Philip had completely closed the curtains. He really enjoyed the moment of anticipation when the room became dark and the woman that he was with didn't yet know what was about to happen. It was always like this when he set his sights on a female tenant.
"Miss Bradley, Sue, I've done so much for you. You must have worked out why I've been so good to you?" he turned around. In the darkroom, his face was so malicious that it made Sue's heart tremble. It felt like he became a completely different person the moment he closed the curtains.
"What are you talking about, Mr. Gellor? Open the curtains, it's too dark in here, I don't like it." She walked to the window and was about to open the curtains, but he grabbed her hand.
"Ahh," She cried out in shock. She was terrified when she saw the sinister smile on his face. "What are you doing? Let go of me."
Previously, she had thought of Philip as a generous, warm-hearted man who enjoyed helping others. Now, she realized that something was very wrong, but she was still trying to convince herself that she was mistaken.
"I've helped you so much, Sue. You must have realized that I really like you." Looking at her pretty face in front of him, Philip became increasingly aroused. He said, "Satisfy me once now, and I'll let you off the four months' rent. And you can stay here for as long as you need to."
When Sue saw his lustful eyes, she finally realized the severity of her situation. "What are you saying? Let go of me," she screamed. She tried to get away from him, but he was holding her tightly to him, and she couldn't get free no matter how hard she tried.
The evil light in his eyes grew. Holding both of her hands in one hand, he took a condom and the Viagra out of his pocket and waved them in front of her. He said, "Don't be afraid, I've come prepared. A couple of these Viagra and I guarantee that you will experience ecstasy like you've never felt before. And remember, I'm paying eight thousand to buy you for one night. It's a great deal for you. You should be grateful."
"Let me go. Let go!" Sue felt repulsed when she saw the condom and Viagra in his hands. She grew even more scared as she yelled, "Let go of me, you bastard. Let go!"
"You're so beautiful. Come on. We'll start on the sofa." Philip's mind was completely focused on what was about to happen. He pulled her toward the sofa.
"Bang, bang, bang." Suddenly, there was an urgent knock on the door.
"What's wrong?" someone shouted from the other side of the door. "Miss Bradley?"
Philip was distracted by the noise. He was puzzled. He knew that the apartment next door was currently empty. Could it be that people passing by heard her screams?
Whoever it was, he knew that he had no choice but to stop what he was doing.
He let go of Sue.
"You bastard," she yelled and kneed him in the groin.
"Aaargh." Philip bent over in agony. He was sure that this feeling of being crushed like an egg was causing him much more pain than a woman giving birth to a child.
Sue opened the door and Alex stepped in.
"What's happening?" he asked worriedly.
"Nothing—" Sue was too embarrassed to tell him what had just happened. After all, the root cause of the problem was that she hadn't paid her rent, and nothing had actually happened. She was worried that people would judge her if they heard that she had been sexually assaulted.
"Now get out," she shouted at Philip, who was hobbling along, not even able to stand up straight. With difficulty, he left. But he wasn't planning to give up.
Sue invited Alex to stay for a drink. She opened the curtains and sat beside him on the sofa.
"Thank you for what you did just now—" She was still a little afraid when she thought about what had nearly happened.
"Did that person touch you?" Alex asked.
"Don't say any more, it's not what you think. If he tries anything again, I'll crush his balls," she said with a small smile.
Alex sighed. Looking at Sue's expression, he was sure that he was right. Philip had been assaulting her.
At that moment, the TV and air-conditioning in the room suddenly stopped working. Sue went to check the bathroom and found that the water had also been turned off.
"What's going on?" Alex asked with a frown. Before Sue could answer, there was an abrupt knock on her door. When she opened it, two staff members walked in and started scolding her rudely.
"You have to leave today," one of them said. "And you have to pay the four months' rent as soon as possible. You've been blacklisted with all the letting agents in the city. Until you pay back the money you owe us, you won't be able to rent a room anywhere in New York." The two men sneered and one said, "Hurry up and clear out. If I see that you're still here tonight, you'll be forcibly removed."
With that, the two men left.
"This is Philip's doing," Alex said, still frowning.
Sue let out a heavy sigh. She cringed when she remembered how she had believed that Philip was helping her out of kindness. She felt like an idiot. She also couldn't understand how he could want to sleep with her against her will. Gloomily, she started to pack up her things.
"Do you have anywhere to go?" Alex asked worriedly. He thought, if Sue owes over four months' rent, it means that she can't have any money on her. How is she going to survive in New York? It's so expensive to live here. And there are all sorts of dangers for a girl on her own out on the streets.
