It was an average day. I got up, took a shower, got dressed, and then ate breakfast. And since I lived with my older sister, I had to get a job to help pay for the bills. I mean there wasn’t much to pay for. I had to pay half the rent, half the light bill, half the phone bill, and had to buy groceries every other week. It wasn’t like I had to spend every waking moment working; I still had a life to live.
When I got done eating breakfast, I went to the living room. I found my sister Coco sitting there watching ‘Life as we know it’. I thought the movie was a little sad. But only because the little girl’s parents both died in the beginning. I went to the door and put my shoes on. Before I left I called out to my sister. “I’m going to work. Be back later.”
She didn’t reply, so I just left. Since I we didn’t have a car, I had to walk to work everyday. Today was a beautiful day. The sun was out and shining. You could hear the birds chirping away, making a beautiful song that filled the air. On the way to work I passed by a small park. You could hear the children laugh as they went sliding down the slide. You could hear the occasional dog bark when they saw a squirrel. And the wind just gave this day a little bit more freshness.
I loved my job because at the end of the day I came home smelling like coffee. And working at Star Bucks had its perks to, because a lot of cute guys came in. It’s not like I was out looking for a boyfriend, but I wouldn’t mind if one of these nice young asked me out on a date. But lately there has been one guy that has caught my eye. I know this will sound kind of cliché but the best way to describe him is tall dark and handsome. Usually I don’t go for these kind of guys, but there was something about him that made my heart skip a few beats whenever I saw him.
When I walked into work I went to the back room and put my stuff away. I put on my apron and went to the counter. I started up the machines and waited for my best friend Shelly to get here. A few minutes later she finally arrived.
“Hey Shelly, do you want to come over for dinner tonight. Were having pasta?” Now let me tell you about Shelly. We had met in the fourth grade. One day I was out on the play ground playing, and these boys came over and pushed me to the ground. They started making fun of me for the way I dressed, and that my parents were dead. The next thing you know a little girl in pink pigtails comes running over and beats up the boys for me. And since that day we were as close as could be.
“Sure. I’ll make sure that I bring something to drink. So do you think that cute guy is going to come today?” When Shelly found out that I like this mysterious person, she kinda teased me. But she didn’t mean anything by it.
“I hope so. Today I think that I might actually ask for his name.”
“You better before one of these other woman snatch him from under your nose. That would be a great tragedy.” The customers had started to come in and we were busy for the next hour. It was nine a clock before I got to speak to Shelly again.
“It’s not like I would be able to compete with any of these women. They all drive Porsches and boob jobs. And all I have is you and my dog.” It’s kinda funny because I considered this stranger to be mine and mine alone. It angered me at the thought that one of these women would take him away from me.
“That may be true. But I bet none of these women paid for their Porsche’s or there boob jobs. Or ever earned money on their own. That’s what makes you better than them, you know what it’s like to have nothing and not wish for more. And you deserve more than this.” What she said was true. But life had never given me anything since the day my parents died.
“I know I do. But I have too many responsibilities to worry about. And I have no time to be worrying about things I deserve. And I highly doubt Mr. Mysterious would ask me out on a date. He would look better with one of these women. I’m to plain and ordinary to be with someone like him. Now you on the other hand would be perfect for him.”
“I don’t go for guys like that. I like boys that skate board. And I very highly doubt that he does.” The way she said that made me laugh.
“Well whenever he comes in to today I’ll make my move.” I silently thought to myself that I was going to chicken out.
I faithfully waited for him to show up. But I never saw him. He never came in. And by 1 pm it was time for my shift to end. I was disappointed that he didn’t show up, I was really hoping to introduce myself to him. “Well Shelly, he didn’t show up today. And it’s time for me to go home. I’ll see you at dinner tonight.”
“I’m sorry Aspen. Maybe he’ll come tomorrow. I hope you get home safely.” I grabbed my stuff and walked out the door. The weather seemed pretty nice today. And I was happy about that.
I hated walking home this time of day because all of the creepy guys seemed to be out and about. They would whistle at me as I walked by, and say rude and sexist things. And there was always this one guy that would mess with me. “Hey baby. Why don’t you come over here and shake that pretty little body of yours for me?”
I out my head down and tried to walk by quickly. But I wasn’t so lucky. “Didn’t you hear me? I told you to do something.” He grabbed my arm and pulled me towards him. I was so close I could smell the alcohol on his breath.
