Chapter 9- Dear Friend

BREAKFAST WITH Mrs. Garcia was indeed lovely, and Raphael was sure Tami had enough time to freshen up. He decided that it was time he checked in on her, so he excused himself and made for her room again.

He knocked before entering, but he didn't hear anything on the other side of the door as he pushed it open. He didn't think much of it, simply because she was a woman, and maybe she took a long time in the bathroom. He remembered how his mother would spend endless time in the bathroom.

He considered leaving her and coming back, but the silence kinda had him uneasy. The worst case scenarios playing in his mind was what led him into that room, and luckily he did.

"Tami?" He called, but there was no answer. Panic rose in him as he knocked on her bathroom door again. "Tami are you okay?" Still no answer.

He headed over to her closet, finding it as empty as his heart without her. He checked the library, hell he even shifted the curtain to check the balcony. That's when he knew for sure that she had to be inside that bathroom. She had nowhere left to go.

He anticipated the thought of barging in there on her naked, which he wanted to avoid. The last thing he needed was for her to believe that he was a pervert too. What if she is in there and just doesn't want to answer him? It wouldn't be a surprise.

Still, he knew she would've at least told him to leave her alone. So, with his eyes glued shut, he pushed through her bathroom door, waiting to hear a scream of having something being thrown at him. But none of that came. In fact, there was complete silence.

"Tami?" He called once, peeking from one of his eyes to see if the coast was clear. When he saw that the large bathroom was indeed empty, he panicked. "Tami!?" He searched frantically for her, peering in the shower and the cabinets in desperation. How could she have gotten away?

He noticed that her old clothes were pooled on the ground in front of the face basin, and her toothbrush was still wet. Did she really clean up and escape?

"Raphael?" He heard her small voice, and it was obvious that she was scared. His heart beat in anticipation, and that's when he realized that the window was open.

"Shit" He cursed under his breath as he rushed over to it.

There she was, holding onto the crevice of the house, dangling over the splashing water against the rocks.

"Oh Dois mio, Tami! What the hell were you thinking?" To say he was pissed was an understatement. He wanted to tolerate her behaviour until she was comfortable, but if she was going to do things like this, he knew they wouldn't get along.

"Just help me" She looked so scared, but he was already on the case.

Raphael's mansion was built on the coast, with the front sitting on the land, while the most rear part of the house slightly hung over the water. In essence, Tami's wing of the house was over water. If she should go on her balcony, she would be met with open seas.

Of course, she didn't know this. So when she saw the window, she went out foot first without taking a peep on what was on the other side. She just saw the opportunity to escape, and that's what she tried to do. She hadn't known that she was aiming to kill herself.

"What were you thinking?" Raphael practically barked when she was successfully inside. He avoided how beautiful she looked in one of the dresses Maddie had bought her, but he was too angry to dwell on it.

Tami was still recovering from shock, but she didn't appreciate his tone towards her either. He was acting as if she was the one who kidnapped him.

"For your information, I was simply trying to get back to my life. You can't keep me here!" She bellowed back just as loud. Raphael saw a lot of shouting in their future. He held onto her shoulder a little too tightly for her liking, as he gazed in her eyes with his fire filled ones.

"You are mine and you are not leaving this house until I say so"

"Who do you think you are!" She screamed at his retreating back as he attempted to walk away.

"I am Raphael De Léon. What I say, goes. Look Tami, you mean everything to me. But I wont tolerate these actions. I understand you're confused, but you wont kill yourself on my watch" He spoke with so much power, it almost had her shrinking back.

How dare he! Just because his name is large, and he has all this money, gives him no right to keep her as his captive. She had her own life to deal with.

"I swear I will make this little stunt of yours a living hell until you let me go Raphael! I swear it" She was steaming.

She wanted to cry again. She hated being at the mercy of a man. There was obviously no way to escape, so the only way she could guarantee her freedom was by defying him over and over.