"No," Sue replied honestly. She really didn't know where she would go when she left this apartment. If she couldn't think of anything else, she would have to go home. She was twenty-six years old but would have to go back to her parents' house.
"Goodbye. It was nice to meet you." Sue had packed her things quickly and was about to leave.
"Umm. I've got a suggestion. You could live in my apartment?" Alex suggested, looking at Sue. He was really worried about her. She had made a really good impression on him earlier when she wanted to help him. Now, he was keen to help her if he could.
"You—" Sue was still angry about Philip tricking her. Her first thought was that Alex was similar. He was trying to bully her and take advantage of her. She had really warmed to him since meeting him, so the thought that he was another rogue upset her.
He noticed the suspicious way that she was looking at him and said quickly, "Don't get me wrong. I'm a student at Preston University, so I usually stay in the dorm. I rented this apartment, but I'm still really busy at school, so I'm not planning to live here yet."
"Really, you're not lying to me?" Sue asked, puzzled.
"I promise I'm not lying to you. Of course, if you're worried, you could always get the locks changed. If I want to visit, I'll always knock. I won't have a key to let myself in," Alex explained in earnest. Finally, he said, "If you still don't know if you can trust me, I completely understand. Anyone would feel the same after what just happened. But I'm really afraid that you'll be in danger out on the streets. I've got eight hundred dollars on me which I'd like you to take. You can rent a room at a guest house until you get back on your feet."
As he spoke, Alex took out all his cash, which came to about eight hundred dollars.
No matter how Sue looked at him, she just couldn't convince herself that he was lying. She still had a good impression of him. "All right," she said, "I would love to stay in your apartment. Thank you so much. Please keep your money. I still have a little myself. Do you want to help me move my stuff to yours?"
"Sure," Alex replied with a bright smile. Then he helped her carry all her belongings next door to his apartment.
"Sue, what's been going on?" he asked her when they had finished moving her things. He had been puzzling over her predicament and couldn't work out how a smart woman like her could end up in a situation where she couldn't pay her rent.
She sighed. Talking about her situation made her feel very sad. But she already felt depressed and didn't think talking to Alex about it could make her feel any worse.
"I used to be a sports reporter with a salary of over three thousand dollars a month. It wasn't a massive salary, but it was plenty for me and I loved the job. It involved reporting on all kinds of sporting events all over the world. Because of my job, I traveled all over the United States and even to Europe on some occasions." Her eyes lit up when she remembered her old life.
"But a year ago, the boss asked me to slander an American athlete. I refused, so he fired me and made it impossible to work again within the industry. He even brought several lawsuits against me."
Alex was horrified, but he also had a lot of respect for Sue. "You're unbelievably brave and strong," he said.
She smiled and replied, "I don't know about brave and strong. I just couldn't do something that felt so wrong."
At that moment, her cell phone rang. When she saw the name "Jade" on the screen, she hesitated for a moment before answering.
When she did, a barrage of criticism came down the line from her sister. "What the hell are you up to? Why haven't you come home to see your parents for over two months? It's been so long that your family probably won't even recognize you. When they see you—"
"Jade, I know and I'm sorry. I was wrong, but it's because I've been so busy at work recently. When I get busy, I forget about everything else." Sue smiled apologetically.
"Too busy to see your family? And you really think that you're the only one who's busy? Seriously—" Jade mumbled to herself before continuing, "Tomorrow is father's anniversary, have you forgotten about it?"
"How could I forget? Jade, of course not."
"Well, at least you didn't forget. Go to Mom's house tomorrow morning. By the way, Mom's worried about you, so she found someone for you. He sounds pretty good. Wear nice clothes tomorrow because he'll be there."
"What? Why is Mom trying to set me up again? I've told her so many times already, I don't need her to worry about me. She—" Sue looked miserable.
"Hey, you can't blame Mom for worrying about you. Give her a break. At your age, you should be worrying more about the fact that you're not married yet. Mom is really upset about it, and you had the audacity to tell her off for worrying about you. You really don't know what's good for you. Anyway, I'll see you tomorrow." Jade finished her lecture and ended the call.
Sue immediately called her mother to ask about the man she was trying to match her with. Before they had said a single word to each other, they were both in bad moods, so they started to quarrel almost immediately. Her mother ended the call abruptly with a loud "tut."
"What's wrong?" Alex asked when he saw Sue's helpless expression.
"My mom secretly found me a partner. She wants me to meet him tomorrow. I hate it when she tries to set me up, so why does she keep doing it?" She was so angry that her face was red. Suddenly, she had an idea. She looked up at him and asked softly, "Alex, how about you be my boyfriend?"