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The music blared violently loud in Katalina's ears. She was almost certain that her eardrum was about to combust due to the pressure being forced into it.
Regret was quickly seeping into her mind as she glanced around the crowded living room. The large house was packed with hormonal children dancing in a crazy manner to the upbeat pop song in intimate pairs and small groups. Probably in looking to have a 'good time'.
Seriously? I did not sign up for this. Katalina grunted grumpily.
Some teens were sitting on the railing of the wide staircase drinking beers and spiked fruit punch. Communicating with what appeared to be friends. Some loners stood on the sidelines watching the other kids for sordid entertainment.
Where is he?
The boy in question suddenly appeared before her with a large grin smacked across his face. A beer bottle in hand.
"Hey Kate! You come here to enjoy the party?!"
She didn't even bother correcting him about her name. She knew he would only infuriate her further.
Sighing, she pulled him through the sweaty bodies and into the kitchen.
Over the years of having to help Josh with countless tasks, she had been inside the house enough times to know where almost all the rooms were situated.
"Woah, no need to rush. If you wanted to have a good time with me you could've just said so." Josh said jokingly just before they came to a stop behind the kitchen island.
Katalina's face remained passive as she said, "I thought we were finishing the project tonight." She crossed her arms, glaring up at him in a feisty manner.
He then ran a hand through his tangled, coffee brown hair. "We are," he said simply.
Katalina scrunched her face at his reply. Unsatisfied.
"How? Exactly?" She queried. Then gestured with a hand towards the messy kitchen.
There were empty beer bottles and yellow plastic cups randomly scattered on the counter and island. There were even a few on top of the refrigerator and stove.
Pigs, a,Katalina growled distastefully inside her head.
"You decided to throw a party after we agreed to meet back at your house at seven. Why would you do that after we specifically agreed to meet here?" She was practically begging for a good explanation.
But sadly, and expectedly, that was too much to ask.
All she got was a careless shrug, along with a look that suggested he didn't really seem to care. And what he said next ticked off something inside of her.
"I got bored of waiting because you took too long."
He wasn't even looking at her! He just lazily glanced over Katalina's head at a group of teenagers acting like deformed monkeys, laughing their asses off.
He chuckled in amusement.
But she was not amused.
"Seriously!" Katalina exclaimed. "That's your excuse?"
Josh's brown eyes darted to hers. "Pretty much. It's not like I need you."
Her hands found her hair in unrestrained anger and frustration. "I can't deal with this right now—you know what? I'm leaving! You can finish your stupid project by yourself."
She stormed pass him towards the living room. Fully intent on leaving.
Such an asshat. I hope he steps in dog crap somewhere.
Josh's eyes widened.
Oh, he had really done it this time since it seemed like Katalina was beyond angry with him...
He frowned and slammed the beer bottle on the marble countertop next to him before hurrying after her.
"Kate, wait! I'm sorry!"
He caught up to her a short moment later, gripping onto her upper arm and successfully spinning her to face him.
Katalina's muddy, brown eyes shot to his. A harsh glare clouding her pupils.
"Don't call me that!"
Josh flinched and took a visible step backwards from the venom lacing her tone.
Stunned. For a lack of a better word.
"I'm done," she sneered.
Then she shrugged his hand off her arm. Hard. And shoved her way through the ridiculous crowd of drunken teenagers.
Josh gaped after her retreating figure.
He tugged his hair miserably. Now much more sober than before.
Stupid, stupid, stupid. He cursed internally.
Why did it always have to be so damn hard?
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Katalina had decided to walk to Josh's house since they lived a good couple of minutes away from each other. And it was a good walk. Which didn't necessarily demand a car unless you were feeling too lazy to walk.
It wasn't late.
It was just 7:30.
So Katalina was really surprised that Josh had behaved that way towards her.
In her defense, she did have a reasonable explanation as to why she was late.
Her aunt had given her a lecture about lying earlier. Apparently, she was still holding a grudge about the lie she had told that night.
Even after she was grounded for a week and a half, her aunt just couldn't let it go.
Katalina didn't regret lying tho.
Because sometimes lying is just better than telling the truth.
And it's not like her aunt would've believed her anyways.
In fact, no one would have.
She scoffed to herself and pulled the knitted cardigan closer to her body.
Hell, she herself even found it hard to believe sometimes.
Throughout the first few days that she was grounded, she had doubted herself. She had debated with herself in an attempt to convince her brain and mind that whatever she saw was a trick of the light or something.
Or that her mind had created crazy scenarios in the spur of the moment because she was flustered and scared.
