When Darkness Falls: The Boy Who Stood Up

I met Gavin Shaw when I was fifteen.

Nicholas Turner cornered my mother and me at the entrance of a narrow alley, reeking of alcohol and barely able to stand.

"You filthy bitch, you whore..." he muttered through clenched teeth, swinging a leather whip toward my mother.

Without thinking, I stepped in front of her, shielding her with my body.

The whip landed on me again and again. My mother, unable to watch any longer, tried to push me aside.

I shook my head and held on to her tightly.

Then, a hand suddenly caught Nicholas's wrist.

It belonged to a slender teenage boy.

He wore a simple white tunic, the kind cheerful boys often wore, but there was a cold, dangerous glint in his eyes.

There was a sharp snap, and the whip clattered to the ground.

Nicholas let out a cry of pain. The menace in his expression froze the moment he met the boy's gaze.

"Damn," he spat to the side and slunk off, tail between his legs.

"Are you alright?"

Gavin took off his light jacket and gently draped it over my shoulders.

It smelled faintly of pine, fresh and oddly comforting. The scent felt warm, even though it didn't quite fit his overall vibe.

"Thank you."

I took off the jacket, handed it back to him, and pulled my mother away without looking back.

Gavin wasn't someone to mess with.

There was something too fierce in his eyes.

That was the first thing I ever felt about him.

1

The second time I saw Gavin was after my mother ran into the man she had once had an affair with.

He was someone with power and charm. Within days, he had managed to push my mother's divorce from Nicholas through.

Not long after, my mother and I moved into the Shaw family estate.

She told me the man, Franklin Shaw, doted on his only son.

She also said we were only allowed to stay because Gavin Shaw, Franklin's son, had agreed.

She urged me to be nice to Gavin, to do what he said.

But when I met Gavin's deep and unreadable eyes, I found myself backing down, ashamed of my hesitation.

I forced a smile, polite but awkward. "Hi... Gavin."

He said nothing, just stared at me for a long while.

I could feel my cheeks straining from the smile, and just when I thought I'd have to look away, he reached out and patted my head.

It felt like he was patting me like a pet.

I didn't like it, but I didn't dare to pull away.

"Stop smiling," he said coolly. "You look awful when you do."

Seriously?

I wanted to scream.

Sure, I wasn't a beauty queen, but I had a certain delicate charm... didn't I?

Still, I figured that meant he had accepted me in his own strange way.

I didn't want my mother to worry, so I told myself it was fine.

I exhaled quietly.

"Say it again," Gavin said suddenly.

I flinched, startled. There was a faint smile tugging at the corner of his lips, and I couldn't tell whether he was amused or mocking me.

"Gavin... Gavin."

I called his name a few times, smiling on purpose.

Didn't he say my smile was ugly? Well then, I'd keep smiling just to spite him.

As expected, a shadow passed through his eyes.

"You came to me on your own, Beatrice Massy."

His words were strange, almost cryptic. "Huh?" I looked at him, confused.

He didn't explain. Instead, he asked, "Will you stay with me, Beatrice? Always?"

Of course not. We barely even knew each other.

That was what I thought. But what I said was," Of course. You're like family to me."

I couldn't afford to offend him.

"God, forgive me for this little lie." I thought to myself.

Even though I didn't mean a word of it, Gavin seemed to take it seriously.

"Remember what you said. If you ever break your promise... don't blame me for losing it."

He patted my head again. Just like before.

And he managed to threaten me while doing it.

2

The summer night wind was thick and restless, stirring the heat and making hearts race.

By then, I had been living in the Shaw household for three years.

I had a step-brother-quiet, rarely smiling, but always looking out for me.

He worked out with me, nursed me when I was sick, even set aside work just to take me on a trip.

At that point, I truly saw him as family.

But lately, there was someone else who had found a place in my heart.

His name was Averie Scott-a boy with a beautiful face and a gentle nature.

When I transferred to the new high school in my second year, he was the first to ask if I wanted to sit next to him.

Because of Gavin's possessiveness, I turned Averie down.

But Averie simply smiled, kind and patient.

