CHAPTER FORTY FIVE

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DYLAN

"The door isn't opening," I screech. Pressing my leg against the wall, I pull the door with all my force. The handle hurts my palm and it starts to throb a little. I straighten up and rub my hands together. "Damnit!" I place my hand back on the handle and pull it once more but it doesn't budge.

"What do you mean?!" Avery yells near my ear. Her voice seems louder in this little place.

Turning my body face her, I throw my hands into the air and say, "I mean the door isn't opening..!" How hard is it to understand?

"Why would— shit!" Her eyes fall on me and widen. Her mouth opens and her jaw hangs low. She brings her hands to her head and squeezes her eyes closed. For a moment I get worried if she is having a headache or something.

"What?" I ask, frowning. My attention is completely focused on her now. I know she is not having the headaches but if she does, then I need to take her to the doctor this week. Removing her hand that was guarding her face, she looks up.

"The lock wasn't working! Why did you close the door?" She exclaims. I take a moment before realization strikes and my eyes widen.

"What?!"

"Mrs Griffin told me that the lock wasn't working! About two weeks ago!" She throws her hands into the air and huffs.

"And you are telling me now?!" I screech.

"I didn't remember. Moreover, it's your house, not mine so you should know!" She snaps. Shooting a last glare, she starts rubbing her forehead. I scowl at her before putting my hand on the handle and pulling again. The door doesn't even make a simple noise.

"There is no way we are locked in here," I say, stepping back after my tenth try. I put my hand on the machine behind me and lean against that.

Avery walks towards the door and says, "Let me try." I cross my arms against my chest as lift an eyebrow at her. She reaches for the handle but on noticing my expression, snaps, "what? I can't be stronger than you?" I move to her side.

"Of course you can but stronger than a broken lock, and a wooden door this thick, I doubt, " I give her nonchalant one-shouldered lift and lean against the wall with my body turned towards her so that I can see her struggle with the door. Her wounds have healed but I'm sure they'll pain if she gets hurt again. She pulls the door, hard, her face turning red. She keeps pulling it some more. Even puts her feet against the wall and pulls the way I did, but the stubborn door doesn't budge. A groan escapes her lips before she lets go of the door and straightens up. Her breaths have turned ragged, and her face flushed. I've been glaring at her the whole time for trying something like this. It could've easily hurt her wounds but at the same time I couldn't stop her, 'cause it's no more my place to say. "Oh look now the door is opened. Let's go up to our rooms and sleep," I say in a mocking tone.

She shifts her glare from the door to me and then after a little pause, cries out,  "What do we do now?!"

Sighing, I look around the room, trying to think of a way before bringing my attention to her and asking, "Do you have a phone?"

"Yes, I bring my phone to the laundry room with me." She gives me a sarcastic nod, crossing her arms against her chest and rolling her eyes. She needs to throw tantrum even when caught in this position.

"I don't either."

She takes a few steps back and leans, resting the back of her head against the wall. I stand there contemplating my options when she says in a sharp voice, "I don't know just get me out of here!"

She is really getting on my nerves. Clenching my jaw, I say, "Yeah wait let me grab my magic wand, maybe I can do something to make this door turn into liquid." Rolling my eyes at her, I start marching back and forth in the little space beside the elevated spot.

Silence falls around us. Even my mind is blank. I don't think there is any way to get out of a room which has just a few clothes and baskets and nothing else. If we had something sharp, maybe we could've broken the lock but that cannot be done with the pile of clothes. Suddenly Avery squeals, "We can get out from here!" My head snaps in her direction. She is pointing at the small window beside the counter. She scurries past me and gets up on the elevated counter.

"You think?!" There is no way any of us can out through that little hole. It can barely fit a five-year-old kid. And Avery in no way can fit that hole. It's a ventilator made into a window.

"I don't know about you, but I can," she says and opens the pane. Firstly that glass pane is taking half of the space. Even if we do remove it from there, neither of us can pass through that. However, Avery being her stubborn self slips her head through the hole and starts pushing outward.

Seeing her struggle with the window, I take the chance to pass another comment, "Now that you are outside just go and open this door for me." I dont know why I am being so hard towards her. Usually, when she behaves in a childish or feisty way and goes on throwing tantrums, I handle it with pretty ease but that little part of me which is mad at her is playing the role here. I guess that part isn't that little after all.

