by Katherine D

Created on: September 06, 2010

She stood next to the ocean, feeling the cool mist on her balmy skin. She stood in silence and reflected on the past, it had been a long time since she had taken time for herself. Janice was 32 years old, and single once again. After a string of bad relationships, the most recent ending two years earlier, she had sworn off of men forever. She dove into work feet first, and did not stop. Janice loved her career as an advertising agent in the city. She took joy in her creativity, and over the last year she had worked hard. She quickly moved up in the company she was employed with, and now felt she deserved a break; this was also a luxury she had not had in the past. As she stood by the ocean, her light dress, and sun kissed hair, blowing gently in the wind, she thought of all the things she had sacrificed for so-called love.

She began to walk towards the pier thinking of all that she had been through in her short life. She had suffered at the hands of not one, not two, but three abusive men. It seemed that each time she thought she had found someone who would not hurt her they did it in a different and deeper way. Yet she had survived.

Her last relationship had been the worst by far, Jim had abused Janice far worse than she could have ever imagined; he had literally set her on fire. Janice thought back to the events that led up to that night and thought she should have seen it coming. Jim was an alcoholic, who often spun into violent rages. Janice thought deeply of their past as she walked, she wondered to herself what had made her stay so long. As she felt the sand between her bare feet she remembered how amazing Jim had been in those early days, she recalled how tentative he had been to her needs, and she remembered exactly when that changed.

Jim was now in Westbrook Penitentiary serving 15 years for attempted murder, and thanks to a mysterious hero, Janice was alive and walking along the beach today. Janice had suffered 3rd degree burns on most of her body at the hands of that monster, and yet she had never even got to thank the man who had ran through the flames to save her that awful night. She could remember his voice though, vividly, she heard him now in her mind as she stepped up on to the wooden planks of the pier. “I've got you.” He said, “Don't worry, your safe now. I won't let him hurt you ever again.” She remembered that she believed the voice, she felt protected in those arms as he carried her to safety. She felt as though

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