In my previous life, when I was being attacked, Sophia, who was over seventy, had stood on the street holding a sign, arguing with people to protect me, and brought me back to her small courtyard.
Sophia had a stroke due to the stress, and despite being only two streets away from the hospital, the roads were blocked by online attackers, and she couldn't be saved.
"Natalie, why aren't you coming in?" Sophia took my hand.
"Oh dear, you're hurt?" Sophia immediately noticed the bruises on my arm and pulled out a first aid kit to tend to them.
I hadn't been at Sophia's place long when Joseph called, yelling at me the moment I answered and then ordering me to get back home.
I calmly finished cooking for Sophia, checked the time, and leisurely took a cab home.
When I returned, Joseph was sitting regally on the sofa, swirling a glass of red wine in his hand. It was a sign that he was furious.
The moment I set my bag down, Joseph stood up and hurled the wine glass at my head. The glass shattered on the floor, and warm blood trickled down my forehead.
He grabbed my hair, yanking me backward. I couldn't help but fall, my whole body hitting the ground as my head spun.
"Why didn't you make breakfast?" Joseph crouched down, his breath on my neck, cold and menacing, like something that had crawled out of hell.
I couldn't stop trembling, the old wounds on my body aching faintly.
Out of the corner of my eye, I caught sight of the flashing camera in my bag, and I started to laugh hysterically.
"Joseph, you're scared, scared that you're losing control over me." Perhaps it was the eerie laughter or the sight of my bloodied face, but Joseph hesitated for a moment before slapping me again.
I stood up and wiped the blood from my face.
He took a step closer, dressed in his fine suit, still looking every bit the gentleman, but it was just a facade.
I glanced at the freshly opened bottle of wine on the table, grabbed it, and, without hesitation, smashed it over Joseph's back.
Unfortunately, Joseph was too tall, and the bottle only barely hit his back, spilling wine all over his gray suit.
"Here's your bottle back. Don't touch me again, or I'll drag you to hell with me," I said with a smile.
When Sarah came home from school, she found the house to be a mess, but she was already used to it.
Seeing Sarah, Joseph refrained from continuing his assault.