“Thank you, please come again,” Summer smiled as she bade another customer goodbye. The curve of her lips straightened as soon as the door closed. She let out an inaudible sigh. It has been 2 weeks since she has started working at this bakery. The bakery had a steady flow of customers—some regular and some new. It had taken some time for her to get used to the regulars. She slowly learnt that regulars sometimes got a little extra just for being their regular patrons. Barbara stayed at the cashier and Liam, her husband, created magic in the kitchen.
“Tired already?” Barbara asked as she brought in a fresh batch of cinnamon rolls. Summer pursed her lips and shook her head, concentrating on wiping the counters. Thankfully for her, the bakery was small, so there weren’t any tables for customers to sit and eat. She avoided socialising at all costs. The elderly lady had learnt about her nature very quickly. She was a friendly woman and mostly left the younger one to her own devices. Summer even got a small apartment for rent. The rent was quite high as per her income, but she managed with whatever she had saved up.
It felt nice to have a routine, a mundane one — no ruthless caregivers, not having to tend to fresh injuries, not having to hide her tears, and most of all not having to fear that she would have to go through those things all over again. She wasn’t even having dreams….ones that kept her up most nights left her shivering and gasping. For once, she was at peace.
“Summer?” she almost flinched back but restrained herself from doing so. ‘She is not going to harm me,’ she chanted in her mind. She turned to look at her. Barbara looked a little astonished but she recovered quickly. “I was asking whether you have attended high school?” Her question was abrupt, but Summer replied, “Yes, I have. I have also completed my Bachelor's in Accountancy.” Barbara’s eyes widened at her answer. Summer had carried along with all her documents while leaving or rather running away from the house. But Barbara never asked for them and she didn’t show it to her either. “But you don’t look…” the older woman trailed off. Summer knew what those unsaid words might be. She didn’t look like a 21-year-old girl. She was malnourished. She had average height and was skinny, her face was heart-shaped but her skin was pale. Her flaming red hair and golden eyes made her stand apart, even when she wanted to blend into the crowd.
The wavy locks seemed unmanageable at times but she cut it last year, and she had bought fake lenses to make her eyes look less scary to some people, but it irritated her eyes to no end. Thus, she was stuck with these odd features.
“Why haven’t you tried to seek a job elsewhere...you know, like small firms or companies?” Barbara asked, looking genuinely curious. Summer lowered her gaze as she fidgeted with the wiping cloth. “I...never tried.” She never had access to much. Just before she had come to Melham, Gloria had given her a second-hand smartphone because she didn’t have any, and contacting the latter was becoming a problem. She missed the convenience store owner. Barbara’s eyebrows knit together. She was about to say something when the bell chimed. Both of them plastered a smile on their faces again.
~~~~~
She let out a weary sigh as she plopped on the single bed. She had barely toed off her shoes and kept the leftover buns on the mini-fridge before manoeuvring to the bed. She had yet to unpack and buy other household stuff, postponing it for when she received her salary from the bakery. She gets up reluctantly and pads to the washroom. After taking a relaxing shower, she takes the backpack from within the closet and starts unpacking her stuff.
She dumped the contents on the bed — a few clothes, a balm, her comb and concealer, some documents and one tattered book whose contents she had not been able to decipher till date. She stared at the leather-bound book, its cover barely holding the yellowed pages. Her fingers traced the odd pattern on the cover. It always intrigued her and what’s surprising about the pattern is that despite the cover’s edges having frayed, the pattern never faded. Her fingers almost itched to open it but she resisted the urge and put the book inside the drawer before putting in her clothes. She then checked her documents and put them away in another drawer.
She debated whether to eat something before going to bed. Her stomach growled, making the choice for her. She trudged to the kitchenette where she had kept the packet of leftovers. After eating a couple of chocolate chip filled peanut butter cookies and a slice of carrot cake, she was full. When Barbara had first handed her a packet filled with buns and doughnuts, she had been hesitant.
“You can eat this as your dinner. Buy some groceries tomorrow and then you can start eating something other than bakery goods,” she had said sternly. But Summer noted the kindness underneath them and Liam had offered her a small encouraging smile, she had taken the packet with trembling fingers and then had almost choked out a ‘thank you.’
Then it had become a routine, one of the things in the routine to be exact. She mentally noted to buy groceries tomorrow as she brushed her teeth.
~~~~~
The mark glowed golden, almost blinding her. ‘This is not real,’ she reminded herself as she stared at the pattern, mesmerised. She was most probably in her room, even in the dream.
‘Serena…’ she heard a lilting female voice, a calming one. Serena? Who is she? She didn’t answer.
‘Beware of the untamed wolf....’ the voice said.
~~~~~~
Her eyes snapped open. The room was pitch dark except for the white curtain filtering in a little light from the streetlamps outside. She scanned the room, even though her heart pounded. No one was here. Staring at the ceiling, she wondered about the dream. It did not leave her. These dreams. Who was Serna? She tried to recall every person she remotely knew, but none were named Serena. Her head started to ache, and she started to become listless. These dreams made her like this. She screwed her eyes shut. She won’t think about it. She had settled in her new life now. Dreams be damned.
