Take me Back to Eden by Katerina Maliarenko

It is generally thought that for girls,

their father shows an example of the man that his daughter will try to find in others in the future. Sometimes it even happens unconsciously. Only for Lika it would be the biggest nightmare of her life because dad was her nightmare. Everything started well at first, as usual in this type of scenario, during the period when Lika was 1–5 years old, the father admired his daughter. But over time, when she grew up, she began to form her character and outlook, to become more conscious, but at the same time she was still practically defenseless.

With this process of change in Lika’s personality, her father also switched his behaviour, but in a completely different, negative, way. It seemed that her presence began to annoy him, he became aggressive with even one wrong step of the daughter, he could even shout for no reason as if she had done the greatest evil in the world, instead of forgetting to bring a cup to the kitchen. But the worst crime that could be committed was distracting dad from listening to his favourite song "Take me back to Eden" by Sleep Token. Then he stopped giving himself an imaginary border of mental balance, and no, shouting wasn’t the worst. He beat, first with a doormat, which didn't hurt too much, as the tempo of the song picked up, he beat with his hand, which burned bare skin with sharp pain, but the worst part was always the end of the song. Dad went to the closet, took out a belt and spanked his daughter with all the aggression and force to the rhythm of the song. It brought him pleasure. He felt as if he were a servant of hell, punishing the sinner before him, not his daughter. He saw her physically, but mentally before his eyes there was always a sinner. 

The song is actually quite interesting, unlike others. It can sound strange, but the song doesn't seem to be suitable for beating because it is so calm. Yes, the tempo increases, the melody changes, but it's not the kind of song people would normally imagine beating to. If you break the song down into phrases, it seems cruel and desperate in places, as if the hero is already tired of fighting with something that was spinning inside him and surrendered to the darkness.  This song is about suffering, not pleasure and perhaps this is the point, that real monsters do not obey the principles of reality or cinematography. 

That unspoken rule "the men we're looking for, will look like our dads" always have to find someone who doesn't want it to work. Now it’s Lika’s turn to become a victim of it. She happily goes on a date, not knowing what is waiting for her afterwards. To be honest, she doesn't want to go on this date, but a friend persuaded her to relax. Everything about this date is perfect: a nice man named Nick, their conversation that revealed a lot in common, the food that if the stomach had the chance, it would jump up and applaud the chef; the wine that is strong. 

Unfortunately, happiness from communication does not lead to pleasant memories of a man, a conversation, or at least a meal from the restaurant. It leads to Lika being forcibly placed in the trunk of the car, which very successfully muffles her cries for help. 

Now she is taken in an unknown direction, brought to a visually abandoned building and thrown on the floor tied up. 

- Why? Why are you doing this? - Lika asks, almost shouting hysterically.  

- Shut up, bitch. I do what I enjoy. Honestly, it's a shame that the date was so good, it was nice to talk to you, but, you know, what I'm going to do now will be even more pleasant. For me. 

Lika is so confused and scared that her whole body is shaking, and adrenaline is rushing through the body at the speed of light. The mind is clouded by panic, which tries to consume consciousness completely, not leaving even a shred of self-control. But she is strong, she endures her father's violence, she will endure this too, the police will find her.  She has hope. 

- Just so you know, I won't just start like that. I have one tradition, a fetish, call it as you wish, but I always torture people with my favorite song. 

He pulls his phone out of his pocket and surf in it, and the song starts playing: “I dream in phosphorescence...” 

Horror penetrates Lika to the tips of her hair, now her heart does not beat fast, but seems to freeze. It freezes because it knows this song. Hope falters, trips, falls, smashes to the ground and now hangs over the abyss. The gate to a psychologically traumatic experience has opened completely. 

“...We dive through crystal waters...” 

He forcefully submerges her head into a bucket full of cold water, despite Lika's best efforts. They do not help, but harms, because in this way she hits her head on the bucket more often 

«...But no one told me not to breathe...» 

Lika would inhale the air to her chest fully, with joyful trepidation, but right now it is just panic. 

“...My, my, those eyes like fire..” 

She looks into Nick's eyes and sees the same look, as if she is looking not into his eyes but into the reflection of hell, full of rage, like a flame that cannot be quenched by any water.  He hangs her by her arms from the ceiling that resembles a carcass of meat. 

“...I will travel far beyond the path of reason...” 

Nick has lost his human form, because a person cannot be so cruel. It seems that he wants to try all the means of torture that he knows. Then he brands her with his “signature”, like cattle. Even God does not know how Lika remains conscious. 

“...Take me back to Eden...”  

He hits her with a baseball bat once. 

“...Take me back to Eden...”  

He hits her with a baseball bat twice. Infernal paradise. 

“...Well, yeah, I spit blood when I wake up...”  

Nick takes out a knife and begin to make cuts all over Lika's body, smiling every time Lika winces, although she does it more and more weakly, not because the pain is getting weaker, but because with each cut, she loses the last leftovers of her hope and soul. 

“...Room feels like a meat freezer, I dangle in like cold cuts...”  

That's how Lika feels, hanging, branded, in some abandoned building and breathing out the last remnants of life from her lungs. 

“...I'm a waking hell and thе gods grow tired...” 

Where are those Gods? Why do they allow this to happen? If this is not hell, then what is? Nick is the incarnation of Lucifer, or rather no, Lucifer is the incarnation of Nick. 

“...You know my desire...”  

Now Nick's desire is only Lika's death. 

“....Take me back to Eden...” 

Time to wrap up. The knife now passes through the skin, layer by layer, then passes through fat and muscle tissue and reaches the left lung, puncturing it and thus filling it with blood and enjoying the remnants of horror in Lika's eyes. The second lung also did not wait long for its verdict. 

“...Take me back to Eden...” 

 The heart is the source of the soul, the engine of the body. If you destroy it, you will destroy everything. The last blow of the knife, the last breath of air, the last thought of consciousness and emptiness. There is no more Lika as a person, now she also wants to be taken to her Eden.