The Life of Her

Chased by the Owner

Love. How long will I ever feel that thing again? I guessed life is about a matter of choices and how you lead it. And to me, I am making things according to my way. It is Sunday morning and the sun was shining bright outside my window. It’s already eight and it has been three minutes that my alarm clock continually kept on ringing. I didn’t bother to turn it off. I was being clumsy. How long did I make it up t this point? Eighteen years of existence is not that bad. I wonder if Bailey is now in good terms with her family again. The last time I got in touch with her as being my best friend, she left her house and stayed in mine for two days, just because she didn’t want to deal with her siblings. Sometimes, I really don’t understand her.

To think that I miss her, I still can’t face her for now. There are just things that need time in order to heal – the right time to make things clear and be at peace once again. I stretched my legs and arms as I made a yawn. Tapping my cheeks five times to make myself alert, I sat on my bed and wiped my eyes. I placed my blanket and pillow over the side. I snatched my phone over my desk and checked if there’s a new message or an email.

I stood uprightly and combed my hair and went straight to the bathroom to wash my face. I still felt dozy but I needed to find a new school to enrol. I turned on the shower and grabbed the soap. It was cold but it felt nice as I listened to the music over my cell. Snatching the shampoo, a thing just came up in my mind. I wanted to color it violet for this month. I’ve been into red and dark green and now, I want to try a new variant. I smirked as I imagined myself with that hair color.

Thirty minutes of taking a bath is quite good. Getting out of the shower had calmed my mind. Wrapping myself with a yellow towel, I went straight back to my room and opened my case. I still didn’t arrange my clothes inside the drawer. Taking some choices, I ended myself up wearing a black shirt and tattered black jeans. I also got some dangling skull earrings and a chain necklace. Brushing my hair, I gazed myself in the reflector and put on my new look – thick dark lines, piercing on my face and black tainted lips. I guessed having a different personality for this new environment is a good decision. New me it is.

Have I gone mad? Or it’s just the real me that had been asleep for years. Now that it has awaken, it took over wholly.

I scooted back and directed to the kitchen. Opening the fridge, it’s a bit of dismay that there’s nothing to eat. I scoffed. There are still a lot of things to be done in here. I grabbed my jacket that was hanging on the chair. Taking a glance on my watch, it’s 9 o’clock in the morning. I moved outside to pry and there I saw how the others were enjoying their days. Some were sipping their coffee, doing the laundry, cleaning their houses, moving back and forth, rushing to their respective works and chores. Children were calling to each other for play and snacks. I walked and some were taking their time to examine the new neighbour in the Zealous.

I smiled at them, even if it was a stroppy one the way around. Maybe they’re not used of seeing an emo one roaming around their place. And yes, black is my new color and I’m quite having the pleasure of wearing it. I guessed seeing dark variants in me is not that bad. I was done doing those fancy dresses, colorful outfits that made me looked like a birthday clowns, dangling, large circled accessories that even I could recognize myself as a lady with eight kids sometimes. I was done with my old self.

Having the slightest sign of confidence, I walked myself around them and went to the nearest store that was located at the left corner. A group of men were sitting, taking their time to examine everyone that was walking by. Often, they would call out their names, teasing and complimenting them. There were gathered into four. I went at the middle of them and called for the owner of the store, not recognizing a hefty woman sitting inside the store with a cigarette on her mouth. She was wearing a green shirt. Her lips were brightly red and her eyes were colored pink. I gulped as soon as I heard her spoke with her hoarse voice. She didn’t twitch and rather made a shallow, punky expression. I greeted her but she didn’t mind. One of the men poked my shoulder, making me glanced at him. He was also in large shape. He was wearing a loose white sando and a plain orange shorts with outsized, tattered pockets. A white towel was on his right shoulder. His beard was thick together with his untrimmed hair. I believed that he was the leader. He gave me an earnestly smile and said, “You’re new here, lad. What’s your name?”

“She smelt like honey.” The other one said. He was different from all of his friends. He looked like a stick to me together with his slender arms and legs. He was wearing a fitted blue shirt and orange cargo pants. His teeth were brightly yellow, with a c***k in the middle. His mole was exposed on his left cheek, below his circular, thick lensed glasses. His silky brown hair is on his shoulder and his arms were covered with dragon tattoos, which I thought that he’s a fan of that creature.

