(Prosinec 6, 58 / 3:02PM)

  A fresh black skirt replaced her old ripped white cloth.

  Turning her hygiene a 180, her black wedges clashed with the white marbled floor of the first-floor hallway of the ranch house. Her hair was swept clean from ticks and fleas, her teeth a yellowish white, and her hair straightened out, she kept her hands clasped as some maids and butlers were seen in front of her.

  Keeping her distance, she walked past them, causing them to jolt their bodies away from her like a disease.

  (Elizabeth’s thoughts) At least it wasn’t a group of guards…

  In front of her, a group of guards began to descend the wooden flight of stairs.

  Her breath caught in her throat, she found the nearest unlocked wooden door to enter, keeping herself away from their line of sight. Having her back pushed against the door, both of her claws started to grip and tear the wood, her nails digging into the freshly carved oak. Their footsteps walked along the marble, their boots squealed the floor, along their burly voices boomed the wooden walls.

  (Zirardge Guard #1) So about that indentured servant?

  (Zirardge Guard #2) She always tries to be with that emotionless Boss’s son. She’s kind of like his pet, no?

  (Zirardge Guard #1) Doesn’t she know that he doesn’t give two shits about her? Honestly, that chick is like a lost maiden.

  Their conversation trailing with the presence of their bodies, the grip on the wooden oak was loosened by her pierced nails. Dropping her hands down to her sides, a small inhale of air swept into her small pink lungs, before turning her heels to the door.

  Placing her right hand on the handle, she slowly opened it to let herself out of the pitch-black confines of the closet. Her entire body pale, her body drenched in sweat, she slowly closed the door shut as her breathing intensified.

  (Elizabeth’s thoughts) Maybe I should’ve run into them…

  Arching her back straight, she turned her head up to see the flight of stairs. Her wedges creaking the fresh wood, she reached the third floor of the house, looking both ways before walking through the hallway.

  Keeping her hands close to her body, the evening sun’s rays still shined its yellow light, the heavy wind replaced with a gentle breeze.

  The windows unmoved by the wind, a burst of air was seen right in front of her. Tumbling out of the wooden door, a teenage boy with blonde hair crashed onto the floor on his backside, clenching his teeth.

  His eyes and cheeks scrunched upward, hissing sewing out from his lips, as he held both of his hands down to his right knee.

  (Johnny) Ah!

  Coming out of the open wide door, a teenage girl a year older than she wielded a pan with her right hand. Having turquoise colored hair, followed by wearing the same black skirt dress, the top of her head had a headband that encapsulated a golden star.

  With her left hand, she reached down to Johnny’s collar, pulling him up so that she was face-to-face with him. Pulling back her right hand, the metal pan barely grazed the wooden wall from behind, her eyes wide-eyed and red-strained.

  (Vivy) I told you to eat the damn banana!

  (Johnny) And like I told you, I don’t want to eat it!

  (Vivy) You fucking pussy!

  Both of her feet were glued to the white marbled floor, leaving her to hover both of her hands onto her mouth. Taking a step back, the only thing that she could do was just watch, seeing the girl drag him back into the room.

  Dropping her hands, she held her right wrist with her left hand. Moving a step forward, she tilted her head down, her hair blocking the rays that hit her eyelids.

  (Elizabeth’s thoughts) He saved me… so…

  Allowing her feet to push, she swayed both of her balled hands, her throat letting out a low growl. Stomping, the bottom of her black wedges sprinkled and sparked beneath the floor, her ears pointing upward while her whiskers gleamed up.

  (Elizabeth’s thoughts) It’s my job to at least do my part.

  Reaching the front of the opened door, she stood in between the doorframe, her feet on the border between the marble and the oak wood. Her nose wrinkled uncontrollably, the smell of cigarette smoke and alcohol assaulted the deepest parts of her small nose.

  Fluctuating into the corners of her lungs, she dropped her hands down, her eyes widening evermore.

