On the Yarra River, I spot the Evan Walker Bridge, it’s my favourite bridge in the area made of smooth metal. I make myself comfortable and sit down on a bench, and look out at the water. This bridge always calls to me; the way the piano did at the bar. No one else is around and the stars shine brightly above me.
I listen to the sound of the river flowing beneath me, and look up at the stars, at two in particular, shining extra brightly.
‘Mum, Dad… I miss you so much,’ I say, bursting into tears.
I wonder what they think about me being in a homeless shelter and going to live at a bar next to a biker’s club house. I can imagine the look on Dad’s face. He would be so worried. I saw him worry and stress before work functions, so I can only imagine how worried he would be for me right now.
‘Don’t worry Dad. I remember your words, like it was yesterday. I won’t let any man fool me or use me. Men are brutal, heartless, monstrous beasts who only want to fulfill their desire, before they toss you aside. Only a man who sees my true beauty can have my heart and soul,’ I say, as though speaking to him.
‘I wish I could sing and play one last song to you both. I miss seeing your faces. I don’t even have any photos of you. Only memories in my head. I’m scared, that as time goes by, I’ll forget what you both look like. If only I knew who took you away from me. I’d at least bring you the justice you deserve; that I deserve,’ I yell, angry. ‘This is unfair! Why us? Why did he kill you both?’ I scream. I cry, yell, and scream into the sky until I exhaust myself, and make my way back to the shelter for my last sleep there.
I’m woken by Hailey throwing a pillow at my face.
‘I waited up until 11pm last night, and you still weren’t back. I was worried!’ She yells at me.
‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to worry you. I think I got back around midnight. You were snoring your head off, so I didn’t want to wake you,’ I explain.
‘So, what happened? What was the Snake Pit like? Did anyone try to mug you?’ She asks, laughing.
‘Actually, I move into today! I took the job,’ I say, smiling.
‘You did what? Are you sure about this?’ She asks, concerned.
‘Yes, I’m sure. I actually don’t mind it at all. I even made friends with the Savage Snakes,’ I say, smirking.
‘Zurielle! Those biker men are dangerous! You can’t just be friends with them. They’ll probably murder you in your sleep!’ Hailey says.
‘Stop being such a drama queen. Help me pack my clothes. After breakfast I’ll tell Debbie the news and make my way to the Snake Pit,’ I say.
‘Are we still going to hang out? You’re the first friend I’ve ever really had,’ she says, sadly, looking away.
I wrap my arms around her and pull her into a tight hug. ‘Oh Hailz! We’re besties! We’ll still see each other at work. And we can probably hang out Saturday nights at the clubs. How does that sound?’ I ask.
‘You’re the best!’ She says, squeezing me back.
‘Can’t breathe Hailz,’ I say, pretending to gasp.
‘Oops, sorry,’ she says, releasing me from her grip.
We have breakfast and I make my way to Debbie’s office.
‘Knock, knock,’ I yell out.
‘Come in,’ Debbie replies.
‘Good morning Debbie,’ I say, sitting down in the chair opposite her.
‘Good morning. How did you go last night?’ She asks. ‘Actually, it went very well. I accepted the job and I’m moving in today,’ I tell her.
‘If you’re sure that’s what you want, I’m happy for you. If anything goes wrong, you know you can come straight back here, and we’ll find you somewhere else,’ she says.
‘Thank you. I’ll come back if I need to,’ I reply.
‘Right, then. What time are you leaving?’ She asks.
‘I’m ready to go now, actually,’ I say.
‘I’ll give you a lift, so you don’t have to carry your things all the way,’ she says.
‘Okay, thank you,’ I smile, and nod.
The drive over to the Snake Pit is quick, and Debbie makes sure she parks me a few doors down, and not right outside as she is too afraid to park any closer to the Snake Pit.
‘Thanks for the lift. I appreciate it,’ I say, hoisting my backpack onto my back and grabbing one other bag and then the cardboard box with the urns inside.
