“Joey and I need to get back to the diner but we’ll be back in a few hours. West is here so don’t worry about being alone.” Being alone is the last of my worries.
“Do I really have to be alone with him? Can’t I just go with you?” I whine. I haven’t really talked to him much but from the looks of it, he definitely doesn’t like me.
“No you need to rest and I can tell you’re not used to the smell of alcohol, you looked like you were about to puke when you walked in there. And don’t worry about West, he may seem a little tough but he’s harmless. A little grumpy but nothing to worry about. We’ll be back soon.” Thea puts on her apron and leaves the room, shutting the door behind her.
After a few minutes, I hear the front door slam shut and a car engine roars to life. As soon as the car sounds far enough, I get up from the bed and leave the room as quietly as I can. I tiptoe downstairs, looking out for West but he’s nowhere in sight. Deciding on taking a quick tour of the house, I start walking around.
Behind the living room is a hallway similar to the one upstairs except a bit darker. I walk down, feeling the walls around me for a light switch. I finally find one and flip it, illuminating the hallway. The first door is on my right, I slowly push it open to find that it’s just a simple laundry room, with a washing machine, drier and baskets. I move on to the next room.
The next door to my left leads me to a large room, twice the size of Thea’s. It’s built like a gym, with punching bags, mats, weights and sparring sticks.
“Woah, they’re no joke.” I admire the equipment in the room wondering how they could afford all of this before leaving.
The last door is on the left, beside the gym. Unlike the other doors, this one is metal. I push down on the handle to open it but it doesn’t budge. I try again but push the door this time, but nothing happens. It’s sealed shut.
“What the heck is inside here?” I give up and head back upstairs.
“Might as well see the other rooms too.”
I quietly make my way to Joey’s room, his name is indented on a plate number on the door. Opening the door slightly, I poke my head into the room before her body follows. The room is very simple. It’s painted navy blue and white. I’m actually surprised at how neat the room is, the only things on the floor are dumbbells and papers. I take a closer look at the papers to find that they’re drawings.
“Joey draws?” I ask myself, surprised. On the wall are also a few pictures pinned down.
I leave the room as quietly as I entered, closing the door slowly to avoid it creaking. The last room is West’s. I take a few deep breaths before going inside. The room is quite dark because the windows are shut and the blinds are closed. Still standing by the door, I reach in to find a light switch to brighten up the room.
The room isn’t too different from Joey’s except the walls are painted a deep purple colour, if you don’t look close enough you’d think they were black. The room holds barely any decoration. Just a bed, a closet and drawer and a shoe rack, that’s all there is to the room, nothing juicy. I turn the lights back off and slowly back out of the room. As I shut the door, I turn around and come face-to-face with the room owner himself.
“What are you looking for?” West asks with a blank expression.
I stare up at West who is only inches away from me, I rest on the door for support. As I ransack my brain for something believable to say, I carefully study his face. His shoulder-length wolf cut black hair is in a messy bun with a few loose strands covering his face. There’s a scar on his face, one that I didn’t notice before. It runs from the top of his right eye down to his cheek. It looks quite old.
“Aren’t you going to answer?” He asks again snapping me out of my trance.
“Oh umm… I was just… looking for you. I was actually looking for you.” I start, hoping he buys it.
“And why are you looking for me?” He asks, not moving an inch, still trapping me between himself and the door.
“Why was I looking for you? I was looking for you because… because I don’t know how to use a washing machine and I need to wash my clothes, they stink.” I flash an innocent smile. Hopefully he bought it.
West finally moves away, giving me space to breathe.
“That’s not my problem, wait for Thea.” He moves me aside and steps into his room, slamming the door behind him.
I let out a breath I didn’t even know I was holding before running back to my room.
“That was close. Note to self: Avoid West at all costs, he seems very scary.”
I scan the room for something to keep me busy and my eyes land on a small shelf hanging on the wall above the black drawer. On it are a few notebooks and novels, I pull one out and busy myself with it, sitting at the desk facing the window.
Hours go by and I’m so engrossed in the book that I don’t hear when Thea enters the room.
“What are you reading?” In less than a second, I have Thea’s arm pinned behind her and her head on the desk.
“What are you doing?” Thea yells.
I snap back to reality, realizing what I just did. I quickly lets go of her arm and help her up, dusting imaginary dirt off her clothes and hair.
“I’m so sorry, I didn’t know it was you. It was just my reflexes, I’m so sorry.” I apologize.
