By the time she came out of the bathroom, Mr. Wolf was gone. She searched the house for her four legged friend but he was nowhere to be found. How’d he get out? The door was slightly ajar but it had a lock at least five feet tall. How?
~~~
“You smell disgustingly clean.” Wilson smirked, throwing Roman some clothes. Austin stood a few feet from them, his eyes scoping out the area. He was extremely tense.
“What’s up?” Roman smacked his brother as thanks.
“We met some of them.” Wilson answered. “Told us to get out by morning or else.”
“Not friendly are they.” Roman cracked his muscles. The change was getting better year after year but you would never get rid of the stiff shoulders.
“Wolves are territorial. They probably sense that you’re alpha material, fearing you might take over them.”
“You think they’ll allow me to stay for nine months if I talked with them?”
“Talk? Let’s just –”
“Wild. Those words will get us killed.” Austin murmured. They began to walk down the road, back to the motel. “So you’ve established contact and judging by your happy stance, she’s happy to see you. Think you can convince her to leave with us?”
“She doesn’t know what I am.” Roman sighed, there never seemed to be an easy solution to his problems. “We’ll negotiate with the Red Moon pack but I’d rather we hold off this meeting as long as possible. They’d definitely not allow me to take her when someone in their pack is trying to claim her.”
Austin and Wilson nodded, it was Austin who replied. “I’m going to report to father for backup.”
Chapter 8
“Do you feel the hostility in the air?” Jocelyn murmured in Rurika’s ear. Rurika shook her head and watched in amusement as her friend’s jaw dropped in surprise. The reason why she did not notice anything was because she was thinking of Mr. Wolf. His showing up totally erased Mack taking liberties yesterday and the reason she was still floating on cloud nine.
Jocelyn continued. “How can you not be when at least a dozen of people glared at you for the whole morning? Usually they don’t look at you but today, they couldn’t stop looking!” Her friend gave her a once over and shook her head. “It must be true, what I’ve heard.”
“What do you mean?” Jocelyn had never sounded so serious in her life.
“I heard that ever since grade 9, he had his eyes on you.”
“Who?”
Jocelyn gave her an exasperated look edging between astonishment and annoyance. “Mack!” She hissed quietly. Being discreet was a little over the top seeing that they were eating far away from the building on the field. Their position was not even close enough to see the faces of the people in front of them.
“Are you sure?”
“Yah! He said something like you’re not to be touched and that you’re special. It sounded romantic initially but right now, it sounds major creep–o. Everybody followed along but suddenly it changed. Did something happen yesterday?” Jocelyn tugged at her tank top in anxiety.
“I don’t know.” Rurika shook her head just as confused. “Well, it’s kind of good that he’s losing interest in me.”
“No it’s not! I’m afraid you’ll get killed or something! The looks they give you are murderous.”
“How do you know about murder glares?” Rurika smiled at her friend.
“Television, but that’s not the point! TGIF. I can’t stand another day like this.” Jocelyn sighed. “Anyway, remember I have a date today. I’ll drop you off before going.”
“Oh no, no, you don’t have –”
“I insist. I’m serious, things have been weird since morning.” Rurika felt warm hearing her friend’s concern.
“You’re the best, Joyce.”
“Of course, and don’t you forget it!”
~~~
Rurika made her way out to Joyce’s Kia as agreed. There was already a person waiting there, Mack. She braced herself and stopped a few feet. “Hi.”
“Hello.” Mack replied, his voice sounded deadpanned and raspy. Rurika looked at him closely to see that he had a few bruises on his cheek. So the fight was not her imagination after all. An uncomfortable silence passed by. Rurika sensed that beside his assault, there was something else troubling him.
She felt several curious glances shoot their way as well as those that actually stood, blatantly staring at them. As if they were afraid she was going to attack their lead quarterback. The absurdity would have made her laugh out loud if not for the tension in the air.
