suspicious glance when he handed her the glass of water and two white pills. The look wasn't unnoticed by the man. - These are aspirins for the nasty bump on the back of your head.
It was June and the weather was warm, but Stacy froze. The prior night she lowered her guards. She should have been more cautious. If he had seen the bump, what more could have he seen?
What if he took her to a hospital when she passed out? The doctors would comprehend she was a victim of domestic abuses while examining her. Her secret couldn't be exposed. She didn't feel like imagining how badly he would hurt her if the secret was revealed.
The makeup did an excellent job hiding the bruises and the dark circles under her eyes from her friends and everyone else that watched her on a daily basis. But it wasn't enough. Under the dress she was hiding a bruise of the size of a hand - of his hand. It covered her belly and it was far from being cured. It still had a yellow-purple color and some blood vessels were visible. When she woke up the day after he beat her, she thought she had an internal bleeding, but she couldn't go to a doctor to soothe her dugouts. He would kill her if she did it.
- I'm not trying to poison you - John assured without understand her reluctance. The blonde Diva hadn't taken the pills yet.
She wrapped her fingers around the glass of water and picked up the pills from his hand without touching him in the process. She only took one of the pills and a prolonged gulp of water. The other pill was placed on top of the bedside table along with the empty glass. Until that moment she hadn't realized how thirsty she was.
- I have to go. - The words flew from Stacy's mouth without minding if she was being rude to John, who has been nothing but kind and helped her, and it seemed he still was helping her, when she was vulnerable. As nicer as he was being, she couldn't forget he was friends with her boyfriend and perhaps he wouldn't hesitate to tell him the occurrences - starting from the principle John knew who she was dating.
Her last desire was to leave to his encounter, but Stacy couldn't stay where she was now. Not after John seeing the bump in her head. Question would arise and she didn't have responses to offer.
- Don't you want to know what happened last night? - John queried and saw her pulling away from her body the sheets. It was clear as crystal she wanted to leave in a second and not to listen to explanations.
- Not really.
What she didn't know wouldn't trouble her. He couldn't harm her for not having knowledge of something that happened when she was dizzy and with a major ache in her head provoked by him. If he hadn't hurt her as he did - if didn't hurt her as he always did -, she would be in possession of all her mental faculties and wouldn't have slipped.
The blonde bent over to search for her shoes, but then she remembered she had left the bedroom barefoot. The last night, her only contemplation was to break away. Nothing else mattered given that she got free of him.
- I'm going to tell you anyway - he replied. - I found you inside the elevator last night. You ended up passing out - I assume that it must have been because of the bump in your head - and I brought you to my bedroom because you couldn't tell me which one was yours. I would have called someone who you know, but you didn't have a cell phone.
Of course, John didn't tell she was semi-conscious when they reached the bedroom and mumbled no-sense words. The breath of alcohol wasn't existent, but he was close to believe she had a few more drinks - or took something illegal - the previous night than she should.
- Thank you for helping me. - She truly was thankful for what he did for her. She was sounding ungrateful only because she needed to escape and to return to her hell. - But let's forget it happened. I must go.
If she was seen leaving this bedroom, he would know. And he would think she…Stacy swallowed. She shouldn't have run away from him. She should have left herself on his hands and to let him do whatever he wished with her. Didn't she always let him do it what he desired? It wouldn't be worse than what he would be doing to her when it was known where she had spent her night: in another man's bedroom.
Lost in her worries, Stacy didn't understand John was holding her on his arms. When trying to move, to give the first step, she lost her balance and he rushed to grab her. An excruciating pain struck her head. The last events were affecting her and it was like she couldn't walk away without falling. The dizziness was back.
John aided her to sit on the bed. With her eyes close, Stacy didn't face him while he assisted her. How could she leave by herself if she didn't have strength to stay on her feet?
- You don't seem able to go anywhere by your own feet. - It would be a lot easier for him if she was willing to accept his help. He was running off late, but it didn't feel right to leave this woman in this condition. - Do you want me to call someone? Do you want me to take you to a doctor?
In a second, her eyes were wide open and narrowed him. The hazel orbits gave him the answers he was looking for. No, she didn't want him to make any call. He couldn't contact anyone to pick her up. And no, he couldn't take her to a hospital.
John's suspicions were raised once again about what led her to this state. Possibly she didn't want to be seen by a doctor with apprehension of being discovered she may have taken something that would put her job at risk.
- I don't want to abuse of your hospitality - Stacy's eyes turned to the empty glass -, but can you get me another glass of water?
When John disappeared into the bathroom, Stacy tried to rise up again. He wouldn't take long to fill the glass; she had to hurry up. This time the blonde woman was more careful and reached the walls to help her stay on her feet.
To walk could kill her - it was an exaggerated observation, but to stroll was painful. Nevertheless, the death was better than what he would do to her when figured out how the last night turned out for her.
Step-by-step, Stacy finally left the bedroom and got ready to face him. The devil's personification would be so irate. After dealing with him, Stacy believed she wouldn't be able to move for many and many hours.
When John returned to the room, he didn't catch a glimpse of the blonde in distress, but he heard the front door slamming. He moved to go after her. However his pace was stopped by his cell phone ringing.
The WWE superstar took a look at the identification. By now, he was more than overdue to his meeting. He grabbed the cell phone and answered the call.
- Sorry, I overslept - John lied. What happened that morning would be kept a secret until he had a better idea of what was that. - I'll be there in a minute.