“Randy let me go, you’re hurting me.” I said while trying to pull me arm away. And get away from him completely.
“Not until you do what I tell you.” He put a hand over my mouth and began pulling me towards a alleyway. I kicked and bit him, but it was all useless. I was no match for him. “Now if you don’t dance for me, then I’m going to mess you up.” He said after throwing me to the ground.
I got on my knees like I was about to stand up, but I stead I tried to make a mad dash for it. I had only gotten a few feet before Randy grabbed me by the hair, and pulled me back to him. “Now you’re going to pay for it.” He swung his fist back in a wide ark, and let it go.
But I never felt the blow. Instead I was dropped to the ground. At the moment I was to worried about getting away, then seeing why the blow hadn’t happened.
I crawled behind a dumpster a tried to hide myself as best as possible. The smell of the dumpster and everything around it was almost unbearable, but I could live with it. All I could hear from behind the dumpster was the groaning and creaking of the stairwell from above. I silently cried. I had come this close to being raped, and I was too terrified to leave this stinky fort. It felt like minutes before I heard footsteps. And these footsteps were coming closer and closer to me. I prayed that they weren’t Randy’s, and that it was some person coming to rescue me.
Finally the footsteps stopped and so did my breathing. I heard some trash cans being scrapped against the ground; I covered my head, waiting to be dragged away. “It’s alright; I’m not going to hurt you.” Said a warm and sexy voice.
In an instant I knew that voice didn’t belong to Randy. It must have belonged to the person that saved me. I was at war with myself, if I didn’t look up then who knows what this man would do? But if I did look up, then I could see the man that saved me. Something in the back of my mind told me that it was alright to look up. And so I did.
I was starring into a beautiful set of blue eyes. It was a wonder that I had stopped breathing, because along with his eyes, the rest of his body was just as good. He was stocky; a very well built upper and lower body. And he dressed in a way that would just let him blend into the back ground if he wished. And it took me this long to realize that this was the man from the coffee shop. I felt this was a very odd way of meeting.
“Do you think you’ll be able to walk?” I didn’t know what to say so I just nodded my head. I stood as carefully as could. Once standing, it felt like my legs were about to collapse from under me. I didn’t want to show any weakness in front of this man, he had already done so much for me. So I didn’t say anything. He must have sensed my weakness because he took hold of my arm, and led me out of the alley way.
He kept hold of me as we walked down the sidewalk. For some odd reason I thought he knew where I lived. But we stopped at a car. I would try to describe the car, but it was like no car I had ever seen before. All I knew was that it was black and sexy. He opened the door for me and sat me down.
Instantly I melted into the seat. The whole inside of the car was warm and relaxing. I never knew a car could be like this.
It wasn’t till now that I noticed I was shaking. The shock was just now beginning to creep in. “Thank you for saving me. I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t showed up.”
“I’m happy that I was able to get there in time. I would hate to think what would have happened if I hadn’t. Is there anyone that I can call to tell them what happened?” I thought about it for a moment and shook my head. He looked over at me and saw me shacking. “You’re going into shock. That’s not good. Now look into my eyes.” I did as he said. “You’re about to get very tired and sleepy. I want you to close your eyes and go to sleep.”
In a matter of seconds I had become very tired and sleepy, just like he said. The next thing I know I’m closing my eyes and falling asleep.
I woke up to darkness. At first I thought my eyes were still closed, but then I realized that it wasn’t. I got up off of whatever I had been sleeping on and went to search for a light switch. I couldn’t find one anywhere.
I began to worry. I tried remembering how I had gotten here. But I couldn’t remember. The last thing I remember is telling Shelly bye. But after that everything gets hazy.
In the back of my mind I hear this little voice telling me that it’s dangerous here, and that I need to leave. But with it being so dark, I wasn’t able to. While I was searching for a light switch, I had been looking for a door handle. But I couldn’t find one.
I began to worry. Had someone kidnapped me? What am I doing here? This cannot be good. All of these thought raced through my mind at once.
I thought about calling for help. But knowing my chances, nobody would hear me. I sat on the floor and began to wait.
With it being so dark I had no sense of time. For all I know I could have been sitting here for hours. To fill the silence in my mind I began to sing a song.
If I die young bury me in satin
Lay me down in a bed of roses
Sink me in the river at dawn,
Send me away with the words of a love song
Uh oh, uh oh
Lord make me a rainbow, I’ll shine down on my mother
She’ll know I’m safe with you when she stands under my colors, oh and
Life ain’t always what you think it ought to be, no
Ain’t even grey, but she buries her baby

