ac·qui·es·cence

/ˌakwēˈesəns/

n. the reluctant acceptance of something without protest.

--oo--

Requesting a stranger to buy me some sanitary napkins was never right, I know, and it was embarrassing. But I’d rather be embarrassed because of asking for it than being seen by many with blood dripping from my hole. It’s creepy.

Minutes have passed already, and I was still sitting on the toilet bowl, waiting for Christian to bring me what I asked him to buy with the thoughts that he might just be playing tricks with me. Great! The self-proclaimed supergirl ended up asking a favor to a stranger who she didn’t know anything about, except for his name, and for him being the perfect representation of narcissism, of course.

I let a harsh sigh out of my mouth, creating a light echo inside the cubicle. I decided to go out, cover as much as I can until I reach my car, and go home to change. There’s no point in waiting for him to show up. Why would a stranger buy me some napkin? Understanding his gestures and attitude, I know he’s not the type of man willing to help a woman with this problem.

As I unlocked the cubicle and slowly peeked through the small opening to see if there were people around, screams, and yells from the other girls crashed into my ears.

“Pervert!”

“Maniac!”

The sound of footsteps was slowly getting louder and louder as I finally got myself out of the cubicle. The noise was gone, and the silence was deafening, making me turn around to see what’s with the sudden silence only to see that Christian was already standing behind my back with packs of napkins in his arms.

“Oh shit! Why do you keep on scaring me to death?!” I yelled, dropping my bag to the floor. “Can you at least make a gentle sound before showing up? You’re killing me with a heart attack.”

My gaze shifted to the packs of napkin he was carrying, then to his face with red marks of palm.

“W-what happened to your face?” I asked, stammering a little bit when his sharp stare seemed like pushing me against the wall.

“Oh, this? Nothing. I was just slapped by four girls in the face because I entered the women’s comfort room to bring these shits to a woman I didn’t even know,” he sarcastically replied. “Now, Ms. Period, can you please get these damn napkins away from me so that I could live my life now?”

“I only asked for a single napkin. Why did you buy six-packs of different brands?”

“What the fuck do I know about these shits? Don’t you know that I am a man?” sarcasm still glared in his eyes. “Well, at least now you know.”

“Haven’t you bought one for your girlfriend before?”

“Girlfriend?” he raised his right eyebrow and chortled. “That word doesn’t exist in my vocabulary.” He smirked then walked away when I got all the napkins.

“Wait!” I stopped him before he could vanish completely.

He paused when he reached the doorway and sighed heavily. “What now?”

I calmed myself when I heard him groan in annoyance. He turned his head to me a little bit, and his eye was screaming irritation.

“W-why did you tell those guys that I am your...girlfriend?” my lips were trembling, and my voice was shaky.

Silence enveloped the surroundings again, making the place eerie as he returned his gaze to the doorway. Expecting no answers from him, I just shifted my attention to the napkins I was carrying and put them in my bag one by one. Why did I even ask him about that? There’s nothing about it that will benefit me in some aspects.

I turned around to enter the cubicle again, but I halted when I heard his baritone voice vibrating from a distance.

“To save you from those perverts,” he said coldly. “Those men are seeking victims. They’re like predators, and their preys are single women. One woman is equivalent to one point. A virgin will grant them two points.”

“Wait. What? I don’t understand you.”

“They are looking for women to have sex with, and then leave them after. The rules of their gang require them to have at least fifteen points in a week.“

“Why are they even doing that? It’s basically inhumane, and I guess it’s rape.”

“It’s not rape. They make sure that women agree to have sexual intercourse with them, and the only –“

“Still, it’s not right. They’re making women as sex toys. Can you tell me what kind of gangs they are? I’m going to report this to the administrator.”

“You’ll be in danger if you do so,” he muttered, then strolled fast to the outside, leaving me speechless.

After minutes of doing what I was supposed to do, I hurriedly went outside the comfort room to go to the parking lot. I could see people’s eyes pinning on me as I walked past them with my bag covering my back. I already knew what they’re thinking, but I never mind it and continued having my way to my destination. As I reached the stairway in front of the library, an arm blocked my way with a black jacket hanging on it.

“Take it. I know you need it,” a cold voice caught my attention. It was Christian, standing in the stairway.

I stared at his jacket, thinking there might be something in it that will pop out immediately when I take it.

“Are you going to stare at it for the whole day? I have no plan of holding this for you for that length of time,” he said and threw the jacket in my face. “Use it to cover the stain. Your bag doesn’t do well in covering it.”

I removed the jacket from my face and stared at him, thinking how a weird-looking man is this caring. I never experienced being taken care of like this before, not even by my own father. I held the sleeves of his jacket and tied it around my waist. It was oversized so the flaps went straight down almost reaching my ankles.

“Thank you,” I pinned my eyes on him, and forced a smile.

“Take this, it will ease your menstrual pain,” he handed me a stab of Ibuprofen.

“I thought you didn’t know anything about menstruation?”

“I did my research lately. I don’t know how it feels but google said it’s painful.”

“Why are you doing this?” my face twisted in confusion and doubts. “You didn’t know me that much, but why are you helping me with these kinds of stuff?” I took the medicine and slipped it inside my pocket.

“Because you asked for help,” he answered, and grinned like he’s thinking something odd. “And you owe me some help too. My help is not for free. You have to pay for it.” His grin became wider, making him look like Satan’s brother, or cousin, or whatever.

“So what do you want me to do?” I asked frantically.

“Let’s start with you being my tutor,” he grinned again, surrounding me as he walked to my back. “But the tutorial must be done at my house.”

“I guess it’s best if we do that in the school premise,” I insisted. “Not that I don’t trust you, but because it will be hard for us to have access with the materials that we need and...and–“

I stepped back until I was cornered in the wall while he continuously making steps towards me. His glares were burning with desires and heat I never felt before. My cold skin felt the warmth of his touch as he held me in my arms and neared his face into my ears.

“Don’t worry you’ll be safe with me,” he whispered. “Nothing bad will happen to you, but I can give you memories that will keep you wanting more.” His breath was giving me chills despite its heat. He wiped my hair with his fingers and locked it behind my ear, and I felt the tip of his tongue touching my cheek. "Sei mia, Eunice. Solo mio."