Aurora's Point of View
My arm ached. No matter how careful I was, I accidentally bumped the stitched up flesh against some sort of surface at least four times a day.
Every damn day.
This was my first experience getting a sharp needle stabbed through my flesh repeatedly with a string attached, and it was just as agonizing as I expected it to be. What's even more terrifying is the scar that will form in the near future.
My father, on the other hand, has been on edge ever since that day. It's the most active I've ever seen him, though, as he insists he'd be the one to go out and get groceries for the house until my arm is fully healed.
"How would you bring down the bags from the car all alone?" He'd say, as if I had only one arm to begin with. As if the mere stitched up flesh was a major bone injury, disabling me from doing such things.
I let him baby me though. What kind of father would he be if he didn't worry? After all, he was playing the role of both parents.
Dean and I texted a few times since that day. He was acting normal enough for me, which was a relief. I ignored the thought at the back of my head that warned me he would act the same way all over again if surrounded by his douche teammates.
I know, I agreed with my own thoughts. I know he will.
But is it up to me to tell him how to act, and how to treat people? No. Is it healthy for me to invest myself so much in a person, to the point where I feel responsible for his attitude changes? Absolutely not.
I loved Dean, but his choices are his alone.
I told Hailey what had happened after I came home from the hospital the following afternoon, to which she was furious about.
"YOU CALLED DEAN BEFORE YOU CALLED ME??" She had screeched into the phone, shattering my poor eardrums. She forgave me quickly though, grumbling something about you can't hate on the injured and at least you lived.
Her 'get well' present?
A kitten.
It wasn't unexpected, since I planned on snatching one from her the moment I laid eyes on them, but nonetheless my heart exploded with love when she handed me a mewling kitten.
And here we are, bouncing around a pet store with three kittens in our arms.
"Ooh, ooh let's get them each one of these!!" Hailey pointed towards a wall cluttered with different types of collars. Specifically, at a row of collars with patterns on them, which were a little more higher priced than the regular plain colored ones.
"Yeah, yeah sure." I replied, attempting to keep the anxious kitten in my arms at bay. She twisted her nimble body around as she attempted to escape, a claw managing to get between the wound and a stitch. She yanked her paw upwards, ripping it out and reopening the gash on my arm in the process.
"Fuck!" I yelped out, a bolt of pain shooting up my arm. Blood began to drip down and I winced at the sight. The demonic tormenting kitten jumped out of my arms in a graceful manor, and I was in too much agony to attempt to reach out and attempt to stop her.
"Hailey, get her!"
Even if Hailey didn't freeze the second she lay her eyes on my now bloodied arm, her reaction time would've been too slow to catch the escaping kitten, who successfully scurried out of sight around a corner of the store.
"YOU'RE BLEEDING!" She screeched. "YOU'RE B-BLEEDING BLOOD!"
Oh, for fucks sake.
Hailey was way more frightened by the sight of blood than any hemophobic I've ever known, and I could tell that she was going to faint any second.
"Look away Hailey." I sighed knowingly, flinching as the wound on my arm began to pulsate. She whipped her head back to the wall of pet collars, deeming totally useless to the situation.
The laceration on my left arm was around 4 inches long, and initially 1-2 inches wide. I think its safe to accurately conclude that ripping out a stitch via angry cat claws is much more painful than having a nurse suture the wound up in an emergency room. I wasn't too worried about the kitten since I knew anyone in the pet shop who saw a runaway pet would attempt to stop it, maybe even taking it home in the process. Whatever.
My arm on the other hand? Looks like I need more stitches.
I rummaged through my purse in attempt to use a tissue to apply pressure to the cut with, which would be better than my hand for the time being. It was beginning to get messy and let's just say things would get pretty ugly if I let my lousy blood stain these clothes.
"OOOOOOOH DEAR!" Another voice sounded from behind me. "OH DEAR, HOW UNSANITARY! EXCUSE ME MA'AM! YOU CANT BLEED IN HERE!" An older aged woman scurried to stand between Hailey and I, rapidly waving her arms around in panic.
"I'm not bleeding purposely!!" I screeched in disbelief.
"CALL THE AMBULANCE!!" She hollered, eyes wide with panic. "SOMEONE PLEASE! SHE'S BLEEDING ON THE FLOOR!"
"I'll do it!" Hailey quickly offered, her back still turned towards me as she struggled to dial the numbers while still clutching onto the remaining kittens in her arms.
"No need, Hailey; I'm not dying!" I snapped harshly.
"YOU'RE BLEEDING ON THE FLOOR MA'AM! STOP BLEEDING!" She bounced around.