The sharp knife of a short life, well
I’ve had just enough time

If I die young, bury me in satin
Lay me down in a bed of roses
Sink me in the river at dawn
Send me away with the words of a love

The sharp knife of a short life, well
I’ve just enough time

And I’ll be wearing white, when I come into your kingdom

I’m as green as the ring on my little cold finger,
I’ve never known the lovin’ of a man
But it sure felt nice when he was holding my hand
There’s a boy here in town who says he’ll love me forever,
Who would have thought forever could be severed
The sharp knife of a short life
Well, I've had just enough time

So put on your best, boys, and I'll wear my pearls
What I never did is done

A penny for my thoughts, oh no, I'll sell 'em for a dollar
They're worth so much more after I'm a goner
And maybe then you'll hear the words I been singing
Funny, when you're dead how people start listening

If I die young, bury me in satin
Lay me down on a bed of roses
Sink me in the river at dawn
Send me away with the words of a love song

The ballad of a dove
Go with peace and love
Gather up your tears, keep 'em in your pocket
Save them for a time when you're really gonna need them, oh

The sharp knife of a short life
Well, I've had just enough time
So put on your best, boys
And I'll wear my pearls

I loved the song because it was talking about making the most of the time you’re give. If its two years or twenty years. Make the best of it.
I must have sung that song five times before a door opened from somewhere around me. I stood up sound and alert.
Suddenly a light turned on. And for a few moments I was blinded. I turned around and saw a man standing there.
I knew the face that stood before me. It was a wonder I don’t remember those striking blue eyes, or that sullen looking face. AS he walked closer to me, a voice in the back of my mind told me to fight. But I didn’t. I was just concentrating on where I remembered him from.
It wasn’t until he was two feet away from me that I remembered were I had seen him before. This was the man from the coffee shop. The one I was finally going to ask his name. I didn’t know if I should be scared, but I wasn’t. I felt a little uneasy, but that was it. I opened my mouth to speak, “What am I doing here?”
The man just shook his head before speaking. “You were walking home. And you just fell to the ground for no reason. I was driving by when it happened. So I put you in my car, and brought you to my house.” The way he spoke was mesmerizing. I would have believed anything he said. In the back of my mind that little voice told me that wasn’t the whole truth.
“Well this is all very kind of you. But I need to get home. I have to prepare dinner. And my sister is probably worried sick.” The last words were like copper coming out of my mouth. My sister hasn’t really cared for me since the day our parents died. I knew I was being ungrateful by leaving so suddenly, but he stopped me.
“I already called your sister and told her the situation. She didn’t seem to worried. I also called your friend shelly. She was really worried, and said she would be over right after work.” I looked into his eyes to see if he was telling the truth, and it seemed that he was.
He stood in my way so trying to leave was going to be a little hard. But since he had already called shelly, I decided to stay. And plus I wanted to find out more about this man. “Fine. I’ll stay. But will you please let me out of this room?”
He stepped out of my way. “Is there a light you can turn on? It’s kind of dark.” He snapped his fingers, and the hallway was illuminated by torches on the wall. All along the sides of the walls were statues of men, women, and suits of armor. It was dark and creepy, but still amazing.
I walked down the hallway utterly amazed by the art that lined the walls. It wasn’t until I was about to turn left down the hallway, that the men stepped in front of me “No one is allowed there except me.” His arms were stretched out accordingly. When he said that I had a plan going on in my head. Soon I would go down that hallway and see what he was hiding.
“Alright I won’t go there. But will you at least show me to the outside?” When I said those words, his eyes lit up like something was wrong. But he led me down another hall and to a large door. He stood back as I opened the door.
