Cherry Vanilla # 18, Pistachio #1, Blood Orange # 6
Rating: PG-13
Flavors: Cherry Vanilla # 18 (flashback), Pistachio #1 (meeting), Blood Orange # 6 (call to arms)
Project: From a Place Past Paradise
Notes: Okay, so I meant to actually finish, revise and post this back in summer. But, that never happened. I'm thinking about coming back to it later when I have more time, but I just wanted to try something new and write something less...real-life like? So, experimental I guess for me.
***
The day that I met a college student named Vela was the day that I started to write myself a story with a conclusion coming sooner rather than later.
We met during the summer of last year. School was out for all students. The sun shone in all its brilliance. The clouds were laid to rest, not to tarnish the clear skies. The children played outside in the blissful ignorance that came only with innocence. That summer day, the wickedness of fate also came out to play.
***
It was one of the hotter days of summer, the peak of a heat wave that had come to settle in our suburb.
“I’ll be back by five tonight to pick Evy up. Latest. Is that alright?” I asked Charlotte, my old friend and neighbor.
“Sure. Take your time. Me and Evy will just be here hanging out,” replied Charlotte. “Won’t we, Evy?” She looked down, patting my little sister’s head a few times. Evy smiled and nodded rapidly.
I gave a full smile to Evelyn before looking back at Charlotte.
“Hey, Evy! Why don’t you go pick out a movie for us to watch? That way we can start it as soon as your sister leaves,” Charlotte half-whispered into Evelyn’s ear. “Gotta have as much fun as we can, right?”
Evelyn met my eyes for a few moments, and then ran to give me a tight hug and a “See ya later, Sis” before disappearing into the back of Charlotte’s house.
Stepping outside of the house, Charlotte closed the door behind her. “What’s wrong, Red?”
“Nothing really, just going over what I have to get. I have…” I ran through the names quickly. “I have five different places to stop by already. I just hope I’m not going to be out too long.”
“If you’re worried about Evelyn,” she sighed, “don’t be. We’ll be fine. It’s not the first time that I’ve baby sat her. Besides, it helps that she’s not a brat.”
“I can’t help it. Mom’s not going to be home for another two days. And, we all know my dad’s just-not here right now.”
“Well, that’s what I’m here for, right?” She waved her arms and pointed to herself, smug grin plastered onto her face. “I’m the oldest of us all, after all. I’m the big sister of both of ya.”
Charlotte brought me into a tight hug. Her skin was warm, yet not hot despite the weather. It was a little strange, especially since I was already sweating a bit.
“Lottie, thanks for watching her today.” I unwound myself from the hug, not wanting to disgust her with a sweaty hug. “I’m going to hurry up with the store run.”
“Nah, Red. Take your time. We all need our down time.” She dismissed my words with a few shakes of her hand. “It’s all good with me.”
“Thanks again,” I smiled and turned to leave.
“Autumn.”
“Hm?”
“Just be back before dark, or gimme a call. I’ll come get you. Tonight’s not the night you should be out too late.” Her usual smile was absent.
“Sure thing. I’ll see you later.”
“Yup! See ya!” Charlotte winked, smiling once more, and returned back into her home as I went off to my first stop of the day, the library.
Four stops later, after finishing my shift at the library, I was on my way home. I had even bought some apples to cook up for dessert over at Charlotte’s. Groceries in one hand and my purse in the other, I walked briskly down the street. I had about another three blocks until home.
The sky was shaded in a dark orange color with the sun dying on the horizon. Two blocks left. The small park that our neighborhood had was on my left. The area was cast in a mix of light from the setting sun and shadows. The park had a small set of your typical playground items. I could see the outline of a woman on the swings.
She was mid-swing when I noticed that she had begun staring back at me. She stopped pumping her legs, letting her feet drag lightly across the wood chips each time the swing came towards the ground. Soon, she had come to a stop.
A smile formed on her face.
I gave a quick smile back. I hadn’t seen her around the neighborhood before; I hadn’t been able to hang out as much lately. Even though I disliked a good portion of the neighborhood’s residents, I never saw any reason to actually make it a well-known fact that was how I felt. It was best to smile back and be on my way.
Continuing my walk down the street, I heard the faint sound of wood chips shuffling.
“Do you mind telling me where Maple Grove is?”
I turned a bit to see who asked the question. The swing lady, smile still present. “You seem like you’d know.” She continued.
