I angrily toss my sponge into the sink, dirty water splashing all over my clothes.
I'm pissed off, and a little scared, honestly. Alex's tasks for today were so simple,
exceedingly
easy. How did I manage to fuck that up? I have no idea, and I certainly don't know what I'm supposed to tell him when he gets home from work.
It's a Saturday, so I have the day off, while Alex is at work. These types of days are among our favourites, because I can be his doting girlfriend at home, completing the tasks he gives me in the morning, and then get rewarded for being his good girl when he comes home.
Sometimes I intentionally disobey him in some way. Like a couple weeks ago when he told me to fold and put away his clothes before he came home. Instead, I poured them all into a high pile in the middle of the living room. The glare he gave me when he came in through the front door was absolutely terrifying-and panty-melting-and I ran through our house to get away from him.
When he caught me, he pulled me over his knee and spanked my ass over and over until he believed me when I said, "I'm sorry, Sir."
I swear I still feel the sting of it when I touch my butt.
But I didn't intentionally disobey him today. Even when I'm bratty on purpose, I still complete his most important tasks, such as making dinner for us and keeping the place clean. If he requests pictures of me, I always send those too, even if I sometimes give him a little more than he bargained for.
Today, he gave me three tasks. Just three tiny, little tasks, and I failed each and every one of them.
First, I was to clean up before he came home. Second, I had to have dinner ready for us. And lastly, I had to send him a picture of myself. Not even a nude, just a normal, smiling selfie sometime during the day.
And I failed
every
task.
I'd planned on making a slow-cooked stew for us today, which I put on this morning. While it cooked in the oven, I began cleaning the entire house, though I was going to wait with the kitchen until right before he came home.
Somehow while I took a break on the couch, I fell asleep, and while I was peacefully snoring away, the stew burned. When I opened the oven, smoke filled the entire kitchen, making the fire alarm go off and making my job even more anxiety-inducing.
When I cooled it off, I could finally get a good look at the damage, finding that it was near impossible to salvage. I tried my best, but with just an hour left before Alex was to come home, there was just no hope.
So, I tried to clean it off instead. 2/3 tasks wouldn't have been too bad, especially if I explained what happened, but the burned shit at the bottom just would not come off. I scrubbed and scrubbed for a good half hour and barely got the worst of it off. The kitchen is a mess, too, as I became unintentionally hyper focused on the stupid pan.
And I only realise, just as the front door opens, that I completely forgot sending the picture too. I let out a groan when I see him enter.
Alex enters the living room, which sits adjacent to the kitchen, and slowly puts his things away on a chair. I don't look at him, not wanting to see his face. It's not that I think he's angry with me, but the last thing I want is to see his face of pity.
I don't want to be babied when
I
fucked up and couldn't do three simple things for him. So, instead, I just stare at the dirty, sot-covered pan with a quivering bottom lip, desperately trying to hold myself together.
"Rachel?" he tries, but I don't turn around. "Baby, look at me." God, his voice is filled with so much pity, I can't stand it.
When I don't respond, he comes up behind me, snaking his arms around my waist and gripping me tight. His loving squeeze on my stomach breaks me, and tears begin rolling down my cheeks.
"Shh," he says into my ear. "It's okay."
"Don't say that." My voice breaks as I give my weak protest.
Alex pulls back a little, and whatever he sees in my expression makes his lips thin. "Come here," he tells me, and I offer some weak protests, but ultimately let him drag me by my hand to the couch.
He sits down first, then pats his lap. I go to straddle him, but he interrupts me. "Other way, angel." I do as he says, putting my back to his front and settling down on his lap.
It's times like these that our height and size difference is very convenient, as I fit nearly perfectly in his lap. Especially when his arms wrap around me, tugging me even closer. His cheek rests against the side of my head and I slump completely in his hold.
"Tell me what happened." His tone is firm, like there's no room for argument, yet he doesn't sound angry.
"I burnt the food," I begin, but my voice cracks again. I can't stand it, how I can't even tell him the very dry rundown of how I fucked up without ending up in tears. I take a shaky breath before I continue. "And I couldn't-" Another breath. "I couldn't clean it off the pan. It's stuck."
Alex doesn't reply for a while, instead just rocking me a little in a soothing motion. His thumbs on my waist keep rubbing circles, grounding me. With a small sigh, he says, "It's okay, Rachel. It wasn't your fault."
"But it was!" I insist. "I fell asleep, and it fucking burnt while I was asleep right here on the couch." The anger in my voice masks the tremble that was there just a second ago.
His grip tightens just a fraction. "Shh, baby. I'm not angry."
I can't explain it, but I
want
him to be angry. The fact that I fucked up and couldn't follow his three simple instructions, not even sending him a picture, makes me so pissed off at myself. And when his reaction is to soothe me, to pity me, it just makes me angrier at myself since it makes me think I'm overreacting.
Instead of replying, I stay silent, though I'm fuming in my head. Alex doesn't say anything for a while, and I assume he's trying to give me time to calm down, but it just has the opposite effect. The more he's quiet, the more I hate myself.
After a minute, he finally says, "It's okay, Rachel. We can clean it later, and we can-"
I've had enough. "No!" I interrupt him. I never interrupt him, not intentionally anyway, but I can't take his pity anymore. "Stop saying it's okay. Please. I fucked up, why the hell aren't you
angry with me!?
"
He doesn't say anything, and I begin feeling guilty for my outburst. It seems no matter how hard I try to get him to stop feeling bad for me, I just make him feel even worse.