Erotimaniac

Emiko awoke, cold and disoriented. The side of her head stung, bruised due

to the beating. She lay on a white blanket, heartbeat thrumming in her ears.

Her vision was blurred and the room was dark, but she knew she was

staring at a ceiling. It wasn't the ceiling of her bedroom, though.

As she sat up, she whispered, "What happened?"

She glanced around the area, searching for something she could

recognize – but to no avail. The young woman found herself in a small

room – a five-by-eight-foot room. She sat on what appeared to be a

designated sleeping area – the blanket on the floor.

To her right, water dripped on the floor from a shower head installed on

the ceiling. On the wall to her left, a filthy toilet was anchored to the floor.

The rest of the room was empty.

Emiko crawled forward, then she stopped. When she moved, the sound

of a chain rattling emerged in the room. Wide-eyed, she glanced down at

her feet. Her right ankle was shackled. A heavy chain connected to the

shackle led to the wall behind her. She glided her fingertips across the

chain, as if she were checking if it were real.

To her utter dismay, the chains were not a figment of her imagination.

Her arms trembling uncontrollably, she tugged on the chain with all of her

might. She leaned back and tried to use all of her body weight against the

chains, but to no avail. The chains clicked and clanked, but she couldn't

break free. The wall mount was as durable as the steel chains, too.

Emiko stammered, "N–N–No... Th–This... This can't be happening."

She glanced at the makeshift shower, then at the toilet. She couldn't find

any tools to help her escape. As her vision adjusted to the darkness, she

noticed a door on the parallel wall from her bed. The door appeared to offer

the only possible escape route from the room. She crawled forward, then

she gasped as she fell to the floor. The chain was short so she couldn't reach

the door. It was out of her grasps.

At the top of her lungs, Emiko screamed, "No! God, no! Somebody help

me! Please, help!" She wheezed and sobbed as she planted her nose and lips

on the concrete floor. Her voice cracking, she stuttered, "H–Help me. Please... Please, don't hurt me. I don't want to... to be here anymore. I'm

sorry if... if I did anything wrong. Just let me go."

She stopped crying and sniffled as she glanced up at the door. The sound

of footsteps seeped into the small room – heavy, creaky steps, like those of

someone walking down a flight of stairs. The footsteps stopped, then a click

sound followed. Light poured through the gap under the door, partially

illuminating the small room.

Emiko whispered, "Is... Is someone there?"

She crawled in reverse as the door swung open, slipping and sliding until

her back hit the wall behind her. She held her hands over her face and

closed her eyes. The light temporarily blinded her – and she was scared of

meeting her captor.

"Hey, Emiko," a man's voice said, soft and caring. "You can open your

eyes, princess. It's okay. I'm not going to hurt you. You're safe now."

Emiko opened her eyes to a squint as she slowly lowered her arms. She

grimaced and whimpered, awed by the revelation. She could only hope she

was dreaming.

Ethan stood in the doorway, a light shining behind him. He still wore the

same clothing from the failed birthday dinner, albeit with a few more

wrinkles. Judging from the grin plastered on his face, he didn't seem

bothered by the situation. He had a young woman chained up in his

basement, but he acted as if everything were normal.

Emiko leaned to her left and stared past Ethan's figure, searching for an

exit. She could see a washing machine hugging the wall behind him.

Women's clothing dangled out of the washing machine. She recognized a

shirt – the shirt she was wearing when she was kidnapped, but she didn't

recognize the bra. A few cardboard boxes were stacked beside the

machinery, too. The boxes appeared to be stained with a dark liquid –

blood.

The pieces were difficult to connect for a sheltered woman. She knew

she was being held captive – that much was certain. She appeared to be

trapped in a makeshift bathroom built in a basement, too. She couldn't

figure out Ethan's goals, though. She thought: is he going to rape me? Is he

going to kill me? Has he killed before?

Emiko stared down at herself, disappointed and frightened. She furrowed

her brow and tilted her head upon noticing her outfit. She was wearing her

blue nightgown. The fact sent her into a tailspin of confusion. She was knocked unconscious, stripped down to her birthday suit, and dressed again

– what else could have happened?

Upon spotting the doubt on her face, Ethan entered the room and

crouched in front of Emiko. He said, "I went back to your apartment and

got you something cozy to wear. I didn't... I didn't do anything else to you, I

promise. I just wanted to make you feel comfortable."

"Will you let me go?"

"Wha–What?"

Emiko gazed at her captor with tearful eyes. She repeated, "Will you let

me go?"

"No... No, I can't do that. Not now, at least. You know, it's not part of the

plan..."

"What are your plans? What are you going to do to me?"

Ethan sighed as he stared down at the floor. He ran his fingers across the

frigid concrete as he thought about his response. He didn't want to appear

too 'clingy' around Emiko, but he wanted to show his love. Honesty,

balance, and cooperation were integral to all relationships – he knew that

very well.

