|•| DESIRÉE DOYLE |•|The more I willed myself to move forward, the harder the searing pain clawed at the inner walls of my stomach, clenching my abdomen so hard and weakening my legs that it almost brought tears to my eyes. My back and my waist hurt so badly that I was tempted to think the ache came with a needle-like pain.Through my peripheral vision, I could see Tania shooting me one of her death glares, and it almost made me shrink into a ball underneath her heated gaze. She was staring at me and these unspoken words were hanging between us.She was telling me a lot through our locked gazes. I needed no soothsayer to tell me that she was screaming at me in her head to get my ass together and work.I reluctantly peeled my eyes off her when her gaze got too unbearable. I walked over to the Coffee dispenser and whipped up a cup of Espresso, fished out two freshly baked bagels and Croissants, and set them on the tray.A wave of dizziness hit me and the incessant throbbing in my abdom
|•| IRIS CORTEZ |•|'For how long are you going to keep it all bottled up?' the question posed at me by my subconsciousness that chose to creep in when I least expected it caught me off guard and elicited a frown from me.The anger that brewed within me tripled in folds, swirling like a volcano that threatened to consume me and I found myself tearing my boxing gloves off my hands, and tossing them into the laundry basket.Sweat trickled down my face, drenching the thick material of my sports bra and I found myself peeling off the small material, followed by my joggers. I threw both of them into the hamper, stomping into the bathroom to take a shower.I knew staying too long in the shower would leave me dwelling on the thoughts I desperately wanted to shove into the deepest part of my mind. The same thoughts that had me choosing to get my anger out of my system by using a punching bag, but it only left me more furious than I was.I strutted out of the shower, grabbing two towels, wrapp
|•| ANDRÉ BAUDELAIRE |•| The brazen music that threatened to strip the building off its foundation faded into the back of my mind when I waltzed out of the bar, pushing my head backwards—more like I was trying to push my hunger to the back of my mind and dabble in something that could distract me.But then, I knew it was only a matter of time before I allowed it to take over me, wield me and use me as a weapon. It was very ironic how I was trying to keep it together, yet I couldn't resist grabbing a drink in a confined bar that crawled with weak humans, baring their necks to me and beckoning at me with the thought of having just a bite.It was hard to stay sane in such a loud environment where I drowned in the rhythm of the heartbeats of adrenaline-pumped humans that I wanted more than nothing than to rip their skin off with my fangs and drain them of every drop of their blood.The moon soaked the quiet streets of Nocturneville with its glow, illuminating every inch of the vast surro
|•| DESIRÉE DOYLE |•|My fingers were working on the keyboard of my laptop at a speed that terrified even me. It almost made me feel like I was levitating, pouring out each word that swirled in my head non-stop, bobbing the soft music that flowed through my earbuds.But all of a sudden, one of the buds was yanked out of my ear, eliciting a frown from me, and halting my work. I swung my head up and was met with a grinning Iris who was tossing a chip into her mouth."Hey!" I chided her, "I was working!" I frowned.My best friend only let out an eye roll that indicated that she couldn't be bothered by what she just pulled off. She hadn't wiped her makeup off her face and her hair was still tightly locked in a bun. The only thing that had changed was the sports bra she was clad in and a pair of baggy sweatpants."What?!" I shot at her when I saw that she was still grinning at me. I pushed my laptop aside, tucking my hair behind my ear."Oh, relax, will you?" she huffed."Iris, I swear to
|•| DESIRÉE DOYLE |•|I flipped onto the next page of the book in my hands, curling into a ball underneath the covers, shoving Doritos aggressively into my mouth while I thinned out the rest of the world, completely immersed in the book. It was funny how I had read two books today and was on my third.The first was around midnight. I had finished my chapters around one, and I couldn't sleep anymore. So, I decided to play around with the book one of the broken series. 'One more chapter' that was what I told myself until I read through the night, looking like a zombie the next morning.Oh, well, and the second, I kind of didn't pay attention in my classes today and I might have been absent-minded at work, stealing some time to myself to read and complete the second book breezily.The third and last book was the most complicated because of how high the stakes were, and let's not forget the numerous mind-fucks and plot twists. It was compelling, addictive and thought-provoking."I must be
|•| DESIRÉE DOYLE |•|It didn't dawn on me how much of a bad idea this whole thing was until Iris was pulling over in the parking lot that wasn't far from the grandiose frat house, that struck me like it was going to come collapsing alongside its foundation because of how loud the music in there was. For a fleeting moment, I found myself wondering how deafening it would be inside this house if the noise was this much outside.Not only did my breath quicken, my palms grew sweaty and my stomach churned with nerves that made me feel like I was about to throw up any moment from now. Heck, I could have sworn I felt my hands rock with tremors. I was also subtly—okay, totally irritated at the thought of being sandwiched in a space filled with horny students and reeked of alcohol, drugs and sex."Oh, wipe that bored off your face. We are here to have fun!" Iris chided me playfully and I forced a smile on my face, rolling my eyes."I don't look bored," I defended myself with a huff, stepping o
|•| DESIRÉE DOYLE |•|"Look who grew wings!" the bunch of losers all huddled up beside the arched window that led into one of the lecture theatres whistled at me, causing me to tug harshly at the hem of my dress, miraculously hoping that it would grow a few inches.My cheeks flushed in embarrassment and irritation simmered through my veins, clashing with the surges of anger that brewed within me."Would you mind bending just a little?!" one of them yelled, but I didn't give a response to them or the snickers that were directed at me by other students lurking in the hallways. Instead, I quickened my steps in a haste to get out of there, wrapping my arms around myself.A strong sense of revulsion gripped me in the guts when the breeze swayed my dress a little. I didn't know what was more triggering. The catcalls and dirty stares I had been getting all day or the incessant echoes of the cruel words he hauled at me because of my dress choice, that night, at the party.I cursed inwardly, fi
|•| DESIRÉE DOYLE |•|I might have forgotten just how breathtaking the neighbourhoods in Nocturneville could look in the evening. To be quite frank, if you wanted to bask in the allure and sheer beauty of the streets, evening, during sunset, couldn't have been more of a better choice.It was simply exhilarating to soak in the sight of the seemingly quiet surroundings that were bathed in the colourful glow of the sky, which struck me as the brush strokes of a painter on a canvas. A perfect blend of orange, red, pink and purple augmented the beauty of the green trees that occupied each side of the road, morphing into an aesthetical view I wanted to capture on paper or camera and ogle at it for the rest of eternity.The atmosphere, although eerily cold, was quite serene and allowed me to gather my thoughts. Thoughts I had been desperately trying to tuck somewhere and pretend they didn't exist. I had drowned it in work, getting busy, so I wouldn't get the chance to think, but I knew it was