A light breeze opened my senses. For the first time in a while I could smell the fresh air. It smelt like heaven on earth. It’s a wonder that I felt like this. As I looked around I saw beautiful gardens, marvelous statues of people and animals, and a seemingly never ending driveway. As I looked more closely at the things around me, I realized were I was.
I turn around quickly. “You’re the one who owns this house?”
He smiled at my response. “I do. It was passed down to me just a few months ago.” That was right about the time he showed up.
I was amazed that he owned this house. I had always dreamed of living in a house that sat on top of a hill, and had a mile long driveway. “You’re so lucky to live here. Its such a beautiful house.”
A smile spread across his face. “Yeah. I love it here. But sometimes I get really lonely in such a big house,” He stopped for a moment like he was considering something. “You’re welcome to come back anytime. But I have to warn you, it gets a little weird around here at dark”
I felt honored. No one besides Shelly has ever invited me to their house. What if I came over to often, and it started to annoy him. I would have no were to go. So I decided to take his offer. “I’d love to. Thanks.”
“How about we go back inside and get you washed up for dinner. Shelly will be here soon.” He offered me his hand, and I willingly took it.
He led me back to the room I was in earlier.”There’s a bathroom back there in the door to the left. Under the sink is clothes shampoo and other necessary things." He took me to the restroom then left.
It was a wonder that he was being so nice to me. Never has anyone been so nice to me. I Got undressed and went to the shower. The one thing I didn't expect was the warm water. For a while I've been taking cold showers. And it felt magnificent to take a warm shower.
I stepped out of the shower smelling like roses. I wrapped a towel around myself and left the bathroom.
The chill of the room on my naked skin was wonderful. I walked to the bed and saw a pile of clothes, and a note. I read the note first. "Dear Aspin, I left you these clothes. I hope you like them. Shell has gotten here and we will be waiting for you under the gazibbo. Yours forever and always, Damon
I put down the note and picked up the first dress. They were all beautiful dresses. There was a black sundress, a blue and white dress, and my favorite out of all of them a simple black dress. Ok, I wouldn't say simple. It was more like something a vampyress would wear. Normally I don't want anything to do with vampires, but this dress was to beautiful to pass up. So I decided to wear it.
Once I had it on, I saw how it hugged the curves og my body. I looked in the mirror and saw how pale I was. I I was a little darker than the vampire from twilight, but not much.
I stopped looking at myself and left the room. When I left the room I realized I didn't know were the gazebbo was. But I guess he guessed that I would think of that, because there was a sign on a statue, it said, "Go straight, then turn left." And it went on like that for a few minutes.
After about ten minutes I made my way outside. The back was even more magnificent than the front. To the left was beautiful pond, with what I assume is a natural waterfall. In front of me was a dark wooded area. And to my right was a path that led to a white gazebo.
I looked down at what I was wearing, and I hoped that it would be acceptable.
Once I got closer to the gazebo, I could see Damon and Shelly u=in a serious conversation. When they saw me all talking stopped. Damon rose and offered me his hand. “You look beautiful.” He led me to a empty chair and sat down.
It was strange to hear those words coming from a man. But I accepted them with a smile and sat down. “So Aspin. Are you alright? I came as soon as I could.”
“Besides me not being able to remember anything, I would say I’m doing fine.”
“That’s good. I was so worried when I got call from Damon here, I immediately thought of the worst.” She put on a smile, but behind that smile I sensed that something was wrong.
“Yeah. He’s such a nice person. I have no idea of how I’ll be able to repay him.”
“Just make sure that you’re very careful around him.” Shelly said with a stern look on her face.
“What do you mean be careful around him?” I asked with a confused look on my face.
“It’s nothing that you need to worry about right now.” I just looked at him. “Lets just get done with dinner and I’ll take you home.”
