Juliet's luck eventually ran out. One night, while Juliet was sleeping she heard a rustling in the opposite corner of her room. Her eyes opened slowly and looked around. Nothing was around her and she came to the conclusion that she imagined the noise. Juliet nodded off.
A cold wire touched her neck and her eyes popped open. Before she could even scream and cloth was smacked against he nose and mouth. The smell of antiseptic and cookies filled her airways. Her body went limp,
Juliet woke up in a familiar setting. Her bedroom from when she was living with Frank. Juliet looked around hoping she was in some sort of a realistic dream. A hot pain surged through her neck. Juliet was afraid to speak. The familiar sound of pounding footsteps became louder and louder until a familiar face hovered above Juliet.
Words cannot explain the amount of fright that Juliet felt at that moment. "Thought you could run off on me, huh?" he clenched and unclenched his fists. Juliet didn't say a word. "Thought I wouldn't find you, eh?" his breath smelled strongly of cigarettes. Juliet tried to sink into her bed. "Well, remember that promise I made you concerning a certain secret being told to a certain person?" his eyes were filled with fury. "I said I would kill you, but first, your gonna suffer. And it's gonna be hell." He spat at her. An empty bottle from who-knows-when lay on Juliet's nightstand. Frank picked it up and smashed it over Juliet's face. Juliet screamed and scrambled out of her bed. She backed against the wall, feeling glass cut her eye each time she blinked. Frank surged over to her, his arms in front of him. He grabbed hold of Juliet's neck and pushed his thumb against Juliet's windpipe. Juliet tried to pry his fingers off of her throat but had no luck.
"You son of a bitch!" he kicked her balance out from under her and lifted her off the ground by her throat. Frank threw her onto the bed and let go of her throat. Juliet gasped for air. "You will not do a single thing unless I tell you. Do you understand me?" he asked. Juliet nodded, tears streaming down her face. Blood rolled down her face and onto her clothing. He walked out of the room and Juliet sunk back into her bed hoping it was over.
Frank walked back in moments later holding a wad of toilet paper. He threw it at her and said, "Get some rest, you'll need it for tomorrow." A smirk played at his lips. Juliet wiped the blood from her face and sobbed into the toilet paper. She pulled the blanket over her face and sobbed. Her entire body shook, making the bed move. Eventually, Juliet fell asleep again.
Juliet woke up to the disappointment of not seeing her room that Ginger had made for her only a few months ago. Instead she saw his face. The same one that had beat her last night. He stared at her intently. "You don't deserve to be alive." He blurted out. "You are a selfish, good-for-nothing child; I regret having you." That stung. Frank pulled the covers from her. He grabbed her arm and pulled her out of her bed, dragging her out of the room, mumbling something about not deserving to be clean. Frank pulled Juliet into the bathroom and they were immediately greeted by the presence of steam. Frank pulled back the curtain to the bathtub and pushed her over to the bath. "Get in." He commanded. Juliet's legs wobbled underneath herself. She couldn't move. Frank shook her arm.
"GET IN!" he roared. Juliet jumped and began moving to put her foot into the water. "Not like that dumb-ass! Get undressed." He jerked her back. Juliet whimpered but followed his command. She placed one foot in the water but pulled it out quickly.
"It's too hot." She sobbed, covering her face. Frank slapped her on her cheek and lifted her into the water. Hot, blistering pain erupted in her legs and feet. She felt blisters form on them as Frank pushed her farther down into the water.
"The faster you clean up, the faster you can get out." He threw a bar of hairy soap at her and left the bathroom. Juliet screamed and tried to make the burning pain go away. She scrubbed herself with soap, ignoring the stinging sensation in her wounds from the night before. Quickly, she rinsed off and hopped out of the bathtub. Just to be safe, she drained the water and sat on the toilet, bare. She looked at her swollen, red body and sobbed harder. Frank heard her and swung the door open. He grabbed her by her arm and pushed her into her room slamming the door shut. Juliet ran to her bed and covered herself up, hiding the painful blisters on her body. She screamed and cried until no more tears would fall and all that was left was the sound of her occasionally sniffling in. Frank burst through the door and Juliet pretended to be asleep. Frank slapped her blistered face in order to wake her up.
