Chapter 3: Goodbye Bellhollow

"Rosey! Get your butt out of the bed right now!" Ayomi yells with the sound of music following her voice into my ears.

"You don't need to yell..."I entered the kitchen with my blanket wrapped around my shoulders dragging my feet as the smell of eggs and turkey bacon enter my nostrils.

"Good morning sleeping beauty~ Have you gotten a kiss from your prince charming yet?" Ayomi playfully asks as she places my breakfast in front of me.

"Yes. As a matter of fact, I'm about to have a date with Mr. Breakfest right now." I answered with clear sarcasm in my voice, as I began to lazily eat my food.

"Oh look at you! My darling of a little sister making the first move~" Ayomi teasingly replied.

"Yeah, whatever... Are you working late again tonight?"

"Yes... But, as long as I make it to work on time. I shouldn't be home too late." She says as she takes off her apron and grabs her purse. " I'll be going now. Don't forget to come by later~"

"If I have time."

"Haha, you not having time? That's a good one." Ayomi slips on her red heels And shot one last glance in my direction. "But seriously, come by the shop. I don't want you staying home all day."

The words my sister said were heavy... I knew exactly what she was trying to say.

Hiding was always my favorite solution.

That will never solve anything.

A sigh left my lips as I nod to Ayomi. With only a glance she could clearly understand that nothing more needed to be said.

After my sister was gone I finished up my breakfast and got ready for the day. I left our apartment a little later that afternoon. The first person I visited was Sandra, who was sitting downstairs. I went to check if she needed help with anything. The lobby was as lively as usual since Sandra often babysits her tent's children while they were at work.

"If you don't mind can you pick me up a few things?" She asked as she handed me a shopping list. I nodded and waved goodbye as I left the building.

I spent most of the day around town. Shopping for the things on Sandra's list while also getting things that we needed around our apartment. After my shopping was done I headed to The Pedro. The place was not very busy, but it was still quite active. The staff was busy with one thing or another. While there were a few customers having casual conversations.

"Did you get the book I asked you to pick up yesterday?" Ayomi asks as she pours me a cup of tea. I replied with a simple nod as I took a sip of my tea and placed the bag with the book on the table. Ayomi's eyes sparkled as she flashes her signature bright smile.

"Thanks! Your such a doll~" Ayomi says while flipping through a few pages of the book.

"Ayomi, stop slacking off." A shiver hits Ayomi as she freezes in mid-motion right before my eyes.

"We can talk more later. I have to get back to work before Mr. Bossy makes me stay late again." She says as she glares in her boss's direction.

I simply nod in reply as I placed the book back into the bag and took another sip of tea. My eyes follow Ayomi as she apologizes to her boss. He was a young man most likely in his late 20s to early 30s. Sandy brown hair, that was brushed back. Pale green eyes that seem to fade into an ash gray. His glasses tilted on his nose as he scribbles down something on a notepad and shoos Ayomi away. A light blush could faintly be seen on Ayomi's pale face as she hurriedly got back to work. After hanging around for a bit, I decided to go home ahead of Ayomi since she had plans to go drinking with her coworkers after the shop closed.

The sun was already low on the horizon with the full moon ready to take over the night. The cool wind sent my hair into a frenzied mess. Tickling my nostrils into one of my beloved sneeze attacks. The repeated sneezing finally came to a stop as the wind turned to a dead cold. My eyes were stinging as I rub them while trying to open them. They finally opened, however, the only things they were met with were empty streets and unnatural silence.

was it always this quiet around this time?

I continued nervously down the sidewalk highly considering running back to the café and waiting patiently for my sister's shift to end and to drag her home with me. Something unnatural struck the corner of my vision as my eyes wander onto a man that was standing in the middle of the street. His tall dark figure was ominous and almost alarmingly abnormal. I couldn't put my finger on what about the man unsettled my nerves. Honestly, if I had seen him anywhere else. I might have just walked past him while barely taking notice of his presence. It's like when a family takes a picture and some of them are sitting. Even though you know there's a chair under them, it's not something your brain bothers to take note of. Instead, your attention would be drawn to the bright smiles or maybe a hot pink polka-dot tie that screams to be noticed.

My brain screamed at me. he didn't belong here. Alarms were going off. My heart was banging on my rib cage. the breath caught in my throat slowly suffocating me. he was not something that I should have taken notice of. My dry eyes froze on him even though every muscle in my body was yelling at me to move. To run someplace far away from here. My eyes wander over every perfect portion of his body. But, there was something that shook me to the core of my spine.

"White irises...?" I mumbled under my frogged breath, as I sucked in cold Icy oxygen. My feet automatically stumbled backward. His glaze that was fixated on the moon only seconds before was now focused on me. His white orbs widened with surprise as his eyes met mine.

"Juliet...?" His low raspy voice cracked as the syllables left his trembling lips. His almost sickly pale skin was an abnormal shade that reflects beautifully under the gaze of the moonlight. Everything about him was beautifully otherworldly. Even though his frame was similar to a human. Everything was just a bit off in a mesmerizing way.

The sadness that filled the atmosphere at the crack of his voice suddenly shifted as his expression suddenly darkens and his pale irises glare down at me with the intensity of someone who loathes my existence.

"Can you see me?" His voice roared in a low demanding tone. That sent my nerves trembling under my skin as my blood ran cold in my veins. Words were no longer able to reach my lips, small fast breaths were the only thing that could make it past them. The drumming of my heart was the only thing that filled my ears as sweat beaded down my temples.

my body was petrified with fear.

It was like I was infected with a deadly disease that would make me suffer until my last moments.

I felt like I was dying.

My vision became a hazy mess as my ears were filled with ringing. My veins trembled under my skin. blood running cold over my whole body. My senses started to slowly shut down one after the other. My limbs became foreign objects that were no longer attached to my body. Thoughts were a thing of the past. My brain and body were desperately trying to fix the unknown problem.

Oh.

My heart...?

I think it just stopped.

~To be continued... ~