Under The Moonlight

Chapter One: Under A Trap

PRESENT DAY

People say that death can change you.

But Katalina Blackburn could not help but think that whoever said that was high on crack or they were just really drunk.

She didn't feel any different from the way she felt when her mother was alive. And now that her mother was about to be buried six feet under?

Her feelings weren't heightened. She didn't feel overwhelmed with grief. Neither did her heart ache for the memories that they had both shared.

In fact, she felt the same way she always did.

A good example to prove that theory would be that today was a Saturday. And she was annoyed and cranky towards everything on a Saturday morning.

Right now, all she wanted to do was lay in her bed the rest of the day and not think about doing anything at all.

But no. She had to go to a stinking funeral.

And even tho it was her mother's, it didn't make her feel anymore motivated to go.

"Shit!" Katalina cursed.

As she pulled up the zipper on the side of the dress, it ripped. Causing the slider to hang pathetically on one side of the fastener.

That was the third one.

It surely was not her morning.

Maybe it was a sign that she shouldn't go? Or maybe it was some practical joke that the universe was playing on her. Probably to revel in her ongoing misery.

She went with the former thought.

But then again, it was her mom. She had to go...

To say her last goodbyes.

Sighing heavily, Katalina stripped out of the ruined gown.

It was official.

Now she definitely had to wear the shortest of the four dresses she had picked out earlier.

Seeing that it was the last somewhat "appropriate" black dress she had left, she cursed herself for not going to the mall to get something new like her aunt had suggested. The remaining dresses were like miniskirts with tops attached to them.

Serves her right for being the stubborn prune which she is.

The bust of the dress was quite deep but not that bad compared to the rest of dresses that were lined up under the closet.

There was mesh covering the arms and bust, not allowing it to look too skimpy. The obsidian black fabric wrapped tightly around the waist area and flared outwardly from the hips to the hem of the garment. From the looks of it, surely it would fit her well, stopping mid thighs.

At least this one didn't have any zipper that could potentially lead to her letting loose yet another string of curse words.

She managed to pull it over her head and over her hips in time for a knock to sound at the door.

"Come in." Katalina beckoned, smoothing out the dress and looking in the mirror.

Not too long after, the door opened and a head popped in.

"Everything good in here?"

Katalina's aunt, Jennifer, was one of the only living relatives she had left who actually cared about her. And since Katalina's father died when she was just five years old and her mother would never entrust anybody else with her children, she left Jennifer as her sole guardian.