• 35
• 28
• 4
• • Diamond Log
  • Favorite Log
  • Embed
  • Report

I slowly open my eyes and see the daylight shining in my window. I reach up and touch my face, and then scowl when I realize I had been drooling again. The monotonous beeping of my alarm clock made me cover my ears. I swear, it’s out to get me. My kitten, Muffin, mews. She brushes her fluffy chocolate tail in my face. My room, in all of its gray-walled-glory, has two beanbag chairs in the corner, a giant bookshelf hangs above the bed, and the covers of the twin bed are a mix of gray and blue.

“Give me a minute, Muffin.” I stand and stretch, and Muffin nearly trips me as I walk. I trip and get my shoes on, tie my apron around my waist, and feed my rare chocolate kitty. I place two fingers on my lips and touch them to the picture of my parents.

“Oop! Almost forgot my nametag!” I chuckle to myself. I lock the door to my red mushroom cottage.




I run out the door, not bothering to fix the flyaway hairs. I run past the flog park, where my big brother Silas is with his flog, Sparky. Sparky, Silas’ flog, is a frog-leopard that has brown spots and is as small as a frog. I wave at him and run to the restaurant where I work, Lé Preppy Poet, but the door is locked. The inside looked dark. Why is it closed? I wonder. Then, it hit me. What day is it? It must be Saturday. I facepalm for being so absent-minded.

However, there’s Léonardo, my best friend, leaning against the brick building. “Hey, whatcha doin’ here on a Saturday, M?”

I sighed. I was still trying to figure that out myself. My mind goes to the absence of the word ‘kiddo’ in his speech. He must finally see me as a woman.




“Hmm… What are you doing here?” I ask slyly.

He must see the teasing look in my eye and says, “Well, maybe I wanted to see my favorite waitress.” He winks, and I try not to blush. Swoon! He wanted to see me!




As Léo unlocks the door to the dark building, I get a searing headache. I wince, falling to my knees. My strength is fading. Fast. The last thing I see are Léo’s narrowed eyebrows and soft blue eyes, filled with worry and concern.




***




I groan groggily. I hear voices. Lots of voices. I can feel something scratching the back of my neck. Is that grass? I put my hand on my head, wishing the pain would go away. There’s a hushed whisper about the crowd, a crowd of 30 people who were passing by. I open my eyes and Léo is hovering over me.

“Mercy? Are you okay?” He asks, holding his hand out.

“She’s beautiful…” I hear a guy say.

I want to shout “I’m taken!” But I’m not.

“I’m fine..” I muttered crossly.

“I want to go back to my house… But I can’t drive…” I hear someone else say, a teenager, about 13. He probably wants to play video games. I roll my eyes. Everyone’s silent, but they’re also talking. Unless those are their… thoughts…




***




I wake up in my bed the next morning with Muffin mewling at me.




My head is rushing through the tremendous revelation. I can hear people’s thoughts. I shake my head and run my hands through my hair. Nonononono! I just wanted to be a normal 18-year-old! Why can’t anything be normal and easy… Life was better when I was younger. Like when I was 8… I smile, pausing my panic for a second.




I feed my kitty, shower, get dressed in a sky-blue dress for church, and pour some cereal into a plain white bowl. I sit down at the dining room table, at the head of the table, and smile. My dad had carved this table with his own two hands. It always gave me a magical feeling when I sat in the chairs. I shift a little to avoid the groove in the well-used chair.




***




I hum Amazing Grace as I dress in something a bit more comfy. Sticking with the blue theme, I dress in a ruffled baby-blue crop top and white leggings.

A few hours and a knock at the door later, I see Léonardo. “Hey! Come in, Léo! Can I get you anything to drink?”

“Nah,” he said and plopped down on a wooden chair. “I just wanted to see if you were okay.” Swoon! I avert his gaze. “What?”

“Nothing,” I say, fidgeting with my hair. “Mhm.” He doesn’t sound very convinced… Through the look on his face, I can tell that he’s fighting with his mind, which is surprisingly silent. I sit there and watch him. I don’t realize that I’m staring.

“MJ?” His voice snaps me back to reality. “Huh? Sorry…”

“No, it’s fine. I… I wanted to ask you something…” His eyes locked on mine, “I… have… feelings for you… Do you like me?” A flush creeps up my face. I ignore the question and start to occupy myself by washing the bowl I had used, drying it, and placing it in one of the hanging cabinets.

“Mercy Jane Endal, I need an answer.”

“Desperate, are you?” I raise an eyebrow. “Kind of,” he admits, “since I’m talking to a pretty cute girl.” He winks. “O- oh…” I trail off. “I- maybe…” I sigh and scan the dining room/living room. The soft fluffy white couches with the boho pillows which my mother made… The abstract paintings on the walls that were made by my sister… It makes this cottage feel like a home.







“Something’s on your mind… I can tell.”

I snap back into reality. “Huh? What? Oh, yeah…” I say, feeling a blush creep up my cheeks.

“You don’t have to tell me.” He says innocently. “W- Maybe I want to!” I say.

“Pfft, when did that happen?”

Is he teasing me? Oh, it’s on. Let the flirting begin…

“Ack- you’re killing me!” I smile, pretending to look annoyed.

“So you’re going to faint again?” He falls, and I grab his hand.

“Oh, you do like me!” He grins.

“What? Eww, no!” I say, retracting my hand from his like he had a disease. He falls on his back to the ground with a thud. “That was short-lived.” He mutters, but he still has a contagious grin on his face. I roll my eyes. “Alright,” he sighs and sits down in one of the wooden chairs. “Now what I really wanted to talk to you about.”




***




I brace for a long conversation. “Okay, you might wanna sit down…”

“Oh no…” I whisper under my breath.

Then the dread came… What was about to happen? Léo cleared his throat. “So…” I bite my lip. Léo looks a little nervous. “Um-” I start. “There’s so much more to the elven world than this… I want to explore it with you.” The door opens. It’s Silas. Léo’s face turns a reddish pink and he releases my hands. “Mercy? Um… Did I interrupt something?”

“What?! No no no no! No! We’re not… a thing…” I make motions with my hands to emphasize. Léo’s mouth drops open as if to protest, then he closes it. “Okay, well, I’ll be making lunch, don’t get too… crazy.” He eyes Léo as if he was going to do something, and Léo holds his hands up in surrender. His eyes are wide and his cheeks are red. “I wasn’t going to!” He cries. Turning back to Léo, I say, “Sure, I’d love to. Let me go pack.”

“Wait. Where are you two going?” Silas asks. “And, are you two hungry?”

“Oh, we’re going to explore!” Léo says proudly. I silently, mentally facepalm. “Where? Mercy, you could get injured, you’re not going.”

“Silaaaaaaas!” I cry. Silas shakes his head wildly, his sandy brown hair flopping around on his head, his brown eyes widening in concern. He shakes his head and muses the word “No”.

I sigh again. “Whatever.”











(1347 words not including this)