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My peaceful slumber was frantically disturbed by a harsh and loud knock on the bedroom door. Groaning, I rubbed my eyes and checked the time. It was still just 6:30. I sighed and yelled as the knocking did not stop. "Hold on."

I opened the door and squinted my eyes to see a panicked Adrien running his hands through his messy hair. "What happened?" I asked him as a yawn escaped my mouth.

"Mom just called and informed me that Aunt Margaret is coming today." He spoke quickly.

"What? But she was going to come tomorrow, right?" I too had started to panic. We weren't ready to face her already. We had a lot to discuss and prepare.

"I don't know but her plans changed. She is coming today. Now come on. We need to get things ready." He came inside my room and started pacing front and back. "She might be here anytime."

"Let's start with shifting your things to my room."

My essential things that I use daily and nearly half of my closet was shifted to Adrien's room at supersonic speed. I almost started crying at the situation. I did not deserve this drama on a sunday morning. Lily too had helped her after she arrived and thankfully, we had everything sorted out. We barely managed to dodge her suspicious looks and questions. Adrien was sure that he would soon have to tell her the truth and I agreed.

Adrien's room was truly stunning. His room was big and luxurious with a large bed and couch. Everything in his house was either brown or beige. Simple yet attractive.

By the time we dressed up and finished our breakfast it was nearly 8. It wasn't long before the doorbell rang.

Lily moved to open the door but Adrien beat her to it as he ran to the door with a wide grin.

I had never seen him so excited before. I involuntarily smiled. His happiness was worth the compromise.

He opened the door and immediately threw himself in a pair of feminine arms. "Aunt!"

He asked her to come inside and brought inside her luggage. I approached as she walked in the living room.

"Hello, Ms. George." I greeted her. She was a beautiful woman who looked much younger than I expected she would be.

"Hi. You might be, Crystal." She smiled widely as I nodded and she came forward to hug me. Pulling back, she held my shoulders.

"What a beautiful girl. It's so good to meet you dear." She grinned and I blushed at her words.

"Likewise, Ms. George." I said.

"Oh! Please, call me Aunt, like Adrien does. You are my nephew's wife. Like my own niece." I smiled at her, agreeing to call her Aunt.

Adrien led her to the couch and she whispered something to him with a smirk, at which he glanced at me before rolling his eyes. Aunt giggled at him.

Lily greeted her and brought her a glass of water before relaxing on the couch.

"You look tired. Why don't you take some rest." Adrien suggested to her.

"Later. Right now, there's a lot I have to catch up to. I'm so sorry that I couldn't attend your wedding." She said apologetically and Adrien shook his head.

"Don't worry about it. And you can catch up with everything later. None of us are running away."

"Yeah. That's true. But you know, I actually came here for some work. So I won't be here all the time." Adrien nodded in acknowledgement. She agreed to rest for a while. He led her along with her luggage to the guest room.

The rest of the day wasn't as hard as I expected. Adrien spent his time in his study while I sat in the living room, chit chatting with Lily or reading a book. Aunt Margaret decided that she had rested enough so she too joined us ladies.

Later, in the evening, Aunt, Adrien and I sat on the dining table, having our dinner.

"Mmm... Lily cooks great food." She said and we agreed. "So, tell me about your love story. Where did you guys meet?" She asked, looking at us.

Adrien and I glanced at each other nervously. We didn't know what to say. Anyhow, I came up with a quick answer.

"At a party."

"In a restaurant."

We both said at the same time. We looked at each other in disbelief and then at Aunt who slightly frowned.

"We mean, it was our restaurant's inauguration party and she had attended it with her friend. That's where we met." He explained and Aunt easily bought the lie.

"Hm. Interesting." She smiled while munching on the food.

We wrapped up the dinner before Aunt said that she had somewhere to go early in the morning. She had gone to her room and I too was about to go to mine when my wrist was held by someone.

"Where are you going?" Adrien asked.

"To my room." I answered.

"Our room is that way." He pointed towards his room, reminding me that we were sharing it.

"Right." He left my wrist and said that he had some work in the study room. I went to his room and changed into comfortable clothes and continued reading my book while sitting on the couch.

My eyes slowly opened and I squinted them to see myself in a dark room. I rubbed them to clear my vision and looked around. All other lights of the room, except the bed lamp were off. My head was on a cushion and a warm comforter covered my body. My book was kept on the coffee table and that's when I realized that I had slept while reading it. I heard the sound of dripping water from the bathroom.