"You think that you can just run away, don't ya'?" he spat at her. Juliet whimpered but didn't answer. "Answer me!" he screamed.
Juliet squealed and retorted, "I had to run away!"
Frank snorted, "You wuss. You can't handle a tiny scratch on your head." He cackled at himself.
"It was huge and you almost killed me." Juliet yelled. She wanted to slug him multiple times in the face. Frank's laugh came to an abrupt stop and his eyes narrowed on Juliet's face.
"Don't you dare talk back to me!" he held his hand up as a warning. Juliet squirmed in her bed, feeling the cloth scratch against her numerous blisters.
"You think that you can just replace me with some bitch, eh?" he continued chuckling to himself. Frank moved his face to where it was inches from Juliet. "Well you were wrong." His breath making a cloud around her face and making her cough. Frank stood up and walked out of the room, leaving Juliet in complete fear.
The next morning, Frank yelled Juliet's name from inside the kitchen. "What?" Juliet called back.
"Get out of bed!" he roared so loud that it felt like the house shook.
Juliet whimpered, knowing she was wearing nothing. She looked in her closet to see if there was anything in there. Surprisingly, all of her clothes were still there. She grabbed the largest shirt she could find and a skirt and pulled the over herself. It hurt to move. Juliet slowly walked out to the kitchen to see her former father making a big breakfast.
He shoved a plate at her. "This will be your last good meal." He informed her. Juliet made no response and slowly took her first bite of the scrambled eggs on her plate. She savored the taste of each bite until Frank commanded for her to hurry up. She gobbled the rest down and sat quietly waiting for what would happen next.
"Why are you wearing your old clothes?" he asked angrily. Juliet felt tears in her eyes.
"I- I didn't have anything else to wear." Juliet muttered.
Frank sighed and said nothing else. Juliet didn't dare ask to leave, she just waited quietly for Frank to say something. Juliet looked at her arms and popped the blisters on them. Pus and goo oozed from them and rolled down her arm.
A few minutes later, Frank told her to wait in her room. She did as she was told. Frank walked in a few minutes later. He was holding a freshly opened bottle of beer. He took a large swig of it, swished it around in his mouth and then spit it out. The beer splattered on the floor leaving a puddle by Juliet's bed. Juliet stared at it disgustedly.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to get your floor dirty." He apologized sarcastically. He took another swig, swished it around and spit at Juliet. She flinched as the warm beer fell on her, stinging all over. Juliet screamed and used her blanket to scrub it off.
"What the heck!" Juliet screamed, jumping out of her bed and running to the other side of the room. "You're crazy!" Juliet screamed, tears falling from her face. Frank ran to her and punched her in the stomach. Juliet doubled over in pain. He smashed the beer bottle over Juliet's back, soaking her with beer.
He grabbed her face and looked her straight in the eyes. "You ain't seen nothin' yet, bitch." Frank punched her once more in the gut and stormed out of the room. Juliet sobbed quietly and pulled off her smelly shirt. She replaced it with a new one and did the same with her skirt. Juliet's body was still sticky from the beer on her skin. She waited for Frank to come back, hoping that he would just put her out of her misery.
No one will miss me. Juliet told herself. Ginger will adopt someone else. She continued. Her thoughts were interrupted by Frank storming in again. This time her held a mop and bucket.
"Go clean the kitchen. I want it spotless." He shoved the supplies at her and Juliet shuffled to the kitchen. She filled the bucket with warm water and dipped the mop in it. Juliet cleaned the floor and then moved onto the counters. She scrubbed until her knuckles ached. Frank came back into the kitchen and looked around. He sniffed the air and looked at her. "You smell like beer." He scolded. Juliet felt like saying, "Well, duh." But decided against it.
