}PROLOGUE.ONE{
Fairytales.
So beautiful in mind, yet unrealistic in nature.
What man would use a single shoe as a means to find a woman he met one time?
What woman would fall in love with a beast surrounded by talking furniture?
Who in their right mind would let someone use their hair as a climbing device? How would it even carry all of that weight?
Why would someone accept an apple from a stranger while they're standing in the doorway of their fully stocked home?
All of these things have never made much sense to people who analyze the logistics. It will never make much sense to the realists. But to people who can believe in anything, it makes all the sense in the world. They can reason with the choices and decisions made.
Who knows? Maybe they would have done the same. Maybe they would have taken the chance at a different angle of life, having nothing left to lose.
"Alright, Miss. That's the last box. All of the furniture has been put into the rooms and the boxes that were labeled went where they should. We tried to help you out the best we could."
Ariella smiles at the man from the moving company.
"Thank you so much. I appreciate it. Here. I tipped the others as well." She hands the man $70. "I would have given more but it's all I've got until I get paid in a few days."
The man grins at her gratefully.
"No, that's quite alright. This is plenty. Most people don't tip us at all so this is nice. It'll help get my wife her anniversary gifts."
He tells her as he walks down the steps. Ariella gasps quietly and clasps her hands in front of her chest.
"Oh, that's sweet. Good luck! And thank you!" She waves to him and he waves back as he gets into the truck.
The engine sputters as it starts up and he pulls off down the street. Ariella watches them turn the corner before stepping into her home. She closes and locks the door behind her before sighing.
She looks around the house at the boxes.
"Well... Guess I should start unpacking." She says to herself.
She turns the radio on and hums along to Amy Winehouse as she rips the tape from a box labeled 'cleaning supplies'. The house seems to be in great shape but she still wants to clean everything one more time before putting her things away.
She was here just a few days ago for a final walk through with the real estate agent. Some of the windows needed to be replaced due to loose panels so she was shown the new ones.
All of the other rooms seemed to be in perfect condition. Nothing else needed to be replaced.
Ariella sprays and wipes down the counters, sinks and cabinets. She sweeps and mops the floor as well before she gets around to putting things away.
She does the same to the rest of the rooms. It takes her almost all day to complete it. By the time that she's finished, it's almost ten o'clock.
She saves the study room for last, indecisive of how she wants to decorate it. Ultimately, she decides to keep the large book case in the position that it's in. Moving it by herself would be far too great of a task.
The previous owners of the house were avid readers. Though the shelf is now empty, it's a beautiful piece that the real estate agent couldn't bring herself to remove. It fits the room. Ariella can't wait to fill it with pieces of literature that she enjoys.
The first book to touch the shelf is The Great Gatsby. She smiles when she sets it there before moving on to get the rest of the room together. She moves the chase to a different side of the room, picking up the plastic covering the floor from the painters and to keep dust off of the freshly glossed wood.
She throws it into the trash before walking back into the room. She grabs the cleaning and dusting spray and wipes the bottom of the bookcase. On this half are cabinets that she opens to wipe down. Her fingers snag across a piece of paper and she hisses as it cuts her cuticle.
"Ow." She looks at her finger to see the small paper cut.
She reaches into the corner of the book case and pulls out what cut her. It's a Polaroid picture of the front of the house dated 2018. It reads 'finally finished'.
Ariella looks at it before turning it over. It's blank on the back.
"Hm”, she hums as she stands up. "Must be from when they finished building it."
She sets the photo on the kitchen counter before taking her gloves off. She puts those, and the spray bottles under the sink before washing her hands.
Ariella plugs in a vanilla and lavender scented wall freshener in each room before pouring herself a drink and heading to her bedroom. She orders food from a delivery service and watches television until it arrives.
She eats in her new home by herself, content with her fresh start.
All that's left now is to start work.
Ready? ✅
Follow the trail of the Green Fairy 🧚🏾♀️
