Episode2
1236 Words
“Pretty lady, don’t you look so sad?” a rough sounding man said, walking up to her.
Cana's head snapped up. She had been daydreaming and was strolling around the streets of New York which she has never been to before. Now she was in the poorly lit zone where the buildings towering over her were painted almost in a boring gray color. Several men standing close to the wall looked at her and seemed to be resting against the wall.
“Nice dress”, another man said as he detached himself from the wall. "Special occasion?"
Cana hugged herself tightly, she realized that she was standing in front of him in a ripped and stained wedding dress. Afraid, she picked up her speed and her chest throbbed.
“Oh dear,” a third man protested, “Don’t be like that sweetheart”. What their actions boiled down to was, “We just want to talk!”
They both laughed aloud and the sound was heard ringing against the buildings. Cana could hear them following her, coming closer. She balled her hands into fists and felt her fingers lengthen and her nails become slightly sharper. If they attempted anything, she would have to unleash the wolf in her no matter the cost.
As if on cue, just as she was about to turn and look at the three of them, a new voice interrupted the night.
A question as asked “Is there a problem here?”
Cana spun around. Beside the door a policeman was standing with his hand on his belt. The men who had been lusting after her withdrew from her immediately.
“Oh that’s alright, officer,” one of them grumbled. "Just heading home. "
The cop watched them leave, then turned to Cana, as she was the last of the group. He looked at her dressed in front of him, eyes opened wide in surprise.
“Miss, are you okay?” he asked, and she could detect the concern in his voice. "Do you need help?"
Cana breathed a little easier, it was as though a weight had been lifted off of her. “I’m fine,” she said quickly. "Just. . . lost. "
The officer scowled, looking at her face for a moment. At this point, he appeared to recall who she was and smiled. “Hold on a second,” he said. “Aren’t you the wolf bride left at the altar, everyone is talking about it on the news. ”
Cana's heart sank. People themselves knew about her embarrassment. Was there no escape?
“I. … I have to go,” she stammered, backing away.
"Wait!" the officer called. “Allow me to assist you, it is not wise to be out here all by yourself. ”
But Cana was already running, her bare feet touching the cold pavement. She could hear the officer shouting after her but his voice grew fainter as she continued to run from one corner of the house to the other.
She pushed her legs to move without stopping and did not stop even when her lungs were sore and the buildings around her seemed indistinct. She cried, the tears flowing down her face, her sweat-streaked and dirt-streaked face.
All of a sudden, she bumped into an object, or rather a person. Two large hands reached out to her and grip her arms firmly.
“Whoa there,” a deep voice said. "Are you alright?"
Cana looked up and, feeling a need to extricate herself, she began to make her move. But she could not utter the words anymore.
There was a tall, good looking man in front of her. His dark eyes seemed to run over her face and look right through to her heart. For a moment Cana was left with the impression that they have something between them like a connection of electricity.
“I. . .” she started to say, but a crowd of people that had been watching them pushed through between them. They walked away and the man disappeared leaving behind a trail of tails of people on the pedestrian-only sidewalk.
Cana turned around quickly to look for him. "Wait!" she called out, but he was gone.
Thus, Cana fell back on a nearby building and slumped down, defeated. She leaned down on the floor and sat on the floor despite the dust on the floor and the people passing by giving her a funny look.
If you will, she thought to herself, and what am I going to do now?
As if in answer her stomach rumbled very loudly. Cana thought about food for the first time since the morning, she had hardly been able to swallow a mouthful of what was being served at the hall.
She rummaged in the small purse that she had kept till now somehow. A few crumpled bills. Few, but sufficient to get a cheap meal.
Cana rose to her feet and smoothed out the material of her dress as well as she could. She saw a dim, blinking “restaurant” sign up the road. '24-hour dine', it proclaimed.
With a sigh she began to move on her way. Eat first, then she’ll worry about what to do next.
The door of the diner opened and she entered it, making the bell on the door ring. A couple of people looked at her, but the majority of the guests of the bar at midnight were too wrapped up in their own issues to bother with her.
Cana uncomfortably slid into the booth close to the wall, her dress catching on the faded and cracked vinyl.
A somewhat frumpy waitress came over with a pad in her hand. “What’ll it be, hon?” she asked while also side-eyeing Cana’s messy state.
“Coffee as black as one can get,” Cana whispered. “And. . . may I borrow a phone?”
The waitress pointed her chin in the direction of the Payphone which was close to the washrooms. “I see one over there,” The waitress said, “Do you want me to change some?”
Cana shook her head. “No, thank you. I have some. ”
The moment the waitress started to leave, Cana looked at the phone fixedly. Who could she call? Her parents were on a cruise, therefore she could not hear from them. The pack was out of the question. Mia. . . No, she could not look her best friend in the eye right now.
The coffee came and it was hot, served in a cup which was also hot. Cana enclosed her fingers around the handle of the mug and relished in the heat.
At this point the diner door opened. Cana looked up reflexively.
Her blood ran cold.
Axel entered the diner and looked around with green eyes. When they touched the shores of Cana, a spectrum of a number of feelings washed over him. The usual relief, followed immediately by guilt, and something else Cana couldn’t put her finger on.
“Cana,” he said, moving closer to her. “Thank God that I have met you. We must talk.”
Cana squeezed her mug tightly, her mind whirling. How had he found her? What can he possibly have to say?
And more importantly. . . what was she going to do now?
- Writer
