Tip. Tap. Tip. Tap.
The dripping sound of water onto the steel bucket annoyed Fiona as she turned to the side putting a pillow over her head to cover her ear. But it wasn't as useful, she groaned in frustration as she opened her eyes to the familiar ceiling of her apartment.
A realization came to her when she immediately sat up, her blonde hair falling down her shoulder, she was dressed in her loose white shirt and black yoga pants, her amber eyes squinted a bit due to the turned on light in the room. She rubbed the heels of her palms against her eyes softly as she looked around her apartment in complete astonishment and confusion. The temple of her forehead was covered in lines as her eyebrows inched together.
That was a dream? A thought occurred to her as she lifted up her shirt, touching her abdomen, she bent down her head to see her completely unharmed soft skin, not even a single scratch.
She wondered while looking around. Her handbag was placed beside her couch, she picked it up to check her belongings, everything was in it except the money had been increased by four times. She lifted the bag upside down and jerked it letting everything fall on the couch, she rummaged through it like a raccoon going through garbage. She finally found a small thin piece of paper, a receipt from the ATM, she checked the date on it.
I went out yesterday. What is going on?
She was confused and scared when she got up lines forming on her forehead as she frowned. She moved to the kitchen counter and picked up the water bottle, and turned it's cap, it was then when she noticed a folded piece of paper lying on the counter. She put the bottle down and picked it up. She unfolded the piece of paper;
"Xanton will find you"
That single sentence in cursive was written beautifully in black ink probably with a fountain pen. She narrowed her eyes as she turned the paper but it was blank. Confused, her eyes go over the sentence once again.
Santon? Zanton? How do you spell it? A thought occured to her mind and then she cursed herself for asking such a stupid question when the question in her head should have been, Who left this here and how she isn't dead?
She sighed as she walked back to the couch with the note crumpled in her hand.
Did I time travel or something? Or do I have superpowers like super healing? Or maybe I am an immortal vampire? So many thoughts swam around in her mind as she sat there trying to make sense of things but every explanation involved something supernatural or sci-fi.
After going through a long reel of explanations and possibilities of what had happened, she finally groaned in defeat. Nothing made sense. Her head fell back on the back rest of the couch as she sat there for a few minutes. The coldness of the apartment creeped up into her veins as she shuddered and wrapped the thin cotton sheet she had around her but it wasn't enough to fight off the freezing weather of Minneapolis. Her mind was still confused and lost and with this freezing coldness it was going numb.
She got up and put on the only jacket she owned which was lying on the top of her suitcase. As she put it on she checked for a hole or any damage that the shot might've caused but the jacket was perfectly fine.
She sat back on the couch, hugging her legs and resting her chin on her knees.
Am I dead? Is this hell? But isn't hell supposed to be fiery hot ? Why is it so freaking cold? A sigh left her mouth as she closed her eyes trying to remember anything, maybe a little detail.
She vividly remembered the struggle she put up against the mugger and she remembered feeling the pain, seeing the blood and then losing consciousness. But right before she lost complete consciousness she remembered something. Something she felt against her skin not seen or heard.
She opened her eyes and instinctively touched her neck. She remembered someone pulling off the scarf around her neck that Roy had given her before leaving. She got up and looked for the scarf in the apartment, everything else she took with her to the interview was in the apartment except for that scarf.
She didn't know what it meant but she knew it had to be something.
In hopes that Roy might know something she shoved the note into her pocket, took the keys hanging on the key holder and left her apartment. She locked the door and rushed downstairs.
As soon as she stepped out of the building she regretted immediately not wearing her cap because the cold felt sharp like a sword cutting through her skull. She rushed quickly down to Roy's little electronics shop, she opened the door and entered the shop. The warmness in the room made her feel a little calm as she waved to Roy, who was busy dealing with a customer. He gave her a nod acknowledging her presence as she took off the jacket, and sat on a chair resting her folded jacket on the armrest she waited for the customer to leave.
When the customer left Roy smiled at Fiona, "You didn't stop by last night, kiddo." He said turning on the small coffee maker behind the counter.
The way Roy said that it was evident he was clueless about what must've happened to her.
"Yeah, I was really tired." She lied because she didn't want to scare the one person in the whole city who had been there for her.
"Here." He walked to her and gave her a small cup filled with black coffee.
"Thanks." She gratefully accepted it. The bitter aroma filled her nostrils as she brought the cup near her lips.
She didn't actually drink it, she just pretended like she was, Fiona was never really a fan of coffee, the bitterness left a weird taste in her mouth which won't leave even after she brushes or maybe it was just her paranoia. She didn't want to be rude so she didn't refuse to take it from him.
"How did the interview go?" He asked and she shook her head in a soft no and he nodded.
"It's fine. You'll get them next time." He said as he walked behind the counter bending down he pulled up a shopping bag and put it on the counter. "This.. is for you."
