I Will Protect You

Washing the dishes by hand had certainly proven to be more difficult than I thought. Upon further inspection, I realized that almost all the plates and cups and bowls in the cabinets were still food-stained. To have such a lovely home, they sure are messy.

                I emptied the cabinets and began washing away. It was difficult, but about thirty minutes in I was halfway done. I took a step back and grinned in satisfaction.

                “We have a dishwasher you know.”

                I cried out in surprise and spun around, taking a step back. I must have spilled water on the hardwood floor, causing me to slip backwards. My head slammed hard against the knobs on the lower cabinets, causing a shock of pain to sweep up my shoulders and head.

                “Ah, f**k!” I cried, rubbing my sore temple. In a flash, Romeo was at my side, twisting and turning my head to check for blood.

                “No blood. You’re good. Are you ok?” he cried frantically. I shrugged and brushed him aside.

                “I’m fine. Just a little sore.”

                “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

                “Right. Well, I have to get back to the dishes. I promised your mom I would finish them.” Standing back onto my feet, I returned the sink and continued where I had left out. Finished cleaning a plate, a turned to set in the drying rack. I frowned irritably as I searched to find a place to put it.

                “Here. I’ll help,” Romeo murmured. He took one of the towels from a small stack and began drying the dishes by hand, allowing me more room to set the rest. For the first five minutes, neither of us spoke. We just stood there in a vicious, repetitive cycle…scrub, rinse, dry. Scrub, rinse, dry. Scrub, rinse, dry.

                “So,” he finally spoke, piercing the silence that had engulfed us so comfortably. Now it was dead. “How long will you stay?”

                “Just tonight. I shouldn’t even be staying now. But of course you wouldn’t take no for an answer,” I replied, my words firm but my attitude cheerful.

                “Yeah well…you don’t need to go back. Not ever.”

                He was so serious…his eyes cast down and his voice hollow. He stared at the porcelain plate in his hands as if he wanted to smash it against the wall and burn the remaining pieces. The rage emitted caused me to step several paces away.

                “Why not?” I wasn’t sure why I asked, but I wanted to know.

                “Because…you don’t deserve that s**t. No one does. Everything you’ve been through…it’s just not right.

                I just shrugged. “I’ve gotten used to it. Not really much to it.”

                “Don’t say that! You shouldn’t be used to it! That’s not something you can just adapt to! It’s bullshit! You shouldn’t be getting hurt like this…you shouldn’t hate life so much you want to die!”

                I flung the wet washrag into the sink, splashing water everywhere. “Well what about you, huh? ‘You should have let me f*****g die’? Yeah, that’s completely different!”

                He didn’t reply. He didn’t know what to say. If he did, he wasn’t going to say it. Instead, he grabbed my shoulders and pinned me to the wall. A sudden flash of Draco appeared before my eyes. My heart stopped. I couldn’t breath. I was too scared to move.

                “Elissa, listen to me!” His voice was gruff and certain. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you. I will protect you. Always.”