BEAUTIFUL MONSTER

1 : Washing the Dishes

I was humming to the music that was blasting in my ear through my earphones as I walked home from school. I forced a smile at Ross -a flaming red-haired boy from my Sociology class who looked like he was going to stop me for an awkward conversation- before hurrying away.

I had a lot of homework due in and Mr Rodgers made his hate even clearer for me as he gave me a double essay to do as my last one was "poorly written" and "not up to standards".

Sighing deeply, I thought of the long night ahead of me. The homework would probably take me a few hours at the most and not to mention the chores I would have to do. It was already 5 o' clock and the cloudless sky was a pretty shade of light blue. Rashly, I made the decision to go through the forest. It was deep and the trees were tall, sinister giants but I knew if I kept to the edge I wouldn't find my grandmother eaten by a wolf.

Ellie can do the dishes today.

In the distance I spotted reds and yellows and I edged closer, and then frowned, ripping my earphones away. The trees around here had their bodies clawed into as if it was done by some wild animal. Flowers were pathetic stains on the trampled grass and weird sounds came from further away.

I glanced at the torn scenery, battling with my curiosity and common sense before hurrying towards the sound, my backpack hitting my lower back with every step I took.

It was a stupid decision but sometimes you've got to kill the cat.

A small trickle of a river curled around and down where the ground was flatter and steeper and a magnificent figure crouched at the water's edge.

I gaped at the broad back, noticing the ripples of muscle and strong, wide shoulders. "Holy crap in hell. Someone pinch me."

The man froze before quickly straightening up and turning his harsh gaze on me. He was strangely beautiful and mesmerising with his teal-coloured eyes and sandy-brown hair that was messily brushed back. He had a cuttingly sharp jawline that supported days of unkept facial hair and pale pink lips were pursed in displeasure. He wore a dirty top and grey shorts while his feet remained bare.

"Uh," I looked up at him nervously as he crossed the distance between us in what seemed like the time it took for me to blink. "Hi?"

"Who are you?" His voice was deep and held an edge. Suspicion brewed in his eyes.

"Who am I?" Fear trickled into me as I gazed at him. He looked like he was going to squash me or flick me to Australia. My voice rose higher than the clouds and resembled a dog whistle as I answered him. "Oh, I'm nobody. Ha! Don't mind me, I'll just uh, be going-"

My attempt to run away was squashed like a bug. An arm came around my shoulder, jamming into my throat and choking me.

"Give me a reason not to kill you."

"I haven't done anything!" I pushed out through ragged breaths, my heart hammering like crazy against my ribs. "I'm innocent!"

"Why are you here?" If anything, his arm tightened and I gasped, frantically trying to pull his arm away from my neck. I was going to be strangled to death and it was because I couldn't be bothered to do the dishes. I was fast beginning to regret taking the long way home.

"I was just walking through...let me go, please!"

After a low mumble I didn't catch, he dropped me and I fell to the ground, gasping for my life like a fish out of water. "You're...you're crazy!"

I looked up through half closed eyes as my chest heaved up and down. "Okay, you're not crazy! You're not crazy!"

He held a wickedly sharp knife to my face, looking irritated as I caught my frightened breath. "You annoy me."