I wipe my forehead with my sleeve, stopping for a second.
“Come on, Soph, the lady said it wasn’t too far.’’ Nick encourages me. I continue pulling my suitcase on the bumpy road that seems to lead to nowhere.
The sun was hitting hard and I was still wearing a hoodie and an old pair of joggers, and my lack of breakfast made everything more painful. The thirty-five passengers of the bus were all walking on the side of the road, pulling all of their luggage behind them and grunting profusely.
The owner of the beat-up restaurant had told the driver there was a small town a little way down what looked like a private road. And a little way was beginning to become an hour-long walk under the scorching sun. I was all for a little exercise, but this didn’t cut it for me.
“Oh, my god, we’re here!’’ Alice exclaims, pointing to a large sign on the side of the road. “Moonstone Fall’’ she reads with a suspicious look on her face.
I see a couple of building ahead and let out a relieved sigh. We walk onto a cute plaza with lots of benches and a beautiful fountain. As everyone sets down their bags, the driver hangs up his cell phone and tries to get everyone’s attention.
“Alright, the company has arranged for another bus to come pick up most of you tomorrow morning. We will all be staying at a hotel for the night.’’ He yells so that everyone hears.
“So we’re delayed for a whole day?’’ Another passenger asks. “What about the other busses some of us have to take? What’s the company going to do to compensate us? And what do you mean ‘most of’ us?’’ A general uproar starts to grow and Grant struggles to speak over them.
“You will all be getting an email tonight to tell you what can be done. As for the ‘most of us’ part, the bus that is passing near us tomorrow is already partially occupied. Those of you who choose to wait for the next bus will be compensated more generously. This will all be further explained in the email.’’
Many people continue complaining to the driver as I look around the plaza. It is surrounded by small stores and cafes. I then notice the people around our group: many of them are staring at us with strange looks. A little weirded out, I figure they must not get many visitors in such a small, recluse town.
Grant directs us to the hotel and, after talking with the man at the desk, distributes room keys to us. We all have individual rooms, but I’m relieved to see Alice, Nick and I are all next to one another. I open the door to my room to find a small, but cozy space.
I sit down on comfortable double bed and look around: two nightstands, a desk, a chair and a small TV occupy the room. There’s also a small bathroom, in which I left my purse. I look out the window and onto the street. I can even see the tip of the plaza fountain. Maybe I’ll go take a walk until we all get the promised email.
A couple minutes later, I hear a small knock at the door and open it to find Grant, awkwardly standing there.
“The company just informed me that lunch and dinner will be on them and will be delivered to your room. If you wish to eat something else, be sure to tell me before eleven so we can cancel your order.’’ He then just stays in place, seemingly waiting for more than my appreciative nod and smile.
“Alright, thanks.’’ I say, hoping he’ll just leave.
He has a weird look for a second, but ultimately just goes onto the next door, which I know to be Nick’s room. I close my door and pick out a simple blouse with jeans to change in. I contemplate also putting on my leather jacket, but decide it is too hot out to do so.
As I look through my purse for my phone, I notice aunt Aria’s unopened letter and decide to read it.
I laugh at the intricacy of the envelope, which is supposed to ensure it hasn’t been opened. I basically have to rip it apart to get to the letter. It says:
Dear Sophie,
As you know, I am currently exploring the North of South America for work, and have recently been successful in my search. I will probably be going back to HQ within the next month, which means I can probably be home by late July. To think we’ve been apart for seven months now! Now that you are 18, maybe you can come on a few trips with me. Who knows, maybe you’ll like it and be hired to work by my side!
Anyway, I hope everything is good on your side and that that Nick guy is treating you well. It’s been so long, is he even still your boyfriend? If not, I do hope you kicked his ass. And how about that red-head you thought didn’t like you? Did you girls become friends? Or did you also kick her ass?
As for my next trip (on which you might be invited), I have word that it might be closer to home than I had originally thought. Be safe until I come back.
Lots of love,
Your favorite aunt,
Aria.
I smile as I fold back the letter. I can’t hold in an excited giggle at the thought to see my aunt in less than two months. I grab my phone, dialing my mom to tell her the good news about her sister. After a couple of rings, she picks up. “Hey, Sophie! Is everything okay?’’ Dad asks on the other end of the line. I’m a little surprised that he picked up mom’s phone. “I’m okay. Is mom there?’’ “Oh, yeah, she’s driving. Let me put you on speaker phone.’’ “Sophie! I’m so happy you called!’’ I laugh at how desperate she sounds. Mom and I were always close, and we hardly ever fought. “I’m fine mom, though we did get into some kind of situation...’’ “Do you want us to come get you?’’ Dad asks, cutting me off. “Don’t be ridiculous, Marc. I’m sure she doesn’t want us meddling in her affairs.’’ My mom chimes in with a smile in her voice. “Though, if you do need us to come, we will be there.’’ She adds seriously, making me chuckle.
