Ana Oliveira Part 2

“How do you manage it?” I yelled, getting very close to his face again, standing on my toes. “How do you manage to lie in bed and sleep as if you haven’t done anything? As if you haven’t ruined me?”
“I told you to shut up, Ana!” he warned, advancing toward me.
It all happened in a matter of seconds. Josiah wrapped his enormous fingers around my neck and spun me around, switching places with me and pinning me against the wall. I felt his hand tighten slightly around my neck.
“Seriously?” he asked, taking a deep breath as I saw him nearly fuming from his nostrils. My chest pounded so hard I might faint. “You’re really going to talk about sleeping with a clear conscience? Do you want me to remind you? Should I throw it all in your face? How you ended us? That you’re a damn criminal who wasn’t arrested because my father, the old man you so condemn, stopped it?”
“Shut that damn mouth!” I screamed, gripping his hand, trying to break free.
“You’re not the saint you pretend to be... And don’t try to blame me for the Little One! It was you who pushed me away, who never let me get close.”
“Stop talking!” I yelled, hysterical.
Realizing he wouldn’t stop, that he would keep hurling things at me, I lunged at his mouth and bit him. I captured his lower lip and sank my teeth into it with fury. He groaned in pain, tightening his grip on my neck as I tasted blood on my tongue. When my ex-boyfriend tightened his hold so much that I felt air escaping my body, I let go.
Josiah had a wicked look on his face, his lower lip marked with my bite, and I could taste the metallic flavor in my mouth. I felt my face wet with the tears I no longer wanted to hide, as he licked his mouth, took steps back, and then walked in circles in front of me, running his nervous hands through his hair, smoothing it back.
“This needs to end, Josiah,” I pleaded, walking up to him and grabbing his shoulders. “You need to leave me alone.”
“I hate you!” he shouted, shoving me against the brick wall again. “I’m not leaving you alone, nor am I going away, like you expect. I’m going to destroy you, do everything I can to undermine anything that makes you happy. Or do you think you deserve peace?”
“You’re going to destroy me, yes,” I murmured, staring into his eyes. “And you’ll destroy yourself in the process, burning everything and everyone around us together, because if you don’t stop, I’ll start retaliating with the same force.”
“Then it’s done!” he whispered, pressing his head against the wall beside me and inhaling the scent of my neck. I felt my body ignite again, with a tense mix of hatred and something else. “Let’s see who destroys the other first!”
And before I could respond, he sank his teeth into my shoulder and bit hard, making me scream as I clung to his shoulders. I felt a tremendous burning as he pulled away, smiling, promising things with just his eyes. I watched as Josiah lightly punched the bathroom door, and then someone on the other side opened it.
“Whoa!” Harry mocked from outside. “That was something, huh? You’re even bleeding…”
“Shut up!” Josiah murmured.
“Damn it!” I shouted, kicking the bathroom trash can.
I leaned against the sink, staring at the mirror. There was a huge bite mark on my left shoulder. The thin strap of my black top had fallen off my arm, and I put it back in place. I wiped my face with paper and took a deep breath.
He really wanted a war, and it seemed he wouldn’t stop. I couldn’t let that man continue attacking me, disturbing me, believing he was truly innocent in all this chaos. He wanted to burn me like a witch deserving to be tormented, but now I was willing to make him burn too, even though I had no idea how to exact my revenge.
I left the bathroom, swallowing hard as I noticed the silence among Josiah’s group. He was slouched on the sofa, with an ice pack on his lip, which was beginning to swell. Isabela was beside him, looking at me with confusion. The rest were drinking, exchanging glances.
I saw Luana in the same spot I had left her, taking sips of water and looking at me with concern. I turned my back on the chaotic group and walked to her, feeling a bit dizzy from the alcohol and stress. I wanted to leave and try to erase that damn night from my memory.
“And hey, Jow, when Ana was blowing you, did she use her teeth like she did on your lip?” Isabela mocked, causing the group to burst into laughter.
I halted my steps, trying to contain the demon about to escape through my pores. I bit my lower lip and turned around. I glared at the girl, who was sitting with her legs crossed, wearing a short, ripped denim shorts and a red top full of holes.

“No!” Josiah responded softly, with a serious expression. “She was good with her mouth.”
Annoyed by the comments, I walked over to the table and grabbed a beer from the bucket. I smiled as I took a few swigs, watching the group in silence, some of them looking concerned. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Luana was already close, ready to restrain me. I then approached Josiah, stopped right in front of him, and poured the liquid over his dark hair. I watched as the beer dripped down his face while he took a deep breath and clenched his jaw. Before my ex could do anything, I returned the bottle to the bucket, threw myself over his legs, and grabbed Isabela’s red hair, yanking it hard.