She stood up confused, "Why?" She asked, walking to the counter looking in the bag.
"When you moved in I didn't give you a house warming gift. So, here it is." He flashed a soft smile to her as her eyes dilated and she looked up at him.
"It's a heater and a blow dryer.." her voice was quiet, "I can't accept this, Roy." She said, pushing the bag towards him.
"It's a gift and I'm scared you would die of hypothermia living in that building with no air conditioning systems." He said, pushing the bag towards her. "It's going to snow tonight and we don't know how long it will end."
She felt guilty about accepting it but she knew she needed those things and with her financial condition she would not be able to buy these things for herself. She sighed in shame and defeat as she accepted the gift. "Thanks." she uttered the word and smiled at him.
The bell in the store rang as another customer entered. She looked up at Roy and smiled, "I'll leave you to your customers." she said and put the completely filled coffee cup at the counter, leaving the shop.
_
Fiona sat in her apartment as she plugged in the electric heater near the window, because that was the only electric board in the apartment that actually worked.
She pulled her cotton sheet from the couch and wrapped it around her as she sat near the heater. The lights in the apartment had been turned off, as she sat near the heater she looked at it with an empty expression. The warmth from it felt good against her skin but she wasn't feeling good, she wasn't happy that she had an electric heater now, her eyes filled with tears as she wiped them away with her sleeves.
No. Fiona, you won't cry. It's not pity, it's like a loan you'll pay him back. She said in her mind.
But even if she repeated that sentence over and over in her head, her eyes weren't ready to listen as the streams of tears fled out of her eyes. She tried to restrain herself but finally gave in and sobbed her heart out sitting in the darkness of her room with moonlight spotlighting her, she held onto her arms clenching them, digging her fingers in, she cried like she never had and gradually the sobs stopped, the tears were still flowing out but her head hurt, her eyes were swollen and her cheeks puffy. She calmed herself as she laid her head down on the cold floor in attempts to help her headache and before she knew it, sleep sunk her into its embrace.
She felt a soft warm caress against her cheek, like someone was pushing her hair behind her ear. She slowly opened her eyes to find a familiar and yet unfamiliar face. His eyes were beaming red, his lips red like fresh bloof, his facial features were sharp and were highlighted by the moonlight, his dark hair sleek and neatly done.
Fiona liked the warmth of his hand against her face as she held it and leaned into it softly caressing her cheek into it, closing her eyes, like a kitten would do while being pet.
He smiled at her, flashing his perfectly aligned teeth looking beautiful in between the shade of crimson red. "Did you have a nice nap?" His voice was raspy and beautiful as she hummed softly.
"You're here." She said in a soft and quiet voice.
"I'm not actually here, Fiona." He said and she opened her eyes looking at him with her ambers glowing into a golden shade under the moonlight.
"But you are. See…" she said, reaching out and touching his face. "I can touch you."
He smiled softly and held her hand, softly pressing his lips against her palm, he brought it down from his face and held it clumsily with both hands.
"It'll take some time for me to come to you." He said while her attention was solely on his hands holding hers. He let out a soft sigh, "Baby, look at me." he said and she looked up, innocence glistening in her ambers that even made him feel awe. "Xanton will protect you until I'm there." He said and her face cringed a bit. "I know you don't get along with her but you have to trust me."
She sighed and nodded her head.
"Good." He smiled at her obedience. "She's waiting for you outside, go to her."
Fiona jerked open her eyes as a long breath exhaled out of her mouth. She sat up startled looking around without knowing what or who she was looking for, it was then when she felt the urge of finding something, no, someone was heightened. She quickly got up from the floor letting the sheet fall to the ground. She felt so much in a rush that she didn't even bother to put on a jacket, she got out of her apartment leaving the door open, she rushed to the stairs.
Adrenaline was rushing through her body, her hands jittery, heart beat fast, breathing heightened, eyes dilated, a thumping in her ears as she made her way outside the building.
Snow gathered on the street covering buildings, sticking to the fabric of her thin shirt, blending in with her blonde hair, melting slowly under her bare feet, the strong winds felt like daggers against her skin as she rushed down the street. Her eyes turning at everything and everyone looking for someone, reaching the end of the street she pushed her brakes, as she bent down holding her knees catching her breath, she looked up.
A beautiful woman stood in front of her leaning against the door of an SUV, her red as ripe strawberry lips curved in a soft smile, her blue marble like eyes glistened with darkness as her snow white skin glowed under the light of the street lamp.
"Who are you?" Fiona asked and she smiled.
"Xanton." saying that she turned and opened the door of the SUV, "Hop in." She said going around the car and entering the driver's seat.
Fiona didn't think anything, she knew she had to go with her. It was a thing she was sure about without any reasoning behind it. She moved forward and entered the SUV, putting the seat belt on, she turned to Xanton.
"Where are we going?" Fiona asked and Xanton.
"To see him."