INNER DEMONS
His office was as silent as a graveyard, no sound was made, not even the birds outside the windows made any noise, all were too afraid of the evil that hid in the office.
Adrian Cruise was a man feared by all.
His heart had gone through so much that it no longer had any good in it or so they all thought. He lived alone and isolated from the world.
Handsome as he was with beautiful greens eyes and a tall and built frame, he was as ugly as he led himself to believe inside. His tanned skin was the definition of perfection, but he refused to acknowledge it. His pink lips complemented his straight nose.
He was the ideal man.
Adrian had always believed fear was the best way to control people, so he created an image of himself that was worse than that of the image created by Hades by Disney.
He was the richest man in the world; he had all at his beck and call. But he was lonely.
He was the one women wanted to be with, they wanted to be the one to change him for the better, the typical bad boy falls for the good girl routine. But he wasn't a bad boy not was he ever interested in a good girl.
"Mr. Cruise, your 10 am meeting is waiting for you in the boardroom" Diana, his assistant said through the intercom.
He looked at the clock on the wall and sighed.
Most days he wished he would disappear and never return but that wish never came through. He stood up and wore his black suit which covered the white button-up he wore.
He walked out of his opened glass office. He passed by his assistant who had her hair tied in a bun like always. She stood up immediately she saw him.
He always hated the reaction he got from people whenever they saw him.
He walked straight into the door of the boardroom and changed his expression into an emotionless mask and walked into the meeting without looking at anyone. He sat at the center of the round table and looked up at the group of employees.
"Tell me, all of you have the highest forms of degree in business but somehow you can't seem to do anything right," he said harshly.
Everyone looked away from him "you all had one job: make Mr. Paul sell his company to me, yet here I am"
One of them raised his hands to say something but immediately shrunk back into his seat due to the death glare Adrian sent his way.
"I have watched your progress over the week." He gave them a dark chuckle "I knew you couldn't do it, you are all incompetent"
He pressed the intercom on the table and addresses his sectary to bring in the folders containing the acquisition.
Diana walked in and dropped the folders on each men front and quickly left as she had come.
"In this folder contains the contract between Mr. Paul and me. We have arranged everything"
He stood up from his seat "I's has been dotted and T's has been crossed. So gentlemen I would appreciate it if you drop your pen and hand in your resignation. For you don't deserve this job" with that been said he smiled at them and left the room, leaving all mouth agape at what he had just said.
Adrian was a wreck by the time he got home. His maid had already come and gone.
The walls of his house echoed the loneliness he felt inside. Just the way he hated it. For years he led himself to believe that he did not deserve happiness, that he was a waste of space. He believed every harsh word spoken to him by his drunken dad and high as fuck mom.
He took off his clothes and went straight into the bathroom. He filled the tub with cold water and sat down in it, in his hand, his favorite blade.
Memories after memories began flashing into his mind "I have been a bad boy" he said to himself but he heard his mother's voice instead.
"Bad boys need to be punished" he took the blade and sliced his upper arm "boys like me don't deserve to live" another slice on his chest.
"All we ever do is cause trouble" another slice on his toned stomach "even the DEVIL doesn't want me" another slice on his wrist.
"I'm so sorry momma, I will be good. I promise I will be good" he dropped the blood-stained blade on the floor and dipped his entire body into the water "I will be good, I will be good" he took a deep breath and submerges inside the bloody water.
After several seconds, his lungs began to burn, his vision became blurry. He could feel his heart beating fast in its ribcage yet he didn't fight it, he welcomed the pain with open arms.
Right at the last moment, his will to live came back to him. He pushed through the darkness that surrounded him and resurfaced from the water taking some much-needed breaths.
"I'm sorry momma, I couldn't do it. I'm not strong enough. I'm sorry I'm not strong enough" his body raked in sobs as he dragged his pathetic self to his medicine cabinet to clean up the wound he had inflicted.
Making sure all his freshly cut wounds were clean. He looked at himself in the mirror.
He was completely appalled by the man he saw. His self-hate grew with each passing minute.
He took a deep breath, wore his shorts, and fled from his reflection.
