"Breathe, butterfly..."

Caging me in his arms, he looked into my eyes.

"Follow me," he said again and started taking deep breaths, making me follow his movements, and I did while crying. My breathing was shallow and erratic, but I tried my best to match his pace.

His eyes, still blank but so dark, stared at my face, then went down to my trembling lips, which were letting air in and out in quick successions.

A few seconds passed, and he loosened his hold on me. I stepped back slowly, looking down while his eyes followed my movements like a predator watching its prey.

"Let's go," he said, and I flinched, nodding quickly. I walked fast from his side to go inside the car, but suddenly he grabbed the cap of my hood and pulled me towards him again. My eyes widened, and with a jerk, my body collided with his hard chest.

I let out a small whimper when he suddenly back-hugged me, his arms tightening around me like steel chains.

"P... plea..se," I said in a stuttering voice while my body begged him to leave me. I was trembling in his hold, pushing myself away from him, but his grip kept getting tighter, unyielding.

"Maya..." he whispered in my ear, and I froze. My face went pale in fear; my hands started trembling uncontrollably. I quickly clutched my hood to stop them, but it was useless.

"I am sorry," he said in a husky voice before pressing his lips on my shoulder, and my whole body went cold. It wasn't just the chill from his touch—it was the power he held over me that froze me in place.

He put his hand on my shoulder and then replaced it with his two fingers. He let those fingers walk from my right shoulder to behind my neck and then to my left shoulder.

His feet kept moving along with those movements, and I kept taking deep breaths in panic, desperately trying to calm myself.

His feet moved to the side of my face, his face so close to me that I could feel his breath.

Then his fingers walked toward my collarbone.

Although it was all happening over my thick clothes, I could still feel those touches, leaving an invisible mark on my skin.

Finally, he came in front of me, my eyes downcast while his pinned me in my position.

His fingers were still on my collarbone, standing in the middle. Then he turned them towards his palm, making them lift into the air.

He touched my chin and used a little force to make me look up, and I did.

With my teary eyes, I looked at his blurry vision, the darkness in his gaze swallowing me whole.

"I am sorry, butterfly, but I am addicted now," he whispered while slowly closing the distance between his face and mine, then pressed his lips on my wet ones.

Sucking them once again like he did previously, but with a little softness this time, I kept trembling in my place whenever his lips would move or slide, changing positions again and again.

It was as if he wanted to brand me with his touch, to make me remember this moment forever.

My fists clutched my hoodie tightly, and I let him. His one hand went behind my neck, pulling my hood's cap over my head and staying there.

His mouth opened and closed again, taking the flesh of my lips, giving them slow sucks while I just closed my eyes, surrendering to the moment I had no power to escape.

His teeth sometimes bit my upper lip and then pulled the lower one towards him, taking it fully inside his mouth.

"Fuck..." he cursed and pressed the hand that was on my hood's cap, pushing me forward towards him more closely. He deepened the kiss.

I could feel the salty taste of my own tears. Those whimpers kept getting muffled in his mouth, and I knew he wasn't planning to let go anytime soon.

His tongue licked my lips, rolling over them from left to right, from up to down, wetting them with his hot cavern, then slowly moved away. Pressing his lips one more time, he gave them a suck and left them.

Pressing his forehead on mine, he stared at me . my breaths were now making sounds. My whimpers could now be heard. My sobs were getting louder as if they were breaking free from the cage I had locked them in.

I slowly tried to take a step back from him, but his hand on my head pushed me again, and with slight pain, my forehead got attached to his again.

"Don't move," he said in a slow voice and closed his eyes, making me stay so close to him. I could hear the sounds of vehicles going back and forth as it was a busy road. Yet, because we were standing in the corner and our car was hiding us, people couldn't see us.

He stayed like that for a few minutes, and my legs started aching again in pain. The weight of my fear and his hold felt unbearable.

"Rh..ys, please. I want to go home," I said again in a slow voice, trying to hide the trembling and stuttering in my voice.

He hummed but didn't loosen his hold on me, as if he was still debating whether to let me go or keep me there forever.

A few more seconds passed when he opened his eyes and looked at me.

Moving his face slightly sideways, he pressed his lips on my cheek, and I felt my breath hitch.

Trying to move away, I pushed my body backward, but it was still useless.

He slid his hand from my head to my neck and then to my back until it reached a little lower than my waist and pushed my body towards him.

"You can't do that, butterfly, not anymore. Push me one more time, and I will show you what I will do," he threatened, and I stilled in his hold. His words were dark.

He let out a chuckle and moved away from me.

His hand grabbed mine, which was holding the end of my hood, pulling them towards him and tightening his grip. Dragging me towards the car, he opened the door and made me sit.

He lowered his upper body and locked the seat belt. I quickly moved my body farther away, pressing my back into the seat.

"Maya..." he whispered and chuckled, shaking his head a little. His amusement at my fear was like a blade, cutting into me deeper than any words could. He moved towards his seat and started the car.

I closed my eyes and pressed my back to the seat, letting my body rest a bit. My closed eyes were trying not to let those warm tears fall, but I failed miserably. I let out those silent tears while Rhys hummed an unknown song.

**"Cuties, I've mentioned the stipend program before, which sadly isn't available anymore. I even reached out to the Wattpad team to ask if there's any program where I can keep my stories free while still monetizing my work, but they said no.

In the future, there's a chance my stories might be locked to support monetization. If that happens, I want you to know in advance so it doesn't come as a surprise or make you feel upset. Although I don't know what the future holds, I hope you'll understand my decisions as I continue creating for you. 💕"**