I remember smelling smoke and going to check in the kitchen to see if my siblings were cooking something, which they shouldn’t be, but there’s always a possibility. I’m struck with a sense of urgency as I check my siblings’ rooms. I heard a scream towards the living room, and not an “I’m playing with my brother, and he’s chasing me” kind of scream- the kind that makes your heart race and your mind foggy. I ran as fast as I could towards the living room. The whole room had been set ablaze, with my siblings in there being burned alive, while I just stood there safe, frozen, and watching.
Then I wake up bound to the chance of living hell, except it’s not hell this time. The room is quiet and calm: no yelling or crashing of objects, no happy laughter or excitement either, which is the one thing I miss most. From that day on, I’ve blamed myself for not being able to save my brother. If only Iwere faster, if only I didn’t just stand there, if only Iwas strong enough, if only…
“Sissy, are you ok?” says little Audrey, as innocent as a butterfly, living with monsters.
“Yeah, Aubs, I’m ok,“ I say peacefully,I jump as my stepmother yells. “Isha! GET YOUR ASS IN HERE RIGHT NOW! YOU THINK THAT YOU’LL BE ABLE TO JUST GET AWAY WITH SLACKING, YOU BASTARD!” Right then, little Aubs looks at me in worry as I get up. She quickly grabs my wrist, making me trip back.
“NO! sissy, is she going to hurt you again?!?” She says, frightened. Her voice is shaky, and her small body is trembling. I look into her eyes, and all I can see is fear, and then a spark that is slowly growing into a fire.
“Don’t worry. I will be fine.” I get up and slowly walk towards the kitchen.
“So, you finally decide to move your ass and get here.” She takes a quick pause and gets up, concealing an object behind her back. She swiftly throws the glass bottle. Before I have a chance to react, it strikes my head, causing me to lose consciousness. Before I do, I see my sister running towards me, crying her tiny little eyes out.
When I wake up, I realize my sister has at least tried to bandage me up and probably fell asleep next to me, crying. I get up, put my sister to bed, and rebandage myself. I check the time on the clock right above my door and realize that it’s already 8:00 pm, so I decide to go on a run to get away from everything. I hurry downstairs, put my blue jacket with a single white stripe on, and run, run as much as I can. I run for an hour and a half before I'm soaking wet. I run across the dimly lit street and into the park, then I walk myself over to the old oak tree. I sit down and wait: after all, I have nothing better to do, and this makes sure that I won’t be late to meet the prince. Moments later, or what feels like hours, the prince arrives.
“I apologize for my tardiness- you’re drenched, and your head, Are you alright?” Raj says,brows furrowed, he stares at my head
“Oh, yes, yes, I’m fine. I had just gone on a run earlier, and I had fallen earlier today” I say, ashamed of being in front of the prince like this, all drenched and disgusting.
“Hm, alright, so you're pretty, smart, athletic, and a klutz: a complete package,” Raj says wholeheartedly, a smirk tugging at his lips. I quickly look towards my feet. The ground has never been so interesting. I try to think of something to say, but nothing comes to mind.
“Well, back to business. After all, I don’t want to scare you too much with my handsome looks.” I tilt my head up, only to see him laughing at his joke. I’ve never seen him like this. Whenever I see him, it’s only on TV, and he always looks so calm and composed.
“OK, NOW let's get back to business,” He says, with one of the brightest smiles I’ve ever seen. “So, as I said yesterday, we have been looking for members for the research team, as due to some complications, we had lost a few of our members. So you and Kai will be our newest members of the team, and maybe our best.”
“Wait! Who’s Kai?” I say, a bit concerned. After all, I can’t let him outdo me because if he does, I might get sent back, and I CAN’T get sent back.
“Hey!” I turn my head to see who it is.
“Oh, there you are, Kai,“ Raj says in exhilaration, waving. My jaw drops. That is my new co-worker? He’s tall and has almond skin with dark black pin straight hair and deep blue eyes, just like the midnight sky.
“Glad you finally joined us!” Raj says eagerly.
“My apologies for being late, Prince Rajesh,” Kai says, not showing much emotion.
“That’s alright. And remember, just call me Raj.” Raj says, sounding slightly annoyed.
“Right.” I’m convinced Kai has no emotions.
“Alright, since you’re both here, let us head to the castle,” Raj says calmly, spinning on his heel.
“Okay…WAIT, WHAT?! WE'RE GOING TO THE CASTLE?!” I say louder than necessary, completely baffled by what I’m hearing. I stand from the tree and look between the two of them, my jaw hanging.
“Are you an idiot? He just said we're going to the castle. Honestly, to think that someone chosen by the prince is this stupid," Kai says as if it is completely normal to be going to the castle. “Prince Raj, are you sure you want an idiot on our team?” Raj completely laughs off the fact that he just called me stupid.
“So he does have emotions.” I mumble to myself, rolling my eyes.
“Well, you both must be wondering why I suddenly came gathering new members. So, as you two may have thought, you two aren’t our newest members. You will be the base of our new team. Four years ago, my research team was wiped off the earth, so I’m making a new team. I hadn't made one before as we didn’t need it, but now we do. I have recently been present at one of my father’s meetings. He and the other rulers were talking about a new illness that originated hundreds of years ago, but there's been an outbreak due to a recent opening that could end us all.”
ns216.73.216.10da2
and then Add to home screen.