Frank walked into the bathroom and ran a bath. Juliet prayed that it wasn't going to burn her this time. He pulled her into the bathroom and Juliet immediately knew that the water was scorching hot again. She frowned and looked at Frank. She was not getting in there again. Juliet stood there staring at Frank. "Get in." He urged her. Juliet said nothing. She crossed her arms. I'll fight until the water cools down. Juliet thought. Frank's face turned red with anger. "Get in!" he yelled. Juliet barely flinched. He slapped her face and Juliet grabbed her cheek and screamed. It'll be hard for him to undress me. Juliet felt like laughing but, her pain was stronger.
"I'm not getting in." Juliet replied, a bit of uncertainty in her voice.
"Yes, you are. Now. Get. In." He commanded. Juliet shook her head. Frank grabbed her hair and slammed her head against the kitchen sink. Juliet would not crack. Anything was better than blistering water. Frank slugged her in her stomach and threw her against the wall. "I can kill you, right now." Frank breathed.
"Do it." Juliet placed her hands on her hips. She ignored the goose egg forming on her skull and the throbbing pain in her stomach. Frank stared blankly. "I know you won't kill me. You need me. You use me to let out your anger. You won't ever kill me." Juliet's legs shook, she had never stood up to her dad before. A smile of victory formed on her face. Frank smacked her cheek again making it disappear.
"Get in." He replied in a calmer tone.
"M-Make it colder." Juliet commanded back at him. Frank stood there for a second and instead of turning the water on, he picked her up and threw her into the bathtub. The water was not as hot as before, but it still burned Juliet's skin.
"You're gonna stay in there until the water is cold. I don't want to smell any beer on you." He commanded, slamming the door shut. Juliet still felt a small sense of victory. She made him realize that he needed her and she was right.
Juliet felt more blisters form on her skin and others popped and the water stung inside them. She cried until Frank yelled for her to shut up. Then she cried quietly.
Frank walked back into the bathroom and told her to get out. "Hopefully you're clean because that's the last bath that you'll be getting." He explained. Juliet sighed a sigh of relief. He directed her to her bedroom and told her to get dressed. Inside her room, Juliet felt like dancing. She wouldn't have to endure another boiling bath again! Juliet quickly put on her clothes and walked out of her room, feeling like she could face anything right now. There was nothing as bad as a boiling bath.
Yet again, Juliet was wrong. Frank had something else planned for her. He shoved an ashtray in her face. "I can't throw these away." He lied, Juliet had seen him dump them in the trash can over a hundred times. Juliet stared at them, unsure what Frank meant. "I want you to eat them." He commanded. Juliet gasped softly. Three cigarette butts lay in the ashtray, surrounded by a pile of ashes. Juliet gulped. Frank picked on up and handed them to her.
"Eat it, or I'll shove it down your throat." He commanded. Juliet held one in her hand and slowly placed it on her tongue. The taste was retched. Juliet gagged but managed to chew the butt up and swallow it. She felt the cigarette slid down her throat and land like a bomb in her stomach. Frank handed her the next one. She swallowed it whole and did the same with the third one. Frank poured some water in the ashtray. "Now drink it." He commanded. Juliet stared at the black, ashy water. She lifted the ashtray to her lips and swallowed a gulp of the foul water. Her stomach lurched and she threw up the water and a cigarette butt.
"Now, look at the mess you've made." He fumed. Juliet crouched behind the counter, letting only her eyes peek out above it.
"I can't each ashes. It's not good for me." Juliet whispered.
"Well, neither is running away!" he screamed. "Now you're going to eat that again and you are not going to throw them up. Do you understand?" he asked. Juliet nodded.
She picked up a slimy cigarette and swallowed it again. She cleaned up the water on the counter and turned to her dad. "I'm finished." She whispered, feeling her stomach slosh around angrily. Frank shooed her into her room. Juliet grabbed her pencil bin and heaved up her grotesque punishment into it. She hid the pin under her bed and sobbed into her blanket that now smelled like beer. She wanted to die, she wanted to live in heaven with all the other dead children. Her entire body ached, even her insides were hurting. She hated Frank.
She was no longer free.
Sniffle. Sob. Sniffle.
Sorry for the language in this one.
WOW I WROTE LIKE 4000 WORDS IN LESS THAN 24 HOURS! YOUR WELCOME!
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