Chapter Fourteen
When Austin’s eyes opened, this time when daylight shone clearly through the store, she was met with a pair of bright blue eyes, the eyes that had haunted her dreams for years. She stiffened and tried to put distance between them, but the chair pressed into her back. Unless she moved towards him, she didn’t have anywhere to go, “Dustin.”
She clenched her fist and launched it at him, landing the hit on his jaw. He cursed and Austin froze. That wasn’t Dustin’s voice.
“You must be feeling better,” Kai grimaced, rubbing where she had hit him.
“I’m so sorry,” she gasped, straightening up. She brought her knees to her chest and stared at him, “Oh my god, it’s just that your eyes…they look exactly like his.”
“Are you Christian?” he asked suddenly, “You say oh my god a lot.”
“It’s just something people say,” she answered, confused. She hadn’t heard anyone use that phrase yet, but she had assumed that they did, “Aren’t there Christians here?”
“No human religions are-“ he stopped and rephrased what he wanted to say, “We’re Originals because we believe in the Origin story. That’s the religion here. Well, it’s more of a fact, since we know it’s true.”
“Weird,” she shrugged. She didn’t care about that, since religion had never really been her thing, but Kai seemed really interested in it. She wondered what other lessons she would be taught about this world, and how many of them were actually worth listening to.
“You cleaned a lot yesterday, so that doesn’t need doing today,” Kai sighed, still rubbing his jaw, “Could you do a few errands for me?”
She had almost forgotten that Kai was her boss, “Sure. What do you need done?”
“Deliveries,” he said immediately, “And grocery shopping. We’re almost out of food.”
“What kind of food do you want me to get?” she asked. He had better give her money for it. She didn’t think that the pocket change Aiden had given her would cover it.
“Any kind. Can you cook? If you can cook, just get anything you would need,” he said, “And ramen for days that you’re not here.”
“All you eat is ramen?” Austin raised her eyebrows. Sure, she loved junk food, but she ate it in moderation. She didn’t think that eating ramen every day was healthy.
He shrugged and handed her a few bills, “I can’t cook at all.”
“Fine,” she sighed and racked her head for anything she could make. She could make something simple, like spaghetti, and maybe add in a few clams. She probably wouldn’t mess that up, “I’ll be back soon.”
“Take your time,” Kai said. She slipped on a jacket that she didn’t remember having the night before as he nearly pushed her out the door. She had the feeling that Kai was trying to get rid of her.
As she walked through the streets, she couldn’t help but be cautious. She flinched whenever someone jostled her and she watched the streets more carefully than she had done the night before, but maybe what Gary said had some weight to it. The sun, the light, it did make things safe.
She found a small market and picked up what she needed. She wasn’t surprised to see human products, like ramen and macaroni and cheese, among the natural things. Everything here was a mix of human and nature, old and new.
Her arms laden with groceries, she walked back to Kai’s shop. She would pick up the things that she had to deliver, and then she would be on her way again. She pushed open the door and put the groceries in the kitchen. She would put those away later, too.
Austin made her way upstairs, her shoes tapping quietly with every step she took. She could hear voices from upstairs and when she worked her way through the shelves, she saw Kai and another man at his desk.
“Austin,” Kai coughed, stepping away from the man, “You’re back early.”
“I had to get the deliveries,” she said, dazed, “Who is this?”
“Derrick. He’s a-“ Kai said hurriedly, but the man cut him off.
Derrick took her hand and shook it briskly, “Hi, I was just dropping by to ask Kai a favor. I’m an investigator for Brandon, Aiden’s brother, and I have a stack of paperwork that needs doing. It’s for your case, actually.”
“You’re investigating me?” she asked, running her eyes up and down Derrick’s body. His black hair was gelled down, his teeth were a bright white, and he wore a suit. He certainly did look professional.
“I’m working Dustin’s case,” he explained, smiling, “Along with Aiden and a few others. As far as we can tell, you are Dustin’s weak point, so your case coincides with his.”
“I…see,” she nodded and looked back at Kai, “The deliveries?”
“They’re on a table downstairs. Each package has an address written on it I trust you can find your way,” he said. Austin took that as a goodbye, so she nodded and left.
“Now,” Derrick’s voice floated through she shop before she shut the door, “Where were we?”
Her cheeks were filled with a blush as she realized what she had walked in on, or what she thought she had walked in on. She shook her head to clear it and moved on, finding the addresses that matched the ones on the packages.
“My book!” an older woman waved the box around, shaking it, “It’s my book!”
“Your book?” Austin asked. The woman looked sixty, so Austin didn’t even try to wonder how old she really was.
“My life book. My life story,” the woman laughed, walking back into the house, “Tell that storyteller thank you for me.”
“Sure thing,” Austin nodded and walked away, trying to balance the rest of them with one arm. It didn’t work, and she dropped them into the street. Surprisingly, the crowd moved around her, not stepping on any of them.
“Hey,” Aiden said. That explains why no one was trampling her at the moment. He stooped down and picked up the cardboard boxes, “Doing errands?”
“Yeah,” she nodded standing up. She tried to take the packages back, but he didn’t give them.
“I have a few minutes before I head off to my job. I’ll help,” he smiled and Austin caught herself staring. She looked away before he noticed.
“Your job, it’s to find Dustin, isn’t it?” she asked, snatching back one and leaving him to carry the rest, “I met one of your partners today.”
“Derrick?” Aiden asked, but it wasn’t really a question.
“How’d you know?” she smiled, putting the box in her hand into a mailbox.
“You were at Kai’s,” Aiden answered, widening his eyes innocently, “Derrick’s nice. Not my type, but nice.”
“What is your type?” the words burst out of her mouth. Aiden didn’t reply, just looked at her and smirked.
She shook her head and looked away, trying to hide the blush that set across her face. That was something she would’ve been able to ask, had he not had a crush on her. From his silence, she could tell that she hadn’t turned quick enough.
She hoped that things wouldn’t get weird between them. She didn’t know how she could survive without her best friend.
Fledgling Page 15