SEVENIt was obvious that my words were a bombshell, but there was no better way or time to do this. Alaric was right. It was high time I left here. Aside from getting back to right all that was wrong in Luster Falls, I couldn't allow myself to grow on Becky. Her crush on me seemed to be getting stronger by the day.Becky held my arm tightly and cried so hard. Suddenly, she paused and looked up at me. "But I thought you said you didn't have anyone? You told me you were an orphan and that you were all alone. How come many people are waiting for you now?""I lied, Becky," I responded sadly. "I can't really explain my situation, but I'm an orphan who has a lot of people to cater to. I really need to leave. You have gotta let me go.""Take me with you, Seven. There's nothing for me here. I have no friends or even enemies. My father and brother are always keeping me indoors. And the few times I go out, they hover over me like eagles. I am sick and tired of being so caged. Take me with you
WINTER"You look thin. Have some more bacon," said Seven as he picked up the platter of bacon and shoved some on my plate.The smile on my face reached my eyes at this moment. Although I didn't quite agree that I looked thin, it filled my heart with great joy that he was this caring.Since I moved back to Luster Falls, I had been wondering if I made a good decision. There were little changes here and there. Seven spent most of his time in the study, but he always kissed me good night and was by my side when I woke up.He also had breakfast with me. Whenever he was out, he called several times. He also returned home early to have dinner with me whenever it was possible."You know, I'm in talks with some business partners for the cobalt mining. They are coming to town in a few and they would love to have a dinner party after the deal is made.""Oh, okay," I said, taking a sip of tea. "What kind of dinner is it? Would you like me to help you pick a tux?""Just a boring one. But you can h
WINTERThe piece of crab meat fell off Seven's hand. His face instantly twisted into a frown when he looked at me. "What did you do that for?"I glanced at the other men at the table. They had both stopped talking and were now staring at us. I leaned closer to Seven and whispered, "What are you doing?""I just wanted to eat off your plate. Don't you share your food anymore?"My head drew back and I bobbed my eyebrows at him. "I do enjoy sharing my food.""So what's the big deal? Why did you slap my hand?" he asked in a harsh whisper.I glanced at the men again before whispering back, "But you hate crab.""Oh! I do?" Seven straightened up and looked away. He picked up a serviette and wiped his lips. "I guess I like it now."He liked it now? Since when? What was wrong with him? Why was he acting so strange lately? First, he didn't seem to mind that his business partner gawked at me. Second, he didn't pull out my chair. And now, he just ate crab meat like it was nothing.Strange. Make th
SEVEN"You can't catch me!" Winter squealed after throwing a strawberry into my mouth. She stood up and ran away, holding the hem of her flowery dress.Without thinking, I ditched the bowl of strawberries, got up from the mat, and called out behind her, "I am gonna get you!""I'd like to see you try, Mr. Seven Greywolf!" Winter, whose hair was now flying in the wind, teased as she ran.The speed on my heels was a little lesser than usual. I allowed Winter to run halfway through the garden before picking up speed. "Ha-ha-ha! You missed!" Winter teased, swerving to the left behind a large tree.She took to her heels again. I watched her go for a few moments before running after her. My shirt flapped against the breeze. Winter looked back and stuck her tongue out at me. "I am faster than you, Seven! You are never gonna catch me!""Oh, really?" I called out, picking up my pace. In no time, I grabbed her by the waist and collapsed on my back intentionally. "There, I caught you!"Winter b
SEVEN"What did you just say?" I asked and then laughed. "You are joking, aren't you? Are you a comedian or a doctor? Pick a struggle."The doctor pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose and sighed. "I am a doctor, Mr. Seven. Your doctor. And this is no joke. You have to use a wheelchair until further notice."The laugh that was about to roll up my tongue disappeared. My tongue went dry. I looked at the doctor, only to find that he was actually very serious."Doc, how can that be?" Becky asked.I fired. "Are you saying that I am now cripple? That's impossible!"The doctor moved closer. "I know that this might sound ridiculous. But just as your survival was a miracle, your lack of sensitivity on both feet is a mystery. We checked your spinal cord, but there's barely an injury on it. The problem is with your legs. I am afraid you are now a cripple."A high-pitched noise rang out in my ears. It was as if someone just dealt a heavy blow to my head. Were my ears deceiving me? I was no
SEVENThe slippery liquid burned my lips as soon as it made contact. It was as if I had lit a match and brought it to my lips. Quickly, I moved the bottle away and wiped my lips with the back of my hand.My tongue accidentally brushed my lips. The bleach tasted awful. I retched and spat on the floor. The awful taste lingered on the tip of my tongue, but I had another problem.There was a burning sensation in my eyes. Tears swiftly flooded into them, causing my vision to be blurry. I pinched my hospital gown and then wiped my eyes with it.Slowly, the burning stopped. I rested my head against the wall and breathed a sigh of relief. My legs were already not working. I couldn't add being blind to that.For some reason, an image of Winter's beautiful face as her hair flew in the wind suddenly appeared. She smiled at me. Her well-shaped teeth glistened.I want to see that smile again!This was the thought that came to my mind out of nowhere. It felt like ages since I last saw Winter. Altho
WINTER"Girl, I thought you were never going to pick up!" Nico voiced as soon as I answered the call.For a long time, I had been avoiding the calls from her and Melanie. I had yet to tell them that I was in town, let alone reveal my pregnancy to them.Since they had texted a few days ago that they were coming back home for winter break, I knew that they would be expecting me to return from New York and spend the holidays with them.I had wanted to invite them over. However, Seven had not only told me not to but also rough-handled me when I picked offense on his choice of words for my friends.Seven rarely ever raised his voice at anyone, let alone called people names. I still couldn't wrap my head around why he called Melanie and Nico bitches. I didn't even have the opportunity to talk things out with him.Ever since the dinner party, Seven had been avoiding me. How did I know?Well, let's just say that he hasn't been doing all the things he did shortly after I moved in with him. He
KAI-VIIYou would think that after I successfully manipulated Winter with all the sweet words in my dictionary, I would have my hands on the Phoenix Orb by now. But I didn't.In fact, it seemed that with every step I took, the orb got farther away from me. I couldn't bring Winter to tell me anything. I also didn't know where Dawn Holland's lab was located.Reading her diaries seemed to be a dead end, but I spent most of my time doing that recently. Trying to interrogate Winter hadn't worked as I had expected. She seemed dull and oblivious to what really went on in Seven's life before I killed him.Her cluelessness was so bad that I had almost slipped up several times in the past few days. It took the fear of incurring Ratio's wrath to not snap her neck any time I saw her around the house.Since Ratio commanded that I interrogate her and keep her close, I was going to be doing just that until I was certain that she was useless."Any luck?" Dr. Longman asked the second I answered his ca