Caught in the middle. How convenient. Beth's head swiveled between the approaching figures on either side of the alleyway. Expelling a swift breath, slightly panicked and awfully irate at her ill luck, she lifted both hands up and called out, "I don't have much on me." Relishing the calm and strength in her voice, she slowly began to lower her hands. "I'm just going to take off my bag and hand it over." The figure to her right cackled something obnoxious. Beth pulled in a deep, lungs stretching breath. Her toes squirmed in her shoes. The atmosphere was all degrees of tense. The unusual quietness of the night grated at her nerves. Why hadn't she heard it before? On the other street, there was no sound of cars wheezing by. Radio silence. Had she miscalculated the time? Lost her way? Edging her eyes to the corner, she perused the slim, tall figure. Deja vu greeted her again. Subtly turning her head to the left, she scanned the silhouette of the other. The soft light of the moon
Inhale... Exhale... Inhale... Exhale...Her eyes opened a sliver. White. Too white.Darkness took her back in.Her ears caught the hum of faraway chatter. She felt so weak. Fighting to lift her eyelids, she gave up and tiredly resigned herself to listening to the ongoing buzz around her. Something soft pressed against her head. Her brows twitched. Letting out a delayed puff of air, she pushed at her eyelids and was pleased when they lifted. The first thing she saw was blue. Blue walls. Movement to the side caught her attention. Though it was hazy, she could make out the figure of a man fiddling with the curtains. Moments later, bright light flooded the room. She winced and slammed her eyes shut, easing them open again when she felt the bed beside her dip. Through her lashes, she saw a downturned head. Trying to move her mouth, she found that it was uncomfortably dry. "Brandon," she mouthed. His head flew up. "Elizabeth," he breathed. Blinking tiredly, she made to nod. He was besi
Over the next few days, Elizabeth had strictly refused a therapist, choosing to talk to her friends about it instead. She had also made up with Sherlie and had openly admitted to having a new fear of alleyways. How wonderful. Hehe. She was discharged the very next day and whilst she still looked about as coloured as a rainbow, she literally danced out of the place. Hospital beds just weren't it. At all. As soon as they arrived at Brandon's, she forced her sore body out of the car, trudged to her room, threw herself on the bed and clenched her teeth in pain."Elizabeth!""I'm okay," she wheezed. Two days passed and it had began to snow so heavily, the grounds were completely submerged. Companies shut down earlier than expected as the snow took them all by surprise, but it was all in good stride. Christmas was fast approaching, anyway. For once, New york rested. Well, as resting as New York could. Beth breathed with relief that she had gone present shopping weeks earlier. They were o
The first few weeks into the new year was all fun and abandon, but as the time came for the working class to return back to what they did best- work- Christopher included, Elizabeth found herself turning up at bars and clubs in the evenings to sing. Nothing like talent making a way for you. She could tell off Brandon's less than happy smiles that he didn't like it, but she didn't care. Not one bit. Because it wasn't about the money. It was about having something worthwhile to do and being passionate about it. He had surprised her with his presence a few of those nights in show of support, and boasted about her voice like a proud father over midnight ale with his friends. That had meant more to her than she could explain.On a breezy night, while Beth was splayed out on the floor of her apartment, going through the song lyrics for an orphanage she had recently volunteered to sing at, Brandon sat on the couch, typing away on his laptop. Glancing at him every once in a while, she smiled
After dropping the sleeping Mia off at her dad's at the close of day, Beth took a cab to Brandon's on the other side of town. Hauling the numerous shopping bags out of the cab, she waved at the driver and began up his driveway, pausing at the green porche parked there. Did he have company? Trudging the rest of the way to the door, she knocked and waited. When no response came, she knocked again. When there was still no response, she tried the handle. The door gave. Huh. Stepping in, she closed and locked it behind her, looking left and right at the pristine state of the house. Her eyes glanced over and did a double take at the dark blue designer purse sitting on the couch. Dropping the bags she held and taking off her crossbody bag, she went and peeked in the hallway, her body tight for some reason. Glancing back at the bag, she stared at it for a few seconds before stepping into the hallway, and that was when she caught a whiff of a smell that wasn't Brandon's. A smell that was all
When Brandon's eyes came open, the first thing his brain registered was a voice. He drew in a breath and felt his lungs stretch somewhat sorely. Blinking once, twice with his gaze on the white structure, he watched the ceiling, zoning in and out. It wasn't until a blurry face came into his direct line of sight that his mind began the journey back to earth. He watched her smile with a delicacy that reminded him of warmth and fuzziness... And blinked."Brandon?"He blinked again, stalling the easy urge to zone out again."Can you hear me?" Something warm fell to his hand and his fingers jolted. That jolt forced his sight to focus. "Hm?"Her smile burned brighter. "Brandon." She disappeared and was back a second later, helping him sit up. He felt spent with a strange weariness that possessed an undertone of relief. What happened? The rim of a cup was placed on his mouth and he downed the contents like a man starved, not hearing her warnings to go easy. After his third glass, he took th
Laying off office life for a whole week served to be equal parts easier and harder than he thought, realizing just how used he was to the rush of the office. When he could press a button to summon his assistant, at home, he had to reach for his phone and make calls. On the bright side, he had Beth around him and if that wasn't fresh air enough, with all her troubles and contributions, he got to listen to her speak professionally, and boy was that sexy as heck. On Friday, Beth left him alone for the first time that week to go see a long lost friend. One he vaguely remembered her telling him about. It had barely been two hours into her absence and he missed her already. The house was too quiet. Asides Lola who was too busy napping to pay him some attention, he was all alone. And... Oddly, bored, even though he had work to do. Maya Yosef had been a part of Beth and Sherlie's friend group, once upon a time. Her mother died at around the same time Beth's father had. Maya was one of the pe
With Sherlie's hand in hers, Beth watched the city of New York whizz by, brimming with such a high level of excitement, she was in danger of taking off like a rocket. How the day had turned out was nothing short of divine. After arriving at her uncle's place and catching up, not only did he offer a job- which she gladly accepted- he expressed his interest in a certain young, calculated genius. Brandon Wade.All Beth could do in that moment was stare. Because partnering with Glaze inc would be phenomenal! And that was exactly what Micah wanted, but it proved rather difficult for him to get through to Brandon... Until Maya had said with a smirk,"Count this your lucky day, dad. Brandon Wade just happens to be Beth's boyfriend." The first thing Micah did was frown and ask,"Is he treating you well?"Beth laughed tenderly. Because even while one of his goals were being ticked, he still worried about her. She flung her arms around him, hugging him tight."Is this your way of telling me t