“Did you not sleep last night?” Barbara asked as soon as Summer entered. She felt sluggish and naturally irritated because, as much as she wanted to go back to sleep, she just couldn’t. And ended up thinking, or rather overthinking, about a person named Serena and the untamed wolf.Summer mumbled, “Not much.” She plucked the apron from the kitchen and tied it swiftly. “At least you could have covered it with some makeup,” the older woman grumbled as she carried batches of freshly baked cupcakes and cookies. Summer could have replied that she was in a hurry or she had forgotten, but she didn’t. In reality, she did not expect her to even notice that she had a sleepless night. No one did before. She mumbled an apology, but said nothing further.The day went on uneventfully. Once they had served the last customer, Summer flipped the board that had the ‘closed’ sign and pulled the blinds. As she unknotted her
She hissed slightly as the cold water cascaded down her body. Belatedly, she realised that she had absent-mindedly scrubbed on a healing wound on her left forearm a little too hard. The water made it sting. She stared at it as the water cascaded down her body, rinsing the suds and sluicing down the drain. The wound had turned an angry red. She brushed her thumb over it and hissed again. It mocked her, taking more time to heal than others had as if serving as an angry reminder of her life that she had left behind. However, unlike the past month today, the scars stared mockingly at her.Turning off the shower knob, she stepped out, shivering at the sudden change in temperature. The heater had been acting up for a few days now and finally took its last breath last night. She hurriedly dried herself and pulled on her work clothes — a pair of black trousers and a beige cotton blouse. Tying her damp hair into a bun, she tossed the damp towel in the laundry basket. Looking out
Amber eyes clashed with a pair of silver, sharp and icy. She gasped, not at the cold-faced Adonis standing in front of her, but because of a sudden vision that flashed across her mind’s eye. Red eyes. The ones that she had seen a few weeks ago.Dorian looked at the employee with ill-concealed ire after the momentary daze that had convinced him that the girl was his mate. He glared at her. She was practically gawking at him, which annoyed him further. Who recruited her? He wondered. His wolf was another story. He was purring at the sight of his mate, the suppressants barely keeping him from taking over. He looked down at his now spoiled shirt. He’d have to go back and change again.“Watch your steps,” he gritted, continuing to glare at her. He glanced around. A sizeable crowd had gathered. His employees tried to be inconspicuous as they watched the scene unfold. No one dared to come close to him or offer him any help. Dorian didn&rsqu
“You have dinner with family at 7,” Kyle said as he flicked scrolled through the schedule in the tab. Dorian grunted. He scoffed internally as he thought about how his ‘family’ put up so much effort to meet each other once every week, but in reality, everyone wanted to kill the other, everyone especially wanted to kill him. As his eyes skimmed through the papers, that Kyle had brought for him to sign, he couldn’t help but chuckle. Oh, how they thought that appeasing him would help them be in his good books.“Alpha?” Kyle’s tentative call made him look up. His beta’s eyebrows had drawn together, maybe because he puzzled as to why he had suddenly huffed out a chuckle. Dorian plucked a silver pen, gifted by his grandfather from the pen stand and said, “I am just amused by this pretentious family dinner.” Kyle frowned but refrained from commenting on his view.Once alone in his office, Dorian&rsq
“How is work?” Clara asked primly, while gracefully twirling the noodles with the fork. The others subtly looked at them, he could feel it. Dorian stifled a sigh. He was utterly bored and they weren’t even halfway through the dinner. Among the family members, only his grandpa and Clara were the ones who made an effort to talk to him. Clara used to be his closest cousin and confidant, but somewhere along the journey of adulthood, they had drifted apart.“Good,” he replied, not looking up from his plate. He just wanted to be out of this facade of a dinner. For the next few minutes, only the clinking of plates and glasses could be heard. Dorian sometimes wondered why they bothered to arrange this when no one wanted to talk with another, and they all walked on eggshells around him. It always irked him to see his father’s empty seat, left as a stark reminder of the past. Grandfather never let him forget it fo
It was dark and gloomy. She could hear the rumbling thunder outside. She could smell the damp air, could hear the constant dripping of water from the leaking roof into the room where they were trapped. Why? She didn’t know. How? She didn’t know that either.“‘Don’t hurt my daughter...don’t...please. I will...I will tell you...I….” the faceless woman pleaded as she tried to drag her blood-soaked body back until her back hit the wall. She was cradled in her arms, unable to see who it was that addressed her as their daughter. Was she her biological mother? Possibly. She peeked a look at the man who stood not too far away from them. Was it a man? Or a dog? What species was it? It was growling...it always did. Its red glowing eyes made her shudder. And then…There was blood, dark and thick. She sat shivering in one corner of the room, trying to blend into the wall almost as she watched the c
Her eyes fluttered open to an unfamiliar room. She was familiar with this type of ceiling. She had been to this place countless times. And then everything came gushing back, making her sit up for the next moment. Red eyes….red eyes...her mind chanted and then the voice which had said her to beware of the red eyes…“Finally, you decide to grace the living world,” a timbre voice says from her right. Her gaze snapped towards its origin. Her eyes widened when she found that none other than her boss was lounging on the couch, staring at her, or rather scowling back at her. He was fully dressed in a suit now, thankfully.She swallowed nervously and averted her gaze. How on earth was she so unlucky? Just when she had thought that life was going to be mundane, she had multiple encounters with her all-too-unhappy boss and all in a span of
She heard a sharp intake of breath. She did not look up from the porcelain bowl. The white countertop made her feel dizzy before she resumed, “I don’t know much about my time at the orphanage but I can say one thing that I could live and breathe freely there. One day, I was adopted by the Whites, a childless couple who seemed to be lovable and cheerful in the beginning.” Her lips twisted slightly at the words ‘cheerful’ and ‘loveable’.She pushed back the bowl slightly and glanced at Barbara who was staring back at her. Her face was an open book, painted with a plethora of emotions. “I was taken care of initially,” she said, furrowing her eyebrows and remembering the days when they actually cared for her like parents would for a child. “But then...things started getting worse,” she continued. Summer gripped the spoon tighter. “Financially they weren’t stable and bringing me into their li