DISCLAIMER: Twilight and its inclusive material is copyright to Stephenie Meyer. Original creation, including but not limited to plot and characters, is copyright to the respective authors of each story. No copyright infringement is intended. Additionally, "Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night" belongs to Dylan Thomas. No copyright infringement is intended.
Previously:
"Our hour is almost up." I stood from the bed and shed the clothes he'd given me. I heard him stand, and when I looked over, I found his back to me once more. I pulled the coat on and wrapped it around my body. "Okay." He turned back to look at me. "Thank you." His brows furrowed.
"For what?"
He looked so adorable, confused and happy all at once. I walked over to him and kissed his cheek before leaving him behind.
Lars flipped on the light as he came in from the hallway. He'd been out there yelling at some of the guys for the past hour. I flinched against the bright light and pulled my arm over my eyes. The movement caused a sharp pain in my side, and I sucked in a quick breath holding it. The pain throbbed so intensely. I'd never felt pain like this. Never before…and hopefully never again.
"Li…" There wasn't even enough air in my lungs to speak.
"Schatzi, no speak," he said. The sound of the light switch made me relax but just barely. He sat beside me, and even the slight movement caused the pain to spike. He raised my shirt to rest just under my breasts. "I just check you." I couldn't keep the tears from leaking out of my eyes as he pulled the tape from my skin. "Es tut mir leid. Es tut mir leid." I reached up slowly and rubbed his cheek. I felt like I couldn't breathe, much less talk. A whimper leaked from me when the cool air hit the wound. The pain was almost unbearable.
Never in a million years did I think I'd be stabbed. Pain play was the worst job for which we could be booked. It was sick, the lengths some people would go to just to get off. I could handle most of it – the slapping, the burning, the small cuts. I'd built up a tolerance over the years. Never, though, did I anticipate this. The customers were searched before they entered the club, but this had slipped by Hans somehow. I knew Lars was beyond livid and wouldn't be surprised if someone lost their life because of this.
Unable to hold my arm up for long, I laid it down with my hand resting on his thigh. He pulled my other arm from my eyes and laid it down gently. He grabbed a syringe from the nightstand and gave me a shot. It took a moment before it hit me. Morphine. I relaxed slightly knowing relief was quickly on the way. I could feel sweat forming on my face.
"I take care of you," Lars said quietly, almost to himself. "You be okay. I make sure you okay." My eyelids began to droop. I was so tired. "I sorry. Ich liebe dich." I barely heard his last words as I drifted into sleep.
The next time I woke, it was dark in the room, too dark to even have light coming in through the window shades. I reached over to the other side of the bed but felt only cold sheets. I looked around, my side smarting when I turned too far, but I didn't see him around. It took me a few moments and a lot of pain, but I eventually pushed myself up until I was sitting.
It felt like it took hours for me to reach the bathroom as I drug the IV stand beside me. Then just looking at the toilet made me wish I could pee standing. Guys had it so easy, and they didn't even realize it. By the time I was done, I was hoping to find some pain meds. As I finished washing my hands, I heard Lars yell for me in the room. I would have yelled back, but I still couldn't take deep breaths. His voice grew frantic the more he called for me. I didn't want him to worry so I tried to hurry.
"Liebling," I said at a normal volume after opening the door. He looked over at me and visibly relaxed. I just stood there as he crossed the room in a few strides and held my arms.
"Schatzi, you okay?" His voice was quiet, worried. I nodded.
"Just needed the bathroom." He rubbed my arms. "Now I need the bed again."
He stepped to my side, wrapped an arm around me gently, and led me back to the bed. He lowered me slowly and wrapped the blankets back around me. I winced at the sharp pain. He sat down and murmured to me in German. I just listened, not understanding a word he said. Whatever he was saying, it must have made him feel better.
"When will I have to go back to work?" The question was nagging at me. Lars had explained that I brought in a lot of money. Therefore, I had no doubt in my mind that I'd have to go back soon. My stomach turned at the thought of getting back on that stage while in this much pain.
"No work for long time. This bad," he told me as if I didn't already know. "Doctor said you need to rest, that it take at least a month to heal. I talk to boss; he say you get better all the way first." I was surprised they'd give me that much time to recover. "What can I do for you?" He reached up and stoked my cheek.
