I was stacking pillows at my work which was being an employee at Pier 1. It was Tuesday afternoon and I was so tired. My throat burning continued, I had two new moles on my neck and I was now noticing I was getting quicker at things I did.
This morning I slept threw my alarm again and mom had to wake me up. With this I only had twenty minutes to get ready. Then before I knew it, I was in my car driving to school five minutes ahead of schedule.
Also eating was now becoming a problem. Actually not eating itself was becoming the problem. It had been over twenty four hours and my stomach wasn’t hurting at all, craving food, or anything. I wasn’t even growing weak either without any food in my system.
I wanted to tell someone about what was happening with me, but no one would understand or believe more. The feeling of being all alone was coming over me, but I had to stay strong.
So I decided to go on with my life and not lead on anything was wrong with me. It was the only thing I felt I could do.
The door to Pier 1 opened then but I didn’t lift my head. Angie the manager would greet whoever it was. I just kept stacking the pillows in the back of the store on the shelf.
Soon enough Angie’s voice was greeting the new customer asking if they were looking for anything particular. That was Angie, not just a hello and welcome girl but nosy and always wanting to help.
“Just browsing, thanks.”
It was a male’s voice and by the sound of it English. Long way to travel just to go to Pier 1.
A few minutes later I was done and began to stand. When I brought my head up there was a guy walking towards me. The English guy who had just walked in most likely, no one else was in the store at the moment.
And instantly I felt something drawing me to him and repelling me at the same time.
From where he was I could tell a few things about him. His hair was straight brown and his chin broad. He had crystal blue eyes that were to perfect, colored contacts most likely and thick eyebrows. He wore dark jeans and a dark blue short sleeve shirt. His arms had some muscle tone to them but not much. And his skin, his skin was chalky pail white, almost like snow. But beautiful at the same time, it almost gave a glow like an angle. Yet it wasn’t that or the body that drew to him, it was something else, something more.
There was something just under the surface, just waiting to be unlocked. But it would be to uncover with this vibe he gave off to stay away. My entire being was telling me to turn and run. And yet there was some small part telling me, begging me to stay put.
“Excuse me miss.” He said to me in his deep voice as he came to a halt in front of me.
My heart beat had picked up and I felt nervous. I hope it didn’t show because I didn’t even know why I was reacting like this to his presence. Maybe yet another thing that was going wrong with me, becoming nervous of people I had never seen before in my life.
“Yes?”
“Do you have anymore of these in back? This one seems to be cracked.” He said holding up a blood red vase.
I took it from him gently and held it up to eye level.
Sure enough there it was. The crack ran down from the top of the vase and seemed to end right at the middle.
“I’ll go check.” I replied starting for the warehouse part of the store where we kept everything that wasn’t out in the public part of the store. “This is a lovely vase. Shame it’s got a crack.” I said making conversation and proving to myself I wasn’t afraid of the guy.
“Yes, it is. My you walk fast and gracefully.” He commented suddenly.
I didn’t say anything and pretended not to have heard him. But that comment made me think. Was I really walking that fast, and with such grace as well?
Couldn’t be.
We got to the door in back with the sign Employee’s Only on it. I grabbed the door handle and turned to the guy with the vase.
"Hold on." I said and turned back.
I was about to open the door and all of a sudden, out of nowhere I was looking at a pair of blue eyes.
He had spun me around so fast I hadn't noticed till all I saw were his blue eyes.
Paniced I started to back up but he had his hands on my upper arms so I didn't get far.
"Miranda," He said cooly and not very loud. "Don't be scared, please. I know whats happening to you and I can explain but not here. Take this and call when you want answers."
He handed me what looked like a business card. I took it without thinking and looked down at it. All that was on it was a phone number written in very fancy handwriting.
When I looked up again he was gone, the red vase on a shelf nearby. I hadn't even noticed his grip on me had loosened or see his body move away from mine.
I blinked and he was gone.
* * *
I just looked at it, sitting on my bed after work with the card in both hands, elbows on my knees.
My mind wondered with possibilities of what the out come would be if I called the number. None of them ended well, one ended with me in a rubber room all alone another in a goverment felicity having experiments done on me.
If the english guy really ddi have answers, what would be my question? "What's going with me?" How could anyone answer that. And that was just it, no one could answer it because no one knew.
This must just be a prank of some kind and nothing more. So this card was usuless and thus belonged in the trash. Which is where I ended up throwing it.
* * *
"You need to eat Miranda!" Dad said at the dinner table.
"Honey, we haven't seen you eat in three days and your lunch accound hasn't been touched in four. What's going on?" Mom said from across the table.
It was dinner time a day later. My condition hadn't improved at all, if anything it was getting worse. I was still tired, the dreams continued, my left eye still wouldn't close and now I was getting stronger.
An hour before I got off my shift Angie asked me get a box out from the back and I was able to get it off the shelf and carry it out without help. When I looked inside it was full of 5 pound each boxs with 50 boxs. 100 pounds I carried without breaking a sweat.
"You know you can tell us anything, Miranda." Dad said laying a hand on my back.
"Its nothing, I promise."
I hated lying to them. Almost everything I said to them now was a lie. And I was running out of reasons not to eat.
They were worried about me now. But I didn't want them to be and yet I couldn't do anyting to make them not worry.
Tonight Mom had put together beaf and mushrooms, something I really liked. But the meat was cooked to much and my stomach just said no to it. So I didn't eat.
I couldn't force myself either, something was holding me back.
"May I go to my room?" I asjed starting to stand anyway.
Mom and Dad sighed but said I could. So I left the dinner table again like I had the last few nights.
"What are we going to do Richard? She won't eat and shes always tired now. It isn't puberty and she isn't sick. What are we going to do?"
I turned on the third step of the staircase stunned. Mom was talking in hushed tones in the kitchen, yet I could hear her two rooms away. Crystal clear to, like I was standing right next to her. |
Submission Name: Ch. 3
