I went back to our house after school and rushed to Hansel's office. There were some random thoughts creeping in my head and my hands began to sweat from nervousness.
Once I opened his office door, I spotted him sitting on the black leather chair, elbows on the table while his chin rested on his clasped hands as if pondering. When I shut the door closed behind me, causing a slight thud to echo in the room, Hansel averted his attention to me with a worried look. Beckoning me to approach him, I trudged further in the room and walked in front of Hansel's wooden desk.
"What's going on?" I asked, my voice sounded frantic.
He looked down, chewing his bottom lip as his eyes began to water. Silence started to consume us, and the only thing I could hear was the rapid beating of my heart. I could feel my hands sweating and a lump started to form in my throat.
"I don't know what's happening," he mumbled.
I didn't know if I should be attending school at times like this. That Hansel and I were currently facing a great depth that would put us both in misery. But since this day was the start of the examination and I was too eager to graduate high school, I didn't stop. This was the only thing that would make me sane.I walked outside of the school's lot where the huge tree stood in the middle of the green field. I tried to stall around before going to the first class and just clear my mind before the exam so that I'd pass.Sitting on the grass, I leaned my back on the tree trunk and roamed my eyes around the place. I heaved a breath of relief, trying to release some stress to not be too bothered and consumed by my problems. I needed to fight this, I told myself.The leaves of the trees hovered on top of me, as the sun rays filtered through it that made a shed. As my eyes flicked to my sling bag laying beside me, I ope
I promised Hansel last week that I would be returning once he got home. So I brought almost all of my stuff and left my apartment after school. The whole day I'd been having this nagging feeling. Thoughts after thoughts started to swirl in my head, and I felt like I was going crazy. I was starting to connect every dots, every possibility, every incident, and occurrences that might lead me to a final conclusion. But there seemed to be a leap. Every time I would come up to a logical reason, there seemed to be a missing piece. Or I guess all of the clues were scattered everywhere, and I was just too clouded with stress to comprehend. I was currently in my room, crouching in front of my luggage as I stared at my clothes as if I was in haze. Shaking my head, I approached the bed and plopped myself on the soft, white mattress. As I gazed at the ceiling, my mind drift off and started piecing some information again. The newspap
"We weren't ordered to kill you," one guy said, his voice sounded dominating. "We're here to stop you."I gritted my teeth, my anger started to surge in as I gripped the pistols tighter. I wanted to flee, but my eagerness to talk to William had devoured me."Please, I just need to talk to William," I pleaded, giving them a pitiful look but it seemed to not work."Lower your weapon and leave," he commanded again, his voice was hoarse and intimidating.Heaving a sigh, I put the guns down to my side, as the two other men that surrounded me pulled them out of my grasp.There wasn't a point if I fought with these dudes; I would just injure myself. Though I knew William wouldn't kill me, it also wasn't a wise decision to persuade them. William had this once it's over, it's over attitude and that was the main reason why he was pushing me away; he didn't want me here anymore.
Trigger warning: there's a mention of an anxiety attack in this chapter.~*~When I first heard Miguel mentioning my real name, I felt my heart clench. He knew me. He knew Araulla Jones as a dead person. I was still stuck deciding on whether to tell him the truth or hide away until I got the perfect chance to say it all. I knew he'd understand my situation, but knowing that he'd worked with illegal mafias, I shouldn't be trusting him that much. Though I really liked him, I wasn't sure if I could trust anyone anymore.What if this was all a façade and he was a bait? What if he was still working with those mafias and he was ordered to capture me again? What if this was his redemption pledge to the people he was working with? Could I trust him?This was the reason why I was afraid to trust anyone; people were coming after me. I knew it seemed
Warning: This chapter contained the use of illegal substances and violence.~*~I hadn't attended school a while ago, again, and I knew that I would be banned soon. But I didn't care. There were far more valuable things that I should be focusing on, and examination wasn't one of them. With all these overwhelming problems we were currently facing, I highly doubted I would pass. Those were consuming me, and I had nothing to worry about because my reputation was free.The day after all the conspiring Hansel and I had, I'd come up to a plan while I was contemplating the steps we had to take. This needed a precise work, no left of traces they could find, and a distraction for Catherine Houston while we moved behind her back.I was sitting at the edge of Hansel's bed, as he paced back and forth in front of me. He was rubbing his thumb on
I hauled Penelope inside the shack as Daniel helped me do the thing. Unfortunately, the filthy chair I once sat a year ago was now broken down into pieces. The remnants of it were still scattered on the ground, and the lights didn't work anymore. It seemed like it had given up holding onto the ceiling that it completely fell on the ground.Plopping her on the wooden floor, I started to search for an alternative for that wooden chair. Since this place was empty and it was mostly filled by filth, I had no choice but to tie her here on the ground."Wait here," I told Daniel, walking away from the vicinity to grab the rope inside the van.I went back to the side of the road and opened the door of the backseat. Grabbing the rope, I almost jumped when I heard my phone rang inside my pocket. I slid my hand and pulled the phone out of it. As the caller ID flashed on the screen, I answered it immediately."Hello?"
I was holding a box that was covered with polka dots wrapper while I sat at the school's lobby. I was waiting for Cathy to arrive, and I brought this gift for her birthday tomorrow.When I spotted her walking down the hallway with her hands gripping the strap of her backpack, she jogged towards me. I stood dead on my track in front of the chair and watched her approach with full of enthusiasm.Once she was now in front of me, she immediately wrapped her arms around my shoulders."Cathy," I greeted. "Happy birthday!"Pulling away from me, I handed the box I was holding in front of her. She plastered a wide smile, as she accepted the gift and tugged it tight against her."Thank you so much, Lala," she replied. "You'll attend my party tomorrow, right?"I looked down and bit my bottom lip. I fidgeted my fingers
Warning: There's a mention of violence in this chapter.~*~"Leverage for what?" I asked, clenching my fists."Why don't you ask him?""Why don't you tell me?""Because I don't want to." She raised a brow as if challenging me. "So anyway, what proposal do you have?"Why did she avoid the question? What was she afraid to tell me? And what lies beneath the surface William had shown me? Though I had these questions lingering in my head, I knew I would find out about it. For now, I needed to settle things with her."Penelope," I started. She immediately flicked her eyes to me, terror apparent on her face, "for my dad."She looked taken aback. Her eyes were widened and her lips were slightly parted."What have you done to her?" she asked through