Hate (Book One Of The Emotion Series)

Chapter 1

The ocean. A calm place for some and others, a place that ignited fear. However, that was not the case for Cold. For her, it was a place of comfort. A haven.

Home.

Cold sat on her bed staring at the ocean as the waves crashed against the shore. With every wave that broke, so did her heart. Tears flowed down her cheeks. It was hard having this uncontrollable pain. This heartache. 

'Why am I alive?'  she thought, 'Why does it still hurt?'

Cold was disappointed to find herself alive, yet another day, living an empty, incredibly sad life. She should be numb by now, she should be over it. He died four years ago, it shouldn't hurt as much.  

'I don't want to be here.'

The hushed voices of Cold's parents caught her attention. Tuning into their conversation, she listened to their comments. With every word that left their mouths, a little part of her died.  

"Do really you think Jason is the reason why she's depressed?" Her father harshly whispered, "That was four years ago! Move on already! Yes, he died! Yes, he was her best friend. But she should be over it by now!"

"Ethan, they've been friends since they could walk. That's a little insensitive," her mother defended.

"No, it's not. I think she's too negative. Why can't she be happy like every other teenager?!" Her father exclaimed as Cold rolled her eyes.

Typical response from him. He didn't care. He never did! Unless it pertained to following in his footsteps to become an oceanographer, he didn't give a crap! They never cared, until it was too late. She gritted her teeth as her blood began to boil.

But as she got a whiff of the sea breeze, she felt the fire within her extinguished.

Her attention was unwillingly drawn back to the ocean. Its movement was almost hypnotic. Cold twirled her golden locket, as a wave of calmness washed over her. 

Memories of her past, with Jason and Nate, flashed before her eyes. Like when Nate got stuck in a tree, crying until his father brought him down. Or that other time when they chased her and she ran into a wall of her house. 

Ah, simpler times. 

Then, the memories gradually grew darker. Her last memory of him wasn't exactly the happiest. 

The pain in her chest intensified.

'Maybe I should go for a swim, that'll make me feel better,' Cold thought, watching the enticing waters. The ocean always took her pain away. It made me feel at peace. At home. Her home didn't feel like a home.

But to everyone in Blue Land, Aurelia, the ocean was a priority. The ocean was a necessity. For without her, the citizens of Blue Land could never survive. 

'Come to me,' she whispered to Cold, though she thought nothing of the whisper but just her inner voice. Eyes fixed on the ocean, Cold floated towards the door.

Gently opening it, she stepped outside, the breeze caressing her brown skin. 

As she made her way to the beach, she had an overwhelming urge to be consumed by the ocean. Her heart rate accelerated as the voice telling her to come closer intensified.  She ran into the water and dove under. The warm seas embraced her and for a moment, she had no care in the world.

~~~~

'This is going to take some time to heal,'  Xavier thought to himself as he let the ocean consume him. He barely escaped that hunter after destroying the harbour. 

Letting the ocean consume him was always a tiresome task. She was so vengeful. If only they'd listen to her and not destroy her, he wouldn't be forced to destroy harbours and kill people.

 Xavier stared at his stomach as his skin mended together. The healing power of the ocean always amazed him, but when he remembered why he required healing, amazement went away.

Xavier was a charm hate-feeder, a  creature of the ocean.  He loved his powers, but he hated not having his freedom. 

'You served me well today,' The ocean said to him.

'I love serving you, but why do I need to kill people? They meant us no harm.'  Xavier inquired as he allowed her strong currents to surround him.

'They all played a part in my downfall, and for that, they must all die!'

'I don't want to kill people,' he whispered.

'You will do as I say!'  The ocean demanded as she began draining his powers, drowning him in her depths.

'Okay!'  The words barely escaped his mouth. He hated when she did this. When she used her powers to inflict pain until he surrendered. 

'Great! You may return to the surface until I call on you again.'

The strong currents dispersed from his perimeter and the ocean freed him from her controlling clutches. To think that he once loved this place. That he once called it home.

Xavier swam to the surface, his powers now renewed. As he got closer, the currents became rougher and the animals a bit disoriented. He knew that he was no longer alone. Something powerful was in his presence and he readied himself for defence. 

As he swam closer, her melody hit his eardrums and the currents calmed. Almost hypnotized by this slow, agonizing song, Xavier once again, felt his control slipping away. As the voice pulled him closer, his heart constricted. He felt pain. 

Breaking the surface tension, the light temporarily blinded him. But as his eyes adjusted, he found the owner of the voice. His body moved towards her and so did all of his surrounding fish friends.

He swam right up to her and stared down.

'Bring her to me,' the ocean invaded his thoughts.

'I know her. She shouldn't be involved in this,'  Xavier replied staring at Cold, as she continued to t*****e him with her painful melody. 

'Who hurt her?' he wondered. He felt a strange urge to protect her at all cost. He wanted the person who inspired this painful melody, to feel the wrath of his anger.

'I said, bring her to me!' she bellowed. 

Xavier felt as though a dagger had been plunged into his chest and twisted. Clutching his chest, Xavier groaned loudly, veins popping on his neck and head, as he felt the pain of the ocean's punishment.

He hated her manipulative ways. He hated that she was willing to hurt anyone just to get what she wanted.

