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leaving for his third year at University.
How innocent she was back then… She must have had no idea of what she was
doing, though now surely she understood what they’d done. Perhaps that was why
she was so cold to him now. He’d barely managed to convince her before, only
told her that they were playing a game. She was his doll, and he could position
her as he wished. He had, and the whole of the time she’d kept the same
expression, as though she’d felt nothing – not pleasure, not pain, nothing .
He’d had the lust for her skin then, and now he felt it once again.
    He
held her shoulders tightly and pulled her against him, feeling the warmth of
the blood pumping beneath her skin. He was quickly overwhelmed, lowering his
head to kiss her, pinching the flesh of her lips with his own.
    You
will not hide from me ,
he thought spitefully. You will not escape this .
    Todd
bore down on her against the mattress. She tried to push away, but his grip
held tightly. He tried to keep her restricted, but she managed to escape his
hungry kiss, pulling her head to the side.
    “I
won’t,” she said, breathing in the air that was free of his hot breath.
    “What?”
he questioned, leaning back a bit to look at her face, but not releasing his
hold on her.
    “I
won’t,” she repeated. “Not in front of them. Not again.”
    Them? She was
embarrassed of being watched by lifeless toys ?
    Todd
faltered a moment. Then he pulled back his head and laughed, unable to contain
it. All around the room, tiny eyes watched him, their faces expressionless in
their disapproval. All too suddenly and unnaturally, his amusement turned to
anger. His gaze jerked back to her, flames lapping in his eyes.
    “These
things–these objects– are more important to you than the living?” he
asked roughly, his voice rising.
    Olivia
refused to answer or even look at him then.
    “They
aren’t real, Olivia,” he explained, his tone insanely calm. “They aren’t alive
like you and me. They don’t talk, or breathe . They don’t have lives to
waste away in a room with toys!”
    Todd
pulled himself off of her, striding quickly to the wall shelf to examine the
spread of porcelain–faced dolls. The first that caught his eye was in a green
dress with curly red hair, and he lifted her up carefully, looking into her
green eyes of glass.
    “What
has this one told you to call her?” he asked, staring at the doll as if trying
to figure out the answer to the question before she could give it.
    “Beth,”
whispered Olivia, staring at Todd with wild eyes like a hunted animal. He liked
that look for her.
    “And
what does Beth like?’ he wondered aloud.
    Olivia
didn’t speak for a moment, her worried eyes not leaving the doll.
    “She
likes tea parties and cakes,” the girl said. That was not the answer he was
looking for.
    “ No !”
Todd shouted, finally losing his temper.
    “Don’t
hurt her, please,” Olivia begged, her voice choked.
    “Your
friend Beth isn’t real. She’s not alive! She feels nothing ,” he screamed
at her, not bothering to be gentle.
    “Please,
put her down.”
    Olivia’s
eyes never left the toy, and Todd, realizing this, stared back at her, lowering
the doll to his side. She wasn’t even listening to him. She was only interested
in the doll, staring at it like it was floating through the air without his
hand’s aid! How could she think this way? What was inside her mind that would
not allow her release from these beliefs?
    He
let the doll fall from his grasp then–watched Olivia as her gaze followed it to
the floor. The smooth head hit the wood planks with a thud, but did not break,
and he saw that Olivia was immediately relieved. The girl wrapped her arms
around her legs, resting her chin on her knees, tucking herself away from him.
    “Please
leave now,” she urged, shutting him out.
    Todd
stood quietly a moment, and then took a few steps toward the door, but his
violent mind got the best of him. He stopped. He had his