"Don't let anyone stab me again?" I tried to joke, but from the look of anger that clouded his face, it didn't exactly serve its purpose. His hands clenched and breath quickened. The rage clouded his eyes, and he growled low. "Liebling, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you angry."
"I get so angry he let this happen." I leaned up to touch his arm without thinking and fell back with a gasp.
"You hurt? Need medicine?" Without waiting for a reply, he turned and reached for a syringe on the nightstand. The prick in my arm barely even registered, but the almost instant relief was welcomed. When I sighed, he moved to the other side of the bed. I watched through droopy eyes as he pulled off his clothes then crawled into bed. He rolled onto his side facing me and laid a hand on my thigh. "Sleep. I take care of you."
AN 08/24/2018: Edward. Alice. They've been a nice reprieve, but it's back to Bella's real life. Unfortunately, this is one of those bad moments for Bella. It seems someone was really crafty at getting a knife past Hans...or were they? Big shout out and thank you to Danijela for assisting me with the German. You are much appreciated.
Below I'm going to address a guest reviewer and get on a bit of a soapbox. Feel free to read or skip.
Review: This is the first time.I write somthing negativ, How many Germans do you know? I know a lot and We know how to speak english. The surname Schmitz is not us common as you think. And guess what we dont wear Dirndls either. I prefer Jeans and Tshirts After three years your Bella should be able to speak german. Einen schönen Abend noch und vielleicht solltte man ein Volk erst kennen.
I don't feel your review is constructive. Had you offered a suggestion instead of basically telling me I don't know what I'm talking about, I would have taken what you said into consideration. This is a great platform for aspiring writers, and people who don't want to do more than fanfiction, to learn and grow. Readers and reviewers are more helpful than y'all may ever know. But I'm not going to perpetuate negativity for the sake of negativity. You could have been helpful (and I even asked you directly to give me more feedback), but instead you chose to be passive aggressive in a review then in a comment on Facebook as well. Despite that, I want to explain myself and my choices a bit further so that you may understand where I'm coming from.
I don't know a significant number of Germans. However, I do know my great grandparents and grandfather whom immigrated to America from Germany and was stationed in Germany as a soldier during the war. Don't assume because I've written one character in one story in one specific way that it's how I view all people with similar backgrounds. I have not stereotyped German people. I have written my own character Lars (again, one person) a specific way, and there is a reason for that.
I understand that there are many Germans that know how to speak English and honestly probably speak it better than some people whose first language is English. There are some of us (myself included) that tend to be lazy with the language. As some very smart readers/reviewers have pointed out, y'all don't know Lars' background. Is he there by choice? Was he born in Germany? Did he grow up learning different languages? You don't know. You can't assume things you know nothing about. Lars actually did not know English long before Bella came into the picture. It's something he began to learn because of her, and if you stick with me, you'll see that his English improves the further the story progresses. It's a testament to how he really feels about Bella, that he really actually cares for her.
As for using the surname of my own choosing for Lars, I'm not sure what your point is. I actually keep a list of names on my phone that I like for potential use in future stories. If I choose Schmitz, I choose it for my own reasons. I have no particular feelings towards the name. It is just a name.
As for Germans not wearing Dirndls - okay? Again, I'm not sure what your point is. Unless you're assuming I think this of all German people. Which if that's the case, you've just stereotyped me/my beliefs - the very thing of which I feel you've accused me.
More importantly, I don't appreciate you thinking I have done wrong by Bella not understanding the language after three years. First, you don't know if Bella's even been in Germany for three years. (Spoiler - she hasn't). Additionally, and perhaps even more importantly, I did research about this topic, a topic that is important to me. I have listened to and spoken with victims of human trafficking.
One of the major points I hope, and thought, I was getting across is that this is about control. Her captors do what that have to in order to control their victims' lives. Language, communication, is a crucial piece of control. If they're not allowed to learn the language, that can't communicate with people. I mean, can you imagine being somewhere, your life being in danger, wanting/needing/desperate for help, begging for someone to save you...but they don't understand you? That's terrifying to even think about it, and there are people that live this - it's their reality.
I appreciate you telling me to have a good evening, but telling me that and that I should know German people (all in German) is passive aggressive, and I'm not of fan of passive aggressiveness. Be straight with me, and be helpful. I want to do my best writing, but criticism without construction gets us nowhere.