“Uhm, yeah.” I looked around a bit. The sun was barely up now. “I know where Maple is. It’s one of the streets that branches off of Harbor Avenue. You can’t miss it.”
“I can’t miss it?” She pointed to herself, raising an eyebrow. “I’m from the city, just moved here recently. Pretty sure I’m going to miss it, even if it’s obvious.”
“Well, if you go straight from here, you turn right at the third block. That’ll take you to Harbor.” I replied. This is what I get for being nice, get held up with groceries.
“Third right. Alright, thanks.” She gave a mock salute.
Talk about weird. “Sure. Have a good night.” And, that’s how I would have left her; except, when I turned to my right, she was walking alongside me! “Can I help you?” I asked in the calmest voice I could manage.
“Me? Nah, you already did.” She grinned, showing both rows of teeth that were as bright as the full moon. “Was gonna walk with you since we’re headed the same way. That okay?”
“S-sure.” I stuttered. “I’ll just point you in the direction of Harbor when we pass by it.” I replied, not really sure what exactly was off about the woman. I resumed the journey home, with company.
“That’d be great. I’m Vela, by the way.” She extended her hand for a shake. “It’s good to meet you.”
I gave her a hand a quick but firm shake. “Autumn. Same to you.”
Vela had chestnut hair that fell to her waist, longer than my own by a good few inches. Part of her hair was tied into a loose bun in the back. The rest was free to sway behind her.
There was a lapse of silence before Vela hummed a bit. “I’m going to the college around here now. Heard anything about it?” She asked.
“My friend goes there right now. She says she likes it, so I’m sure you’ll be fine once the semester starts.” I replied. I had heard some rumors from Charlotte about the college professors. “If you’re a freshman, try not to get the male English teacher there. I don’t remember names, but he’s a tough grader.”
Vela laughed lightly, a light breathy laugh that resembled the wind. “Well, good thing I’m not a freshman. I’ll be a sophomore when I start up.” She swung her arms around in a windmill fashion--once, twice. “How about you? Little young to be in college, aren’t you?” She tilted her head in my direction.
“High school.” I switched the bag of groceries and my purse to opposite hands. “Sophomore this coming year.”
“Wait. Would you--Are you Lottie’s infamous Red? Lottie-I mean, Charlotte Schaff?” Amber irises bore into my own emerald ones.
“You know Charlotte?!” Charlotte knew people from the city?!
“Of course I know Lottie! She’s a close friend. I’ve known her since we were girls. Here, I’ll show you a picture.” Vela pulled up a picture of the two of them together on her cellphone.
It wasn’t an old photo, maybe a year old at the most. Charlotte still had the same shoulder-length golden hair. In it, Vela stood next to Charlotte. Both had a thumbs up and smiles that reached from ear to ear.
“I…I didn’t know you were Charlotte’s friend.” Oh god. Here was Charlotte’s best friend or something and I’d acted like that. “Sor-“
“No worries!” Vela patted me on the back. “Probably thought I was stranger. It happens. It’s great to finally meet you though. She mentioned you a lot when we met up.”
“I had no idea that she knew you. I didn’t even know she was from the city.” I murmured. I hadn’t known.
“Dressler.”
“What?”
“If she didn’t mention me by my first name, she might’ve brought up my last once or twice.”
“Not really. No.” I paused before adding, “But I’m sure that’s just me not remembering.”
She laughed her signature soft laugh. “No. If you don’t remember, then she didn’t mention me. It’s fine. We’re not on bad terms or anything, after all.” She motioned to the bags of groceries. “I’m headed over to Lottie’s right now. Want help with the bag?”
“Thanks a lot.” I gave her two of the bags. “Why did you want Maple Grove anyway?” Charlotte didn’t live on that street.
“She said that was the quickest way to get to Orchard Avenue. Maple’s supposed to be some major landmark street, so said Lottie.” Vela shrugged.
“Mm, I guess. Not really though. You wind up walking an extra block in the end. It’s a lot easier to go this way.”
We walked on in silence. The crickets did not chirp tonight. No owls hooted. No frogs. No cars. It was quiet; just our breaths, the rustle of grocery bags, and the soft click of her pair of heels and my tennis shoes on concrete as we shuffled down the block under the street lamps.
I pressed the doorbell once and was immediately greeted by Charlotte. Her face was scrunched in worry.
“Where have you been? I’ve been sitting here calling you, you know. Evy and I have-“ Charlotte cut off as she stared at Vela.
“Hi Lottie. How’ve ya been?” Vela grinned once more.