Ethan explained, "This is your room, Emiko. I made it a long time ago,

but, believe me, you're the first to ever sleep here. It's a special place – a

place for people I trust. I want you to stay here until... until you can openly

admit that you love me. No more secret messages, no more public

rejections. Okay? I just want to believe that you love me."

"B–But, I don't love you. How... How could I love you if I don't even

know you? I'm sorry, but... that's impossible. It's... It's crazy. No, I don't

love you."

"You see, that's what I'm talking about, Emiko. I know you love me, but

you're just bottling it inside for some reason. I need you to let it go. You

need to understand that love is natural, no matter what your family thinks. I

don't want you to be embarrassed anymore."

"Embarrassed?"

Ethan sighed in disappointment. He was hoping for the easy way: Emiko

would realize her love for him, he'd unchain her, then they'd start their life

together – a fairy tale. Unfortunately, Emiko opted for the hard way. It was

going to be a challenge, but he was willing to accept it – for true love.

As he stared at the floor, Ethan said, "I've spent a lot of time thinking

about our future together, princess. The past few weeks... They've been a roller coaster for me, but I've enjoyed the ride. I think we'll both enjoy

where this roller coaster takes us. We're going to have a big house with one

of those huge backyards. We'll start off slow and 'practice' by getting a dog.

We can get, um, one of those Shiba Inus from Japan. You know, it'll help

with your homesickness, right? Then, we take the big step: we'll have

mixed kids. These kids, they'll lead the world away from the darkness.

Yeah, they'll get rid of racism and all of that bullshit... It's a beautiful vision

of the future, isn't it?"

Ethan paused for a moment, lost in thoughts of the future. Emiko

shuddered and panted, terrified by her captor's erratic behavior.

Ethan swallowed loudly, then he said, "In order to create that future, I

have to break down the barriers blocking our love. You understand me? I

have to find a way to... to... to let our love flourish. That means we have to

get past your fear and hesitation. You have to love me so I can love you."

Emiko asked, "Are you ever going to let me go?"

Ethan chuckled, then he responded, "You won't have to go anywhere if

you don't want to, sweetie. We'll have maids and nannies to take care of

everything. That's part of the future, too. Maids and nannies... They'll take

care of everything for you."

"You... You won't let me go now? Not even to look around the house?"

Ethan sighed and shook his head – nope.

Emiko said, "My family... I have a family. My father, my mother, my

brother... They'll be looking for me. They're going to miss me. My brother is

twelve years old. If you hurt me, he–he won't understand why I never came

home. It'll break their hearts. You... You can't do this. It's crazy."

"I'm not going to hurt you."

Emiko couldn't say another word. She held her hands over her mouth,

grunting and groaning as she sobbed. She fell forward and landed in Ethan's

arms. She cried into her captor's chest, mumbling about her family and her

fears. She was hopeless and helpless.

Yet, Ethan couldn't help but smile as he felt her warmth. She was crying,

but her tears didn't bother him. Despite the circumstances, her embrace was

enough to warm his cold and lonely heart. He stroked her hair and shushed

her – everything's going to be okay.

Seizing the opportunity, Emiko lunged forward and chomped at Ethan's

shoulder. Ethan lost his footing and fell back, so Emiko was only able to

bite his shirt. Before she could maul him, Ethan quickly crawled in reverse until he slipped through the doorway. The captor emerged from the attack

unscathed.

He staggered to his feet and said, "This is what I'm talking about. You

can't be doing that. You don't have to do that. I obviously have to help you

realize that, don't I? You'll learn. Yeah, you'll learn over time." He glanced

at the stairs to his left. He said, "I have to go now. I'll be back tomorrow,

okay? I have to finish writing my book."

Emiko crawled back to the bed in the corner. She stared at Ethan with a

blank expression – cold and steady. She refused to speak to him under the

horrific circumstances. She wasn't going to become a lover or a friend, she

wasn't going to fall to Stockholm Syndrome.

As if he believed he impressed her, Ethan smirked and asked, "What?

Didn't I tell you? I'm a writer. Like, a published author. Maybe I'll come

read something for you someday. I think that would be nice. I'll see you

soon. I love you, Emiko."

Ethan closed the door, sealing his captive with the darkness. He locked

the door with his keys – no one was getting in or out without him. He

walked up the stairs, prepared to continue the rest of his day – normal, like

yesterday.

Upon hearing the creaky stairs, Emiko lunged forward and shouted,

"You bastard! You sick bastard! Let me go! You can't do this to me!" She

wheezed and groaned, horrified. She cried, "Please... Please, let me go!"

Of course, her screams – insults and pleas – were ignored. She yelled

and cried as she tugged on the chain, but to no avail. She could not escape

the shackles. She was trapped in the dungeon, left by her lonesome.