‘Good luck love,’ she says, smiling.
‘I’ll be fine. I’ll see you around,’ I say, unable to wave goodbye and watching her drive off.
‘Zurielle!’ I see a couple of the Savage Snakes jogging towards me.
‘Oh hi,’ I say.
‘Let us help you carry your bags,’ one of them says.
‘I’m sorry. I can’t remember your names,’ I apologise.
‘I’m Boomslang,’ the larger guy wearing the blue bandana says.
‘I’m Taipan,’ the very slim, and shortest of the bikers, says.
‘Thank you for the offer, but I think I’m fine. This is all I have,’ I say, almost dropping the box, and Boomslang quickly catches it.
‘Well, maybe just a little help would be nice,’ I say, laughing.
Taipan opens the door, and Boomslang follows me upstairs. The urns are clunking around in the box.
‘Breakables?’ He asks. I frown.
‘My parents, actually.’
He gives me a quizzical look, and I throw my bags on the bed and take the box from him.
‘My parents were cremated recently, and their ashes are in the urns in the box,’ I explain.
‘I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean—’
‘It’s fine. You didn’t know,’ I say, sighing. He nods and gives me a sympathetic look.
‘You should go downstairs before Ruth finds you up here. I don’t want you getting into trouble’ I say, chuckling, and Boomslang laughs.
‘She has beaten one of us up before with a baseball bat, so don’t be fooled by her sweetness,’ he laughs, walking back downstairs.
I unpack my clothes into the bedside drawers, and hang some in the wardrobe. I put my toiletries away behind the bathroom mirror and inside the shower.
I’ll have to buy some food. I should see Ruth first to let her know I have arrived and unpacked.
I go downstairs where a tall, overweight man is serving at the bar.
‘Garry?’ I ask.
‘That’s me. You must be Zurielle,’ he says.
‘Yes. It’s a pleasure to meet you,’ I say, shaking his hand, and smiling.
‘Can you let Ruth know I’ve unpacked? I’m going to head to the shop for some things. I’ll be back in a few hours,’ I explain.
‘Sure,’ he says, smiling.
I walk down the road to the bus stop, and Boomslang pulls his bike up next to me.
‘Need a lift?’ He yells, over the sound of the engine.
‘I’m going into town,’ I yell, and he passes me a helmet. I put it on and jump on behind him. I wrap my arms around him and we ride to the city.
In the city, I admire all the luxurious items displayed in the shop windows. Knowing Hailey wants to go clubbing on Saturday, I figure I’ll need a nice dress and some heels.
A salesgirl encourages me to try on a cute little black dress. It fits me well but there isn’t a mirror in the changeroom.
‘We have a mirror over here, if you want to have a look at it on,’ she yells, through the door.
‘Sure. That would be great,’ I reply.
I open the door and she points to a floor-to-ceiling mirror.
‘Wow, girl! That dress looks hot on you,’ she says. It sits just above my knee, and it’s backless. It hugs my figure nicely, and shows only a small amount of cleavage.
It might be a little too sexy, but the salesgirl insists it’s perfect on me. It’s marked down from two-hundred- dollars, to fifty dollars, so it’s also on sale.
I wander around some of the other stores, finding a plain black pair of heels, also on sale. I stick within my budget so I’ll get through the week, and have enough money for food and the bus, to get to the cafe.
Leaving the shoe store, I almost get knocked over a couple of times by all the bustling people. I worm my way through the crowd of shoppers, and feeling thirsty, I decide to get a coffee. I go to Cafe Charm since it’s only up the road. Mr Fulton insists on my coffee being free, and I thank him and sit outside the cafe at a table, facing Pure Fashion Industries. At lunchtime, a lot of staff leave the building.
I look down at my shopping bags and notice a small envelope in the bag with my dress, that isn’t mine. The envelope is blank but there is a small note inside.