“It’s alright, I shouldn’t have snuck up on you like that. Those are some crazy reflexes though.” Thea laughs, taking off her apron and tossing it into the laundry basket.
“When did you get back? I didn’t know it was so late already.” I look out the window to find the moon high in the sky.
“We just got back like five minutes ago. The boys are getting dinner ready.” She exchanges her shoes for slippers and heads for the bathroom.
I resume my book as I wait for Thea. I start to get excited as the smell of the food travels from the kitchen into the room. I can’t remember the last time I had a proper meal prepared for her, a meal that she didn’t have to steal, beg or hunt for.
Thea exits the bathroom clad in a blue pyjama set with her hair still wet.
“Umm Thea, I was wondering if you could show me how the washing machine works, my clothes reek.” I ask nervously and Thea nods.
“Sure but let’s do that tomorrow. I’m way too tired for laundry right now.” I thank her and get back to my book once again.
“Dinner should be ready by now, let’s go see if the boys need any help.” Thea says after the long silence, trying her best to warm me up.
I can tell that she knows I’m still not comfortable here and I can’t blame her, we literally just met today and our first impression wasn’t exactly the best. She’s right though, my staying here doesn’t mean I trust them completely, I don’t think that could ever happen.
‘Trust no one.’ Mother’s orders.
We both leave the room and halfway down the stairs, Joey yells, “Dinner’s ready.”
We quicken our footsteps and reach the kitchen in seconds.
“Well that was fast.” Joey and Thea take their seats at the table while West places forks on everyone’s plate before taking his own seat.
I shyly take the last seat between Joey and Thea, thankful that West isn’t beside me.
“I hope you like pasta.” Joey says to me and I answer with a sharp nod before digging into the sweet-smelling food.
A few minutes into the meal, I try to make conversation, “What part of Zorah are you guys from? I don’t know much about the geography of the place but I’d still like to know.”
Thea answers first, as usual, “Well I’m from Corva, the trade capital, and so is West.”
“I’m from Doran, a small, quiet place. And you?” Joey asks.
“My mom’s from Orion so I guess I can say I’m from there too.” I answer.
“Wow, she must have been rich.” Thea comments.
“Yeah she always told me that her parents were filthy rich but they never really met eye to eye and that’s why she left them.”
“Yikes.”
The rest of dinner goes by silently. The boys clear the table and do the dishes. Thea and I retire to our room and get ready for bed. I read a little more of the book I started before tiredness overwhelms me. I turn off the light and get into bed with Thea who seems to already be fast asleep.
“We have a lot to do tomorrow. Get some rest.” Thea says with her eyes still closed.
I fall asleep wondering what exactly Thea has planned for the day.
“Rise and shine. Breakfast is ready.” Thea softly shakes the bed. I yawn widely and stretch on the soft bed for a few seconds before sitting up. That felt nice. Odd, but nice. “Wow. I don’t remember the last time I slept in a bed this soft and comfy. I could get used to this.” I climb out of bed and follow Thea downstairs. The smell of fresh toast fills the air and Thea and I double our speed. “Morning Thea. Morning Onda.” Joey greets while West just grunts. Everyone takes their seats and starts eating as Joey serves orange juice into everyone’s cup. “So do you guys always cook or how does it work?” I ask, referring to Joey and West. “We rotate it week by week. The boys cook for a week then I cook for the next week. Today’s Saturday so my week starts tomorrow. And since you’re here, you get to help. I finally have a kitchen assistant.” Thea says excitedly. We finish breakfast quickly. Thea and I remain at the table while the bo
Thea slams the front door and stomps around the living room, letting off steam as best as she can. West and I follow, with shopping bags in both hands. Joey emerges from the kitchen with a towel in his hand. “Hey guys.” Joey’s smile slowly fades as he senses something is off. “What happened?” He asks cautiously. Thea turns to him, still fuming, “I’ll tell you what happened. It’s those disrespectful brats, those little punks who believe that they’re better than us but they don’t know I could snap them in half without breaking a sweat if I wanted to.” I stand awkwardly by the door with the bags still in my hand while West drops on the couch like he’s completely used to the situation. I don’t know what to do. Do I just leave the room? “Derek and his friends?” Joey asks. “Derek and his friends.” West nods. “They want to threaten me! Me? Bad choice.” Thea finally storms off. “Let’s get you unpacked.” Joey helps me with some