That must be Adrien.

I sat straight on the couch and pressed my aching neck. Was it Adrien who put the comforter on me? Who else could it be?

My heart warmed at the thought. The door of the bathroom opened and I looked up to have my breath knocked out. Adrien stood by the threshold with just a towel wrapped around his waist, looking no less than a Greek god. My eyes were stuck on his broad, defined chest proudly glowing in the dim light. His perfectly carved abs were worth the time he spends in the gym. He wasn't overly muscular like those boxers or wrestlers, just the perfect amount of lean ruggedness to make anyone's throat dry up. The towel hung low on his waist and I almost drooled seeing his v-line.

Before my innocent eyes could go down further, I snapped them back at his face. He looked embarrassed. He ran a hand through his wet hair, making several drops of water trail down his neck and and shoulders.

"Um, sorry. I thought you were asleep." He said and I looked away from him, feeling heat crawl up my neck. "I'll just take my clothes." He went to his wardrobe and I stared at his muscular back. His muscles flexed at every small movement and I struggled to look away. Without glancing at me, he went back into the bathroom and I layed back on the couch.

A few moments later, he came out again, fully dressed this time while wiping his head with the towel. He glanced at me and I snapped my eyes away from him at the ceiling.

"Now that you are awake, you should take the bed." I looked at him as he spoke.

"That's okay. I am comfortable here." I told him. The couch was big enough to let me sleep comfortably. Whereas, I doubted if Adrien could fit in it.

"I insist, Crystal. Take the bed, I'll sleep here."

"This is your room. I am the intruder, so I will sleep on the couch." My argument was stupid, but I didn't want him to sleep uncomfortably.

"That's--"

"Listen, let's do this." I interrupted him. "Let's take turns. Today let me sleep here, tomorrow you can. Now Good Night." I did not give him a chance to talk back and put the comforter over my head. I heard him sigh softly and after a few minutes, the only light in the room was turned off.

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I was watching Netflix in the living room when I heard the main door open. I already knew it was Adrien since he and I were the only ones who had the house keys.

"Hey." I greeted him as he came into sight.

"Hi. Is aunt home?" He asked and I shook my head.

He nodded and opened the collar button of his shirt. His sleeves were folded up till his elbows and hair were messed up, unlike the way he left for the office.

He sat beside me on the couch and spoke. "Crystal, do you remember Tyler? You met him at our wedding." I thought for a while before nodding my head.

"He is giving a party tonight. We are invited so please be ready by 7." He informed me and I stared blankly at him.

"D-do I have to come along." I asked.

"Of course. You are my wife.

His wife.

"Is there a problem?" I shook my head at his question. "Then 7 it is." With that, he went to the bedroom.

I had started to get a little nervous. Although I had met Tyler and Anna before, there would be a lot many of Adrien's acquaintances who I'd have to meet.

Later that evening, I stood in front of the mirror, getting ready for the party. I wore a black shimmery one-shoulder dress that finished at my mid thigh. Pairing them with black heels, I kept my makeup nude and natural with just a thick eyeliner. I pushed my hair back and clutched a small part in the back.

I was wearing my stud earrings when I heard Adrien's voice. The door of the closet was open so he simply walked in.

"Crystal, are you ready? I will take another fifteen min-" He stopped on his tracks when his eyes fell on me.

His eyes scanned me from head to toe making me more nervous than I already was.

"I- I am almost done." I said, dodging his intense gaze. He came closer and leaned on the wall next to the mirror. Looking into my eyes through it.

"You look stunning." His comment made my cheeks turn pink.

"Th-thank you." I didn't meet his eyes. Instead, I tried fixing my hair.

"But there's one thing that can make it better." I looked at him as he said. His blue eyes roaming all over me. He moved towards me and raised his hand over my head.

I felt my hair loosen from the clutch and one by one, all the strands fell over my shoulder. My eyes met his and my heart skipped a beat as I met the intensity of his gaze.

"Perfect." He whispered. I averted my eyes to the mirror and stroked my hair to set them properly and went to the bedroom to allow Adrien to get ready.

We were soon at the party at Tyler's house. He lived in a modern villa that allowed him to throw parties freely.

I had thrown my nervousness out of the window as all of his friends welcomed me with a warm smile. All of them were very sweet and down-to-earth, making me feel comfortable.

We stood in a group with Tyler, Anna and a few other people when someone touched Adrien's shoulder.