For the rest of dinner we didn’t speak. I felt awkward, and I wanted to leave.
So I just got up and left. I was tired of being around vuilt up tension. It felt like any moment I was going to explode.
I walked down the long driveway, wondering what I had gotten myself into.
I was finally off of Damon’s property when I felt all the tension leave my body.
For the first time sense I left I realized that I didn’t know where I was. I wished I could go back, but I would look like a fool if I did.
I decided I would just walk around until I found my apartment.
It was getting dark and the sun was going down. In a few minutes the sky would be completely dark.
In the distance I could hear crickets chirping and owls hooting. I walked down the road trying to ignore the fact that it was getting dark.
Far behind me I could hear the roar of a car’s engine, for a moment I wished that it was Damon. But the chances of that actually happening are slim to none. I stood against a tree hoping that whoever was driving by wouldn’t see me.
Soon I could see the headlights of the car coming around the corner. Then it came to a screeching halt thirty feet in front of me.
I ran. As fast as I could in the opposite direction. Trying to get away from the person.
I could hear foot steps behind me as the person chased me.They were gaining speed on me. I don’t know how it happened, but my feet got all twisted up. And I went flying.
Well not literally. I fell and rolled several feet. I could feel the ground scrape against my feet as I came to a stop.
Now I just laid here breathing hard, hoping that I didn’t have any broken bones.
I slowly picked myself off the ground and brushed myself off. Every part of my body hurt. It hurt to move, but that little voice in the back of my head told me that I had to get away. So I limped away as fast as I could.
About fifteen feet away was a bridge. And under that bridge was rushing water. I figured that if I could get to the bridge, than I could get over it and into the water.
Very slowly I made my way to the bridge. I turned around to see if that person was still following me. The person was about forty feet away when I had turned around. I stepped up onto the ledge of the bridge. If this worked, then I was going to be eternally grateful.
I didn’t look down, because if I did I would have chickened out. I plugged my nose and jumped.
But I didn’t feel the coldness of the water. Instead I felt a warm grip on my wrist. I tried twisting and turning, but this person wouldn’t let me go. Instead of continuing fighting, I gave up. The person hoisted me up and over the bridge.
I was to ashamed to look at the person. After all I did just try to kill myself. I just pulled myself into a tight ball and cried. I felt the person pull me into their lap.
I looked up and saw a man. It wasn’t Damon, but a person that kind of looked like him. I just rested my head on their chest. “Thank you for saving me.”
“Your welcome. I’m sorry that I scared you. I didn’t mean to. By the way my name is Darren Silverio.” I looked up at the name Silverio. “Yes I know. The slaving family. Very fanous here in the south. But I personally don’t really care about my gamily history. I’ve lived through enough of it.” The smile he gave made my mood lighter.
“I haven’t seen you around you here before. I’m guessing that you haven’t been home in a while.”
“Yeah. It’s been a long time. But now I’m planning on staying for a while. I was on my way home when I saw you walking down the road and I figured that I should help you.”
Now I felt a little guilty about running. “Well I need to get home before it gets to late.” I pulled myself away and stood. I started to walk away, but he pulled me back to him.
“You see little miss. It wouldn’t be proper to let you walk all the way home. For several reasons in fact. One, my mother taught me better than that. And she would be ashamed if I just let you go. Reason two, you have no shoes. “ he pointed to my feet. “ I wouldn’t want you to step on anything. Reason three, when I go home I’m going to need a guest, and I want it to be you. And the last reason, you never know what creatures are outside watching and waiting.” He made some really good points, and I was in no position to aregue.

Imprint

Text: pictures bellong to google internet
Publication Date: 11-06-2011

All Rights Reserved

Dedication:
to the one i wish i could have stayed with