So far, he wasn't violent, and he didn't seem to be. He wasn't forcing himself on her either, so that was a good sign. He was obviously a strong minded man who gets whatever he wanted, but she wanted to be that exception.

"Don't test me Tamika. All I want for you is good"

"Then send me home"

"No" Was the last thing he said before he turned and left her in the bathroom and in her room.

He was obviously a stubborn man, but so was she.

Her stomach made a crying sound, and she couldn't avoid how light headed she felt too. As much as she hated it, she knew she had to eat. She had no intentions of dying here, so until she found a new plan, she had to at least accept his meals.

The dinner he had brought up last night smelled so great, but she didn't want to have it. The pancakes he brought this morning looked great too, and she couldn't help how eager she felt to have them. Laying all plans of escaping aside, she dragged herself to her humongous room and ate the food.

It was surprisingly well prepared, and she found herself wanting more even after she finished it. But after she was done, it was only 9:23 in the morning, and she knew she had a long day ahead of her.

What does one do in a Cinderella room with a bunch of gifts? Nothing that enticed her of course, but she decided to make the best of the situation. She had nothing better to do anyways, so might as well rummage around. Maybe she could actually find something to get her out of the wretched place.

The first thing she did was try and see if she could access the world from one of the devices Raphael gifted her. But to her demise, all of them were shut off from the social world. There was no way she could contact anyone, yet there was Wi-Fi strong and bold on each device.

'How does he manage to do that?', she thought with a frown. She even tried to leave a comment on her sister's YouTube channel, but there was no option to do so.

She then remembered that Raphael was probably the richest man in the country. To have a computer genius customize her devices and software couldn't be an issue for him, even in such a short space of time. She didn't have Instagram or any social networks except YouTube, so she couldn't send any type of signal for help either.

It made her cry again when she thought about how her family would be noticing her absence by now. Even on the days when she slept out, she had always sent a message to them, telling them that she was okay. Surely, she knew they must've been worried sick. She didn't even leave on good terms with her mother. What if she never sees her again?

She quickly dismissed the thought. She couldn't think like that. All Tami had to do was hold out a couple days.. There must be a loophole. Raphael couldn't have thought of everything. She just had to stay calm, focused and minimize her crying, since crying always gave her headaches.

She will be home soon with her family and friends, and Raphael will have no way of getting or buying himself out of this one.

She would assure it.

"What to do now?" She asked herself as she plopped on the huge soft bed. She eyed the closet but decided against unpacking. She refused to accept defeat, and unpacking would do just that.

So, she sat up on her bed, grabbing her brand new Apple laptop and opening to a beautiful flower home screen. Everything was simple, and she had no idea what to do on it.

Her eyes flickered to the huge TV that was probably the same height as her, but she didn't feel like watching anything. She opened a typing software on the laptop, even though she had no idea what she would write. She has never written anything before, only a diary she kept when she was 12.

'Why not?', she decided, as she found herself typing.

***

Day 1

An old friend I used to love called Raphael died on June 30, 2015. No, he didn't have a large fancy funeral or anything. I honestly don't know where his soul went. But a man in his body took me away from my life, my family and my friends. I have no idea when or how I will escape, because this man is convinced that I'm 'his', and he won't be letting me go anytime soon.

I had a friend once. His name was Raphael. He had the brightest eyes and the sweetest smile. When he was sad, he would always have a quiver in his lips, even if he wasn't going to cry. I miss that friend, and I hate that this man had ruined those memories for me.

I lay my friend to rest, because I cannot recognize him in this man. We had a fight today, and I saw how strong minded he really was. In another life, I would've been happy for his success-- the man is filthy rich. But now I wish he wasn't, because he wouldn't be able to hold me so secured if he wasn't.

I miss my friend, and I still have a stupid hope deep down inside of me, wishing to see him again soon. I miss my friend--that much I admit.

But I will never, for as long as I live, bow to this man who killed the real Raphael.

***

She smiled at the piece as she saved it, naming the file as 'Being Raphael's Captive- Log One'.