KNOT BOUND

Chapter 1

Mom always told me that there's no such thing as a wrong decision. And if there is, you have to deal with it and learn from it. She mentioned it repeatedly while we were deciding which cake to get during my eighth birthday. Now, ten years later, instead of choosing a cake with my mom, I'm standing in the middle of my room alone not knowing which dress to wear for my eighteenth birthday party.

I hate people. So when my sister's boyfriend wanted to host a birthday party for me, I thought he would know by now that I was a social recluse. I guess he thought inviting more than two hundred guests, organizing an all you can eat buffet with an open bar, and a program filled with famous performers for the evening was what I wanted my ideal eighteenth birthday to be. Normally, coming of age celebrations are very small and intimate with only the immediate family and closest relatives and friends so I thought I didn't have anything to worry about. But, now that I have to look my best in front of a large group of important strangers, my first struggle of the night was deciding which dress to wear out of the eight laid on the floor and a dozen covering my bed. I guess that's what you get when your sister's boyfriend is the town's alpha.

A soft knock echoed the room and I turned my full attention towards my older sister Sophia who stood by the doorway in a beautiful sultry red gown that flowed to the floor. She never does her hair but for today she curled her auburn hair into waves. She styled it so that her hair would elegantly drape over her right shoulder, exposing her pale neck for all to see. Around her neck was a thin gold choker detailed with small little diamonds in the shape of circles. To match, she had a pair of diamond earrings surrounded by a gold border. They contrasted beautifully with her eyes.

While my sister had her gorgeous auburn hair that looks like rosewood when basked in the sunlight, I had dark brunette hair that remains the same during both day and night. The only thing that told people we were sisters were our eyes. As if they were little galaxies, our eyes were green with specks of warm gold playing around. But, even though we shared the same coloured eyes, hers were previous emerald gems that shined in the light of either the sun or the moon, the type of eyes that could capture you in a trance. Mine, on the other hand, reminded me of moss you find in ponds that no one dares to touch; a weed that hinders the beauty hiding beneath its surface.

"You look stressed out," she chuckles as she observes the state of my room.

"Shut up," I huffed as I continue to pick out a dress. I finally narrowed it down between a midnight blue dress and an amethyst dress.

I could hear my sister make her way towards my bed and shuffle the dresses on it off to the side so that she could take a seat. I could feel her eyes on me as I was looking at the mirror trying to see which dress suited me more. Feeling uncomfortable from her stare I turned around and returned her gaze.

"What?" From the corner of my eye, I could see her fumbling with something in her hands.

She beckoned me over. Placing my dresses down, I took a seat beside her on my bed. Grasping my wrist gently she turned it upwards so that the face of my palm was shown to her. Gently placing her hand over mine, I could feel a weight placed on the palm of my hands as she withdrew her hand from mine.

It was a small black box with a white ribbon tied neatly in a little bow. Attached to it was a little tag with writing on it. I could feel tears welling up in my eyes. I knew that handwriting. It was mom's. It said, "Happy 18th birthday, Alex. My precious daughter, no matter what happens, I'll always believe in you. Love mom and dad."

Gently untying the ribbon, I lifted the lid of the box. What I found was a silver medallion attached to a chain. I've seen this medallion multiple times, my sister always wore it everyday without fail even though she kept it hidden by her clothes. I was surprised to find that it wasn't my sister's medallion. Like Sophia's, this medallion had vines that curled outwards from the centre as it created a beautiful border of blooming flowers that encircled the gem in the center of it. While my sister's medallion had a blueish green gem in its centre, the gem in the middle of mine was also green but with little freckles of red in it. When I touched it, it felt like there was warmth radiating from it. Almost like it was alive. I was so enchanted by it that I was surprised to hear Sophia's voice.