Exelle..."Hello Jules, did you ever receive a call from Sam?" I asked Jules from the other end of the line as I paced anxiously in the middle of my office. I couldn't seem to sit still."There's none. And it's already been a month since the last call I had with her. What's the matter?" Jules replied from the other line, and I found myself biting my nails in nervousness."She called me last week to meet me at Dereko's Cafe, but after two hours, she didn't show up. Then later, I received a message from her saying she couldn't make it suddenly." I relayed everything to the person on the other end of the line. I pressed my lips together after responding to her, bringing my finger to my mouth, biting my nails due to the sudden rush of anxiety in my chest."Last week? But now, you haven't received anything from her again? That's not like Samara at all. But Xielle, don't worry o
Exelle ...Lies.Could it be a lie?"What do you mean he's in Italy? I mean, I saw him with my own two eyes. And I'm sure it was Alexis. I'm not blind or anything, and of course, I'm sane enough not to see some certain illusion. Besides, it's not a hallucination or whatever you may call it." I spoke continuously, then paused. Taking a deep breath, I continued, "I really did see him. I clearly saw him that night! I clearly—hah."I gasped for air, closed my eyes, and gave a smack on my own forehead before letting out a deep sigh through my slightly parted lips. I rested my body on the desk and looked up at the ceiling with barely open eyes. This was all so confusing, and I didn't like it.The anxiety that my thoughts about Alexis may have gone awry bothered me. I felt nauseous and paranoid."I don't like this, Elle," his musky voice whispered from the other line. He was calling me Elle again. Even though we hadn't met each other in person, or maybe we did, but I just couldn't remembe
Exelle..."So, this is the so-called twist?"As I scanned the pictures in my hands, my eyes turned colder. The images led me to my brightly lit laptop screen, which felt like a block of ice, leaving me cold and lost. It was as if my soul had turned into a dreary vapor, even after feeling cold.The ridiculous twist of fate turned into an unheard whisper in the wind."Lex..." I murmured his name.I miss you.I like you.And I'm so glad that I didn't fall for you.Yet, I almost did."How am I supposed to trust people when even you have gone sideways? Or maybe, from the very start, I shouldn't have accepted you. What an insane idea of mine." I chuckled bitterly to myself.How am I supposed to react? It's not like I knew his intentions from the start.Ah. Really?I guess I still lack something. I guess Exelle
Exelle..."Xielle, do you remember what I told you about our family's hidden paradise?"I heard my father's voice in front of me. I was currently reading a book while sitting on the sofa in the lounge of my father's office at MON. I had come here to escape my mother's attempts to seize my peaceful time by leaving the house. I lifted my head to face my father, who was smiling as he watched me.His dark hair, neatly combed, matched his hazelnut eyes, which reflected brightly in the sunlight. They were the same eyes that Hans had, and I loved them the most. My father was a human copy of Apollo, which must have been why my mother fell for him deeply.How I wished I had some of my father's genes so that I could look like Apollo's child too.My classmates from elementary and high school used to debate whether I w
Exelle..."Xielle, did you know? I don't really trust that childhood friend of yours," Samara hissed, her nose crinkled in annoyance. She was glaring at Rylie, my childhood best friend. I didn't understand why she didn't like Rylie, but I couldn't help but laugh at her expression, which looked kind of cute."Why is that? She's kind, isn't she?" I replied, trying to convince her with a bright smile.We were currently at the academy's football field. This would be our last year in high school, so we were spending most of our time lying on the grass carpet that covered the field. We watched Jilles, our boy best friend who was the twin of another friend, Jules, practice while Rylie was in the hallway talking to another student."I find her an
Exelle..."How about you go rest, Ms. Kim?" I heard Audrey's concerned voice as she handed me a cup of chamomile tea that she brewed.I looked up at her.Rest?I didn't know if I could even take a rest for myself.I knew there was a lot of work to do, and the rest seemed unimaginable at this hour. I blew a breath before sipping the hot chamomile tea, which blessed my cold stomach and nose with its fragrant aroma.I placed the cup on the coffee table in front of me."It's already been a month since the funeral, but Miss, you should rest, even just for a day," Audrey repeated as she poured another batch of tea into my cup.So, it's already been a month.The death of my friend was announced as a closed case. I glanced at my desk where papers about my work were piled up. One of them was a white envelope placed on top of the stac
Exelle . . . "The scapegoat has been caught." I heard Dark's words from the other line. Scapegoat? "What do you mean by that? Is it really a murder?" I asked, my eyes wavering as I watched the news airing on the screen. I hadn't noticed that a different news segment was playing on the TV until Dark answered my question. I didn't care about the news on the TV; all I wanted to hear was Dark's next words. "Stay away from Riguera, Elle." Those were his parting words before ending the call. The ringing of my phone echoed in the room, accompanied by the voice of the newscaster from the TV. I stood there, blankly staring at my phone's screen as it turned black. "Alexis..." I murmured his name, wondering what I would do if I saw him again, appearing in front of me. *** I raised an eyebrow, trying to control the u
Exelle . . . I quietly look at him as my gaze waver without me noticing it. I hummed in response. Deep inside me, I now realized that the thought of acting affectionate with him made me sick. Why did I trust someone who showed no feelings for me in the past? We did have a history, but we were only connected through painful memories from years ago, and those memories still haunted me. If I think about it, aside from the fact that I knew him in the past, I only got to know him through Rylie. I pressed my lips together, not minding that he was watching me. If I spoke now, it felt like I would choke on my own words. It suddenly felt suffocating, but I didn't show it. His eyes still held tenderness, but when he said he was sorry, there was no sincerity in it. Dark's evidence against Alexis clearly showed that he