Deral kept his promise and dropped Theodessa off at her place. The whole way, he kept small talk open, asking simple questions. Theodessa had no choice but to answer. 

After a silence, Deral asks, with hope filling his soul. “So, are you thinking about that competition?”

“I’ll see if my family can be there..”

“I didn’t ask about your family,” Deral says. “I asked about you.”

“What’s the use if they won’t be there?”

“Mine won’t be there. They would rather be in the presence of a chihuahua in a pink tutu than see me on stage.”

“You have a band,” Theodessa says. “That’s different.”

Only the sound of the rickety AC and tires on asphalt echoed in Deral’s car. Theodessa didn’t relish in the silence. She couldn’t hear the music in the screaming AC or the droning of the tires. Better musicians would probably be able to find music through it, but she was not them. This was not Music to her ears. This was only noise.

Finally, Theodessa catches a break as the tires slow. Theodessa glanced up and saw her house. The light to the spire she lived was on—the shadow of a person in the curtains.

“Hey,” Deral catches her attention. “Promise you’ll think about competing.”

Theodessa nods, giving a half-committed response as Deral stops his car in front of the curb. Theodessa steps out, waving behind her. As she walked to her door, Deral drove off. 

As soon as she walked in, her Mother's imposing figure stood between her and the kitchen—fists on her hips and a deadly look on her stone-like face. 

“Where have you been?” her voice was even colder than her looks. 

“Study group,” Theodessa’s lie came out before she could tell the truth. “I was helping some classmates. 

“Next time, tell us. You missed dinner.” She turns, like a leaf, letting Theodessa pass her. “You have a guest upstairs.”

Theodessa nods and walks through the kitchen and up the spiral staircase to her room. Every step up slower than the last, as if there was a current pulling her down. Though if there was, she would have let it and collapsed to the floor.

Richard waited at the landing. The setting sun illuminated him through the large window behind. He only watched, with the eyes of a predator, as she opened her door.

Inside, a man waited, standing, peering through the curtains. The man turned, startled by her presence. 

“Feeling rebellious today?” His deep voice was laced with fake soothing. He sauntered closer as if he wasn’t already being timed. “How about we break a few rules?” his hot breath floated around her shoulder. The bite that followed was sure to leave a mark. 

Theodessa ran on autopilot, her mind escaping elsewhere, digging through her memories and finding solace in the joy they brought. 

Theodessa was lucky that night. There was only one man to share an hour with. His breath stained her skin. His fingers lingered even long after he was gone. The pain never faded even well into the morning.