"Let's go; it's enough. I wish to help Ken anytime if he's gonna pay me by her," one of the men said.
They walked out of the house, fixing their clothes, leaving an unconscious Elaine on the bed.
(System activated)
(Victim found)
(Wait four hours more)
(...)
3 A.M.
"Oh, it's 3 a.m. I should better get home. Was I drunk this whole time? Anyways, better get going."
Ken entered the house, twirling his key on his fingers.
"I'm very hungry. Got something to eat?" he asked loudly.
"I said, have you got something to eat? Just answer my fu##ing question!"
Elaine's POV
My back is still hurting after three hours of hellish torture. I wished you had died. I wished every single minute in that locked room that you would die, lying in some dirty old slump.
"It's not a big deal, Elaine! I had to do something to arrange money," Ken snapped. "And if I hadn't arrived on time, you'd be dead by now. You could have avoided those men by running when they first entered the house.
"But no! Your soft, lousy attitude. You should thank God you're safe now by just giving yourself to some men.
"Perhaps I even gave you some new experience. You're probably bored by me, by my 'used-to' body. Now hurry up and cook me some scrambled eggs!"
Ken's voice grew harsher. "Didn't you hear what I just said?"
"Get out of the house, Ken!" Elaine shouted angrily, confronting him and pushing him.
Ken turned, furious. "What did you just say? Get out of my house? How dare you!"
He grabbed her arms and hissed, "Even a prostitute is good at something, but you? You're good for nothing—not even for my bed. Get off me and fu#k yourself on the roads!"
Ken dragged Elaine outside the house and said coldly, "There are many addicts and perverts moving around tonight. Better get yourself a new husband by tomorrow."
He slammed the door shut.
Elaine sat outside, broken.
"All these years I lived were for nothing."
"No, that's not true," a voice whispered in her mind.
"Maybe it is," she replied to herself, tears streaming down her face.
Elaine found a bench nearby. "This bench seems nice. Oh, look, there's a cat. Come, kitty, kitty. You'll keep me warm tonight," she murmured, holding the cat tightly in her arms and falling asleep.
(System activated)
( langster)Editor's POV
"Wait, wait! You've written the words 'system activated' three times by now. But why, Sara? You should cover this whole system thing in a single paragraph in a certain chapter. You can't just keep the audience waiting to maximize your word count. That's not morally correct, Sara!"
Sara's POV
"Ah, my morally driven editor," Sara laughed. "He not only edits my books but also tells me how to perform everyday living.
"My first three chapters are perfectly fine. I'm just drawing a little suspense here, which, Mr. Editor, you don't seem to have in your life. You just sit in this coffee place all day asking customers if they write and need editing services. I mean, what kind of marketing strategy is that?"
Sara chuckled to herself. "I'm just mocking him. He probably earns more in a week than I do in a month."
She glanced at him and thought, I could find a sweet, sugary editor. But I keep coming back to him. I like how he smells, his brownish eyes with heavy eyelashes, his thin-shaped lips, his girly hands. Oh, I wonder how they feel...
Sara shook her head. *You think I'm becoming Elaine? No, I'm not. I just want to live that character fully to write it properly.
"I have to keep myself in a particular state to write. It's like being on a diet plan or something.
"I don't know, but that's how things work for me."
She smiled at her editor. "Maybe you should give me your experience, too."
Editor's POV
What the hell is she thinking? Is she talking to her self-proclaimed followers?
"I can't tell if she's a narcissist or just talks to herself a lot," he muttered internally.
*Why can't she write something like 'How I Became Lucifer's Father' or 'Harem System: How I Spent Time with My Clones'? At least I'd enjoy that. She should add some smut here... No! Don't think that. She'll think I'm a pervert, which I don't want anyone to know.
"I have issues, and I'm working on them. I shouldn't have come to this city. I should've gone somewhere with fewer people where I could feel safe, secure from my past.*
He shook his head. I only get my customers into trouble. My last customer... I can't even think of what happened to her.
"Okay, Mr. Editor. I should go now. I have to write more chapters; otherwise, I won't get the contract," Sara said, gathering her notes.
As she stepped aside, a man pushed her furiously.
"Ma'am, step aside, please!" he shouted.
Sara stumbled and fell—straight into the editor's lap.
"Oh, I'm so sorry, Mr... I lost my balance," Sara stammered, blushing.
The editor stared at her coldly. "Try to fall on the floor next time."
Why did I say that? he thought immediately.
Sara grabbed her notes and walked out without another word.
The editor watched her leave, regret in his eyes. I shouldn't have upset her. Deep down, I know it was the first time I felt a woman's warmth.