Emma's horror-stricken eyes darted across the dimly-lit room as she took in the grotesque figures surrounding her. Her hands were tightly bound behind her back, deeming her helpless. She was in a dishevelled state, sitting on the cold floor and tears smearing her face. Faint music from outside could be heard in the private room.
There stood a man in front of her, wearing a chilling sadistic grin on his face, and his eyes gleamed with cruel amusement. In his hand was a syringe filled with drug. The needle glinted under the lighting.
As he neared her, Emma instinctively. shrunk in fear. Her body trembled and breath hitched in her throat. She frantically shook her head, praying for his mercy. Broken sobs left her mouth.
"No, please, no."
"Come on, baby. This is going to feel real good," the man drawled- his tone filled with mockery.
The surrounding onlookers laughed, as if anticipating an exciting twisted performance. Words of encouragement were shared.
Her teary desperate eyes met with no response.
Emma's arm was grabbed then. She screamed, resisting violently, but that only brought thrill to the people around her. Their laughter grew louder, crueler.
"There, there, baby," the man cooed, "you will really like it."
The sickening grin on his face stretched wider when he inserted the needle in her arm, injecting the drug in. The sharp sting was nothing compared to the terror that consumed her. The drug rushed through her blood stream, burning like fire.
Emma immediately bolted upright on the bed. A scream was caught in her throat. Bullets of cold sweat drenched her body, and her chest heaved heavily as she struggled to breathe. Her body trembled, as the face flashed in her mind.
Jonathan Chen.
A fresh wave of nausea overcame her, and in her panic, her hand struck the glass on the table accidently, causing it to break into shards. The shattering sound sharply rang across the room.
She felt dirty all over her body and wished to scrub all the filth off desperately. WIth shaky movements, she tried to get down from the bed. But her knees buckled, and she stumbled, landing hard on the shards of broken glass.
The pain began to bring her back to her senses.
She lifted her hand and saw the glass shard pierced through her skin. Beads of red blood formed on the surface.
Instead of removing it, she tightly closed her eyes and formed her hand into a tight fist, wishing that the physical pain would be able to overtake the mental torment she was going through.
---
"You're injured," commented Ellie. Her brows knitted together in worry when she noticed Emma's bandaged palm.
Emma offered a small, dismissive smile and lightly replied, "I broke a glass accidently."
Then to distract her friend, holding up two dresses in front of her friend, Emma asked, "Which one?"
Ellie immediately pointed towards the red one without hesitation. "That one! The red will complement your skin well. It will make you look absolutely stunning!"
Heeding her friend's word, Emma changed into the chosen dress.
When she emerged and saw her image on the full-length mirror, she was taken aback. The dress clung to her in all the right places. Its sequined bodice caught the light with every movement before cascading down into a flowing skirt that gave her the silhouette of elegance. Her hair, styled in waves, framed her face delicately, and with the makeup done by the artist, Emma couldn't recognize the woman staring back at her in the mirror.
There was a strange twinge of momentary disconnection as though she was wearing someone else's skin.
She couldn't recall the last time she wore such a vibrant color or dressed up so ostentatiously.
The last time she looked at the mirror, she was her lifeless self barely floating by, but now the colors of youthfulness were painted on her.
"It's pretty," she mumbled in a daze.
Ellie placed her hand around Emma's shoulder and playfully grinned. "We know who will be stealing all the eyes tonight."
Emma's phone then rang up, and Ellie read the name on the screen. "It's Vanessa."
"Ignore it," Emma responded.
Ellie stared at Emma in confusion.
"She wants me to take her in," Emma explained, "let her wait for a while."
"Then, let's mute the phone? The ringtone is kind of annoying, and knowing how persistent she is, I am sure she will be dialing your number until you receive it," pointed out Ellie.
"Do as you please."
Ellie showed her a satisfied smile before handling Emma's phone.
"I like how you are showing her where she belongs. She was getting too familiar with you these days." Ellie scoffed. "Who can't see she only sticks to because she wishes to rub favour off of you?"