He reached his living room and heard no sound from the radio or television. He was surrounded by darkness and it was choking him.
How he wished it all ended and he didn't have to wake up tomorrow but alas, the gods had a different plan for him.
He turned on the television but muted it. He was so used to the silence.
He took his phone and called an all too familiar number.
He wasn't surprised when it went straight to voicemail. "Hi this is Bridget; leave a message after the beep. Beeeeeeeep!. Joking. Okay here is the real deal 'beeeeeeep'" her answering message always put a smile on his face.
"Ahm hi, I know you are not going to get this" he hesitated for some seconds "I just wanted you to know that I miss you and not a day goes by that I don't miss you. It is getting harder to continue and I want to join you over there so badly but I know you will hate me for it. So I'm keeping pushing till I drop" he wanted to say more but nothing came out from his mouth.
"I guess that is all for today, I will call you tomorrow and we will talk more. I love you" he dropped his phone.
He felt another round of sobs coming out but he held it together.
"Tomorrow is another day, tomorrow I will try again and this time I will get it right".
He went to the kitchen to get his dinner. Dinner for one he thought
He raised the fork to his mouth but stopped halfway, an image of his father appeared in his mind and said to him.
"Bad boys don't deserve to eat. Eating is only for boys that are loved and your mother and I don't love you. We didn't even want you" the image of his father appeared in his front and said to him.
He dropped the fork and pushed the dinner away "I will eat tomorrow" he said to himself.
He walked to his room and lay down on his bed, but sleep invaded him. He saw the sleeping pills on his bedside table and took one.
His inner demons kept singing in his head, so he took another and then lay back down and closed his eyes, and waited for the drugs to take effect.
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His mommy was lying down on the couch asleep again.
"Mommy, I'm hungry," an eight-year-old boy said.
"Mommy" he called out but got no response. He tugged on her arms but she didn't move.
"Mommy!" he said again. He heard the sound of boots hitting the floor and he knew who that was. He ran as fast as his legs could carry him but he didn't make it to his safe place in time.
"You little brat, how many times have I told you not to come out of that closet" he heard his father croaked voice say to him.
"I'm sorry daddy, I was just hungry. I haven't eaten in two days" he said trying to remove his arm from his father's tight grip.
"Bad boys like you don't deserve to eat. You need to be punished" his father took his elbow and dragged him into his safe place, the one place he thought he was safe.
He looked at his father in fear. His narrow face that was once so handsome was now covered in tattoos and piercings. His body was built and tall.
He knew what the punishment was for he has been getting the punishment since he turned seven.
"Daddy Please! I will be good. I promise" he shouted but his father just grunted and dragged him.
"Mommy, please help me!" he yelled for his mother but it was like he was yelling to the dead.
His father opened the door and pushed him inside.
He began to pull his trousers and then his boxers followed. "Take off your trousers and bend over the bed," his father said to him.
Knowing that fighting and protesting will only make him go harder. He turned around and did what he said.
He closed his eyes and started counting the minutes.
"1" his father approached him.
"2" his hands were now on his hips.
"3" he felt his throbbing manhood approached him.
"4" "this is going to make daddy feel good and you have to do what daddy says"
"5" his father thrust into him.
His screams were earth-shattering but his father didn't mind, it only made him go faster.
"This is what bad boys deserve. You deserve this" his father grunted "I want to hear you scream it, scream it loud"
"I deserve this!" he screamed and he believed it.
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He woke with a fright. He gasped for air
"He is not around anymore, don't be scared," he said his mantra over and over again.
He felt his heart going back to a steady beat.
"You know what your father deserves," a feminine voice said. His steady heart increased immediately in tempo again.
He quickly turned on the light. Lo and behold was a lady that had his heart beating fast again for another entire reason.
"He needs a bunch of hot coal shoved into his ass till he starts coughing smoke"
Then in a small voice that he almost didn't hear it "I need to speak to uncle Hades about that."
"Who are you?" he said when he finally found his voice, fear gripping every part of his body.
"Oh right I'm Adara but you can call me Dara and I will be your Cupid for as long as you need one."