  As the turquoise-colored-haired girl pinned down Johnny, hammering her right knee onto the center of Johnny’s chest. Saliva drooped down from both corners of his lips, and Johnny’s eyelids barely held themselves up as his hands held down her wrist.

  The object she now wielded was a white crystal banana.

  (Elizabeth’s thoughts) What is that?

  Turning his head, his vision barely took in the cat-girl who only watched from the doorframe.

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  Seeing his head turning, the girl also looked at Elizabeth, her face churning more as she looked from top to bottom. Loosening her strength, the turquoise-colored-haired girl raised her eyebrow.

  (Vivy) You ain’t supposed to be here. If you’re trying to find some nip, there’s an outhouse near the stables.

  (Elizabeth) What are you doing to him…?

  (Vivy) I told you an order! So get going!

  Her head tilted downward, her eyes looking at a golden antique ring on display. Basking in the sun’s rays, its golden light trapped inside both of her pupils, triggering both of her claws to spike out.

  Opening her mouth, a loud exhale of air hissed out, her throat parched from the intoxicating cigarette smoke that continued to plow into her delicate body.

  Pulling back her knee, Johnny breathed slowly from his opened mouth, his hands restless against the old oak wood. Standing up, the girl pointed her trembling finger at Elizabeth, both of her knees trembling from the cat-girl’s hiss alone.

  (Vivy) I said—

  Elizabeth lunged forward.

  Pulling back both of her hands, she glided through the unruly air, her hair whistling along her back neck. Thrusting both of her arms forward, the girl only stood in silence as the two knuckled pierced hands…

  Grabbed a hold of the crystal banana.

  Yanking it out of the girl’s hands, Elizabeth kept it close to her, tucking it away between her right armpit. Low growling reverberating in her throat, she glanced down at the peeled banana, its crystalized fruit sparkling in the sunlight.

  (Johnny) What are you doing…?

  His vision returned, his hand was already extended outward, laying it flat on the wooden floor. Widening his eyes, his breathing fastened while pushing his toes to crawl himself toward the cat-girl.

  Crawling like a worm, leftover drool from earlier continued to sink onto the floor, his other hand clutching the left side of his body. His left rib cage going numb from the pain, started to push the bottom of his heels to carry his crawl.

  Almost as if a pan had launched itself prior.

  (Johnny) Don’t … take that …

  (Vivy) Do you like my useless brother that much?! Are you going to strip his only way of being useful?!

  Bringing it up to her mouth, Elizabeth eyed both Johnny and the girl, her eyes slanting inward with her claws digging deep into the peel of the fruit. Making eye contact, she opened her mouth, licked her lips…

  And ate the fruit in one gulp.

  Moving all around her mouth, the contents of the crystal fruit littered every used-to-be cavity spot they could find. Gulping down the majority into her stomach, both of the girl’s hands slowly drooped down to her thighs, balling them as steam hissed from her lips.

  (Vivy) You ate it … you absolutely disgusting piece of—

  A hand gripped onto her boot. Having his face lying flat on top of the floor, his entire body shook and twitched geometrically.

  Looking down, the girl pulled back her boot, letting the boy’s hand tackle the wood below. Scoffing, she knelt to where the sun’s rays were blocked by her head.

  (Vivy) Got anything to explain?

  (Johnny) Whatever punishment she gets … I’ll take it.

  Elizabeth stomped with the bottom of her wedges, creaking the oak wood as she moved to the front of Johnny. Bending over, she instantly grabbed Johnny’s pushed-away hand, pulling him toward her so both of his feet kept standing.

  Wrapping both her arms around his single arm, something awakened in him.

  Glancing down, he took in the sight of a glaring girl, her claws barely rubbing the tip of his skin.

  His breath stuck in his throat, his stomach felt as if he ingested an entire kitchen's worth of hot tomato soup. Unable to even scrunch up his fists, let alone his core, for the first time in his meaningless life…

  His cheeks glistened red.

