“I don’t know, why? What do you want to be?”
“I feel like a monster…my hair keeps falling out only to grow back dry and worn out. No matter how much I bleed I just won’t drop dead and my eyes, I keep forgetting they’re not normal. I am afraid to face anyone…from the way they look at me.”
“You’re not a monster. Monsters act like what they are deemed. You’re sweet and as much as I don’t want to admit it, I really have started to take a liking to you. You’re growing on me, Angel.” I hated seeing her upset like that. She began to cry into my shirt with blood-mixed tears and I could feel her weight against me as she gave up on even trying to hold herself up. I held her for a while and turned off the lights. We laid in bed together in the dark; it helped me calm down a little as I stared up at the ceiling.
“Say Angel? What brought this on? You were perfectly happy yesterday.”
“You don’t realise how lonely you really are until you have someone and then they disappear.”
“Well I’m back now, aren’t I?” I said, not sure whether I was going to regret it. She wiped her blood-sodden hair and tears from her eyes and sniffled a few times before cheering up a bit.
“You asked what I wanted you to be to me?” she asked softly.
“Well yeah if I’m going to be living with you, we may as well know our boundaries.”
“I want to be lovers. I want you to see me as your partner, over an uninvited guest. Because I like you a lot too, Wade.”
Now that I think about it, it’s funny how off guard she caught me, no matter how prepared I thought I was.
“Y-yeah okay. If you really feel that way then let’s be lovers,” I stuttered as she climbed on top of me.
“You really mean that?” She closed her eyes and brought her face closer to mine.
“Yeah, I do,” I said as I closed mine.
We kissed and my heart for the first time felt as if it had melted. That dead and cold vibe she gave off turned to a soft and refined taste from her lips. She held the back of my shoulders as she ever so gently pressed herself against my body. It was a new sensation that I thought I’d never enjoy as much as I did. She moved her face from mine and licked the saliva from her lips. With a smile, she laid down next to me and giggled to herself.
“What’s so funny?” I asked, feeling flustered.
“Nothing; it’s just I think you’re cute when you’re serious.”
“And you’re not? Are you telling me that was all an act?”
“No, I meant every word and I’ll hold you to yours,” she said after sniffling some more. I fell asleep that night, lost in thought, even more so than I was before but one thing that I did know that my life with Angel, a woman I knew hardly anything about, had just begun and wasn’t about to slow down any time soon.
Chapter Two
I woke up early that morning and went to work like usual. I got there a bit earlier that day, so I managed to get ahead for the day. Around midday however, Sabrina swung by my office. She was in a decent enough mood and didn’t seem to hold a grudge from Sunday. I apologised regardless though; she’s the kind of the person that lets the little things fester over time. If I didn’t know any better, I would have said she might have even been in a good mood and without asking, she told me why. She pointed to a nice, glimmering bracelet around her wrist with a smile on her face.
“I still can’t believe he got me something this nice, it’s so unlike him,” she said while continuing to admire it. I peeked around the corner of my office wall to Johnson inside his office; he smiled at me with an exhausted expression.
“Well I bet he’s glad you enjoy your present.”
“Yeah…” She went silent with a flush of red in her face.
Ding. Everyone in the office stared to the elevator at the end of the room as nobody had left the office block yet today. Angel, in her white dress with a black umbrella over her shoulder, stepped into the office. She walked straight over to me and sat on my desk while playfully kicking her pale white legs.
“Gotta go, bye, Wade,” Sabrina blurted out hastily before going back to her office. I could tell everyone in the office had their curiosities piqued, but they stayed put. They didn’t want to be punished if I was going to be, for bringing some random woman into the work place. Angel shifted across my office, playing on one of the rotating chairs, flicking through papers as she tried to make flip books out of them and then finally sitting on my lap as I tried to work. She would complain how boring the office was or she nibbled my neck trying to get me to flinch. Soon enough she attracted the attention of Mr Smith who came into my office.
“Who’s this?” he asked curiously.
“I’m Wade’s girlfriend, Angel. I know I shouldn’t be here right now…but it’s so boring at home without him, so I thought I should visit.”
“Huh, I see. Well as long as he gets the work done, I guess you can stick around,” he replied casually before walking away. I expected more of a reaction from him and half an hour later, that’s exactly what I got. He called me to his office over the intercom; when I arrived, he asked me to take a seat. He looked me in the eyes with a serious expression on his face and leant over his desk slightly. I had to admit he could really hustle when he got real. “Wade?”
“Yes, sir?” I replied on edge. I felt like I could have been out of the job at any second.
“It’s Rex. What the hell are you doing Wade?” he spoke with his hands more than anything else, wavering them about.
“That’s the girl from the house, right?” he yelled but then calmed down after realising the other employees could probably hear us.
“You recognise her? Apart from Johnson, nobody has been able to even consider her anything but adorable.” He then took a short pause to re-evaluate his disappointment in me before going off again.
“How can’t I recognise her? Those eyes of hers are a dead giveaway. No matter how much you dress that ‘thing’ up, she’s still some messed up freak.”
