When Lilies Lie on the Grave

Prologue

When the sun rises and a new day begins, anything is possible. With each passing second, one never knows what may or may not happen. A new life could begin, just as an old one ends. Tomorrow is not promised, so life should be lived for today. For now. Being alive today does not guarantee that there will be a tomorrow. Life is short, and it is a precious gift. There is nothing that gives someone more power than being in control of that precious gift and deciding whose gift is taken away from them.

~*~

A slow breeze swept around, being sure to nip at any skin that was not covered by clothing. I hated the cold. It always made my skin sting and change to a bright red. It was numbing, and I preferred to have feeling in my face. The only thing that I hated more than the cold was people. People, like the cold, annoyed me. I felt nothing—apart from irritation—towards those walking abominations. Yes, I, too, am a person. I never said that I thought of myself as anything better than an abomination, so don't think that I'm pompous, arrogant, high-and-mighty, etc. I shoved my hands deep into the pockets of my coat as a low huff rumbled up, out of my chest as my irritation at the cold began to overtake my thoughts. My vision was fixated downward as I walked, watching my feet as they stepped on fallen leaves that were damp from the rain that had come the night before.

Left, right, left, right, left, right. Thump!

I bumped into a solid form that knocked me onto the ground. I sat where I had fallen, palms on the ground, stinging from the contact they had made with the sidewalk I had been walking on. I kept my head down and my gaze focused downward around the feet of the one who knocked me down. The person's knees began to bend, and the handsome face of a man entered my view.

"Sorry 'bout that. You alright?" The man asked.

This accidental meeting was all I thought it was: an accident. An event that had happened, and would, eventually, be forgotten. In that moment, I never would have even considered the idea that this man would come to play a huge and significant role in my life. I hated everyone, but as I would find out, I didn't hate him as much as I hated everyone else.

"I'm fine," I growled as I stood to my feet, still keeping my view angled downward. I quickly continued on the way that I had been going.

"So, where you headed?" The man fell into step beside me. He had his hands tucked away in the pockets of his black jeans. I glanced at his face, which was shadowed over by the hood of his black jacket.

"None of your business," I snapped at him.

A deep laugh rumbled out of his chest. "You're a feisty little thing, aren't you?"

I rolled my eyes and stayed silent. I hoped that if I ignored him he would leave me alone, but I had no such luck. He continued to walk beside me. He didn't say anything more to me, but he stayed by my side. I didn't understand why or what his motives were. He was like a lost puppy. I gave him a little bit of my attention, and now, I was stuck with him. It wasn't until we arrived in front of my house and were about to walk up the sidewalk that he spoke again.

"I'm Korban, by the way," he introduced as he moved and positioned himself between the front door of my house and me.

"Okay," I mumbled and focused my attention on the ground as irritation with this man began to weave its way through my mind.

"What's your name?" Amusement was seeping into his words.

"If I tell you, will you go away?" I snapped and—for the first time—brought my eyes up to meet his gaze with my own. There was mischief that swam in his sapphire eyes.

"I sure will." The corners of his mouth twitched upward into a smirk.

"It's Zephaniah."

"Cool, I'm gonna call you Zee," He yelled out as he jogged away and down the street.

From then on, my life would never be the same.