How long is a lifetime?
To Luc, it is eternal. Endless and excruciatingly meaningless. His existence on Earth serves as a punishment for the sins he has committed. Immortality is his shackle.
It would forever be that way if Luc didn't stumble upon...
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*A rush Christmas update 🎄
Luc watched the girl rock back and forth with her head resting on her knees. Her left hand played with the dirty hem of her wet sleeping gown. Her eyes peeked up once in a while from under the terrycloth towel. Other than that, she ignored him as usual.
Luc could talk at her as he did every night until she was forced to react, one way or another, but he didn't feel like doing that. Instead, he simply opened the tap and let the hot water flow out, filling the bathtub.
The stench from the young girl was insufferable. From the way she absentmindedly scratched herself, Luc could tell how much she also longed for a bath. He checked the windows. They were all locked up. The glassmaker had assured him that the new plate glass was almost indestructible. A scrawny girl like her, even with a hammer in hand, would spend all night hacking at it. She would not be able to break the glass with her bare hands as she had done before even if she destroyed all her fingers.
Luc, of course, didn't want that to happen either. He preferred her intact.
"Come here, Mouse." He waved her over. "Be a good girl."
His words, of course, fell on deaf ears. Luc threw another clean towel at the girl and watched her jump. He held back his laughter. The girl looked like a mad squirrel, pressing against the wall with wide eyes and flaring nostrils. She watched him like a hawk, waiting for his next move, but Luc only sauntered to the other side of the room.
"Clean clothes are here." He gestured at some folded fabric on a stool next to the wooden room divider.
Luc then scanned the room. A slight smile formed on his face as his gaze landed on the girl again.
"Don't glare. You look like a dried pollock," he said while walking out.
In the hallway, Luc exhaled as he sat down on an upholstered bench. He rested his head against the wall. From here, he couldn't see the bathtub, but the windows were visible.
This is not so bad. Luc watched the light reflect on the ceiling. I could get used to it.
... But there would be nothing to get used to. She would be given to Albert. End of story.
Luc didn't have time for her. From the ongoing construction of what would be the biggest hotel casino in Bayport to the upcoming election, Luc hardly had time for anything. The politicians and nobles flocked to his door every day, asking for favors. The country was on the verge of jumping into another meaningless war on a distant continent. That meant a good opportunity to mingle and create connections that would better his position, line his pocket, and get him even more influential than he had ever been. Luc had learned to love the frivolity. He should really be out there, getting busy. Instead, he found himself spending every evening at home, having one-sided conversations or doing things he had never imagined himself doing.
All to keep a creature who despised him alive.
Luc had almost forgotten what some of his favorite activities looked like. People constantly sent him all sorts of invitations and messages, urging him to show face, but Luc could only oblige when the girl was gone.
Out of sight, out of mind.
A memory resurfaced. His right-hand man had stood by the entrance, fidgeting with his coat and hat. "She doesn't ken how to open th' tap, master. I can draw her a bath 'fore I go ..." Something told Luc he needed not to worry about how Albert would receive his new 'duty'. Everything would work out as planned.
Yet, his discontent lingered like a bitter fruit.
A few days ago, Luc had witnessed something that was truly bewildering. The girl talked, in a raspy voice that he had almost completely forgotten about. The two humans were not aware of his presence. Even though Albert couldn't understand a word that the girl had said, he happily replied. The mismatched conversation went on for almost half an hour before Luc announced himself. The girl then dove into her 'nest' under the bed.
It was the way that she reacted to Albert. Her eyes virtually lit up as they followed the big man's movements. As if she was a lost lamb who suddenly found its mother. It was startlingly, unexpectedly unfair, and very annoying. No, it was infuriating.
What did the man do that was so different? How did he get her to react so warmly like that?
Luc had invested an equal amount of time and energy in her, if not more, and all he received was hostility. As if he was the source of her misery. Luc had mulled over it for quite some time, and the best explanation he could come up with was they were both humans. It was natural for them to be close. However, that did not stop the feelings burning inside of him.
Uncomfortable, pointless, and very dangerous feelings.
He knew they always watch, waiting for his moment of weakness.
...
Time slowed down to a pause. The dripping sounds made their way into his subconsciousness. Near and far, Luc couldn't pinpoint where they came from. Or when. Nothing and everything seemed to happen in his head at once.
Drip.
Drip.
Drip.
...
Tick.
Tick.
Tick.
...
Eleven booming sounds from the grandfather clock jolted Luc up. His eyes were dry from being kept open for too long.
"Is everything alright in there?" He rubbed them.
His question hung in the stale air. He stood up and walked closer to the bathroom door. Strange. Very strange. The girl had never learned to close it. Luc knocked and then waited. Five seconds passed. He knocked again. This time, much louder.
"I'm coming in." He turned the door's handle.
It had been five hours, give or take. His trances could be unpredictable. Luc should have known better than to indulge one while watching her. He held on to a slim hope while stepping into the bathroom.
All windows were still intact. No signs of blood or destruction. Luc slowly let out a shaking breath as his eyes traveled from the dirty pile of clothes and wet towels to the trail of small footprints leading from the bathtub to behind the ornate wooden room divider.
"Hey, Mouse..." Luc whispered. He listened to the almost inaudible breathing behind the divider before pushing it aside.
On a small wooden stool, the girl sat with her head drooped. A towel wrapped around her midsection barely covered her body. Clean clothes strewed across the floor. It seemed she had fallen asleep, but her posture was strange. She couldn't be comfortable like that.
Luc touched the side of her neck, knowing fully well that she was alive. She was cold, however, almost as cold as he was. The girl had been in this blistering room for hours, there was no way she should be this cold.
Luc pulled a bigger towel from the rack and wrapped the girl in it. He picked her up and quickly walked to her room.
As soon as he stepped one foot in, Luc couldn't help but curse. Her room was an icebox. The coal had burned out a long time ago, and all that remained was smoke. At that moment, Luc understood why she had preferred the kitchen many nights ago, and why she had cried so pitifully when he dragged her upstairs. She did not try to defy him or escape. She was freezing, on top of the miserable stage she had been in.
