Page 9 of Fade With Me

After a long day, I pushed open the front door and spotted a note taped to the fridge, scrawled in familiar handwriting.

Hey Brynie, I won’t be home tonight so you’ve got plenty of time to get stuff done. I left you a little list to keep you busy.

To-Do

Finish my meal prep for the week (it’s not hard, just follow the instructions)

Change my sheets and make my bed (don’t mess it up)

Wash, dry, and fold my laundry (obviously I couldn’t trust myself to do it)

Iron my outfit for tomorrow (I need to look good, you know)

Vacuum and dust the house (don’t skip the cornersthis time)

Reggie

I’m starting to think this man can’t do a thing for himself. He acts like I’m here to serve him, like I’m bound to obey every one of his commands.

Have I thought about leaving? Of course—more than I care to admit. But it’s a luxury I can’t afford. Even if I managed to escape, I’m certain he’d track me down. He’s made thatveryclear with threats wrapped in a dangerous blend of anger and entitlement.

He’s warned me about the consequences if I ever defy him, or as he so elegantly put it,try to run.

After ticking off every task on Reggie’s list, I rewarded myself with a quiet evening of reading. I climbed into bed and lost myself in my favorite story.

This time, though, I let my imagination run wild, casting the intriguing stranger Ezekiel as the leading man. He was the perfect fit: powerful yet sensitive, effortlessly charming, and breathtakingly handsome.

At first, the thought unsettled me. The last time my mind wandered to him, I’d felt a little guilty, like I was indulging in something reckless, even dangerous. Or maybe I’d just been embarrassed to admit I’d thought of a stranger that way.

But now? I let it happen. Maybe it was exhaustion. Or maybe it was the truth:

I liked the way he made me feel.

In the fictional world of my thoughts, he was the hero I longed for. And instead of pushing that feeling away, I sank into it.

To my surprise, I found comfort in those fantasies.

As I slipped into sleep, I wished, just for a moment, that imagination could merge with reality.

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