It was still dark and raining outside. Elaine sat up in her bed panting. She wiped her forehead that was covered in sweat. Her throat had dried up so she got up to fetch water from the thermos she had kept on her study table. She was still shivering when she filled the glass with water.
After taking a sip her throat felt a little better and she calmed down. "Guess I'm still caught up in the past huh…And here I was thinking I had already moved on." She laughed self-mockingly. Looking at the scattered books she felt a little bitter but soon it disappeared without leaving a trace.
"I still have tomorrow. I will rather sleep…", she sighed.
No sooner had she closed her eyes she was startled by the sound of thunder. If there was one thing that she was afraid of it was thunder and lightning. She curled up in her bed clutching the blankets and tried to cover her whole body with her once again shivering hands. It was worse when there was sudden blackout. In that dark room the only thing she could hear was silence that broke whenever she moved in her bed or exhaled.
"Mom I'm scared…"she sobbed silently the whole time until she finally fell asleep at the break of dawn.
The old man at the pharmacy was bathing in the sun yawning now and then. He looked warm and cozy like an old tabby cat.
Every morning he was greeted by the sweet voice of Elaine. His own children and grandchildren were in the city and they rarely visited him and his old wife. The old couple had seen Elaine grow up right in front of their eyes.
She was the sweetest child around. She used to run all over the village with her short cute legs smiling brightly showing her canine teeth. Even as she was growing up she never forgot to maintain her innocence and playfulness. The village which was getting devoid of young children found solace in her.
Even as a grown up girl she was still kind and lovely as ever but she had lost her smile completely. Her smile seemed forced or sad and it broke his heart. Only if her parents…. The old man sighed.
Fate was truly despicable at times and especially to such a kind girl like her.
It was already past the time she usually came. Seeing that she hadn't arrived yet he got anxious. He had a bad feeling in his heart.
"Honey look after the shop", he shouted over to his wife who was knitting a sweater. "I will go check up on that silly girl."
She nodded as she watched her husband hurrying towards Elaine's house. Once outside the house the old man rang on the doorbell before knocking on the door. Seeing no reply he hurried to the backyard and entered the house using backdoor. The key was given to him by Elaine to use whenever he had necessity of tools kept in the store room.
He looked at the house. It was spotlessly clean. Seeing no sign of her he hurried towards the bedroom on the corner of the first floor. He knocked on her door thrice and called out, "little girl, are you in there?" hearing no response or movement from the room he panicked a bit. Using all his might he forcibly opened the door.
Warm sunlight poured inside the room. On the bed near the window he saw a still curled up ball. Looking around he saw the unmanaged books which were still open.
"She must have stayed up all night reading and overslept" , he thought as he moved towards her to wake her up.
When he finally touched her head he was shocked by the heat he just felt. Her whole face was red, eyes were puffy and her body was burning. She was feverish and it was bad plus she looked as if she had been crying judging from the tear stain on her cheek and pillow. Seeing that she had just fell asleep he let her continue sleeping.
He hadn't been pharmacist all these year just for show. He moved her first to the sofa and after making her lie down comfortably, changed the sheet, pillowcase and blankets cover. Although he did it without resting a bit it still took time. He was tiered when he finally finished all these. 'I'm not as young as I used to be anymore huh….' he thought as he moved the sleeping Elaine to the bed.
After series of these actions he went to the kitchen to prepare an herbal medicine that gives strength. 'That girl' he thought 'she is too weak and malnourished.' He shook his head as he entered the kitchen. Looking inside the fridge he finally understood why this silly girl was malnourished and weak. The whole fridge was covered with instant cup noodles and there was not a single vegetable.
Dejected he called his wife and explained the situation to her. "Prepare a warm congee and make a few green side dishes that goes with fever and cold." The old man instructed her and continued, "As for the shop you can close it. We have more necessary matter to take care of." After finishing whatever he wanted to say he cut off the call.
' Phew…He is way too bossy.' The woman thought as she looked at the call detail. But he was also really kind and she fell for that the moment she met him, well that bossy character was a part of his charm and she didn't mind it one bit.
After half an hour she reached the house and entered the kitchen with two baskets full of food. After nodding at the husband who was making a paste of some herbs in the kitchen she went directly to the bedroom. She placed both basket beside the bed and gently touched the head of sleeping Elaine. The aroma of the warm food filled the entire room.
"Wake up sweetie. Time for some food." She softly said this looking at her lovingly.
Elaine was having a dream. She was running in desert chasing after a rabbit. It was fluffy and its white fur looked tempting. She wanted to cuddle and pet the rabbit. She was about to catch it but it escaped her by just a centimeter. Whether it was intentional or not she didn't know but she didn't want to give up. When she finally caught it she hugged it and rubbed its soft fur without any delay. She felt content and happy.
Mrs. Ron looked helplessly at the young girl who was snuggling closer to her and looked at ease. But food couldn't wait. She used a little more force and woke her up.
Elaine half opened her eyes and looking at the warm gaze of a woman on her she couldn't help but call out softly, "Mom..??!"
What was she doing her??? Why could she smell the homemade food?? What about the incident 2 years ago?? Was it just a long nightmare? Series of question barraged her thought as she stared at the silhouette of the woman.