My Zurielle. Or, what did your father always call you? My Zuri-bear. That dress you tried on looked very sexy on you, but I’m concerned other men will be tempted to claim you for themselves, as beautiful as you are, even without the dress. I want to make this very clear, Zuri-bear. I won’t let another man have what is mine! If I find you dating someone else or if I see another man trying to claim you for themselves, I may get very mad. Someone, such as your bestie, Hailey, might get hurt very badly. Take this as your first and last warning, my sweet love. I will be keeping a close eye on you, even as you read this. At the end of the note is a pen drawing of a small black spider.
Goosebumps appear on my arms, and my hands tremble with fear, and I drop the note. I stand and look around, at all the people coming and going in the street. The man who murdered my parents could be any of these men!Fear fills me, and I’m scared, so I rush past people, needing to get away. He is here somewhere, watching me and I don’t even know where.My breathing is heavy as I hyperventilate, I pace in circles, looking all around me, panicking. A car horn beeps and someone’s arms latch onto my waist, pulling me out of harm’s way. The car speeds past with the horn still blaring at me.Having warm arms around my waist is soothing; my breathing returns to normal, and I’m feeling more relaxed until someone shouts in my ear.‘What is wrong with you?’ A man yells. I look into the eyes of the man I spilt my coffee on and register him still holding me. I glare at him, and he steps back, and releases me from his grip.‘What is wrong with you?’ I yell back.‘You can’t just go around grabbing
I keep to myself most of Sunday, and think about my parents, the murder and the note. I think about visiting Hailey, and don’t, because I’ll see her in the morning at work.In the middle of the night, I wake to a man yelling and screaming, at the club house next door. It goes on for half an hour, before I get up, open the window, and peer out at the club house, and see a few members outside smoking.‘Hey guys!’ I yell, and they look up at my window.‘Zurielle!’ They all yell, happily.‘Um, I’m trying to sleep and whatever’s going on over there is awfully loud. Do you think you can turn it down a notch, so I can sleep?’ I ask.‘Viper! You need to muffle him! Zurielle’s trying to sleep,’ one of them yells, to Viper, who must be inside.‘Sorry Zuri. We’ll do business a bit more quietly for you. Sleep well!’ He yells back. I close the window and go back to sleep, uninterrupted.I get ready, get on the bus, and wave to Hailey as she gets on, and runs up to me.‘Zuri! How was your weekend a
On Tuesday morning, I wave to Hailey as she steps onto the bus.‘How did you go at Pure Fashion Industries, yesterday? Did Mark make a move?’ She asks, wiggling her brows.‘No, he didn’t; he’s a gentleman. The work is easy. I always get it done, on time,’ I answer.‘Do you think Mark will ask you out on a date?’ She asks, and I roll my eyes.‘He is very handsome, but I’m not interested in him that way. I’m just enjoying normal conversations with him. It’s nice not getting asked what bra size I am, and other lewd questions,’ I explain.‘Fair enough. I won’t be surprised if you hook up with him eventually,’ she says, grinning.We get off the bus, enter the cafe, and I get straight to work, taking orders; Grace and Mark are not in yet. Mr Fulton asks Hailey and I if we can work a few extra hours, and we say yes.It’s just after midday when Mark comes running into the cafe, huffing and puffing, trying to catch his breath.‘Hey, is everything okay?’ I ask him.‘Hey. I need a take away latt
AceAt work, I spend hours drawing and creating new designs for upcoming fashion shows, and the monthly magazine. I make sure everything runs smoothly, and on time. Pure Fashion Industries is known as the best fashion business in the world.Everyone wants to work for me but they also steer clear of me; I know I’m not easy to get along with, and I prefer it that way.Beautiful women always try to seduce me, but they’re only interested in my bank account, and my bedroom skills. Once I’m done with them in the bedroom, I tell them to leave straight away.They’re always angry and annoyed, and they insist on us being a couple, but for three years now, women have meant nothing to me. I’ll never forget the day I realised women are nothing but selfish, gold-diggers. I was going to propose to Ava; I even had the ring in my pocket. I organised a romantic, surprise dinner, and I left work early to surprise her, at my condo.A shitty old car was parked in my driveway, which was odd. Inside, it s