Holy shit, this woman was just as dramatic as Hailey, if not, more. If a little blood dripping on the floor caused her to react this way, I wonder what she would've done at the sight of a large piece of glass wedged in my arm at the time of the actual accident.
The air was thickening with a panicked and stressed vibe, accompanying the new scent of blood. All I could do was apologize (which I shouldn't have been doing) to the wailing woman about bleeding on the floor and offer to clean it up and be on my way. I could simply drive to the E.R. to get my arm restitched, or maybe even a clinic. Anything but the hospital again.
One day, I'm going to run out of blood. And maybe it wouldn't be so bad.
"I'll go get a mop!" The manager attempted to resolve the situation. "A mop, no......yes a mop!" She scrambled off towards a door on the back wall which I assumed was a utility room. Before she could reach her destination, she abruptly face planted into the chest of a tall figure rounding the corner at the same time, followed by an "oof" and a string of apologies.
The atmosphere drastically changed within that same moment. I suddenly felt at ease, the tension releasing from my clenched jaw and my throbbing arm. All previous feelings of anxiousness and discomfort seemed to have washed away. Almost like I was hit with some sort of soothing high. It felt good.
Hailey seemed to react the opposite way. Her shoulders tensed up even more and she turned to face the man as well, freezing, just as she did when she saw the blood on my arm. The kittens went berserk, meowing and violently scratching at Hailey until she gave up and released them as well. The man took a few more steps towards us, finally coming into view.
It was him.
"You." I breathed, releasing the tight grip on my arm, forgetting that it had opened up again. "It's you again."
He towered across from me, hands pushed into the pockets of his pants and his posture straighter than ever. His neatly groomed thick hair was combed upwards, with a stray strand hanging upon his forehead. His entire outfit was black, just as it was the previous times I saw him, with a black dress shirt tucked into black pants accompanied by black shoes. The sight of him alone would make any man clear his throat and straighten up.
His mouth twitched, as if he wanted to reply, but decided against it.
"You were the one at-"
"Your arm. It's bleeding."
His voice caught me by surprise. It was like nothing I've ever heard before. Rich and silky, the low rumble sending shivers down my spine. I found myself staring at him dumbfoundedly, feeling the need to hear more of it.
I wanted to ask him so many things, like who he was and why I kept seeing him. I wanted to ask him why he wore black even though it was hot out, and why he walked away from me the first time I saw him in that Halloween store.
Most of all, I wanted to ask him why he was the face I saw in the car next to me during the split second before my car had smashed into another.
I was brought back to reality by the gash on my arm stinging me, and I hissed covering it with my bloodied hand once more. I was still bleeding, who forgets that they're bleeding?
His eyes were glued to my arm and I felt my face heat up at the intensity of his stare. Hailey seemed to be shaking like a leaf in the wind and I couldn't make sense of any of this.
"Who are you." My mouth moved to speak before I could set my thoughts straight.
He didn't respond.
"Who are you!" I spoke louder this time, taking a step forward.
A low grumble abruptly sounded from behind the man, signalling the daunting presence of a large dog. It slowly crept out out from the shadow of its owner, baring its yellow canines at me.
"Oh my god oh my god oh my god..." I could hear Hailey's voice trembling in fear, but the dog payed no attention to her, it's eyes stone set on me.
A second harsh growl ripped from its throat as it advanced towards me again, and the previous feeling of tranquility I felt a minute ago was ripped away. The dog must have mistaken my yell as a threat, for it seemed to be in a protective trance, standing between myself and the man.
"Cerberus." His voice gently rang, and the dog obediently retreated back to sit next to his feet. "I apologize for the dog. You should really tend to that wound, and disinfect it soon. Perhaps a few more stitches will be needed."
I felt my body almost sway towards his direction with every word he spoke, but I contained myself.
"Please" I started, "Whats your name? I deserve at least that." I almost begged. The thought of spending more time trying to forget him seemed agonizing at this point. I finally heard his voice. I won't give up this time.
His thick eyebrows drew downwards ever so slightly, leaving small creases between them. A devious smirk then overcame his features and he took a large step forward, closing the gap between us. I felt a shiver creep down my spine at the proximity of his body, and my face heated up once more.
His hot breath fanned upon my neck as he inched his face closer and closer to my ear.
"Call me Hades."
***
I hope you guys appreciate the slightly longer chapter yaaaay! Don't forget to vote if you liked it (:
P.S.
Read Hades with the paging method instead of the scrolling method, and invert the page color to black! Its how I read my books, and trust me, it gives effect.