As we are walking back to the entrance of the hotel, we cross Grant who has his eyes locked on Alice. She winks at us and splits, joining him at his table. Nick and I pretend not to notice and go back to our rooms. “Want to join me?’’ Nick asks before closing his door. He smiles sweetly and I nod. I step into an identical room to mine, except for the TV, which is on. He invites me to sit on his bed with him and I follow him, more than happy to cuddle a bit. I barely have time to sit next to him before his lips are on mine. I let out a surprised giggle, but kiss him back. His lips become a little more pressing as they trail down my neck and onto my collar bone. His hand grabs my hip, squeezing softly before he slips his fingers under my shirt. He grazes my ribs and I can’t help but feel a little ticklish. Nick pulls up my shirt and I let him pass it over my head. His lips hungrily come back on mine and he places himself between my legs. I start to feel
A light knock on the door breaks my fixation on the cardboard box I was staring down. It had gotten here almost an hour ago, but I hadn’t built up the will to eat it yet. Hell, I didn’t even know what it was. I turn my gaze back to my untouched meal, deciding I didn’t feel like answering the door twice in the same hour. I felt drained. The person behind the door knocks again. “Sophie?’’ I hear Alice say from the other side of the door. “If you need to talk, I’m here for you.’’ She sounds worried and sincere. I sigh as I get up, dragging the pile of blankets behind me. I really don’t want Alice to feel bad over something that has nothing to do with her. And I especially don’t want her hearing only Nick’s side of the story. I unlock the door and open it a crack before heading back to the bed. I hear the lock click back into place as Alice closes the door behind her, following me silently. She looks at me with pity in her eyes and I already regret letting her in
I rub my eyes as the sun rays filtering through my window wake me up. I can feel how puffy my face is and sigh at the thought of how I must look. I stretch and groan as I roll out of bed, dragging my feet to the bathroom. I brush my teeth and wash my face, hopping I’m at least presentable enough to go out and buy myself some breakfast. I wanted to go to the small cafe I had seen in the plaza when we first arrived in town. I drink a glass of water, accompanied by my morning Seroquel. After a good night sleep, I wasn’t so sure about my plan. Why did I need to trick Nick into leaving me alone in a random town in the middle of nowhere? I felt like I should just talk with him and explain that I need time for myself. If he discovered the ruse as he was boarding the bus, he would probably feel put on the spot and be even angrier, which was not something I wanted. After brushing my hair and changing into a light summer dress, I leave the hotel and walk to the plaza.
“You are the one destined for me.’’ He says, staring into my eyes. My heart skips a beat. “I’m sorry, what? That’s crazy! We’re total strangers, how can you be so sure.’’ I know the answer before he responds. I could feel it deep within me. The tug that had been motivating my action in the last week had led me to him. “Don’t you feel a sort of pull inside, telling you this is right?’’ He confirms my thoughts. “I know this is all kind of odd to you, right now. I’ll start over: my name is Simon, nice to meet you.’’ He puts out his hand and everything in me screams to take it and never let go. He shakes my hand slowly, never breaking eye contact, and I know he feels the same. “I’m Sophie,’’ I end up responding. Then I think of Nick. And Alice. “Listen, I do believe you when you say this is... normal for your culture. But I am supposed to leave in a couple of hours. I’m here with my boyfriend.’’ I half-lie, feeling bad already. I w
“So you’re just ditching us?’’ Nick screams at me pushing me back. “How stupid are you? You’re just going to stay alone in this random town with no way out? Think of everything that could happen to you. I won’t be here to help you and your parents are hours away. What were you thinking?’’ I feel my anger build up again, but stay silent as he screams at me. “I need time alone,’’ I say as flatly as possible, but even I can hear the poison in my words. “So you think I’m just going to leave you behind? I love you, Soph...’’ For a second, I see the hurt in his eye and feel bad. “If you love me, you’ll give the time I’m asking for.’’ I say in a softer tone than I had hoped. My anger is already fading at his puppy eyes. Silent grows thick between us and his gaze slowly loses its softness. “You’re actually doing this?’’ He asks, once again furious. Fighting with Nick often felt like a rollercoaster. One second he was sweet and
After my conversation with mom, I go back to my room and let my eyes scan myself up and down in the mirror. I think back to what Nick had said. ‘You’re not nearly pretty enough to have such a bad attitude.’ I look at my nose, that I had always considered to be too wide, my brows, too thick, my eyes, too wide-set. And I just hated how small they were when I smiled. I sigh and look away. As I look at my clothes, I realize I don’t know how I’m supposed to be dressing. I try to think back to what Simon had said to me. Instead of remembering the words he had spoken, I can’t help but picture him in my head: the way his eyes had lit up when they had first met mine, how he hadn’t taken them off of me until he had to leave. The tug in my stomach made itself heard again. I shake my head to get rid of the images and settle for jeans and a tank top under a clean hoodie, that I lay flat on my bed for when I have to get ready. ‘Why do I even care?’ I ask myself. ‘I shouldn
Unknown POVI stand still under the dozen of gazes scrutinizing my face. I ignore the heat of her gaze as I watch as my brother paces around the room, anger rolling from him in constant waves. I know he is trying to intimidate me with his silence, but I stare him down coldly, avoiding her burning eyes.“What you did was irresponsible and careless. You should be exiled for this offense.’’His tone is harsh and he turns to face me. I feel him trying to impose his will on me, but I stand my ground. Showing weakness now could prove to be fatal. I hear her low chuckle from the back of the room.“Yet I am still here. I proved I was right, and now, we can move forward with our plan.’’ I lift my chin and she stops laughing abruptly.His peculiar eyes shine strangely for a second and he walks up to me, towering over me. I am far from short, but even I feel like a mouse when he&rs