MELISA

I woke up disoriented, the room painfully bright. My head throbbed like it had been split open, and my body, God, my body, ached in places I didn't even know could hurt. Sunlight poured in through tall windows, but it didn't feel warm. It felt wrong. Familiar, but wrong. My mouth was dry. My throat burned when I tried to sit up. And then I saw him. A man sitting by the edge of the room, watching me. "You're awake," he said, too calmly - like he'd been waiting for this moment. Like he was proud of it. I blinked, disoriented.

"Who...who are you?" My voice cracked like glass. I tucked the blanket around me, heart pounding so loud it filled my ears.

He stood, slowly. "Don't panic. It's okay, Melisa. You're safe now."

Safe? How did he know my name? "How...how do you know me?" My breathing hitched.

"Are - are you the one who kidnapped me?" His expression faltered, just for a moment. Then he smiled again. But it didn't reach his eyes.

"No, I'm not the one who hurt you. I'm just following the rules." My blood ran cold.

"Rules?" I whispered, voice trembling. "What rules?! Who made the rules?!" I started shaking, full-blown panic rising. My memories were messy, scattered like broken glass, his voice, the mask, the pain, the basement. That voice calling my name again and again.

"Then who is he?!" I screamed. "The man with the mask! The one who dragged me! Who hit me! Who tied me up and left me to bleed like an animal?! Who is he, Sebastian?!" He stepped closer.

"Melisa..." he said softly. Too softly. "You're safe now. That's all that matters."

"No! No, it's not!" I shrieked, crawling backward until my back hit the wall. "You're lying! You're lying to me! I saw your eyes behind that mask, don't lie to me!" He stopped just a few feet away. His smile dropped. His face was unreadable now. Emotionless. Cold.

"I told you," he said, voice dropping into something lower, darker, "I'm here to take care of you. That's all you need to remember." My eyes darted around the room. Everything felt too clean. Too quiet. Like the kind of silence that comes before something awful.

"He is a nice person Melisa, all you have to do is love him."

"Love him? I will never love someone who is a criminal and a murderer!"

"Is that so?" His cold voice and tone which makes me feel that I made him mad or something. I stared at him. Sebastian. His name echoed in my head like a warning bell. His voice still lingered in my ears, slithering down my spine with that unsettling calmness. "I'm here to take care of you." Take care of me? That voice, was it the same one that screamed my name in the dark? The same that dragged me, slapped me, hurt me? My heart started to race again. I couldn't breathe. I pushed him away, harder than I thought I could manage in my condition.

"Don't touch me," I muttered, my voice barely audible. He blinked, surprised, but didn't move to retaliate. He just looked at me with that expression again. Gentle. Pained. But there was something else behind his eyes. Something unreadable. Something that terrified me. I shouldn't accuse anyone. Not yet. My memory wasn't complete. My body was broken, and my mind shattered. I didn't even know how long I'd been here. So I swallowed my fear. Choked it down. And forced myself to calm. Breathe, Melisa. If you act crazy, they'll treat you like you are. "Do you want to eat?" he asked softly, like nothing happened. As if we were in a normal home. As if this wasn't a waking nightmare.

I nodded.

What else could I do? I behaved because pretending felt safer than fighting. Because inside me, something screamed that he wanted me to disobey. I needed to stay alive. Even if that meant playing the role of a good little captive. For now. My voice trembled. "That guy with the mask... do you know him? He acts like this place is his. Why is he chasing me? Why would anyone do this to me?" I was pleading now, my throat dry, heart pounding. Sebastian didn't answer right away. His jaw clenched, and something dark flickered in his eyes. Then finally, he spoke, his voice low. "Because... he can kill anyone, Melisa."

"That's why I hate him and maybe, maybe he killed my grandma!"

"NO! I mean! He didn't! I know the Master is somewhat peculiar, but he is not that cruel! He can kill but he can do it fairly, he burns people and he is punished."

"I just know Sebastian, I really don't know what he really wants from me."

"Master just really likes you Melisa, you might not just understand that."

"I really don't! a criminal, a murderer? fell in love? He is delusional." It makes me feel like less of a person. Am I delusional for still believing there's hope for me to escape?

A chill ran down my spine. "Then help me," I whispered, leaning forward despite the pain. "Please, Sebastian. I'll do anything - anything - just help me get out of here. I don't want to die here. I don't want to disappear." He slowly stepped closer. I flinched, but he just gently took my trembling hand in his, warm against my cold skin. He leaned down, his breath brushing against my ear, voice soft like velvet but heavy with something I couldn't place.

"Okay, okay... I'll help you," he whispered, squeezing my hand. His firm cold features change to soft and very pleasing and I feel I can trust him. "But first, get better... You have to get well soon. Promise me that." I nodded, too weak to question why it felt like a trap disguised as comfort. "But I can't promise you anything, Melisa. You know my loyalty belongs to my Master. But I understand how you feel - and I know you need freedom. If I can help you with that, I will." He held my hands and looked at me, his blue eyes but I shook my head and closed my eyes to stay away from his gaze. He is a bit worried as I remember the man who almost killed me.

"Is everything alright?" He asked with an anxious look and worried about me. I nod and just still try to look into her eyes.

"I know we don't truly know each other here, but all I want is to feel normal. I want to see the world, even with all its cruelty. I just want to endure it, because enduring it makes me feel human."

"Even though the world doesn't care about you, Melisa... Even when people laugh at you, humiliate you for your actions, call you names, and refuse to believe you tell me, is it really worth it?" Those words sent a chill down my spine because he was right. I don't even know if I'm still visible... if I'm still wanted or needed. No one cares. I don't even know if they still trace me right now. Because in my life I am a ghost invisible and easily get bullied, I hate the world I live in.