As she returned her gaze back at Mack, what she saw next drew her back a step. He sniffed the air, nostrils flared and almost sneered. The image of disgust shut down her heart for a second before it rebooted at hyper speed. If she did not know better, his face contorted a little. His eyes glowed and the edge pulled back as were the rest of his face. Was her mind playing tricks on her?
“Ruri?” Never was she more thankful for an interruption. Jocelyn’s eyes darted between them, anxiety obvious in her appearance.
“Joyce.” Rurika gave a small smile. “Ready to go?”
“Yup!” Jocelyn returned a little too exuberantly. She grimaced noting that she sounded too happy. They made their way towards the car but Mack made no movement away from the passenger side, the side Rurika was obviously heading for. Her friend glanced at her nervously, opening her car door, with a ‘what are we going to do’ look.
“Rurika, can I speak with you for a second?” Mack did not wait for her to answer and just grabbed her wrist. He would have had continued walking if Rurika did not dig her heels. She was not going to get dragged away by a madman.
Mack turned with a pained expression on his face. “Did something happen yesterday after I was gone?” Rurika searched his eyes, for hidden meaning to such a question. It was not any of his business but as if by instinct, the truth seemed suicidal at the moment.
“Nothing in particular, I talked with my neighbour for a bit, showered and slept. It was quite…a day.” She spoke clearly and calmly. Mack nodded but she sensed she was not in the clear yet.
He reached out and ran the back of his hand down from her temple to her cheek. She blinked up at him, her lips pursed. In slow motion, she saw him dip his head and she backed away. He froze and so did she. It was like she could take in every little thing he did at once, his jaw tightened, hands fisted and opened, and eyes narrowed slightly.
“I should go, bye.” She muttered and ran for Joyce’s Kia, feeling many eyes drilling holes in her back.
“That was the weirdest experience in my life.” Joyce muttered and drove her car out like a madwoman. I know how you feel, Rurika thought as she glanced at the reflection of Mack and his friends staring after them.
~~~
Since yesterday, Rurika could not help but feel being observed, not by Mr. Wolf because there were not any electric current in the air, more like she was under house arrest. A couple of times she would peek through the curtains only to find the same trees and bushes there. Since there was no backyard fence, she would usually just walk to Mrs. Chow’s place, though she had not been for a while.
“Excuse me miss, do you have a size smaller?” Snapping out of her reverie, Rurika assisted the customer. Weekends were really different with many people coming and going. Before long, she was less self – conscious about her work outfit.
Then it was time to go home. As she walked to the parking lot, footsteps echoed behind her. When she walked faster, the footsteps behind her accelerated. Breathing deeply, she ran for it and hopped on the bus.
###
XOXO
Alison Charm
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***
Overwhelming Eyes (Excerpt)
In the Overwhelming Series
(Previously titled: Staring At You)
Description: Eleanor Seto harboured an important secret. A secret so ludicrous, it would be laughable to all Marvel’s superheroes. While the rest of her
other species would celebrate this power, Ella wanted nothing of this curse. However, a run in with playboy cousin, Zylen, her life turned upside down. Throw in Zylen's hot best friend and its nothing but catastrophe.
***
I think I had always loved him. Him as a person. The kind and sweet soul who carried me a few blocks down to the doctor’s when I fell off a tree. Even with his reputation as the virgin eater, I still do. It may be strange though because nobody would be able to tell from my attitude. Indifference. Relaxed. ‘Cool’ if people were trying to be nice. The adjective was a contradiction to the reality. There was nothing remotely ‘cool’ about me.
I dressed like a tomboy as my friend Sherry Hopkins frequently remarks. No matter what she did, she could not ‘transform’ me into a goddess, a scenario found only in dramas. As an aspiring fashion designer, she took my reluctance personally hard. It was now on her list of goals in life. Hopefully she would create another list soon. Until then, I would need to bear with her criticisms. Compared to her clad in slim clothing molded to her perfect figure, I had sweaters covering me up all the time. With a book in hand, I was the dedicated nerd.