  (Vivy) Disgusting…

  Arching her head down, she stomped her way out of the room, bumping into Elizabeth’s shoulder forcingly. Not even wanting to look back, she continued her steaming walk, as both Johnny and Elizabeth saw off the short-tempered girl.

  Trying to pull away from her grasp, it only caused her to tighten her hold on him, her glare soon being replaced with a purr.

  (Johnny) You could let go now, she’s gone.

  (Elizabeth) No.

  (Johnny) What?

  Looking down at the leftover banana peel nestling itself right in front of her feet, a low groan came out of his throat. Puckering up his mouth shut, he let himself submit to her grip, his eyes staring into that littered banana peel that resonated within him.

  Like a shell opening up from within, it released something that was long suppressed.

  Tilting his head up toward the ceiling, he casually looked at the blank white paint that was littered with spiders, seeing an abundance of small dots latched in a colony of webs. Breathing in the old smell of cigarette smoke and alcohol, he exhaled it out as he coughed dryly.

  (Johnny’s thoughts) I guess … there is some meaning after all…

  ______________________________________________________________________________

  (Prosinec 7, 58 / 4:48PM)

  (Elizabeth) Now make an oath.

  Placing both of her hands on her hips, she tapped her right foot on the old wood. Her eyes pushed upward, and both of her cheeks loosened as she looked upon Johnny’s head-scratching, leading her to jolt her ears up.

  Unable to look within those brown slanted eyes, he kept his eyes staring at one of the toy wooden trains next to the stack of papers.

  (Johnny) As of today, I, Johnny Zirardge will try my absolute best to be the man that my father never was.

  (Elizabeth) And?

  (Johnny) … and to dub you my protector.

  Drops of sweat swept down from his temples, licking the floor as small puddles formed along the tips of his toes. Letting his hand drop that he scratched his head with, small amounts of blonde hair littered his thin jacket, dandrum already seeping into the minuscule cracks within the wooden ground.

  In return, Elizabeth huffed out a large amount of air out of her lungs, her eyes closing along with her lips curling upward. Opening her eyes, she balled her hands as her pupils sparkled and gleamed like a kid on Christmas.

  (Elizabeth) I promise to always protect you from anyone! So please leave that to me!

  (Johnny) I don’t know how I feel about a girl younger than me being my bodyguard…

  (Elizabeth) I don’t care.

  Holding both of his hands, her fingers rubbed the top of his smooth knuckles, her tanned and wrinkled fingertips coursing through his skin like the back of a fork. Having a cage locked on them, she pulled them close to the area between her stomach and chest, causing Johnny to redden evermore.

  Both of his hands being forced to wrap around her waist, she nudged her head onto his chest, letting out a low soft purr.

  (Elizabeth) You’re all that I have…

  Johnny looked toward the orange sun that was on the verge of setting.

  In the dead of winter, suns usually settle down below the event horizon much earlier than in the summer, leading the window to glow a mystical light. Like watching the end of a prolonged life, his left eye shed a single tear.

  A tear that caressed the top of her head.

  Lifting her head, her chin put enough pressure on his chest for him to almost tumble back. Squeezing him, Johnny grunted and squirmed under the tight hold of Elizabeth’s rough arms and hands, his breath starting to be trapped inside his lungs.

  (Johnny) … You’re squeezing me.

  (Elizabeth) I’m not letting go.

  (Johnny) But I’m having trouble breathing.

  Her eyes pushed downward, her cheeks tightened, and she moistened her lips by licking them red.

  Johnny began to wrap his arms around her wrist as well, using his right hand to tuck her head into his chest. Not allowing a naughty thought to seep into her mind, he kept her close, rubbing her back again and again.

  (Johnny) And don’t even think about anything funny.

  (Elizabeth) But I—

  (Johnny) No buts. Until marriage.

  Both of her cheeks puffed out like a chipmunk. Continuing to wrap her arms, Johnny kept his feet glued to the floor, all the while he just begged for this love to never end.

  By shedding another tear.