Blindsided

Chapter 2. Find.

Alana walked up the short stairway that led to the front door of the house she had lived for the past few years. No matter how long she had kived her,she could never get over how beautiful tha house house. It had a shaggy looking exterior that made it look like a castle. The interior of the house was beautiful but had an old setting She felt that her uncle and aunt intended to make it look as medieval as possible. There were intricately designed furnitures and an old-looking brown table in the middle of the living room. Like every other house on Dublin, there was a fire place. It was always on but somehow managed to maintain it's beauty and framework. There was a painting of her Aunt Aiofe above the fire place that reminded her of her mother's picture and her father's death. Her train of thoughts was interrupted by Ailis' hand on her shoulder. She looked over at her maid and smiled because she did not want the woman to see her sadness.

"How did the stroll go"? Ailis asked.

Her Aunt decided to show up at that moment. "Alana went on a stroll"? She seemed furious about it. "Why didn't you go with her Ailis? She could have been mugged or abducted or killed. We pay you to watch her and make sure she stays in the house and never go out without suoervision."

Allie wanted to scream and tell her aunt that she could watch over herself. She wanted to show her that she came back safely after her just concluded stroll. But she could not. Somehow, she could not find the strenght to care about her aunt's rules but she knew that whatever reasons she had, it was for her own good. She remembered the boy in the alley, Ten. She knew it would be right to tell her aunt about him but she did not want to. She felt that the woman would only use it vas an excuse for her not to go out. She would paint Ten in a very different colour than what he might actually be.

With a nod, she started for her room, ignorant of the fact that her aunt was still talking. She heard a sigh but knew that she was safe. Her aunt would never yell at her because she thought she was still fragile and a bomb waiting to explode. She closed her door behind her and sat on her bed. She had to think of a way to escape from the house tomorrow because she knew that her aunt would be watching her like a hawk. But she also needed food, water and some clothes. She knew that Ten needed those things. He looked ragged and dirty and skinny. She could prepare the food and water from the kitchen, but getting male clothes was harder than getting her aunt to let her leave the house. She paced for a while as the clogs turned in her head until they clicked in place. S he had an idea.

Her aunt would not say no to her request for new clothes. All she had to do was get money from her aunt and convince Ailis to take her thrift shopping. She could slip a trouser and a few shirts into her selections. Maybe even a sandal. She smiled to herself and started to put the plan into action. She found her aunt walking towards her room, probably to check on her.

"What do you need, Alana?"

Alana always took notice of words. Her Aunt had used "need" instead of "want". An indication that even if they had wanted her, they hadn't needed her

. She was only to be provided with what she needed. Nothing else would make sense to Alana.

"I need some new clothes." she took a deep breath before completing her request. "I've been wondering if I could go shopping with Ailis".

It took a minute before her Aunt replied. Alana wondered what went through her Aunts mind in that minute. But to dwell on it was pointless.

"Go ahead".

Before she could utter a word of thanks, her Aunt had taken off and was already down the hall about to make a turn.

"Thank you Aunty Aiofe" she shouted before it was too late.

It was not until the next days afternoon that the Ailis and Alana left for the shop. The ride was merry as she kept her mind occupied with thoughts of Ten.

Why was she so occupied with the thoughts of Ten?.

Why had she had the urge to help Ten?.

What was so strange about Ten?.

Ten. Ten. Ten.

"Aren't you coming out?" Ailis said, snapping her out of her runaway thoughts.

She realized at that moment that they had arrived at their destination. The streets were full of wanderers, tourists and beggars. She spied a young mother pull her child out of the way of a clingy beggar and she had the urge to walk up to the beggar but she was confused, wondering if she wanted to tell him off or help him. Across the street from where Ailis stood was a tall building that resembled a cathedral but looked like it smelt if cigarettes and vomit. To the rigtte of the building, two blocks away was the shop they were headed to. The building was coloured brown too and Alana had to wonder how it looked like many years ago. The structure looked solid enough and she deemed it safe to venture inside it.

There was a spoilt neon sign close to the roof of the building that read "Sookie's Apparel". The 'R' was almost completely off the board.

Alana took a deep breath before she took a step inside the shop.