But each time she had finally convinced herself that she was thinking like a crazy person. She would remember the intense rush of adrenaline, tinged with the fear and eagerness coursing through her veins.
And eventually she would go back to believing her former thoughts because some of the pieces of the strange puzzle wouldn't fit into the slots.
It was real.
No matter how unreal it seemed.
Katalina clenched her hands into tight fists as the anger she felt before slowly settled in again.
The music playing at Josh's house was now a distant thumping.
Th-that filthy cow! How dare he act like I had to help him—ugh. Rude!
She tilted her head up to the deep, violet colour blanketing the night sky. The yellow diamonds that came out every night to watch the inhabitants roaming around on the ground beneath them, glistened beautifully.
She decided then to stop stressing about the struggles this life could bring.
She was happy that she wasn't some homeless person walking the streets. She had the necessities any teenager her age would want.
But the hollowness that had been excavated inside the pit of her stomach only grew.
She was grateful she still had a family.
But it was still incomplete.
Her mother caused this.
She shouldn't have left.
Katalina hated feeling this way.
So she squashed the pain that was building inside her like a rapidly spiraling tornado and continued her slow walk down the concrete sidewalk.
She kicked a small stone in front of her sneakers and continued walking. The dim streetlight provided a considerable amount of light which Katalina was thankful for.
The sound of the stone hitting the hard surface of the street satisfied the anger Katalina was feeling.
Click. Clack. Clack.
Sometimes she wished that things were simply black and white.
She kicked another pebble. Listening to the satisfying hit against the ground.
Click. Clack. Click. Clack. Clack.
Then she kicked another. And another. And another.
Everything just sucks sometimes.
Click. Clack. Click.
The last pebble she kicked was far larger than the others. But after she kicked it, she realized that something was wrong.
All the other times that she had kicked the pebbles, they had responded with that soft, weirdly satisfying sound.
Except for this time.
And the fact that the last pebble she had kicked was larger that all the others beforehand meant that she definitely would have heard the same sound.
She kicked another one.
It never hit the ground either.
Katalina frowned, her previously angry thoughts disappearing completely.
She stopped walking abruptly and glanced around.
The air now felt colder and the street that usually felt safe made the hairs on her body stand up on edge.
Why?
She didn't know.
But she had a sick feeling that she was about to find out.
Her brows scrunched in uncertainty and she delayed her walk a bit longer.
The breeze whipped her obsidian hair in her face. Causing her to pull a few strands behind her ear.
Her fingers trembled as she ate up her surroundings.
Something didn't feel right.
She just didn't know what.
I better hurry up and get home, she thought, resuming her walk.
Except this time she walked faster than before.
And it seemed like Katalina just knew what was about to happen next, because continued to glance around uneasily.
And before her mind could comprehend what her body was doing, she was running full speed down the sidewalk. Her feet slapping against the dry concrete.
Her arms were now helping her to power her way away from whomever or whatever it was that was chasing her. She twisted around a corner. Not bothering to glance behind her as she increased speed.
Then without warning, she felt something incredibly heavy landing on her body.
Katalina fell with a harsh thud and she groaned from the pain shooting throughout her body due to the impact.
Damn... Seems like this thing doesn't know how to treat a lady.
Katalina struggled against the weight against her back and kicked up a foot behind her. Hard.
She heard a grunt before the weight rolled off her back. And a series of profanities could be heard.
So it wasn't a thing! It was a whom.
She didn't delay a second, she just jumped to her feet and scurried off.
But of course, that moment was short-lived and she found herself falling to the ground. Again.
She returned to her recent struggling. Except, this time before she could fully fight off whoever was antagonising her, her eyes began drifting as a sweet and powerful scent overwhelmed her senses.
It was like she was in a secret paradise for a while. Basking in the smell of sweet flowers and roses, along with distinctive scents that she couldn't pinpoint.
She could feel her body being lifted off the ground. And the stranger grumbled something which made her want to scoff.
"Whoever said that girls weren't strong beings were lying."
Her eyelids eventually closed. As she was unable to hold off the darkness rapidly seeping in and basically begging her to give into it.
Even tho she didn't want to give in, her body forced her to stop trying. With an angry huff, she unwillingly entered the darkness that desperately called to her.
And then everything went blank.
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Whoo... I'm feeling excited now.
Didn't see that coming, did you? 😏
Thanks for reading and I truly hope you enjoyed this chapter. Don't forget to vote and comment. Or just choose to do one.
Until next time...
Brit 😴