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Thirteen
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Night Flower One
Ever since I turned twelve, I could feel the change—nothing like superpowers, but small things like scent, vision, and stamina, all of which were heightened. It was like waking up one day in a different body. I looked the same, but as the weeks and months passed by, my body adapted.On the morning of my twelve birthday, there was no cake, no pink dress, no present. I just jumped out of bed, had breakfast, and went to school. No one said anything; no one approached me or said anything out of the ordinary. It was like any other day; I failed my arithmetic test, played jump rope on break, and got into an argument with Sally.Like I said, totally normal.You might ask what my argument was about. It was a heated discussion about what I wanted to be when I grew up. I said I was invisible, and Sally mocked me."That's silly, how can anyone be invisible?""I can!" I screamed, a tone often used to make myself heard."No, you can't! Is stupid!" She screamed back at me. At this point, we were alm
Night Flower Two
"Ready? You have ten minutes to hide. Try not to be found. The whistle will announce the end, and if we haven't found you and you hear the whistle, come out." Ten minutes was a lot of time, but I wasn't sure if it would be enough. My sense hadn't changed, but I was convinced more than half of the kids had gotten a stronger sense of smell or sight. I barely could stand, but at the first signal, I started moving. Finding a good spot wasn't easy. You had to take the notion of the wind, the sun, or the moon, and how small or big the space you were trying to blend into. Rachel waved past me as she ran towards higher grounds. That, too, had been my first thought, but looking down at my clothes, it seemed foolish to try to blend with foliage when your top was pink. Thanks, Mother. If I fail, this test is going to be your fault. There was a river nearby; we had run past it, and that's where I moved. Losing precious minutes thinking about my strategy had been a bad thing, but maybe I had a c
Night Flower Three
"Take her to my chambers. If she wakes up, call me immediately. I need to know what she saw." "Yes, sir." "And do I need to remind you that she is in our care now? No one goes in or out without authorization. Whoever she is, she got too far." Playing dead has never been my forte, but here I am again, pretending that the blow to my head is the cause of my sudden loss of conscience. Being blond has its perks, and mistaking me for harmless is one of them. My small size or physical appearance says nothing of who I am. A well-trained field investigator. That loose board had given me away to the hounds, and that heightened hearing had made me use my last resource. Play dead. Now I lay on the bed of my pack's leader's rival. This was indeed a dangerous mistake. Not knowing if the room is monitored, I don’t move from the position they put me in. Through my eyelids, I scan the room as much as I can; nothing gives away the presence of cameras, but with technology these days, I can’t be ent
Night Flower Four
"Was someone following you?" Here we go again. "I don’t know." "Then why did you run?" The same question would only get him the same answer. "I already told you that I was hitchhiking, and the last person left me on the side of the road since he was going the opposite way. I continued walking until I felt someone behind me; it was dark and I couldn’t see anything. I might have been followed, but it was too dark." "So you ran into the woods?" "Yes." I’m beginning to lose my patience with this man. He had been driving me for the last hour, asking the same question and getting the same answers. He wasn’t satisfied. He wanted me to mess up, but I had already made up my story. Why I was hitchhiking Where I was coming from and where I was going It all added up; he had no reason to think I was lying, but all hot blood was the same. We didn’t trust anyone we didn’t know. I wouldn’t trust myself. "Look, I’m exhausted and in pain." "Just point me in the right direction, and I will leave."
Night Flower Five
This has been the longest time I have been idle. My muscles were stiff due to the lack of activity. I missed the smell of the wet soil, but the sound of the falling rain was soothing, which is why I welcomed it happily. Sleeping through a storm was no problem, but it wasn’t the thunder that woke me; it was the tingling sensation on the back of my neck and down my spine. My survival instincts kicked in right away, reminding me to stay still. I remained flat, was careful not to move, and started assessing my surroundings. That tingling feeling intensified as the seconds ticked by. "You can stop pretending; I know you’re awake." Maybe a change in my breathing or my heartbeat—I wasn’t in control. "Turn around and face me, woman." The voice is strong, in the sense that if it weren’t for my power of will, I would have done it in a heartbeat, with no hesitation or overthinking. I looked over my shoulder; the silhouette of a man sitting down dominated the left side of the room. This was it;
Night Flower Six
He has no intention of setting me free; no more words were spoken, just leering and something that sounded like a grunt. I’d be happier if he had slammed the door, but like a perfect gentleman, he just closed it behind him gently. The click of the lock was loud enough for my standard ears. "Loud and clear." The rustle of the sheets and the lingering scent—I mean, only the blind wouldn’t be affected by him, or maybe a deaf person—his voice was enough. The rough palms and the heat of his body Yes, he was doing all the right things without even wanting to do them. That night and the next, I was unable to get any real sleep. A couple of hours later, I was back on my feet, pacing the room I had come to know like the back of my hand. No one dared to interact with me; they just left whatever they had brought in and left. With no words or looks, it was like he had told them to do the bare minimum—just keep me alive. At different times of day, the movement could be heard from different po
Night Flower Seven
"Enjoying the view?" "You mean the treetops and a few stars." His gaze lowers to mine, and my palms start to itch. Holding on to the ground does nothing to stabilize me. I find myself dizzy, getting lost in his eyes. "I thought you’d be happy getting out of your room." "You mean changing the view from my prison cell to this?" The sarcasm is oozing out of my pores. I can’t and won’t stop myself. He triggers it; I don’t know why, but being sassy and talking back makes me feel energized. "You thought wrong." He stays quiet for a moment, then lets his body roll back slowly and lays iron on his back. His legs are straight, his arms are behind his head, and his eyes stare straight up. The moon is not present tonight, just clouds and stars. The new moon makes me feel vulnerable and alone. She has been my companion since the day I was sent out on the scouting mission. Even with the chilly ambiance, comfort fills me. Is the smell of the ground and the breeze as it runs through my skin and
Night Flower Eight
The weather started to match my mood. The gray sky combined with the lowering temperatures began to freeze the hope I had gathered. With the dislocated shoulder, I needed a sling, so making one out of his bed sheets seemed reasonable. The trick was getting something sharp enough to cut it and finding a way that I could hold the thing. In the end, it was awful, but it kept my arm immobilized.That first-aid course had been a good choice. That and survival instincts were a good match; the only thing I lacked was common sense."Rise and shine."Here we go again. Her whole ensemble looked like something out of a magazine spread. She looked like a million-dollar sugar baby, while I looked like someone had dragged me through the mud. Which they had."Here we go, oats and fruit." She was being far too amicable. "We need to get some food into you so you can get better. I spoke with Dalio, and he said he was sorry and that he wouldn’t be doing that again."Her saccharine smile was terrifying."
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