She pulls her head back in and snaps, "Stop being so sarcastic!" Rolling my eyes, I get up on the counter and lean in to look out of the window.

"There are a few security guards outside maybe they can hear us if we shout, " I say.

"Dylan this house is a fucking mansion. No one can hear you from across the hall, how loud do you think you are?!"

"You have a better idea?" I retort.

"For losing my voice, no. It's all you." She is right. There is no way anyone on the front side of the compound can hear us. Sighing I hop down and move to the door to give a try for the last time hoping to open it this time.

Placing my hands on the handle, I tug at it. Even push against the wall with my feet but nothing happens. Leaving the door, I kick it and yell, "Oh for fuck's sake!"

"Cuss it a bit more maybe it will open," Avery mocks.

"Now who is being sarcastic?" She rolls her eyes at me and sits on the counter towards the right inner end. I walk to the edge and sit down, diagonally from her. Maybe if it was a week ago, I would've loved getting locked with her but now things have changed. I no more want her in any way. Even if I do, I know better than to entangle my heart in this deal. Which, by the way, got cancelled.

Yes, I cancelled the deal, after Avery's accident. Having her almost taken away from me, I realised that there is no way in hell, I can survive her leaving me after the tenure of this marriage got over. I knew it was no more a deal when she held my hand for the first time. Sounds crazy, I know but everything about us has been crazy so far. I thought I would tell Avery about this when I knew exactly how she felt about me and now I have to think a way to tell her that we might have to renew the contract.

I am deep in my thoughts when Avery gets up and closes the window. "Why are you closing it?" I ask.

"It's cold," she says and sits back down, rubbing her forearms.

"That's because it's winter. Why aren't you wearing something warm?" She is in a thin cotton top, under which she is not wearing any bra, may I add. Her nipples have hardened due to the cold and the outline is visible from outside. It's not like I've been looking at her breasts like a pervert. It's more of a general observation. Like the fact that her arms are covered with goosebumps and she is almost shivering.

"Your house is heated. Luckily you forgot your laundry room." I can't anymore with this woman.

I get up and move to the machines. There is a pile of my clothes in the basket kept over the lid. I pull out a grey woollen pullover and bring it over to Avery. Holding it out, I say, "You can wear this..."

Her eyes jump from the pullover to my face and back to my hand. Shaking her head, she mutters quietly, "No thanks."

My jaw ticks. I know she is trying to point at the separation between us. But not wearing my pullover even though she needs it, is madness. However I mumble, "Fine. Don't," and throw it on the counter and sit back down in my place.

After a while, she speaks up, "Why are we sitting here doing nothing?"

"Maybe because we are locked inside this room and we can't get out."

She goes quiet again. I sit there,  subconsciously tapping my foot on the counter and humming a low tone. "I want to donate to that charity," says Avery.

Bringing my attention to her, I ask  "Tomorrow?"

"Yeah. I haven't gone to one such event in months so I wanted to donate once before the year ends."

I nod once and say, "Cool. There will be an auction. You can donate."

"Okay." She is hurdled up with her knees bent to her chest and her arms wrapped around them.

"How are you?" I ask, unable to stop myself. Though I have been keeping tabs on her progress it kills to not see her and ask her myself.

"I guess you've been taking my progress report from Mrs Griffin every hour. So you know that better than me." I dont need to be told who spilt this in front of her.

I start, "Your safety is my du—" but get cut off.

"Have you been ignoring me?" I stare at her blankly for a moment before answering.

"What makes you think I have been?"

"Because you have been..." she moves her hand to her sides and presses against the floor.

"No, I haven't." Yes, I have.

"So...why didn't you talk to me after that night?"

"Do you think I should?" she goes silent at my tone and stares at me for a while. Our eyes stay locked until she sighs and looks down at her feet. Bringing her arms to wrap around her knees again, she let's out a sniff. A thin shiver runs through her body. Finally, I hold out the grey pullover again to her and say, "Wear it. It won't harm."

She looks at me with her big green eyes and then takes it from my hand. "Thanks."

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