Independence

“Answer me, were you or were you not?” Hansel demanded.

Ingrid shook her head. “No… I didn’t… Hans, you’re hurting me…

Hansel tugged on her nightgown with a contemptuous smile. “Then explain this. If you hadn’t done it before, why would you do it now?”

Hansel remembered feeling off when they first slept together.

Just the night before, he was holding Miranda and kissing her, so how did he wake up the next day with Ingrid instead?

He had chalked it up to being drunk and hallucinating, thinking he had simply mistaken the person. It never crossed his mind that he had been set up.

Upon realizing this, Hansel’s anger surged. He gritted his teeth in fury.

“You’re pushing my limits!” he roared, yanking Ingrid up from the floor. “You shameless woman, get out now! Get out of this house!”

His rage overwhelmed him, making him feel even hot I was as if a fire was burning within him. His body swayed slightly, and his Adam’s apple bobbed as he struggled.

Something was wrong.

Hansel’s expression hardened; the symptoms he felt now resembled.

“You drugged me, didn’t you!”

Ingrid’s eyes darted around, guilt practically written all over her face.

“Damn it! Where did you get the nerve? How dare you!”

Hansel panted heavily. The fire inside him was blazing hotter as his eyes reddened with anger.

Ingrid swallowed hard, suppressing her fear as she crawled up from the floor. Tears streamed as she approached him. “Hans, I know you’re suffering right now…”

Hansel stared at her coldly.

Ingrid bit her lip. “I can help you. I really can…”

She began removing her nightgown as she spoke.

“You know I love you, so much that I’m willing to do anything. Even if it means being a stand–in for another woman, even if you lie on my chest and call out Miranda’s name, I don’t care.”

As she spoke, she seemed to be moved by her own words. “Hans, let me help you, please? You need me right now. You need a woman. What Miranda can’t do, I can. What she refuses to do, I’m willing to.”

She lowered herself to the ground in humility, but flowers couldn’t bloom in the dust. The only outcome from being on the ground was to get trampled on.

Hansel chuckled bitterly. “You, as Miranda’s stand–in? Do you even qualify? What part of you compares to

her? Not even a single bit could compare.

“You drugged me, and now you stand here saying you want to help? Ingrid York, do you even have any shame? Calling you ‘bitch‘ is an insult to the word- even a bitch has more dignity than you.”

His words grew harsher with each sentence, yet Ingrid acted as if she didn’t hear them. Her tear–streaked face still managed to show a hint of flirtation.

With her bare skin against his chest, she stood on tiptoe as her lips near his ear.

“I know you’re in pain right now, but it’s okay. I’ll help you, just like the first time….

The scent of her perfume, like a sweet balm, seemed to soothe the heat within him. It left him wanting

more…

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Seeing the dazed look in Hansel’s eyes, Ingrid couldn’t help but smile. If she had known it would be this easy, she would’ve drugged him sooner. She felt foolish for hesitating until now.

“Hans, look at me,” Ingrid said, turning his head toward her.

Their eyes met. In his gaze, all she could see was her reflection. She then leaned in for a kiss….

But just as their breaths mingled, Hansel abruptly sho her away. His previously glazed eyes were now sharp and clear, with no trace of being under the drug’s influence.