“I wasn’t expecting you for another day or two.” Charlotte replied curtly, looked displeased for once. “You should call before you show up early.”
“Aw, don’t be that way. I came early just to see you,” Vela pouted. “Isn’t a surprise nice every now and then?”
“I’m babysitting right now. And, I’m about to have dinner with Autumn.” Charlotte swung her head towards me, “Right, Autumn? Thanks for bringing the groceries too.”
“Yeah, no problem. Sorry, I didn’t know that you two weren’t on good terms.” I glanced over at Vela.
The grocery bags rustled as Vela shook them. “Ah, so all we have to do is bring food. Well then, I think I’m good to go.” She extended her hand, shoving the bag of groceries she had been helping to carry into Charlotte’s face. “Don’t you think so, Lottie?” A smirk.
The rest of the night went by fairly normal. Vela came in and had met Evy, who had immediately decided that Vela was a newfound friend. Charlotte had assured me that Vela and she were close friends. She just didn’t like that Vela had dropped by unannounced.
It was decided that there would be a sleepover that night at Charlotte’s house. Evy had jumped at Charlotte’s invitation. Evy and I would share one of the bedrooms; Charlotte and Vela would stay in Charlotte’s master bedroom.
I went into the kitchen after everyone had gone to bed. I checked through my phone. There weren’t any text messages or voicemails from either of my parents. Of course.
“Up late?”
I whirled around, coming face to face with the amber-eyed guest. “You too. I came down for a glass of water. Why’re you down here, Vela?”
She twirled some of her hair around her finger, humming a bit. “Got me. Couldn’t sleep. Here,” she handed me a glass, “for the water.”
“Thank you.”
“Autumn.”
“Mm?” I started filling up the glass with the fridge water.
“What do you think you’ll give up?”
“What?” I asked, my glass only half full.
“What matters most to you?” Vela pressed her finger against her lips, looking as if she was deep in thought. Or at least she would have, if she hadn’t been wearing a smile befitting of the Cheshire Cat. “Is it… physical or mental?”
I had no idea where she was going with this. Were city people just all psychos?! “Look, it’s late-“
“What do you think makes you human?” Vela continued, “That you have emotions and reason, or that you’re scientifically considered ‘human’?” She stretched her hand towards me. “Is that what makes you, well, you?”
Swatting her hand away, I glared at her. “I just met you today. And, I get that you’re Charlotte’s friend, but we’re not friends alright.” I drew back a few steps. “It’s too late at night for this shit.”
“Sure sure,” Vela pouted. “But, you know, you really should think about this. When the war starts, one of them will come for you. And you’ll lose whatever that most important thing is.” That annoying smile came back in full once more. “Just something to….consider.”
With that statement, she left the kitchen, waving a goodbye without turning back to face me. The wooden stairs creaked lightly, and then fell into silence once again. It was official. Vela was a crazy. A very annoying crazy.
The only thing I didn’t get was how Charlotte could be friends with this person.
***
Dawn came. The birds had already begun to sing their song as the sun bathed the world in its radiant light. The clouds were alight across the expanse of the blue sky. I was up to watch the morning arrive with my eyes still open and mind still running. I hadn’t slept for more than a few hours after the kitchen incident. As odd as it was, a part of it had kept me up thinking.
The morning was strangely calm. Charlotte seemed to have dowsed Vela into a silent smile. The brunette said nothing, only a faint grin was present on her face. Charlotte, herself, was abnormally silent…sad almost?
After saying our goodbyes, I took Evy back to our own home. Evelyn was the only one who acted like her usual self.
I passed my day and the days that followed in a haze that could best be described as auto-pilot. I didn’t think much of what I did, just did it. The routine was so normal that I can’t recall what exactly I got done in that week after I met Vela. One thing remained present though: the heavy feeling of being watched. Or that there was something terribly wrong in life.
I just couldn’t put my finger on what it was.
***
July 20th, 2:15 pm.
He appeared before me.
He was tall. He was of a slim build. He did not wear all black, contrary to popular belief. However, he did have that foreboding feeling to him. He felt like death. Yet, he was not.
He was simply one of the many messengers of death. A messenger clad in a suit.
That day, he came to me and whispered into my ear, “Cipher.” A name. A warning.
I’m not quite sure how I missed it at the time, but I did. Didn’t my mother always tell me not to talk to strangers? To run and call for help when they approached? Hadn’t I heard that a million times? But, then again, I guess a million times doesn’t exactly work against death. No one can escape it.
