Chapter 1
4:50 pm. Xael sighed under her breath as she read the time out loud. It was times like this she wish she hadn’t gone behind my mothers back and taken art as a minor. After three consecutive periods in business administration, she was ready to fold up and go to bed.
Sighing once more, her attention went back to the professor. Mr. Julien was an extravagant man within the very sense. He’d illustrate as much as lesson with a designer scarf wrapped around his neck, brightly coloured jackets and shoes pointing to the sky. His comical hats were occasional. Today was one of those days. The thirty-eight year old man danced around the spaces between canvases as he dramatically makes his point known. It was like this most Wednesday and the only thing that kept her awake was his melodramatic yells and exclamations in between sentences.
Her fingers twitched and shot to her collar bone as she mindlessly looked out the window, suddenly being fascinated by the oak tree that has always sat in the middle of the park.
She was easily distracted so probably shouldn’t have picked that seat but that was t he only vacant one when she joined the class.
“So!...”
Neon green eye shadowed eyes popped from behind my canvas, waving all traits of dizziness to the side. She cringed as she looked down at her lap. The man was too loud, making her more uncomfortable than nervous. He on the other hand was in his own world and failed to notice her discomfort.
“Blow me away Xael,” he said. “What do you have for me.”
Her gaze travelled from his to the other three members in the class. They looked as clueless as she did, only with compassionate smiles on their faces. She turned my attention back to my professor; they were no help at all.
Her fingers jump to my collar bone once more. Her brow wiggled it’s way into an arc and she asked, “Huh?”
Just then he looked down at his wrist watch and waved his hands about. “Time’s up!” He chimed. “I expect all of you to present your ideas when we meet again.” He straught mid way and added, “Tah-tah!”
Xael’s pacing heart would not allow her walk out with her peers. The other two left while Joshua King, a 6′2 twenty-one year old with dark hair and blue eyes walked over to her. Keeping head down, she stretched forth her hand to him, presenting the 2b pencil she borrowed from him two days earlier.
A little smile drew on his lips as he took the pencil. He cast his gaze down where he noticed the movement with her leg. She was a wired one. They were only four in the class so it wasn’t that difficult for him to realise her little shivers and repetitive movements here and there.
She still wouldn’t look up. He bent to her level. By now he was certain she could feel his close presence because he could see her bite and release her lip repetitively.
His gaze traced the arm in which she previously had the pencil. She still had it up.
Hesitantly, he reached for it and gently brought it down.
“Hey.” He whispered.
A small smile crept to her face before slowly raised her head but still wouldn’t look at his face. “Hey.” She whispered softly.
“I’m Joshua.”
Her hand flinched to her collar bone, then in between her thigh. “Th...thanks for the pencil.”
He cocked his head to the side. The angle at which he watched her manifested pure beauty with a sharp jaw line and a nose too small to point. One more whiff and she smelt like channel personally poured all their perfume collection on her-very expensive. He needed more. He retired to his regular height and moved in front of her, folding his arms atop her canvas.
Now he could really experience her true beauty. He was right! Very eurocentrique features she had. His gaze traveled, inspecting every corner of her structured face before landing on her lips, where he noticed movement.
“What was that?”
“My name is Xael.” She responded although, it was so low, he didn’t here. He asked her to repeat it but before she could the next class started filing in.
"More people!” She thought.
Quickly, she grabbed her bag and shot up.
“Oh! We’re leaving now,” he states. “Let me get my stuff.”
Her eyes danced from around, following him to his canvas. Her mouth opened and closed in confusion. She wouldn’t wait for him and run out. She would occasionally look back to make sure he wasn’t behind her. Thankfully she managed to lose him within the halls.
Cold air pinched the top of her ears as soon as she walked out. One look at the sky and on instincts she tightened her coat around herself. Briskly finding her way to the packing lot, she looked around for her car. It was half empty; obviously the students spotted the change in weather before she did but the few that littered the compound looked ready to leave before it started pouring.
She checked the time on her phone. Ten minutes had already passed since her class was over and the chauffeur was no where in sight. Her heart proceeded to pound way too fast in her chest and just as she decided to call him, he beat her to it.
“Uh...Jo...Johnathan, where are you?” She stammered.
The fifty-eight year old man recognised the quake in her voice and cringed. He should never had taken the route he did before coming to pick her up but her needed to deliver something to his wife. It was only supposed to a take thirty minutes but extended through out the afternoon.
“Forgive me ma’am,” he replied nervously, “I’m running a little late but I’ll be there soon.”
An unknown sigh escaped her lips. She smiled, “Okay, but it’ll rain soon so I’ll start walking now. I’ll meet you halfway.” No quicker was she done talking did he refute her suggestion.
She had tried so many times to run away and had succeeded more than she should have. It had gotten so bad she was assigned body guards and the only reason they weren’t with her presently was because she threaten to kill herself. He couldn’t-wouldn’t risk it in fact.
“It’s fine, Joe. Just track me through the gps.”
“Xael!”
“Okay bye.” She connected her wireless ear phones, placed her phone in her Louis Vuitton backpack, and started her journey. She kept herself at the very end of the sidewalk. The contemporary music she played helped eased her anxiety.
Her school, Valley State University, was an upstate private university, sitting in Eastwood Valley, the wealthy part of town but right beside it was the more busy, rough part of the state. Not once had she even seen that part of town but the more she walked the more change she noticed.
After a good twenty minutes off walking, she examined her surrounding. The gravelled road she was accustomed to was replaced with dirt and the parts which were gravelled were little patches scattered around. Unlike her part of town beautified by extravagant houses, restaurants, parks and malls, this was was much blunt and honestly empty. Honestly, it didn’t look bad enough to frighten her. There wasn’t much going on with the area aside a bar she noticed right ahead.
She was lost as it was but Johnathan would be able to locate her. “There’s connection in the area,” she convinced herself.
She spotted a bench around the corner. She sat her backpack on it before following suit and taking out her book. Reading was something that calmed her down. Just the idea of being in a completely different world than the one fate pushed her in; being a completely different person.
She inspected the place; it was fairly quite. She smiled in approval before burying her head into her book but just as she flipped the page, something caught the corner of her eye.
A man had appeared, stealing her full attention.
Her head was cocked to the side as she watched him wave his hands above his head in a grotesque manner. Time passed and was still at it and quite obviously, his technique was not working. His pitiful attempts to stop the cars which passed by the dusty road was comical.
A giggle slipped through her lips as another passed him by, fast enough to create a cloud of dust around him. He cussed and put up both middle fingers to the yellow beat up wagon. This was the tenth car that passed him by and the seventh he had raised the middle finger to. His patience was wearing thin by the passing second.
He had his back to her and had on a fitting brown button up shirt, some faded washed jeans and very dirty boots. The only thing she could point out was that he was on the taller side with lean muscles but as her run his fingers through his shoulder length burgundy hair, she spotted some ink on his neck. It peaked her interest. She always was intrigued by them but god forbid her mother caught her with one. ; no matter what it symbolised or how small.
Evelyn Mères D’Aubert was a very strict woman, not much of a mother though. She shook the thought of her mother away and decided to focused on the man before her. Something about him fascinated her so much that she couldn’t take her eyes away from him. Only this time when she looked in his direction, he wasn’t there.
“Staring is rude.” A smooth yet raspy voice whispered next to her. She almost broke her neck looking at him beside her. She hugged herself and scooted away. “Had he noticed me the entire time.” She asked herself.
