Defining Boundaries

"Luis, please calm down."

Catherine's words came out as a soothing gentle voice. Her wrists, held in Luis's strong grasp, pulsed with a dull discomfort. Yet, she tried her best to keep her expression betrayed no sign of discomfort as her gentle gaze met Luis's, attempting to pacify him.

Initially, Catherine was startled by Luis's sudden agitation. She couldn't understand why he was so insistent on her providing him a massage, nor why he clung to it with such possessiveness. 

The whole situation struck her as peculiar. Luis, who had never displayed much regard for her in the past, was now exhibiting an uncharacteristic intensity. 

As Catherine's soothing words reached his ears, Luis found himself momentarily at a loss for words. Mere moments ago, he had been determined to force her into accepting his massage request, but now, as he locked eyes with Catherine and felt the calming effect of her almost mesmerizing gaze, his turbulent emotions started to gradually recede.

His once unwavering grip on Catherine's wrists gradually lessened, granting her some relief. Though his hold on her waist, while relaxing somewhat, still exuded an unmistakable air of control.

Catherine's fingers gently brushed over her own wrists, her brow subtly furrowed. The evidence of Luis's formidable strength was unmistakable.

Only now did Luis fully grasp the repercussions of his actions. He reached out, aiming to inspect her wrists with a gentler touch, a genuine concern etched across his features. However, Catherine, swift to withdraw her wrists, misconstrued his intentions, a flicker of fear clouding her eyes, as if she anticipated further harm.

"I... I'm sorry," Luis muttered, his remorse genuine and palpable. "I'm really sorry that I hurt you. Were you scared, sweetie?"

"Yes. A little bit,"

Catherine admitted, her response barely audible, almost a whispered vulnerability as she kept her gaze averted from Luis.

Sweetie.....This man was still using this very same word to address her again. "Cathay" and "sweetie" had been her special nicknames Luis had used to call her back then. In the company of others, he would refer to her as "Cathay," a sign of intimacy. But when they were alone, it was "sweetie," a more tender expression of his feelings. Or so she had believed. 

But, in their current predicament, every utterance of that term bore a different weight. It no longer carried the warmth of affection but had transformed into a stark reminder of manipulation and insincerity.

Since yesterday, the young woman had stilfled the urge to tell Luis to stop calling her like this. Every utterance of "sweetie" from Luis's lips was like a key. A key that unlocked a flood of bittersweet memories she had long struggled to bury deep within her heart. 

She hadn't voiced her feelings yesterday, but today, Catherine felt compelled to address the issue. However, something worried her. What if she upset him again? What if confronting him led to another outburst? She was, after all, currently reliant on Luis's protection to stay hidden from some menacing gangsters. Continually upsetting him might not be in her best interest.

Catherine hesitated for a moment, but she soon found her voice. "Luis," she said, her tone soft but firm, "could you please do me a favor? Please....stop calling me sweetie, Luis. "

Her voice, though barely above a whisper, resonated clearly in Luis's sharp ears.

"Why is that? You don't like it?" Luis inquired. 

Catherine gave a subtle nod, her posture tense as she sat upon Luis's lap. 

"It's difficult to explain," she began, her voice a little bit steadier now.

"When you use that term, it feels as if... I'm reliving the past. And you know...those days were not a very good experience for me. "

Luis absorbed her words, his eyes trying to lock onto hers, seeking to understand the complexity of her feelings.

"That is hard to agree because I really like to call you sweetie. "

Luis confessed, his fingers gently caressing Catherine's waist as he drew her even closer to his chest, a visible sign of his reluctance to let go of this endearment. He sort of yearned for the connection it implied, the warmth of her presence so near. 

However, as their closeness deepened, he sensed Catherine's unease. Her response to his advances was met with numbness, and the unexpected intimacy between them seemed to catch Catherine off guard. 

Whenever Luis ventured too close, Catherine couldn't deny her discomfort. She felt like an easy pawn in this man's game, a toy at his disposal without any consequences. She knew she needed to assert her boundaries, but why was she hesitating? This question echoed in her mind, but before she could answer it herself, Luis's chest brushed against her bosom, and his magnetic voice filled her ears.

"But... If you insist, I can comply. But only on one condition."

Catherine immediately looked into the man's piercing light blue eyes, curiosity piqued by this unexpected condition. Luis wore a knowing grin, seemingly satisfied that Catherine's attention was now fully on him. His voice carried a mischievous undertone.

"This would be rule number three. You must not get a boyfriend at med school when your classes start again."

Confusion flickered across Catherine's features. How had her love life become any of his business? The audacity of this man to intrude on her personal matters...

Although her inner thoughts seethed with objections, her voice remained trapped in her throat, unwilling to provoke an argument. Yet, in that moment, she finally found an answer to her previous question.

Why was she so reluctant to set boundaries with Luis or to speak her mind with him? It was the fear that he might withdraw the protection he offered her. A protection she direly needed.

Catherine couldn't shake the belief that all Luis desired from her was her body, to exploit it for his own pleasure. This fear held her back from asserting her boundaries. She worried that if she pushed him away, there might be nothing left to hold his interest. In her heart, she sensed there was more to his protection than mere desire, but doubts nagged at her.

In just two days of living with Luis, her self-esteem had surprisingly taken a sharp nosedive. She found herself doubting her worth, convinced that her only value to a man was her body.