When the war needs wins, the draft begins.
Flavors: Cherry Vanilla # 18 (flashback), Pistachio #1 (meeting), Blood Orange # 6 (call to arms)
Project: From a Place Past Paradise
Notes: Okay, so I meant to actually finish, revise and post this back in summer. But, that never happened. I'm thinking about coming back to it later when I have more time, but I just wanted to try something new and write something less...real-life like? So, experimental I guess for me.
***
The day that I met a college student named Vela was the day that I started to write myself a story with a conclusion coming sooner rather than later.
We met during the summer of last year. School was out for all students. The sun shone in all its brilliance. The clouds were laid to rest, not to tarnish the clear skies. The children played outside in the blissful ignorance that came only with innocence. That summer day, the wickedness of fate also came out to play.
***
It was one of the hotter days of summer, the peak of a heat wave that had come to settle in our suburb.
“I’ll be back by five tonight to pick Evy up. Latest. Is that alright?” I asked Charlotte, my old friend and neighbor.
“Sure. Take your time. Me and Evy will just be here hanging out,” replied Charlotte. “Won’t we, Evy?” She looked down, patting my little sister’s head a few times. Evy smiled and nodded rapidly.
I gave a full smile to Evelyn before looking back at Charlotte.
“Hey, Evy! Why don’t you go pick out a movie for us to watch? That way we can start it as soon as your sister leaves,” Charlotte half-whispered into Evelyn’s ear. “Gotta have as much fun as we can, right?”
Evelyn met my eyes for a few moments, and then ran to give me a tight hug and a “See ya later, Sis” before disappearing into the back of Charlotte’s house.
Stepping outside of the house, Charlotte closed the door behind her. “What’s wrong, Red?”
“Nothing really, just going over what I have to get. I have…” I ran through the names quickly. “I have five different places to stop by already. I just hope I’m not going to be out too long.”
“If you’re worried about Evelyn,” she sighed, “don’t be. We’ll be fine. It’s not the first time that I’ve baby sat her. Besides, it helps that she’s not a brat.”
“I can’t help it. Mom’s not going to be home for another two days. And, we all know my dad’s just-not here right now.”
“Well, that’s what I’m here for, right?” She waved her arms and pointed to herself, smug grin plastered onto her face. “I’m the oldest of us all, after all. I’m the big sister of both of ya.”
Charlotte brought me into a tight hug. Her skin was warm, yet not hot despite the weather. It was a little strange, especially since I was already sweating a bit.
“Lottie, thanks for watching her today.” I unwound myself from the hug, not wanting to disgust her with a sweaty hug. “I’m going to hurry up with the store run.”
“Nah, Red. Take your time. We all need our down time.” She dismissed my words with a few shakes of her hand. “It’s all good with me.”
“Thanks again,” I smiled and turned to leave.
“Autumn.”
“Hm?”
“Just be back before dark, or gimme a call. I’ll come get you. Tonight’s not the night you should be out too late.” Her usual smile was absent.
“Sure thing. I’ll see you later.”
“Yup! See ya!” Charlotte winked, smiling once more, and returned back into her home as I went off to my first stop of the day, the library.
Four stops later, after finishing my shift at the library, I was on my way home. I had even bought some apples to cook up for dessert over at Charlotte’s. Groceries in one hand and my purse in the other, I walked briskly down the street. I had about another three blocks until home.
The sky was shaded in a dark orange color with the sun dying on the horizon. Two blocks left. The small park that our neighborhood had was on my left. The area was cast in a mix of light from the setting sun and shadows. The park had a small set of your typical playground items. I could see the outline of a woman on the swings.
She was mid-swing when I noticed that she had begun staring back at me. She stopped pumping her legs, letting her feet drag lightly across the wood chips each time the swing came towards the ground. Soon, she had come to a stop.
A smile formed on her face.
I gave a quick smile back. I hadn’t seen her around the neighborhood before; I hadn’t been able to hang out as much lately. Even though I disliked a good portion of the neighborhood’s residents, I never saw any reason to actually make it a well-known fact that was how I felt. It was best to smile back and be on my way.
Continuing my walk down the street, I heard the faint sound of wood chips shuffling.
“Do you mind telling me where Maple Grove is?”
I turned a bit to see who asked the question. The swing lady, smile still present. “You seem like you’d know.” She continued.
“Uhm, yeah.” I looked around a bit. The sun was barely up now. “I know where Maple is. It’s one of the streets that branches off of Harbor Avenue. You can’t miss it.”
