Chapter 6: Bad

Song: Bad by Michael Jackson; the lyrics have been tweaked.

C POV

Who's bad?

"Put your hands above your head."

Christian obliged; this was his escape, a way to exit his body and become an observer of events. He'd learned this coping mechanism when he was three years old, and his mother's pimp used to burn him with cigarettes.

He'd had a tough introduction to life; having suffered all sorts of physical and emotional abuse before the age of four had left him as the perfect candidate for further abuse.

Luckily, his parents had found out about Elena early on and rescued him from her enslavement relatively unscathed- after a brief introduction to her lifestyle.

However, it wasn't until many years of counseling that he finally understood how he'd become vulnerable to Elena and her brand of BSMD.

Leila hovered over him as she fastened the cuffs.

"You were bad, real bad..."

Yes, no doubt about it. He'd been bad, bad, really, really bad.

And he deserved to be punished for his transgressions, for every time he'd shamelessly flirted with Anastasia Steele.

She leaned over him with hooded salacious eyes. God, it was as if he'd asked for it, knowing this time his punishment would be severe.

He'd met Leila about a year ago by chance or fate, if you will. He'd slept with many women, yes, but they had been what you would call normal relationships. That changed when he met her, and he'd found himself once again dragged into this fucked up lifestyle.

"You want this...admit it," she commanded.

Christian felt nauseous from sea sickness caused by riding the waves of torment. Keep riding, keep riding. Up and down, up and down. Eventually, the misery will subside.

As soon as he felt the sting, his body convulsed, and he wasn't in control of his body anymore.

...

"Christian? Are you listening to me?"

"What?"

Most reluctantly, Christian forced himself to pay attention. He and Leila sat together on his couch, their wedding invitations sprawled across the coffee table.

Ana. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't stop thinking about her. She'd become his obsession. That day at the bar, nothing had mattered except seeing her again. It had been a lapse of judgment indeed to bring Leila with him.

How stupid he'd been to think he could keep his feelings under control. But then again, he'd never expected Ana to kiss another man. Watching that clown propose to Ana in such a ridiculous fashion had been beyond infuriating. So he'd left with equally furious Leila trailing behind him.

Back to Anastasia. She was like no woman he'd ever met; she deserved much better than that fool. Granted, she'd been drinking irresponsibly, but she was so young. In fact, she was a year younger than his little sister.

"I was talking about changing the itinerary for our honeymoon. Even though I'm still in love with the Whitsunday Islands, one of the girls at the agency mentioned it may be too humid this time of year. Lisa rolled her eyes when I told her we weren't planning on doing ANY outdoor activities," she chuckled, "She still thought we would be in the mood for sightseeing. She's an old dog, that woman. Her kids are now having kids of their own...I bet she doesn't even have sex anymore! She knows how privacy was our top priority, and she still had the nerve to suggest we go on a cruise... can you believe it?"

While she talked, Christian reached over and studied the invitations along with their hand-printed envelopes. They'd been going out in the morning, she'd said. And then there would be no going back.

His ears perked up at the words: 'old dog' and 'sex', realizing he was already bored with this god-awful conversation.

"Listen," he suddenly interrupted her endless chatter. "I changed my mind about the wedding date."

"What? But... we've already got the wedding invitations printed!"

Christian said nothing. There was so much to say; he didn't know where to begin. Should he start with his nagging doubts or how she seemed like a stranger to him now?

"You can't do this to me, Christian!"

"I think we should postpone the wedding," Christian said, walking toward the front door, "I think we could both use a break from one another for a while."

"Hey! Where do you think you're going?"

"We'll continue this conversation when YOU stop yelling."

"NO! Christian... wait!"

Leila ran to him and wrapped her arms around his back.

"Please tell me you're not leaving me for that woman...the one at the bar."

Christian exhaled loudly, feeling suffocated, "My decision has nothing to do with her."

Well, that wasn't entirely true. However, he felt telling Leila about Ana would be a mistake. Ever since she'd learned about Ana, Leila had turned into an ugly green-eyed monster. More than once, he'd caught her reading his messages on his phone. She'd checked on his whereabouts throughout the day, making him feel like a dog on a leash.

"We need to postpone the wedding," he reiterated, hoping she would let it go for now, longing for a quick escape.

"Until when?" Leila murmured between clenched teeth.

"I don't know," He replied, untangling himself from her clutches.

"I won't let you do this," she yelled, pounding his chest with her fist.

He grabbed her hands in mid-air to stop her from inflicting further damage.

Perhaps it wasn't so much that she'd changed but that he'd been too blind to see her true colors all along.

I sure don't have the answers

But I have to ask once again,

Who's bad?

He had planned on letting her down gradually, but perhaps ending this relationship at once was the most sensible thing to do. Ana MIGHT give him another shot once she knew he was single again.

Eventually, Leila stopped fighting him and let her arms fall down by her side.

However, she continued to glare at him, indignant.

"What! Do you think I'm stupid? You're breaking up with me!"

"Fine!" he shot back, "Consider it done. The wedding's off."

And with that, he turned around to leave.

"STOP! Don't go! I swear to God if you go... you will be sorry!"