Spark
I couldmanage until my jaw was unwired. I was beyond sick of this liquid diet. I longed for
something solid in my stomach; so much so, that I wouldn’t put it past myself to
beg Darren for a fucking steak when I could finally open my mouth again. Darren
started on his plate while I sucked small amounts of soup from my straw.
“I spoke to Sid today about the progression of your recovery,” Darren said as he
bit into the fresh island fish he’d been served.
I merely glanced at him to acknowledge I heard him. I knew he didn’t like to be
ignored.
“He said you’re healing just fine, but he worries about your mentality.”
I looked back at Darren confused. My mentality? The fuck was that supposed to
mean?
“Hmm?” was all I could manage. I had been reduced to muffled sounds in order
to communicate now unless I wrote it down my tablet.
“You’ve been diagnosed with depression, Jaden. I’m concerned.”
I snorted. I couldn’t help it. It never ceased to amaze me that he would never
understand why I felt the way I felt. Of course, I was depressed—this wasn’t news
—but he would never guess why even if I spelled it out for him in capital fucking
letters.
“Do you find this funny, Jaden? Do you think your recovery is nothing but a joke
to me?” he replied sternly.
I raised my eyebrows in surprise, but then again, how could I be? He was the
frickin’ cause for my recovery in the first place. Darren apparently didn’t see the
irony and continued to glare at me until I backed down. I finally sat back in my seat
and took another sip from my straw. I didn’t have the energy to argue with him,
nor did I have the verbal capacity.
“Tomorrow, the wiring in your jaw is being removed. If Sid doesn’t see a change
in your attitude by the end of next week, I’m putting you on an antidepressant.”
My gaze immediately shot to him, my eyes lit up in shock. He would drug me
with fake happiness? Fucking seriously? I gave him my pleading puppy dog look
and shook my head. He glared back at me with a warning in his eyes to let me know
how serious he was. I had to do something to prevent this.
I quickly turned to my tablet and pulled out the stylus, writing intently with my
stupid left hand since my right was still in a cast, and flashed the pad to Darren so
he could read it.
‘Compromise?’ I wrote.
He barely even glanced at the tablet before the word no quickly left his mouth as
he took a sip of his red wine.
I looked at him incredulously before rolling my eyes and setting the tablet down.
Of course, it was a no. Darren slammed his fist down on the table in response,
causing me to flinch in my chair.
“Goddammit, Jaden, this is not a game anymore!” he bellowed at me. “There are
no more compromises. You will do what you’re told, and that’s final.”
I looked at him with so much pain in my eyes I could practically feel them
burning. No longer able to stand the sight of him, I shot out of my chair, ignoring
the intense pain that raged through my ribs as I turned to leave the room. Hank
immediately halted my attempt as he moved right in front of me, blocking my exit
to the hallway. He then gently, but firmly, gripped my upper arm and escorted me
back to my seat. Darren remained perfectly calm and seated as he nonchalantly
took another bite of his fish while Hank forced me to sit back down. I crossed my
arms and huffed an irritated breath through my nose as I stared straight ahead.
“Finish your dinner, Jaden,” Darren ordered without looking at me.
I didn’t move. Just stared out the window with hate in my eyes.
“I swear to God, little girl, you do not want to push me today,” he warned,
staring at me intently, that dangerous glare back in his eyes.
Fear gripped my heart again as I felt my body shudder from the look he was
giving me. Honestly, what more would he do to me? He couldn’t hurt me physically
since he was so "concerned" about my recovery. If he took away any more
privileges, I would definitely succumb to my depression, which would further slow
my recovery. All this I had against him, yet I was too afraid of him to use any it. I no
longer felt the need to test him because he would always exceed my expectations.
Always.
Swallowing back my fear, I tried to keep my hand from trembling as I reached for
my bowl and took a small sip from my straw, hoping to placate him. He seemed
happy enough as he returned his attention to his dinner. We were silent for the rest
of the evening. I managed to finish almost all of my water and most of my soup and
took my evening medicine without complaint.
When we