The first time he hit me was because the toast I had made was too brown on one side and too white on the other side. I stood shaking in the kitchen for quite some time afterwards. I guess I was shocked at what he had just done to me.

I was dazed for some time afterwards as well.

The fierce slap actually almost knocked me over. I had a distinct ringing sensation in my ears for a very long time afterwards and thankfully couldn’t hear or acknowledge the verbal abuse that he had hurled at me afterwards as he threw the toast at me in disgust. Once I had regained my balance I went and stood by the kitchen sink and held on tightly to the steel sink as my body seemed to rock back and forth in utter shock. I glanced at the garden view through the steamed windowpane above the kitchen sink