~~~~

Cold's eyes widen as she splashed in the water, trying to get away from the tortured cries. She began to sink, swallowing seawater as she panicked. It was as though something was pulling her into the depths of the ocean. The more she fought to get back to the surface, the deeper she sank.

That was until a hand gripped hers and pulled her towards a breath of fresh air. Coughing, she gasped for air. She was carried out to the shore and laid on the sand. A figure loomed over her and rapidly descended. Their lips clashed with her's in an opened mouth kiss. Cold pushed against the chest of the stranger with all of her strength. 

"What are you doing?" she questioned, choking. As her coughing subsided, she got a good look at her perverted attacker. "Xavier?" Cold didn't particularly care for Xavier's existence. She didn't exactly have a problem with him, but rather his actions. He was not a good guy.

"You were drowning. I was trying to do CPR," Xavier explained, taking a seat on the sand beside her. 

"Oh, I'm sorry," Cold apologized lowering her head.

"It's okay. I'm sorry I startled you," he whispered the last sentence.

"That was you? I mean, of course, it was. We are the only ones on the beach after all," Cold looked around to confirm that her statement was true. "Why were you groaning in pain?" she asked c*****g her head to the side, "And where did you come from? You weren't here when I came," Cold narrowed her eyes at Xavier. This was a bit suspicious. 

Xavier however, remained calm under her accusing gaze and did what he was forced to become a professional at. Redirecting.

"This is why you don't float with your eyes closed on a deserted beach." He laughed and Cold's tense body relaxed. "Do you come here often?" he asked. He had never seen her here before. Although, he was kind of a stranger to this side of the beach. 

"I don't know if that's a pathetic attempt at flirting, or if you're genuinely curious," Cold chuckled and Xavier joined in. As their laughter simmered, he replied, "Genuinely curious."

"I'm always here. I live right there you know," Cold said pointing at her house then instantly regretted it. She knew the kind of boy Xavier was. She knew he was the type to sneak into bedrooms and persuade his way into pants. Pointing out her house was, indeed, a stupid decision.

"Nice,"  Xavier stated, drawing symbols in the sand. Cold, however, went mute. She refused to give out any more information about herself and her whereabouts.

Xavier wasn't a mindless being. His special gift was using his mind to penetrate that of others. He knew what Cold thought of him. Not because he could read her mind, but because he knew who her friends were. He knew they all thought he was a horrible, hypersexual teen. Well, all except one.

Though those thoughts were somewhat accurate, it wasn't his fault that he was that way. But that was something no one would ever understand. At least, not yet. Xavier felt the energy between them shift from playful to guarded.

"I should go," Cold whispered and rose from the sand, "I'll see you tomorrow," She mumbled as she walked away.

He hated the way people treated him because of the things his body was manipulated to do. 

'She's next,' The ocean's voice caressed his eardrums. 'She has darkness around her. Hate, anger. I've been baiting her for years and she's almost at her peak. Bring her to me Xavier,'  She whispered in his ear. 

He could feel her energy enticing him, persuading him, manipulating him. 

'Please don't make me do this,'  he begged, already feeling himself losing control. As much as he wanted to fight, to prevent her from consuming his mind and using him to recruit Cold, he couldn't. His thoughts were already starting to waver in her favour.

'She's a good person. She doesn't deserve this. She's been through a lot. Please, don't do...' 

It was too late. Her decision was made, and his mind was already out of his control. His voice of reasoning and his right to choose was once again lost.