Mrs. Ron felt a slight tinge of pain in her heart looking at the delirious Elaine. In the warm silent room a girl clasping the hand of an old lady looked beautiful but each one was lost in their own thoughts. Once she felt her eyes and head clear up she saw the face of Mrs. Ron instead of her mom. Mrs. Ron looked with pity as the hopeful face of the girl turned into one with a disappointment. Elaine felt as if someone had poured basin of cold water on when she was sleeping cruelly bringing her back to reality.Still she managed to hold her disappointment inside her and spoke with a hoarse voice, "Grandma, what brings you here?" She tried to get up but her body was too weak to support her and her throat hurt as if needles were stuck there. She grasped her throat to ease the burning sensation even though she wasn't sure it will work or not."You were caught in rain and got cold and fever. But it's not serious. Take some food, medicine and rest and you will be good as new
In the Tyrell mansion Chris was anxious while his injured brother looked calm and confident as ever as he rested in his bed while checking the file of the company. He was pacing around the room until he finally got tiered and sat down in the chair beside the bed. He stared at the man in front him. "Aren't you at least a little bit nervous?""No"A simple calm no. That's all he got after asking the question in all seriousness. A few veins bulged in his forehead as he felt his anger rise beyond controllable."You….You just inherited the group and you are the target of all those savages. Instead of making alliance you actually sent him that parcel." Chris rubbed his temple. He rarely used informal language with him unless he was really pissed off.The man finally put down his file and looked at his brother who looked like an angry hamster with steam coming out of his temple. He smiled a little which was quickly replaced by the nonchalant face but Chri
"Daddy!", the little girl who was sticking close to her mommy meekly came to life as she ran towards the man."Ruby", the man cried with a voice full of affection as he hugged the little girl tightly in his arm. He checked to see if everything was fine or not. "Ruby, are you hurt? Did anyone do anything to you?" The man was flustered and once again kissed the little head in front of him."Honey", a silky smooth voice called him drawing his attention from his daughter to the woman who was standing in front of him. She was a fair and simple lady. He hurriedly went to her and hugged her tightly. "You okay? What are you two doing here?"Thousand thoughts were running in his mind as he resumed his action of hugging the two of his beloved people. 'He might be thinking to kill me before them giving them more mental torture or this devil might be thinking about ruining the life of these two people who were the apple of his eyes.' He tried to think positive
***This chapter contains violence and rape. If you are uncomfortable with such contents you skip that part.*He had doubts so he had asked to check the history and background of the man. Named Isaac and aged 40 at present, before he had been an honest worker, a security guard at a well-known company full of duty and righteousness. Despite being at a young age he was dedicated to his work but at the age of 25 he was charged with various offences and crimes. What more a lawsuit was charged against him for selling and spreading the private and classified information of the company to the competitors by the higher ups of the company.One day when he was patrolling the parking lot, he heard the scream of the woman coming from one of the car. He rushed there immediately only to find a lifeless body being thrown out form the car. A young man around same age as him at that time sat inside panting heavily with sweats covering his forehead. Looking at the torn clothes on the alm
"Hello Mr. Isaac. I'm Franklin Loom, your lawyer for the hearing." Isaac sat in a chair separated by a glass partition from the man in a black coat wearing a dark framed glasses. "Hello, thank you so much for taking my case." Isaac sincerely thanked the lawyer."Enough with these pleasantries, let's get to the main point immediately." Franklin looked impatient and irritated for some reasons. 'Oh, seems like even my lawyer is not willing to fight for me.' Isaac was grim and even his last shred of hope was snugged out. He gave up. He directly told the lawyer, "What do they want from me? What should I do? Hmm?""Looks like you are not as stupid as you look", the lawyer finally showed a smirk. "So you plead guilty in the court tomorrow and that way everyone can have a happy ending." The lawyer leaned back on his chair as he said this.Unlike how the lawyer had first entered all gloomy and irritated when he left the meeting room he was in a good mood. He was th
The couple entered the room after sorting out everything between them. "Mummy, daddy", Ruby ran towards them smiling showing her brilliant smile. After looking at his wife and daughter Isaac didn't want to die and leave his precious treasure behind all alone in this world. He was ready to die for the boss who took him in when he had nothing. 'I m allowed to be selfish once in a while can't I?' Isaac thought as his desire to be with his family grew stronger.Isaac directly went in front of the man and said, "I don't want to die yet. I have things I need to take care of and things I need to see through till the last of my capability." This time Isaac didn't have the pathetic begging attitude but he seemed determined and eyes were full of light completely different from the man of last night who was psychotic. Letting him cool spend a night in oblivion was the best decision. Kim and Chris both gave thumbs up to their boss in their heart.Chris did all the talking for his
One month passed in a blink of an eye and it was time for graduation. Normally parents were the one who came with the students to get their certificate. Elaine was enthusiastic for the graduation even more than others for she was accepted in the university she wanted. Although she didn't get the hostel her tuition and training was free. She had a very important goal to achieve and it could be only fulfilled if she enrolled in that particular university."Central Military School" was the top most university in the country that produced the best soldiers and civil workers in the country. Because of this even the government gave a huge priority to this institution and provided scholarship to top and worthy students. "Congratulations Elaine. All the best for your future." She was congratulated by her peers and teachers and she thanked them whole heartedly. The one month she spent opening up herself to her students had left her many memories. She was going to miss them but t
The day had finally arrived. It was time for Elaine to say goodbye to the small village. It was not like she was going away forever but she still had an attachment towards the place where she had grown up and lived with her parents. She also had the memory of her first love or maybe it was appropriate to call him her crush since he went away before she could express her feelings. If fate was willing then she might just bump into him in the streets. This place was filled with bittersweet memories. Elaine smiled as she went over every event. She stopped a few step away from the house and turned back one last time to look at it. "I am off Mom and Dad. I will be back. Take care of house for me." "Grandpa, Grandma." Elaine waved at the two elderly couple who were waiting for at the bus stop. "This girl is also leaving us." Mrs. Ron was only trying hard holding back her tears but her old feeble hand couldn't help but tremble as she patted her head. "