“I can’t miss it?” She pointed to herself, raising an eyebrow. “I’m from the city, just moved here recently. Pretty sure I’m going to miss it, even if it’s obvious.”
“Well, if you go straight from here, you turn right at the third block. That’ll take you to Harbor.” I replied. This is what I get for being nice, get held up with groceries.
“Third right. Alright, thanks.” She gave a mock salute.
Talk about weird. “Sure. Have a good night.” And, that’s how I would have left her; except, when I turned to my right, she was walking alongside me! “Can I help you?” I asked in the calmest voice I could manage.
“Me? Nah, you already did.” She grinned, showing both rows of teeth that were as bright as the full moon. “Was gonna walk with you since we’re headed the same way. That okay?”
“S-sure.” I stuttered. “I’ll just point you in the direction of Harbor when we pass by it.” I replied, not really sure what exactly was off about the woman. I resumed the journey home, with company.
“That’d be great. I’m Vela, by the way.” She extended her hand for a shake. “It’s good to meet you.”
I gave her a hand a quick but firm shake. “Autumn. Same to you.”
Vela had chestnut hair that fell to her waist, longer than my own by a good few inches. Part of her hair was tied into a loose bun in the back. The rest was free to sway behind her.
There was a lapse of silence before Vela hummed a bit. “I’m going to the college around here now. Heard anything about it?” She asked.
“My friend goes there right now. She says she likes it, so I’m sure you’ll be fine once the semester starts.” I replied. I had heard some rumors from Charlotte about the college professors. “If you’re a freshman, try not to get the male English teacher there. I don’t remember names, but he’s a tough grader.”
Vela laughed lightly, a light breathy laugh that resembled the wind. “Well, good thing I’m not a freshman. I’ll be a sophomore when I start up.” She swung her arms around in a windmill fashion--once, twice. “How about you? Little young to be in college, aren’t you?” She tilted her head in my direction.
“High school.” I switched the bag of groceries and my purse to opposite hands. “Sophomore this coming year.”
“Wait. Would you--Are you Lottie’s infamous Red? Lottie-I mean, Charlotte Schaff?” Amber irises bore into my own emerald ones.
“You know Charlotte?!” Charlotte knew people from the city?!
“Of course I know Lottie! She’s a close friend. I’ve known her since we were girls. Here, I’ll show you a picture.” Vela pulled up a picture of the two of them together on her cellphone.
It wasn’t an old photo, maybe a year old at the most. Charlotte still had the same shoulder-length golden hair. In it, Vela stood next to Charlotte. Both had a thumbs up and smiles that reached from ear to ear.
“I…I didn’t know you were Charlotte’s friend.” Oh god. Here was Charlotte’s best friend or something and I’d acted like that. “Sor-“
“No worries!” Vela patted me on the back. “Probably thought I was stranger. It happens. It’s great to finally meet you though. She mentioned you a lot when we met up.”
“I had no idea that she knew you. I didn’t even know she was from the city.” I murmured. I hadn’t known.
“Dressler.”
“What?”
“If she didn’t mention me by my first name, she might’ve brought up my last once or twice.”
“Not really. No.” I paused before adding, “But I’m sure that’s just me not remembering.”
She laughed her signature soft laugh. “No. If you don’t remember, then she didn’t mention me. It’s fine. We’re not on bad terms or anything, after all.” She motioned to the bags of groceries. “I’m headed over to Lottie’s right now. Want help with the bag?”
“Thanks a lot.” I gave her two of the bags. “Why did you want Maple Grove anyway?” Charlotte didn’t live on that street.
“She said that was the quickest way to get to Orchard Avenue. Maple’s supposed to be some major landmark street, so said Lottie.” Vela shrugged.
“Mm, I guess. Not really though. You wind up walking an extra block in the end. It’s a lot easier to go this way.”
We walked on in silence. The crickets did not chirp tonight. No owls hooted. No frogs. No cars. It was quiet; just our breaths, the rustle of grocery bags, and the soft click of her pair of heels and my tennis shoes on concrete as we shuffled down the block under the street lamps.
I pressed the doorbell once and was immediately greeted by Charlotte. Her face was scrunched in worry.
“Where have you been? I’ve been sitting here calling you, you know. Evy and I have-“ Charlotte cut off as she stared at Vela.
“Hi Lottie. How’ve ya been?” Vela grinned once more.