Naturally, we were the complete opposites so how then did Sherry and I ever became friends? That was quite easy seeing I have this hot cousin. Yes. The virgin eater. No, he should not be called by that name. It sounded disrespectful and he was nice to me. Zylen Daniels, a name for a thoughtful and breathtaking person. He came around a few times a year to visit the family. He was the only one that visited us because Aunt Bertha chose to adopt me instead of sending me to foster care as expected by the rest of my relatives. With her involvement with me, she was ignored by the family as well. I could never ever love her more.
The friendship between Sherry and I developed with her having an ulterior motive, but after losing her virginity she decided to take pity on my loner status and kept me around. We had an amiable relationship enough. Her presence warded off potential bullies and I helped her with her homework. If she really aimed for a fashion career, she would need to pass basic math first. I was starting to believe the end of the world would be faster than her ability to absorb anything math related.
I looked at the clock, ten past six. Aunt Bertha was late today. She worked as a sales representative at a local mall in the perfume section. A little ironic since she possessed her own unique scent that drove men wild. Whereas I inherited my eye power from mother, Aunt Bertha got the pheromone power. She said it was the natural profession to go into. The scents surrounding her from morning until night would chase everybody away. Including Sherry who just left. She always asked why my aunt put on so much scents but I kept quiet, dancing around the question. All families tended to have weird quirks but me and Aunt Bertha? Strange was an inadequate description. I hardly believed our family curse so I doubt a stranger would accept it as readily.
At the tender age of five, my Aunt Bertha had pulled me aside and made me sit on the table so we looked each other in the eye. Her green eyes extra dark, devoid of her usual gentleness. To say I was frightened was putting it mildly. I would have had wet my pants if I hadn’t been wearing my diapies. The first words out of her mouth could not have shocked me more.
“Ella, your mother did not die in a car crash, she was raped.”
To preamble, dancing around the bush. A straight ball in the court. However, I blinked at her, perfectly clueless. Aunt Bertha sighed up at heaven where mommy went before elaborating. “Eleanor, I know you are confused but bare with me. I would have liked to wait for another year or two but seeing as your powers are developing earlier than we all did in the past, we need to stop it soon.”
Powers? I cocked my head to the side and thought about it. Could it be that the dogs and boys following me around because of this power? I have superpowers! A smile graced my face as I giggled. “Superpowers!”
“No. No!” Aunt Bertha was appalled and immediately set off to correct the misunderstanding. “Ella, it’s a curse! A damn curse and you better listen to everything I say if you don’t want to have the same end as your mother!”
I shut up immediately, afraid of the woman in front of me. Her brows were knitted together and with her hair in a strange up-do, she looked like an evil witch. Of course, I would never call Aunt Bertha that. She was bossy but she meant well. At least, she took me in instead of putting me up for adoption. Nobody from mama’s family would take me in seeing mother chose to ‘get hitched’ with a lowlife. I didn’t know what those words mean until my first show-and-tell to my fellow kindergarteners.
Since I still miss my mommy, I told them about her and how I came to be. How would I know the words would force us to move? The moment I said those words, my kindergarten teacher gasped and took me aside telling me to never say it again. My classmates too were naturally innocent as well. Dissatisfied by the teacher’s refusal to explain what the words meant, the kids returned home and asked their shocking parents. Many parents blamed me for polluting their child’s pure mind. My name was immediately blacklisted by all parents for birthday parties. Aunt Bertha was called in. I did not like the school administrators who were staring down at my aunt with disapproval. She did nothing wrong. I only repeated the words my mother repeated. She said it so happily that it had always made me laugh.
My vision returned to Aunt Bertha’s eyes bouncing like a ping – pong match. She finally settled down and told me flat out. I would never be able to prepare for this, no matter the age.
“It seems like you’ve inherited your mother’s eye power. When you look at anything living, they would fall in love with you. Do you remember that doggy following you home?”
Of course, I do. I even begged Aunt Bertha to let me keep him but she only held me in her arms and ran away like there was a roaring fire chasing after us. The dog chased after us like crazy. To all witnesses, we were like a crazy bunch, no doubt - a strange woman running with a wailing child while getting chased by the dog. If I remembered correctly, the dog got captured by animal patrol.
