VERA I had just returned from Amelia's birthday party and was full of the party spirit. It had been very fun, and Amelia had called me her best friend, much to Thalia's displeasure. That alone had made the part worth it. I had rushed back home, eager to share everything that happened at the party with my mother. But now, I stood at the door knocking, and she didn't answer. I continued knocking, the excitement from the party replaced by a growing sense of unease. Each unanswered rap on the door echoed through the silent house. "Mom?" I called, my voice trembling. No response. I twisted the doorknob, my heart pounding, and the door creaked open. The darkness inside seemed thicker than usual, swallowing the familiar contours of our home. As I stepped in, an ominous chill hung in the air. The living room was shrouded in shadows, and an eerie silence clung to the walls. "Mom?" I called again, my voice now barely a whisper. The only reply was the echo of my own fe

VERA Alex glanced at Martha and smiled. "Oh, she was all over me this morning, but I've already figured her out for that kind, so no chance of that ever happening," Beth chuckled, but Martha merely pouted. "Okay guys," Beth said. "We better get to work before the manager comes out here and sees us talking and laughing," "I wouldn't survive that," Martha whispered in mock horror, rushing behind her counter. Right on cue, the door opened and a customer walked in. Beth went off to attend to the customer. And I was left standing with Alex. He was looking at me expectantly, but the truth was that I was kinda lost. What the hell did the manager mean by showing him the ropes? "Um…" I wracked my head. "Okay…I guess we better start by showing you where everything is so you know to pick them out for a customer who doesn't," The idea lit up in my head like a lightbulb, and I knew the instant I said it that it was the right thing to do at that moment. We walked t

VERA I laughed out loud, the quickly covered my mouth and looked around furtively. Luckily, no one was looking at us. When I looked back to him, Alex was smiling with a raised eyebrow. "What was that for?" he asked. "Uh…nothing?" I replied. "It's just —" "You have such a nice laughter, why do you like keeping it all to yourself?" I knew he was teasing, but still, I felt heat rise on my cheeks. That was one of the best things anyone had ever said to me in a long while. "Not my fault," I replied, fighting the blush hard. "I was just…nervous. I've never gone on a date before," I finally said. He winked. "Yeah, I sorta got that from Martha - not a reason to be that nervous though," We had just entered the restaurant about twenty minutes ago and placed our orders. We had an awkward silence for a few minutes just staring at everywhere but ourselves before Alex tried to break the ice with a few jokes. I had to admit the jokes were good, but I just felt too s

NATHAN The door opened. In the split second before Vee's head poked in, I arranged myself into the worst scowl I could. The instant she stepped into the room, I was already gripping her tightly, my eyes burning with anger."Where is the son of a bitch?" I asked, shaking her slightly.Surprise came on her face, but it was there only an instant before realisation took its place. Anger followed."Who told you there was a son of a bitch?" she asked, shaking my hands off and walking to the couch. "That was some nice way to welcome back someone that you don't even know what kept her out so late," she said, collapsing on the couch.I rubbed my face in frustration. The boy must not have followed her up then. Some gentleman he was! Didn't he know he had to follow a lady to her door if ever he ended up with one at night?Without replying further to Vee, I dialed my contact once more."I need you to bring back the boy she just returned with," I said without preliminaries.On the couch, I saw Ve

VERAI gradually became aware of the warmth behind me, but I was still too sleepy to wonder why it was there. So, I just scooted on my side and snuggled into it, pressing my back against it till the heat radiated sweetly into every inch of my back.My hand curled against an even warmer thing and I almost moaned in pleasure. God, where did you keep all this warmth all this time?It was not every day one had such warmth on a spring morning, and it would be a pity if I don't enjoy it. Mentally, I ran through a list of my activities for the day.It was a Sunday, so work would be around 1.30pm, plenty of free time to…My eyes snapped open. I had almost forgotten I had promised Beth to attend her church's service today.Sighing regretfully, I sat up still holding the piece of warmth, and realized it was a fricking - godforgivemeforsayingthisonyourholyday - dick!And here's the gross part. It wasn't just any dick, it