“I wasn’t expecting you for another day or two.” Charlotte replied curtly, looked displeased for once. “You should call before you show up early.”
“Aw, don’t be that way. I came early just to see you,” Vela pouted. “Isn’t a surprise nice every now and then?”
“I’m babysitting right now. And, I’m about to have dinner with Autumn.” Charlotte swung her head towards me, “Right, Autumn? Thanks for bringing the groceries too.”
“Yeah, no problem. Sorry, I didn’t know that you two weren’t on good terms.” I glanced over at Vela.
The grocery bags rustled as Vela shook them. “Ah, so all we have to do is bring food. Well then, I think I’m good to go.” She extended her hand, shoving the bag of groceries she had been helping to carry into Charlotte’s face. “Don’t you think so, Lottie?” A smirk.
The rest of the night went by fairly normal. Vela came in and had met Evy, who had immediately decided that Vela was a newfound friend. Charlotte had assured me that Vela and she were close friends. She just didn’t like that Vela had dropped by unannounced.
It was decided that there would be a sleepover that night at Charlotte’s house. Evy had jumped at Charlotte’s invitation. Evy and I would share one of the bedrooms; Charlotte and Vela would stay in Charlotte’s master bedroom.
I went into the kitchen after everyone had gone to bed. I checked through my phone. There weren’t any text messages or voicemails from either of my parents. Of course.
“Up late?”
I whirled around, coming face to face with the amber-eyed guest. “You too. I came down for a glass of water. Why’re you down here, Vela?”
She twirled some of her hair around her finger, humming a bit. “Got me. Couldn’t sleep. Here,” she handed me a glass, “for the water.”
“Thank you.”
“Autumn.”
“Mm?” I started filling up the glass with the fridge water.
“What do you think you’ll give up?”
“What?” I asked, my glass only half full.
“What matters most to you?” Vela pressed her finger against her lips, looking as if she was deep in thought. Or at least she would have, if she hadn’t been wearing a smile befitting of the Cheshire Cat. “Is it… physical or mental?”
I had no idea where she was going with this. Were city people just all psychos?! “Look, it’s late-“
“What do you think makes you human?” Vela continued, “That you have emotions and reason, or that you’re scientifically considered ‘human’?” She stretched her hand towards me. “Is that what makes you, well, you?”
Swatting her hand away, I glared at her. “I just met you today. And, I get that you’re Charlotte’s friend, but we’re not friends alright.” I drew back a few steps. “It’s too late at night for this shit.”
“Sure sure,” Vela pouted. “But, you know, you really should think about this. When the war starts, one of them will come for you. And you’ll lose whatever that most important thing is.” That annoying smile came back in full once more. “Just something to….consider.”
With that statement, she left the kitchen, waving a goodbye without turning back to face me. The wooden stairs creaked lightly, and then fell into silence once again. It was official. Vela was a crazy. A very annoying crazy.
The only thing I didn’t get was how Charlotte could be friends with this person.
***
Dawn came. The birds had already begun to sing their song as the sun bathed the world in its radiant light. The clouds were alight across the expanse of the blue sky. I was up to watch the morning arrive with my eyes still open and mind still running. I hadn’t slept for more than a few hours after the kitchen incident. As odd as it was, a part of it had kept me up thinking.
The morning was strangely calm. Charlotte seemed to have dowsed Vela into a silent smile. The brunette said nothing, only a faint grin was present on her face. Charlotte, herself, was abnormally silent…sad almost?
After saying our goodbyes, I took Evy back to our own home. Evelyn was the only one who acted like her usual self.
I passed my day and the days that followed in a haze that could best be described as auto-pilot. I didn’t think much of what I did, just did it. The routine was so normal that I can’t recall what exactly I got done in that week after I met Vela. One thing remained present though: the heavy feeling of being watched. Or that there was something terribly wrong in life.
I just couldn’t put my finger on what it was.
***
July 20th, 2:15 pm.
He appeared before me.
He was tall. He was of a slim build. He did not wear all black, contrary to popular belief. However, he did have that foreboding feeling to him. He felt like death. Yet, he was not.
He was simply one of the many messengers of death. A messenger clad in a suit.
That day, he came to me and whispered into my ear, “Cipher.” A name. A warning.
I’m not quite sure how I missed it at the time, but I did. Didn’t my mother always tell me not to talk to strangers? To run and call for help when they approached? Hadn’t I heard that a million times? But, then again, I guess a million times doesn’t exactly work against death. No one can escape it.
When the war needs wins, the draft begins.