“Well, the dog is a boy so when you looked at him, he fell in love with you and chased you.” Aunt Bertha gave me a wry smile, her eyes begging me to understand something much deeper than my young developing mind allowed. What I should have realized is that my powers work only on guys and that they would love me.
“I love the puppy.” I said. She smacked her forehead so suddenly that I jumped.
“Oh, I’m sorry, dear!” Aunt Bertha put her hands on my shoulders and started to soothe my arms absentmindedly. I shook a little, afraid to look away from her in case she did something else. I knew there shouldn’t be any fear for my life as she never threatened me before, but this was a side of her I didn’t know.
“Dear, your power doesn’t work only on animals. They work on people. Boys like your age and men as old as me. Older.” She chewed her lips, reining in tears. “Oh, I can’t do this. I’m just going to say it. Ella, your mother was raped by a bunch of men because she forgot to wear her damn glasses.”
Aunt Bertha was crying now. Her tears fell like beautiful morning dew on her pale face. I have never understood why Aunt Bertha never married until I grew older and realized how hard it was to find a man who loves us for who we are. My little hands brushed away her tears but she grasped onto it and cried harder.
I hated to be the cause of her pain but I had a difficult time wrapping my mind around it. “What is raped?”
She sniffed loudly and answered me bravely. “It means someone doing something to hurt you, force something into you against your will. These people would not care about you and continue to hurt you and hurt you because they can’t stop it. They are controlled by your powers.”
Aunt Bertha cooed and hugged me too her. I cried silent tears and I mumbled in her ears. “I don’t want this power.” It was scary.
“I know sweetie, but it won’t go away. It’s our curse.” From then on, I wore glasses made of plain glass. My vision was perfect but Aunt Bertha was strict, never allowing me to leave without
out.
As a senior in high school, I finally realized how the curse messed up my whole social life. Sherry had already gotten through sixteen boyfriends compared to my embarrassing zero. I took off my glasses and rubbed my eyes. The sexual frustration was driving me crazy ever since I heard that my cousin ate another person at my grade the last he came over.
Jennifer Vega. No way was she a virgin with her round peach ass and awesome breasts. It was understandable he took her for a ride. Literally speaking. Jennifer boasted how she bounced on him in his Jaguar. If our curses did not pass only to girls, I would have thought he had them as well. This was so unfair. Was I ever going to enjoy the pleasure in life? Was I supposed to live my life in fear? Blaming God was no use because I knew too well that I was too chicken to do anything about it.
Blinking away my tears, I prepared for dinner. Since Aunt Bertha did not call, it must mean she was staying with Lorenzo Simmons. My English teacher. I know. Ew. They somehow fell in love during the parent’s teacher interview and she had been in this ‘I don’t really like you’ relationship with him. Initially I did not like the man because he was taking away my one and only family member and confidante. We were supposed to grow old together surrounded by cats. Give away chocolates to kids on Halloween in our spooky townhouse filled with dust and cobwebs. No chance of that happening now.
Anyway, it was my fault that she fell in love with him. Mr. Simmons would not stop badgering me about my aunt, causing students to spread crazy rumours between Mr. Simmons and I like how we did it in the classroom everyday and – God, I would not go down that memory lane. Aunt Bertha got called in by my school again for the second time, thankfully this was not my fault. The two talked it out in the room and everything was well. Nobody asked about her flushed cheeks and dress on backwards. Overall, everything was solved. And I learned not to be so selfish as to keep my aunt from her happiness. Goody.
Now everybody seemed to hate me because Mr. Simmons never picked on me to answer questions in class. Life.
I made chicken stir fry with bean sprouts, tofu and pineapples for dinner – my favourite dish and the best, if I must say so. After chomping it down, my Aunt Bertha finally sent me a message saying she would be spending the whole weekend with her beloved. Figures. How could you leave a young adult home alone? Oh, right. Adult.