The sight before him was like a celestial meal set upon a silver platter. Her shiny dark tresses cascaded around her in a disarray. Her petite figure was garbed in a long loose sleeved white nightgown. Her doe eyes shone brightly with unshed tears, and oh how he longed to taste them as he had days ago in the corridor.He had tasted the years of heartache in her tears.perhaps we have something in common, we're both broken individuals.He shook his head at such thoughts, warning thoughts of unease. Telling him to stop what he was doing.No! I'll have what I want, I always do and always will."W-What are y-you doing here?" Her soft voice lets out in quiet shock.He enjoys that dulcet melody of her feminine voice, as he closed the door behind him, bolting it without looking away from her. Fearfully, her gaze trails behind him at the door before connecting with his again.She grows rapidly angered. "Get out of my room! How dare you?! Get out!!"He suppresses the urge to chuckle at what h
Hazel -You're much more enduring than this Hazel!Don't allow despair to chew you up, swallow you in and spit you out as misery. Prevent repeating such a vicious cycle all over again.Just another week and you'll make it out of here, away from that psycho.Yet my reflection in the mirror remains cloaked by tragedy. I wondered if anyone else saw the debris of shame and guilt cemented all over my countenance. I pondered if it was only the mirror reflection bearing such abject secrets. An immense part of me was concerned over the revelation of my shameless behavior three days ago. I viewed myself as a complete tragedy for the past three days."Are you ready yet?" Katie's voice emanates through the closed bathroom door, obstructing me from my vague scrutiny."Just a sec!" I call out, as I finish pinning the rest of my hijab. I cast my eyes down at the basin while tucking in the last pin, so I wouldn't get carried away by my guilty reflection again.After three days spent self-mourning, I
What the heck are these people doing here?I peer over the chair and see them headed toward Freddie Cortes's Muslimah apparel line. I briefly wondered how they managed to afford tickets to such an expensive fashion event. They must have driven baba nuts over it.The unknown woman begins to discuss with mister Cortes and I overhear some o f it."young lady, Najma Kashani has won a trip here from her school as a 3rd runner up of their beauty pageant."To my horror, an employee is gesturing towards the area where I hid, for Nimra to take a seat. Dreading my revelation, I hastily crawl behind the snack trolley and then manage to clamber behind one of the tables stands holding folded hoodies. I resume peering over at them while the long tablecloth hid me from their view."Pssst! who are you hiding from?" Asks a low female voice right next to me. "You'll get that dress dirty like this!"Completely startled I come face to face with Rachael, crouching low next to me. Except she's missing her
Hazel's Pov "I'm only going through with this soirée so Vladimir doesn't suspect a thing and then I plan on running away temporarily with Tommy," Katie reveals to me as we are both preparing in her room to head downstairs for her courting banquet and ball."What?" Confounded, I can only but gape at her. "Temporarily running away?""Yeah, it would, unfortunately, be temporary since Vladimir would find me easily." She rolls her eyes in apparent vexation of him. "So what's the point of running away if it's temporary?" I query while adjusting my peach-pink-colored hijab in the vanity mirror.She completes applying the last coats of lipgloss and then answers. "So that Tommy and I could get married quick and then Vladimir can't kill him for touching me because I may end up getting pregnant. So obviously my brother won't want me to raise a child without a father present."Instead of meeting her gaze in the mirror, I speechlessly look directly into her eyes with raised brows. She pouts in d
Hazel -The morning of my birthday, I didn't expect to wake up to a room filled with teddy bears in varying shapes and shades. Initially, a warm smile stretches on my face as I think of how endearing Rachael is for setting up this early morning birthday surprise.I leap out of bed and rush downstairs for a quick thank you before I could return to shower and pray. Once I arrive at the kitchen, I'm welcomed by the dulcet aromas of baked pastries."Good morning birthday girl!" Mrs. Agnelli greets candidly as she inserts into the oven, a tray of Red Velvet Nutella Stuffed Cookies. "Look at the early morning delight for your birthday.""Good morning Mrs. Agnelli!" I survey the kitchen islands in amazement and recognize a few of the dessert dishes set on them.There is Caramel Banana Cream Tiramisu, Funfetti Cake, Creamy Eggnog Bars, and Chocolate Éclair Squares."You didn't have to go through all of this trouble for me!" I marvel as I embrace her in a quick tight hug."You didn't have to g
"I can't believe we got out of security so easily !" I marvel as we clamber into a taxi."Told you they wouldn't recognize us!" Bev reminds, a satisfactory smile on her heavily make-up-caked face. "I didn't attend cinematic Makeup school for nothing!""She's a refined cosmetologist alright!" Katie agrees.The three of us were caked in specialized theatre makeup, I was the one with the lightest makeup actually. Both Bev and Katie wore black-haired wigs while I wore a blonde one over my hijab.Our clothes were entirely different from the ones we had entered the building with, albeit mine was still covering all necessary parts of my body.All three of us wore black shades over our eyes. I found it odd that no security guards displayed the slightest a mount of suspicion. Bev, a month earlier had rigged and sabotaged the security cameras on her apartments floor.She had managed to befriend some security personnel, and they had shown her around the surveillance camera room, after which she'
HAZEL -I awoke startled by a banging noise of some sort. My vision is blurry as I spot some figure slowly approaching me. Gradually my vision begins to clear and I stare in horror at the figure before me."Rise and shine bįtch," Ilona greets with evil merriment.I try sitting up, but realize my hands and legs are bound by duct tape and rope. Even my mouth is sealed by the tape. My eyes frantically flit about in search of Bev and Katie. Where were they?I find myself sitting on a bed in an empty room with the exception of Ilona. Sunlight pours in harshly from one of the ceiling-to-floor windows while the rest are concealed by drapes."You thought you'd get away with ruining everything I had with Vladimir?" Ilona questions in an eerie disquietude.I merely blink up at her in a mixture of confusion and fear. She begins to inch closer and I try shifting away."Three years I spent trying to make him love me back and it nearly happened until your filthy Muslim áss interfered!" She shouts
Vladimir's POV in third person"I'll tell you, I'll tell you!" A man howls in terrified agony. Sounds of bones splintering, ricochet throughout the walls of a drab room. "Please!!"Like a demon of perdition, looms over him a raven black-robed figure. His face was obscured by a silver mask, with the exception of analytical blue eyes assessing his prey below.The wounded man shrieks as another one of his fingers are fractured by the brutal force of black-gloved hands. "Please!!!!"Gradually the hooded-robed figure straightens and glides to a far corner. His victim wails over the lurid sight and sensation of his broken hands. Apprehensive seconds later, the robed figure returns to his prey. Under the flickering lights, a gleam of silver flashes in a black-gloved hand.His victim's eyes widen in horror when he notices the butcher's knife. Body rendered immobilized by ropes, the wounded man's attempts to scoot away on the putrid floor fail. "No! Please don't!! Please!"Seeps from under the