"Hello there, Russell." I turned to look at the source of voice while Adrien cursed under his breath. He plastered a fake smile and slowly turned around to the man.

"Alan Marshall. I did not expect to see you here." He gave a side eye glare to Tyler while gritting his teeth.

Is something wrong?

"Oh well. I had to be here to meet you and... your wife." He said with a weird smirk, glancing at me. I shifted uncomfortably under his gaze.

"Hi. I'm Alan." He held his hand out and I hesitantly shook it.

"I'm Crystal."

"Nice to meet you, Crystal." He smirked and brushed a kiss on my knuckles. I glanced at Adrien to see his jaw clenched, glaring at Alan.

Generally, I like such gestures. But this man made me feel a little uncomfortable.

Before I could pull my hand out of his hold, Adrien yanked it away and held Alan's shoulder. "Why don't we catch up with a drink." He gave a thin-lipped smile.

"Great idea. Come on. Anna, please give Crystal company." Tyler said and shared a knowing look with Anna. And the men moved away from us.

My eyes somehow found their way to Adrien. He looked devilishly handsome and I struggled to take my eyes off him. He wore a white t-shirt and a grey blazer over black jeans and pushed back his hair showing off his perfectly proportional face. Although his attire was simple, he looked like a model pulled straight out of a fashion magazine.

"Come On, let's have a drink." Anna said and all her friends agreed. She looked at me and I gave an awkward smile.

"I don't drink alcohol." I said and she nodded in understanding.

"That's okay. You can have juice. Come." She said and pulled me along to the counter.

We were sipping on our drinks when I spoke up. "Anna, who is he? Alan I mean."

She glanced at him and answered. "He has been Adrien's rival ever since their college. He tried competed with him in everything and played dirty tricks to put Adrien down. Now, they even compete in business." She sighed and I glanced over at them. The scowl on Adrien's face never left him. He looked annoyed.

His eyes suddenly turned towards me and I snapped away.

"Thank you for coming Crystal. You are a great company and I would love to get to know you more." Anna said with a genuine smile.

"Thank you for inviting me." I returned the smile. A while later, my phone rang. I checked the caller ID and it was Aunt Margaret. I excused myself from the group and went into the yard to attend the call since the music inside wouldn't help me hear a thing.

She had called to know about our whereabouts as she was already home. Adrien wasn't lifting his call, so she had called me. I informed her that we'd be there soon and she could go to bed.

Soon after we hung up, I was on my way back inside when the man from earlier, Alan I suppose approached me. He had a smug smile on his face.

"What are you doing here all alone?" He asked me.

"I was attending a call." I moved back a little as his steps towards me did not stop. I looked around and there wasn't a single soul in the yard. That was my cue to go back in. "I should go back inside." I turned around to leave but I was suddenly yanked by my wrist and pulled into a strong body.

My eyes widened and I struggled to free myself from his grip but he pinned me to the wall.

"Let me go!" I yelled but he didn't budge. Fear took over me. I shouted but my screams did not reach anybody's ears. "What the hell are you doing?"

"What do you think? The same thing that you and Russell did in that lodge." He smirked disgustingly and I used all my strength to push him away. But it was of no use.

In a blink of an eye, he held both my hands over my head and pressed his free palm on my mouth. "Shut up, you slut." He cursed, pressing his body against mine.

Tears made their way to my eyes as I wiggled to get out of his hold. I used my legs to kick him. He hissed when my foot hit his shin hard but didn't let go. To stop my struggle, he stepped on my foot and stood with all his weight on me. I whimpered in pain.

He removed his hand from my mouth and dug his nails on my bare arm. His mouth landed on my neck and left and he brushed his chapped lips there.

I was a shouting, crying mess. Disgust ran through my nerves making me shudder in his dirty touch.

I was crushed by his weight on me. I couldn't move a muscle while his one hand moved all over my body. His filthy hand brushed my breast and he squeezed it harshly.

I was helpless and scared. My heart beat terribly fast. Everything started spinning before my eyes. My cries turned into muffles. I realized that the sleeve of my dress was torn open when his nails scratched my skin.

I was tired. I couldn't struggle anymore. A throbbing pain stroke my head and black dots started to appear in my vision.

Suddenly, the man was yanked away from me and I fell on the ground. I crouched in a corner with arms wrapped around myself, sobbing on my knees.

I had never felt so dirty.

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