I had never seen a boy smile like that, so soft, so warm.

In that moment, something inside me shifted.

After we graduated, I confessed to Averie.

He laughed and teased me for being too eager, saying that confessions were supposed to come from the boy.

I flushed with embarrassment, my cheeks burning.

But his smile remained as gentle as ever.

That evening, beneath the apartment building I lived in, we shared our first kiss.

We promised to attend the same university. Neither of us noticed the pair of eyes watching us from the shadows.

3

After Averie left, Gavin stepped out, walking toward me at a calm, measured pace.

His expression was cold, but I was too swept up in my joy to see it.

I threw my arms around him. "Gavin, you're back! You've been gone so long-I missed you."

"Did you?" he asked, his hand resting on my head.

"Now that you have a boyfriend, do you still miss me? In just a month, Beatrice, you've already learned how to be unfaithful?"

His tone was sharp, his words laced with something bitter.

Slow as I was, even I could see that Gavin wasn't happy.

I tugged at his sleeve gently, coaxing him like I always did. "Gavin..."

That usually worked.

He always gave in when I called his name like that, a little soft, a little sweet.

But this time, something felt different.

He didn't soften. He kept that same dark look in his eyes, and suddenly I felt afraid.

The car ride was silent and fast. I clutched the seatbelt, not daring to speak.

Gavin looked like he had lost his mind.

He took me to a villa on the outskirts of the city. Without a word, he lifted me in his arms and carried me upstairs.

He tied my wrists. No matter how I screamed or begged, he didn't let me go.

In the struggle, he struck me.

First across the cheek, then the stomach. The pain folded me in on myself.

At that moment, Gavin's face blurred into something I might have seen on a crime show-some twisted, violent stranger.

I stopped fighting. Instead, something colder began to grow inside me.

Love? Care?

His words made me sick.

4

Today marked the twenty-eighth day of my captivity in Gavin's secluded estate.

The room was dim. The person who had been sitting by my bed was long gone.

Suddenly, sunlight poured through the window, stabbing into my eyes with sharp, almost cruel brightness.

It took a long time before I managed to sit up. Step by step, I walked toward the window.

I lifted a corner of the curtain and closed my eyes, letting the warmth touch my skin.

It was so gentle, so comforting.

It felt like freedom.

A faint smile crept onto my lips without me realizing it.

But when I opened my eyes again and saw the guards stationed by the front gate, the illusion vanished. I was reminded that freedom was never mine.

Frustrated, I turned away from the window, only to find myself staring into Gavin's deep, unreadable eyes.

He had turned on the bedside lamp. Sitting there with his legs crossed and chin resting in one hand, he watched me silently. I had no idea how long he had been there.

"Come here, Beatrice," he said, patting the space beside him.

I didn't want to move. But I couldn't disobey him.

I already knew what defiance brought.

In the past twenty-seven days, I had been insulted, humiliated, even beaten badly enough to be hospitalized.

My mother had told me, the day she brought me to the Shaw family, to behave myself.

She said if I didn't, I would be kicked out and sent back to Nicholas.

What she didn't know was that even here, I was still the one being beaten.

She had escaped her nightmare. I hadn't.

Resigned, I walked over and leaned into Gavin's arms, forcing a smile. "Gavin," I murmured.

He stroked my head, pleased by my obedience.

"What were you looking at just now?"

His low voice made me flinch.

I stammered, "I... I was watching the sunlight."

He didn't respond. I only dared to glance at him when the silence stretched too long.

"I haven't seen the sunlight in a long time. Please don't be angry. I won't look next time, alright?"

Tears welled in my eyes. My voice trembled, soft with fear and an urge to please.

Still, Gavin said nothing.

His hand moved slowly over my hair, almost as if he were petting a puppy.

Only after he seemed satisfied with the sight of my trembling face did he finally speak. "It looks like you have learned to behave. How about a reward today? A visit to the Shaw estate."

"What?"

I stared at him in disbelief.

Was he really letting me return to the Shaw estate? Or was it just another test, to see if I would try to run?

I couldn't read Gavin. I asked him outright, "Can I really go?"

Amused by my tension, he gave a small nod.