AceI normally have Saturdays off, but go into work to supervise a photoshoot with the dress, which is now mended. The photoshoot needs to be done today so the images make it in the magazine on time. The shoot goes well, and I decide to have lunch while things are quiet.I wait at the traffic lights, and across the road, spot the girl I haven’t stopped thinking about. She’s worried and winds her way through pedestrians nervously; she isn’t paying attention to the traffic at all. A car accelerates and she is directly in its path.‘Shit!’ I run toward her, the driver beeps at her, I pull her away from the oncoming car, with my arms around her waist. Her heartbeat is racing and her breathing is erratic. I don’t want to let her go in case she collapses. Strangely, it’s nice holding her, and she starts to relax in my arms. I’m glad she’s okay, but angry she almost got herself killed.‘What is wrong with you?’ I say angrily. She looks up, scrunches her brows at me, and has an angry expressi
AceI wait for her to arrive with my coffee, on the ground floor near reception, the whole day. I want to see her as soon as she walks in.The receptionists answer their phones nervously while I lean against their long, tall desk. Every twenty minutes, I look at my watch, then at the entrance, and see no sign of her.I even arrived early - at eight-thirty - to make sure I don’t miss her. At eleven thirty, I realise she has no intention of coming here. Furious, I slam my fist onto the reception desk, making everyone jump, and I storm off into the elevator.I enter my office and tear the room apart, throwing my chair across the room, and making a hole in the wall; paperwork goes flying. There’s a hard knock on my door.‘I’m coming in,’ Mark yells, ducking just in time, as the staple gun flies towards him.‘Why are you destroying your office?’ He asks.‘Because I didn’t get my fucking coffee!’ I shout, knowing it’s more that she fooled me, and I want to see her.When I look in the doorwa
ZurielleI wear a suit-skirt with a plain white, button-up blouse, and a jacket that matches the skirt. I put my hair up in a high ponytail, and push my feet into black leather heels. I look at myself in the mirror. Yep, I look like I work at Pure Fashion Industries in this outfit.I hop on the bus, and at Hailey’s stop, she skips up the aisle, and sits down next to me.‘Zuri, you look hot sister!’ She says.‘Thanks! Do you think I’m dressed professionally enough, though? It is a high-end fashion company,’ I say. ‘They should hire you just for looking so fine!’ Hailey says, reassuringly, giving me a wink. We laugh and chat away until we arrive at Cafe Charm. Mark gives me a playful wink as I hand him his latte.‘Zurielle, I hear you have a job interview across the road today?’ Mr Fulton asks.‘I sure do,’ I reply, ecstatically.‘Well, I wish you luck,’ he replies.‘Thanks, Mr Fulton,’ I say, giving him a smile.When my shift finishes, I cross the road and walk into Pure Fashion Indus
‘So, is this lunch a date?’ Hailey asks.‘No, we’re just friends. It’s just lunch,’ I reply.‘Are you sure about that? The way he looks at you, it’s obvious he wants you,’ she says.‘Maybe you should go to Specsavers, coz I think you’re seeing things,’ I say sarcastically.‘Zurielle!’ She yells, annoyed.‘Sorry, Hailz. I didn’t mean that. I’m lacking sleep and haven’t been myself,’ I explain, and she rolls her eyes at me.‘It’s fine,’ she pouts.‘Let’s go have some fun and do some shopping before your lunch date, now that we have our pay checks,’ she squeals.We skip around town, trying on jewellery, and testing out different make up.‘Are we still going out tomorrow night?’ I ask her.‘Of course, we are! Oh! What are we going to wear? I need some dresses,’ Hailey says, grabbing my wrist and dragging me into the nearest clothing store, where we try different outfits on.There are two I really like, and I buy them. Hailey can’t decide between the five she has tried on, so she buys all