“I hope you’ll have fun here, young lady. Do you drink?” The other one spoke, sitting beside the lanky one. He’s fit and I could see his well built muscles from his arms down to his torso. The way the others looked at him, it was as if he’s their motivation to get a perfect body.

I waited for the last one to at least give me a welcoming conversation, but he’s more of a serious, silent typed person – staring over me from head to toe. He was giving me the vibe of a teacher in a school who hates wrong answers, raising an eyebrow. He wore a dark grey shirt with a small rose print on his right He was bridging his arms. His hair was red and his eyebrows were bushy, but he got the looks to be fit as one of those aspiring models. My eyes traveled to his hands, which looked like a woman’s. His nails were neatly trimmed, having me the anxiousness of mine. Guessed, I need to have a manicure. I gnashed my lip and focused with their leader.

I glinted at him and countered. “Hi. I’m Amber Kate Madison. I just moved here yesterday. It’s…nice to meet you all.”

“You have a nice taste of fashion.” The serious guy suddenly complimented.

“Thanks. You…have a nice personality.”

Nice one, Amber. Nice one. I didn’t know why I said that, but he just bent his head a bit to agree.

“Have you met Mrs. Jordan?” The bubbly, thin one asked.

“I still haven’t met here. But…maybe later.”

Clearing her throat, she suddenly opened a small part on her store and asked for my order. “You know I hate when someone keeps me waiting. What do you want, lady.” She coldly said, smoking the last part of her cigarette, locking her graze to me.

“Don’t be too harsh with our new neighbour, Margarita. For sure, she’s still adjusting with the place.” The man said. “By the way, I’m Albert Shayne. The one with a blue long sleeves is Kyle Mader. The one with the best body among us is Weaston Miller and the bitchy guy over there is Berjohn Einstein Grace.”

I silently chuckled over the last one as he said those words.

“It’s nice to know you all. Uhm.” I turned to tell the woman the things that I wanted to buy. “Can I have two pieces of eggs, one-fourth of oil, 1 kilo of rice and corned beef.”

The woman, if I’m not sure, glared at me as she turned around to get them. I chuckled awkwardly.

Kyle stood beside me and called Margarita for a bottle of soda. The woman didn’t respond but he was sure that she heard him. He snickered and proclaimed. “Don’t let her get into your nerves. She’s just really like that. You know, heartbroken.”

I simply nodded and darted over her. After a couple of minutes, she returned to us and gave me my orders as well as Kyle’s. She told us the price and we gave her the payment.

“Did they catch the thief?” Weaston asked his friends, which had also caught my attention.

Kyle sipped his soda and leaned his back on the cold, tempestuous wall.

“Didn’t you hear? They have caught the burglar yesterday, but he eventually died because he had jumped the vehicle when they’re transporting him.” Albert commented, clasping his hands on top of his thighs.

“Guessed that man really don’t want to be in the cells.” Berjohn added.

“They also said that the man is related to the owner of that hunted house from the distance and some told that he’s the alleged boyfriend of the victim.” Albert said.

The haunted house? Do they mean about the house where I saw that white lady?

“There’s a burglar here?”

Kyle nodded and raised up, lifting both his arms up high. “Yes. It happened a week ago. One of the residents in Zealous was caught in such mischief. Somehow, when she asked for help, no one had seen the burglar, not until a man was found dead in front of her door. Didn’t the daughter of the owner tell you such incident?”

“No. She didn’t mention anything about it. Well, I guessed it’s good that they get rid of the person.”

Everyone looked at me with such confusion, and somehow they didn’t expect about how I reacted.

“What?” I anxiously asked.

“The man was killed with multiple scratched all over his body…Everyone thought that he was killed by someone who’s a psychopath or maybe a serial killer. By the looks of his wounds, he suffered a lot…and something that was more menacing….his eyes were missing as if they were forcefully pulled from him. Men, I still don’t want to remember about that body.” Kyle shrugged as he rubbed his arms.

“It’s your fault you let yourself see him like that.” Berjohn commented and locked his legs as Kyle rolled his eyes.

We're getting into the most intricate detail of such event, not until we heard a raucous, ear-dropping sound from the distance.