Lovesick Case

Chapter 1- The thoughts

Another day, but still the same old case. The case I’ve been trying to solve for 3 years.
I don’t think I have had actual sleep in so long. My bloodstream is infected with that sweet lingering taste of caffeine. I’ve needed it so much that I’ve been going to this 24/7 cafe, Coffee lovers hut , five minutes away from my house.
Fairy lights decorate its deep blue exterior, like fireflies in the night sky. They fill me with a sense of comfort, one that I want to feel more often. Whenever I see the building, smell the lingering aroma of coffee beans and cinnamon, I fill to the brim with wonderful sensation.
The café’s owner knows that it’s me just from my regent green bike parked outside.
Her name’s Ayla, and she is the sweetest person I’ve ever met. Sometimes I see my old self in her — like sweet chocolate ice cream, you need to be careful she doesn’t melt.
Her shiny ginger hair cut in a stylish bob, gorgeous sage green eyes and warm smile could comfort a wailing baby. Her soft seafoam-green apron, worn down by everyday use, almost matches the shade of her eyes perfectly.
I can’t wait until I solve this never-ending case. Then I could go do something with Ayla. Maybe to some local pottery sessions. I like pottery, and I have a feeling she does, too.
But I can’t just give up, even If I want to. I just can’t.
All those innocent lives lost to that monster lurking in the shadows. Biting into their souls, always leaving the same marks on them. Like they are some objects, to be used and then discarded. The same X-shaped mark I see on their eyes, as if they were always just bodies with no living souls, haunts me.
I just hope I can solve this case quickly. I mean, I’m good for nothing if I, the best detective in England, can’t solve this case. But it’s just so meticulously calculated — and not at the same time. The marks and unnaturally clean environment are repeated over and over, like a ticking clock.
But the victims aren’t. It’s always someone different.
I need to protect them, protect people like Ayla.