I went silent. I was offended but at the same time I felt guilty that I went with the flow as easily as I did. “Don’t tell me that part she said about you two being lovers is true too,” he sighed and then drank deep from his mug of coffee. I nodded and within a blink of an eye, he sculled the hot mug of coffee. “You’re killing me, Wade! She’s a monster, can’t you see that?”
“She’s not a monster, she’s kind and sweet. I know what we saw at the house that night worried you but it’s the things you didn’t see that changed my impression of her.” I then explained to him how we came to be lovers and he was a lot more understanding afterwards.
“Look, I know I may be just your boss but I’m just trying to look after everyone, okay? I like to think we’re friends and I help my friends through thick and thin.”
“Thanks Rex, it means a lot, but this is something that I’m going to see through to end.”
“Alright I’d like a chance to sit down and talk with both you and her sometime soon,” he said calmly before dismissing me from his office.
“Thanks again, Rex.”
“Don’t worry about it,” he replied with a smile.
As I walked outside of his office, Johnson and Angel were standing outside. He held his hand to his forehead, but he smiled regardless; to this day I’m not sure if he was laughing at me or proud of me, either way it felt kind of nice to see that from him as he was usually stern and unbreakable. Angel threw her arms around me and nuzzled her head against my shoulders.
“I heard everything; thanks for standing up for me and I’m really happy you feel the same way I do about you,” she spoke gently into my ear. I just blushed and accepted her affection while Johnson assumed she was talking dirty so he rushed back to his office. It was on our way home that night, Johnson decided to have a word with both Angel and me since he also had heard everything.
“Lovers huh? I guess that makes you Wade’s first real girlfriend, Angel.” He wasted no time in embarrassing me, but to him he was simply statin
g the truth.
“Yeah we came to an understanding. Does that surprise you?” she answered without hesitation.
“A little but I’m happy for the both of you. Sigh. I wish Sabrina and I could be as straightforward with it like the two of you.”
“Hang in there; I’m pretty sure she was excited about the bracelet you bought.”
“Bought? I made her the bracelet…the materials weren’t cheap and time I poured into it as well; it was hard to keep it a secret from her when she would visit me close to midnight after work.”
“You made that? It was so pretty; you must be really talented!” she exclaimed happily.
“Yeah that’s Johnson for you. He’s a jack of all trades and he’s a good guy through and through,” I praised him, but I felt that was only the tip of the iceberg of what I could have said.
“Ha-ha-ha, thank you, Wade. I’ll keep at it. By the way, Angel, may I ask what you were doing in that house that night. I shiver at the thought that you had been living there,” he asked curiously. I could tell he was hoping for a normal answer. She went silent and tears leaked from her eyes as she tried to speak but nothing would come out. Our walk came to a standstill. Johnson and I turned to one another as she continued to struggle. I gently took her by the hand and lead her into my arms.
“If it upsets you that much, we’ll leave it for another time. Right Johnson?”
“Yes. I’m sorry I upset you Ms…I mean Angel.”
“Ha-ha, you really gotta break that habit of calling people by their last names when you’re nervous. Actually, what is your last name, Angel?”
“Natsuki…my family originally started in Japan, but we’ve been all over the world, so some of us don’t even know how to speak Japanese or have even been there,” she seemed more serious than usual; all I thought to myself was maybe we had hit more of nerve than we anticipated. We went home for the night and it wasn’t until the Saturday night later in the week that our conversations became as idle as they had been in the office. We arrived home late that night, late around two after fooling around with everyone at the bar. Angel was more than giddy from the variety of different drinks she had downed not too long ago. I wasn’t much better. Dad greeted us at the door with his usual routine of accusing me of being a delinquent. I went to walk past him, and Angel tugged on me to bring me to our room.
“Angel come in, but I need to talk to Wade alone,” he said in stern tone. “Aww but—”
“Angel, please do as I ask, It’s important.” I didn’t know what was scarier, him or Angel, when I saw the frustration blink on her face as she went to our room alone.
Dad turned to me and we both leant on either side of the doorway facing one another head on. My dad and I rarely argued but when we did, it was fierce, but I could tell he wanted to steer clear of such an outcome.
“Son, I’m happy you met a girl like her. She’s adorable, nice and I can tell she makes you happy. I’m glad she appreciates what my home provides both you and her. But wouldn’t she be happier if she had a place for just the two of you?”
“Thanks dad, I’m glad you think so highly of her. But I thought you were going to lecture me more than this. She’s very happy here. I don’t think things with her actual family were ever that good. So, you and Celia are like family to her.”
“Then I guess that’s fine then.” He looked to me with a sly expression. “I know she had lied to me though. If you had someone like her with you for all this time, I’d know about it. Some girls are like that, they kind of just push everything on you at once because they know you can handle it…your mother was like that.”
I went silent as he tussled my head with to him what was a victorious smile. He enjoyed the sight of me getting a bit more serious with my life. He went on to laugh like usual and went to bed; my dad confused me just about more than anything else in my life at times. When I went to my room, Angel had already crashed, and I did the same beside her. When I woke up that morning, she was full of energy and was already dressed, with an umbrella overhead.