Sunday morning.I toss from side to side as Thea shakes the bed. It’s too early for whatever this is about.“I’m trying to sleep.”“And I’m trying to wake you up. Wake up!” Thea yells in my ear, making me jump.“What? It’s”, I turn to check the clock, “5:30 in the morning. Even the sun hasn’t woken up yet, why should I?”“Because it’s time for our morning run.” A voice replies. Thea and I turn to the door to find it open with West leaning on the doorframe.“West please tell Joey that she is finally awake and will be done in 5.”Thea points to me as I quietly pulls the covers back over my head, “You! Stand up and get dressed. Meet me downstairs in 3.” She walks to the door and stops to glare at me.“And don’t make me come back here.” With that she leaves, leaving me slightly frightene
I'm lying on something even softer than before. I'm going to open my eyes at the count of three and I better not see Darius again. One. "Onda, wake up." Two. "Is she awake yet?" Three. "Does it look like she's awake?" My eyes slowly flutter open to find the boys gathered around me and Thea pacing around the room, running her hands through her bright red hair. “Oh thank goodness you’re awake.” Joey says letting out a relieved sigh. Thea snaps her head in my direction and rushes to the couch. “Oh gosh. You’re okay. What happened? Are you alright?” She kneels in front of the couch. “I think so.” I try sitting up, using my hands to support me but I land back on the couch. “Or maybe not. Why do I feel like I was dropped from the top of a building?” “Because Joey tripped while he was carr
The boys are up front, with West driving and Joey in the passenger seat. Thea and I are in the back going over the dos and don’ts. “So we’re going to go to the office first to get some stuff like your timetable and locker information.” Thea preps me while adjusting my clothes here and there. For some reason she’s more nervous than I am and I’m supposed to be the newbie here. “Thea will you please calm down, I can feel your legs shaking through the chair.” “I don’t know why I’m on edge honestly. I feel like a mother who’s sending her kid off for the first day of preschool.” “First of all, we’ve known each other for less than a week.” I comment. “It feels like a year to me.” Thea mumbles. “And second of all, you don’t have to worry. I’ll be fine. You said as long as I don’t use my powers and avoid problems then I’ll be okay.” “It’s the avoid problems part that isn’t as easy as you think.” Joey says. “If you would all stop
"... And I expect you to hand in your projects by Friday and make sure you work as a team." Mrs. Jones, our English Literature teacher, says to the class.Ring..."Well that's the bell. Now off to lunch. Ms. Thorne, a word please."I give Thea a questioning look and she gestures for me to go over to Mrs. Jones as she walks out of the class."Since you're a new student and I hate having students who are not caught up with the rest of the class, here is a copy of all that I have taught the class this term. That includes all the assignments. Read it, because..."She pauses and looks around the empty classroom."Don't tell anyone but there is a pop quiz coming up this Friday and I don't want my new student failing.""Thank you ma'am. My lips are sealed." I smile at her.I place the binder in my bag and walk out of the class and see Thea at the door. We start walking down the hall together."What was that all about?"
"Can't we just talk about this when we get home?" Thea groans. "No. Now." "Well I'm sore. We'll talk about this later." "How are you sore? You were literally made out of steel a few seconds ago." I scream. "It's not that easy okay. Now I'm not going to say this again, we'll talk about this later." She gives me her signature glare from the rear-view mirror and I give up. Out of frustration I throw my hands in the air and accidentally hit an unconscious West, causing him to fall on my lap. I turn to ask Joey for help but he’s already out. Looking down at West, I silently studying his facial features. His nose was slightly crooked, purple and swollen. His lips are slightly parted, revealing his pearl white teeth. The scar across his face seems clearer to me now. I still wonder what caused such a huge scar. I slowly run my finger along the scar. Right where the scar stops, I notice the mark I saw yesterday. It’s not a circle, it’s
“You do know how to use a phone right?” Thea asks as we get ready for school. I decide on letting my hair down today, something I rarely ever do considering how hard it is to tame my mane. “I know the basics, it’s not that hard.” I answer as I pull on one of the new shoes Thea got for me. “Good. No one needs another reason to make fun of you.” “Another? There’s already a reason?” I ask but she leaves the room, ignoring the question. I follow her and we both end up in the kitchen. Joey walks up to me with an apron tied around his waist and a plate on pancakes stretched out in one hand. “M’lady.” He does a little bow before leading me to a seat and placing the plate in front of me. I can’t help but laugh. “What’s going on?” I turn to ask him. “You got into a fight that you had nothing to do with on your first day. I think you deserve a treat.” He fills a glass with juice and place it beside the table, not forgetting to bo