But before I could feel any joy, he added, "I'll go with you. "My dad called yesterday. He said he missed us."

The spark of hope inside me was instantly snuffed out.

Even though every part of me resisted, I could only nod, blank and silent.

After lunch, Gavin and I rode together to the Shaw estate.

Just before we stepped through the door, he leaned close and murmured a warning.

"Beatrice, behave yourself. Don't cause trouble.

My dad and your mother aren't young anymore. You wouldn't want to upset them, would you?"

"I'll be careful," I said, even as a plan was already forming in my mind.

5

Once we arrived, we exchanged a few polite greetings before Gavin was called into the study by Franklin to talk business.

My mother pulled me down beside her on the couch.

I thought, perhaps this time, she would at least pretend to care about me.

But her first question was, "Beatrice, how have things been between you and Gavin lately?"

I understood why she asked. She needed Gavin's approval to secure her place as Mrs. Shaw.

And I was the tool she used to please him.

She had always asked me this when I came home, but never with such urgency.

I used to be so naïve.

Back then, I would smile and tell her all the good things Gavin did for me.

But everything had changed. Now, I couldn't think of a single kind gesture.

Looking at her still youthful face, I sniffled and forced a smile.

"We're doing fine. Gavin's been good to me."

So good that I couldn't even remember what kindness used to feel like.

She brightened the moment she heard it, and that relieved expression of hers made my eyes sting with tears.

I reached out and hugged her, my voice tight with emotion.

"Mom, can I stay here? I miss you."

I wanted to see her every day. I wanted her to save me.

But those words stayed buried in my chest, unspoken.

I just knew this might be my only chance to get away from Gavin.

My sudden embrace caught my mother off guard.

She patted my head, and the touch made my body tremble.

She thought I was being melodramatic.

Smiling, she pulled away and picked up a tissue from the coffee table, gently dabbing at my tears.

That soft motion broke something in me. The tears came harder, and my emotions spilled over.

"Mom, I don't want to live with Gavin anymore. I'm scared." The words burst out of me.

My mother froze, eyes narrowing slightly as if something had finally clicked in her mind.

The tissue slipped from her hand. Just as she opened her mouth to speak, a hand yanked me up.

Gavin stood beside me, a faint smile playing on his lips, though there was nothing kind in it. His grip tightened around my wrist, so hard it felt like the bones might shatter.

He spoke coldly, "Beatrice, did you already forget what I told you before we arrived? You never learn, do you?"

The fear inside me grew until it felt unbearable. My legs trembled. I could barely stay standing.

My mind buzzed so loudly that I couldn't hear anything else.

It wasn't until Gavin tried to drag me upstairs that I heard my mother's voice, laced with concern.

"Gavin, maybe there's been some kind of misunderstanding. Let go of Beatrice. Let's sit down and talk, alright?"

Her words gave me a shred of hope, easing the dread clawing at my chest.

I looked at her anxious expression and, for a brief moment, found courage rising within me.

"Mom, please. Help me. He locked me up. He... he even tried to..."

Slap!

Before I could finish the word, Gavin's hand struck my face.

Silence fell. At that moment, Franklin stepped out. "What's going on?"

"Honey..." My mother started to speak, but Franklin silenced her with a single look.

His gaze moved from Gavin, who stood calm and composed, to me.

"Beatrice, is this how you were taught to treat your step-brother? And you," he turned to my mother, "is this the kind of daughter you've raised?"

I stared at her, pleading with my eyes.

I told myself, no mother would turn her back on her own child.

But she looked away from me. She offered Gavin a faint, apologetic smile.

"I'm sorry, Gavin. Beatrice has been spoiled by me. I'll leave it to you to teach her properly."

Something inside me cracked. It felt unreal, like I was no longer in my body.

How could she say that? How could those words come from my mother?

I wanted to believe I had heard her wrong.

But no one gave me time to ask, and no one cared to explain.

They just stood there and watched as Gavin dragged me upstairs.

They all knew what was waiting for me, yet none of them moved to stop him.

If anything, they helped push me forward.

Among them was the one person I had trusted most.