I didn’t know what she did, but her hair was silky smooth and without the stains of red, it was as black as night. It brushed against my face as she leant over me as I laid in bed.
“What’d you do to your hair?” I asked while still half asleep.
“I gave it a proper wash. One of the girls at the office recommended a more therapeutic shampoo for people like me; she said it should stop my hair from falling out,” she cheerfully explained.
“Say, has it gotten longer since yesterday…? Like a lot longer.”
Satisfied, she ran her hand through her hair and simply shrugged off the fact it had grown a good four inches overnight. She then collapsed against my chest childishly, trying to get me out of bed. It was nine a.m. and I’m sure she would’ve been hung-over, but she insisted that we would go to the mall. She had waited all week for my day off and I’m pretty sure she saw clothes shopping as more of a date than a necessity. I put on a plain black t-shirt and a pair of black jeans and we headed out.
It was a surprisingly quiet day at the mall, only passing people here and there as we walked to the clothes store. When we entered, the clerk was already eyeing Angel like a piece of meat; the woman knew no shame and I began to wonder if she checked out all her customers. Angel picked through the shelves and clothes racks grabbing everything from tight jeans to short dresses with long black stockings. I lost myself in her eyes that glimmered with excitement and joy. She turned to see me, mindlessly staring; she smiled at me and then went back to sizing up outfits against herself. It was when she hit the change rooms, I began to feel like I was being dragged through the mud. I waited outside the curtains while she changed. Rather than stepping out to get my opinion, she yanked me inside the change room with her.
“Woah you’re not allowed to have me in here, you’ll get us kicked out.”
“Huh? I’m not? What’s wrong with this? You are my boyfriend after all.”
I heard the clerk’s footsteps as she walked towards us and she cleared her throat.
“I have no problems with the two of you in there, just keep it civil,” the young woman remarked from the other side of the curtain. With that said, Angel giggled and forced me to watch her change in and out of a variety of outfits. It wasn’t easy for me to at least pretend that I wasn’t enjoying myself since the room was small and left very little space for two people.
“Hey, maybe you’d want to try on some underwear since y’know you don’t wear any normally,” I suggested this in an effort to get her to wear something to at least leave something to the imagination for me. It didn’t work, she tried on several different pairs of panties and bras; it really didn’t help when she liked the feel of a material, she would shamelessly rub herself against my face while asking if it felt nice. She was messing with me and loved every moment of it. Our squabbling caught the attention of the clerk who from out of nowhere pulled open the curtains on us to find Angel with her hands resting behind her waist and her legs pressed tight together as she leant over to my face while in nothing but a set of black panties and bra. We both turned to the clerk; her face was a bright red. She stumbled over into the change room with us; Angel caught her as she fell. The clerk stuttered as she stared at Angel, holding her in her arms. Until the woman had a sudden rushed outburst and spoke so fast we nearly missed what she said entirely.
“Oh my god your skin, it’s so cold yet so smooth. Your eyes are red, but they shine like diamonds…blood diamonds! Your body is so toned and make everything you put on look amazing! Your confidence is astounding. If I were you, I’d be screaming if someone opened the curtains on me!”
“Oh…Giggle. Thank you, some people are a bit intimidated by how I look.”
“That’s only because they can’t compete with how stunning you are!” she yelled in admiration while I felt completely left out of the conversation as the clerk then handed her more outfits to try on. I looked at my wallet, trying to prepare myself for the emptiness t
hat was soon going to eat away at it. I sighed and fell back against the wall outside while the pair fidgeted with straps and lacings of clothing inside the change room. They stepped out a moment later and Angel knelt in front of me while I sat on the ground.
“What’s wrong? You look upset; I wanted to spend my day with you so please don’t be like this,” she asked with her red eyes staring directly into my eyes and drop of blood leaked down her forehead. I used my finger to wipe it away and stretched my arms behind my head.
“Don’t worry, it’s nothing; that dress looks really good on you by the way,” I quit sulking after I saw her worry about me. The dress she wore was black, decorated with red triangles running down the left side in a line and had an intricately designed floral pattern on the right side of the torso also in red. She thanked me and gave me her hand. I stood up to see the clerk gushing at us.
“Aww you two remind me of how it was when I first started going out with my boyfriend. If you’re worried about the money, then don’t. She can have the clothes for free if she’s up for a bit of modelling. If people see you wearing my clothes, they’ll definitely want some too.”
“You mean it?” I yelled in relief that my wallet may be spared.
“Modelling?” Angel asked curiously.
“She’s giving you a job, Angel! You can have the clothes if you just show them off.”
“That’s right and if you really like it here, I’ll give you an actual job here in the store.” The clerk smiled nervously. Angel’s face lit up with excitement and she lugged up to the clerk asking when she would start. She told us to come back the next morning, but we weren’t done with her for the day just yet.
“Hey, what’s your name?”
“Just call me Em.”
The Red to My Grey Page 3