Loraine waited three days.
Three days of obedience so perfect it fooled even herself.
She smiled when Jason spoke. She let him hold her hand. She didn't flinch when he stood too close. She even leaned into him once, just enough to make his eyes soften.
"You're finally calm," he murmured that night. "I knew you'd come back to me."
She nodded against his chest, her heart pounding with lies.
Inside, she was counting.
The Window of Silence
The chance came just before dawn.
Jason had barely slept for days. His obsession kept him awake, pacing, watching her breathe like he feared she would disappear if he closed his eyes. When he finally collapsed into sleep, it was deep—heavy, exhausted.
The guards changed shifts at five.
She moved quietly.
Barefoot. Slow. Controlled.
The hallway felt endless. Every step made her stomach twist, every shadow looked like him. She reached the service corridor—the one he rarely used, the one he never thought she noticed.
The door was unlocked.
Her breath caught.
She opened it.
Outside, the air was cold and real and tasted like freedom.
She ran.
So Close
She didn't look back.
The trees blurred past her. Gravel tore at her feet. Her lungs burned, but she didn't stop. The outer gate loomed ahead—tall, black, cruel—but not impossible.
She was almost there.
Then she heard it.
Her name.
Not shouted.
Whispered.
"Loraine."
Her blood turned to ice.
Hands grabbed her from behind, slamming her into the gate so hard her vision exploded in white. Pain tore through her bruised ribs. She screamed.
Jason spun her around violently.
His face was unrecognizable—eyes wild, hair disheveled, chest heaving like a man drowning.
"I KNEW IT," he shouted. "I KNEW YOU WERE LYING!"
"I was so close," she sobbed. "Please—just let me go—"
He slapped her.
Once.
Then again.
Not hard enough to knock her out—but enough to leave her shaking.
"You almost left me," he roared, gripping her shoulders and shaking her violently. "Do you have any idea what that does to me?!"
She cried openly now, fear pouring out of her. "You're hurting me! Please!"
That broke something in him.
Jason Shatters
He released her suddenly, stumbling back like he'd been burned.
"I didn't mean to," he said, voice cracking. "I swear—I swear I didn't mean to—"
She slid down the gate, body trembling, arms wrapped around herself.
"You were going to disappear," he whispered, dropping to his knees in front of her. "I woke up and you were gone. Do you know what that felt like?"
He grabbed his head, shaking. "I thought I'd lost you. I thought—"
He sobbed.
Real, broken sobs.
"I can't survive without you," he said hoarsely. "You're all I have. You're all I am."
She stared at him, heart pounding—not with love, not anymore, but with terror.
Dragged Back
The breakdown didn't last.
It never did.
He stood abruptly, fury returning like a snapped wire. He grabbed her arm and dragged her back toward the house. She screamed, kicked, fought—but she was weak, injured, exhausted.
"You almost destroyed me," he snarled. "You don't get freedom after that."
He locked her in the bedroom.
Not the small room.
This time, he locked himself inside with her.
After
She curled on the bed, bruised and shaking.
Jason paced.
"I tried to be gentle," he muttered. "I tried to trust you."
He turned to her suddenly. "You won't try again."
It wasn't a question.
She said nothing.
Her silence terrified him more than screams ever had.
He sat beside her slowly, touching her cheek with trembling fingers.
"I love you," he said. "And love means keeping what's yours."
Her eyes filled with tears.
Inside her, something hardened.
She had almost made it.
Next time, she wouldn't hesitate.
Questions That Bleed
How much closer can she get before it kills her?
How far will Jason go now that he knows she's lying?
What happens when obsession fully replaces love?
And when the next chance comes—
will there be a next chance at all?