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ADELAINE HARROW HAS ALWAYS FELT DETACHED. Ever since she was young, she had trouble maintaining connection with the people around her, even her own family. Maybe it was because she had a strange ability to taste other people's emotions when they were within her proximity. It's not like she could control what she can do, but sometimes, knowing how people feel all the time made her unable to connect with them in a normal way. The taste overwhelming her tongue also render her unable to focus on what she was doing, even the mere task of identifying the taste of human food.
Her ability isolated her from other kids. Growing up, Adelaine kept to herself so she wouldn't go through the torture of feeling other people's emotions. Her family saw her power as a gift, but for her, it was more of a curse. They thought that empathy would help Adelaine understand someone better – and yes it does – but the downside was, she gets too attached. By staying around a person for a long period of time, it was as if a piece of her connects with their soul. So if that person leaves or dies, it feels like a part of her dies too. Her weird power also made her feel numb – the consequence, she deduced, of unnaturally tapping into how other humans feel.
That same gift forced her to move out at age 16, renting out a small crappy apartment and getting a part-time job in a local diner. Her new place wasn't really much, but for her, it was home. Being alone in a confined space allowed her to focus, and to not think about other people's emotions for once.
Two years later, Adelaine landed herself a full time job. She was contented with how much she earned everyday, as long as it paid the bills and bought her needs.
Blinking away all her thoughts as she crossed the road, she glanced down at the flyers in her hand. The words "WANTED: WEEK-END HOUSE-CLEANER" was printed in big, bold letters across the white piece of paper. There was a contact number at the bottom and an address, but since the house was only a few blocks away from her apartment, she decided to inquire about the job personally.
She thought it was good idea to take the job, for extra cash. Adelaine didn't have anything to do during the morning and the afternoon, and her shift at the convenience store begun at 5:00 pm anyway. She fixed her untamed orange hair as she released a breath before knocking on the door. An old woman opened the door after her third knock, raising an eyebrow at her as she stood in the doorway, smiling politely.
"Hi, I'm Adelaine Harrow," Adelaine greeted with a smile as she showed the woman the fliers she found posted on the wall near her workplace last night, "I'm here to ask about the cleaning job?"
The ginger tasted the woman's emotions before it appeared on the latter's face. A distinct flavor of the mixture of bitterness and saltiness invaded her tongue – the unique taste of fear. The woman looked horrified as she eyed Adelaine from head to toe.
"I removed that fliers three days ago," The old woman, who she'd later found out was Constance Langdon, told her with an emotionless face. The ginger bit her lip as she nodded her head in understanding.
"Oh, okay," She forced a smile, tucking the piece of paper back into her jean pocket, "Have a great day, Ma'am,"
As she was about to walk away, she heard Constance's voice call for her. She slowly walked towards the front porch again, pulling at the hems of her worn-out burgundy knitted sweater.
"Yeah?"
"I suppose we can talk about the cleaning job," The woman told her, Adelaine tasting the salty taste of doubt in her tongue. Constance opened the door wider, another invitation for her to come inside, "Come in, my dear,"
Adelaine followed obediently as she bit her lip, quietly entering the two-storey house.
If only Constance didn't change her mind that day, then things would have turned out differently.
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