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Prelude to a New Tomorrow
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âYou knew it already, didnât you?â
(Current: Yes� No� Maybe so�- 002)
(Previous: Mr. Ruby Eyes-001)
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(003: Sylus Archives(Article: I))
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The coming days have beenâŠwellâŠweird for you, you still did harbour thoughts of Zayne and MC together, crying often at times, but another new thing had occupied your mind as wellâŠYou just couldnât get the man you saw at the auction, you couldnât explain how but it definitely had piqued your interest, and you allowed it to infiltrate your mindâŠit was a pleasant distraction from your constant thoughts about Zayne and MC, after so longâŠ
If only you remembered his name, if only your memory didnât suck
âŠâOi whyâve you been so distracted these days? Is it about Zayne again?â âHmm? Oh no no Iâm goodâŠâ âWell if you say soâŠbut donât shut me out again k? I missed thisâŠâ âOf course, would never make that dumb mistake all over againâŠâ âWell that being said, customer at the Daisies section, is nagging she canât find a single good one, handle it with me?â âTo the rescue lets!â
âŠâWhen are you planning on taking your CBC and Haemoglobin tests again?â âI will I willâŠâ âWhen?? Dude youâve already neglected your health enough, and who knows how much youâve bled when you were at your lowestâŠnow that youâve been doing a bit betterâŠat least I hopeâŠget them, you need to checkâŠplus I know itâs hard but heâs a busy man, he might not be available when your appointment date gets fixedâŠâ, all you could do I nod, âYeah youâre rightâŠIâll goâŠâ
âŠWhen you reached back home that day, your mind pondered about what Raya had said earlier, she was right, you have been planning on it for sometime too, but there was always that part that told you to stay awayâŠIt is Akso after all, and the last thing you want is seeing, them together, holding hands, talking and chatting, her giggling alongside him, going out to lunch or dinner, maybe even dessertâŠtriggering your past memories⊠You thought itâd have been a better choice if they had a complete online, no-call appointment process, but they didnâtâŠyou had to talk to Serene for that⊠ohohoho it was gonna be hella awkward, itâs been five months and neither have you gone there nor talked to any of them. You felt bad, too bad for doing that to SereneâŠespecially Yvonne, you two clicked so well. As you change and freshen up, getting ready to prepare for dinner, you phone beside you, contemplating on whether to dial or not. âItâs for my health! I should just do itâŠcmon cmon cmonâŠâ, you repeated to yourselfâŠaaaand well good job you finally did. Dialling the number, you put it on speaker, while you made dinner. It wasnât too late, around 08:45, like you usually return on Tuesdays. Hopefully they pickâ
âHello this is the reception desk of Akso Hospital, how may we help you?â
ââŠ.Yes Maâam sure, let me check her schedule onceâŠshe has appointments all dayâŠso could you come at around sayâŠ06:00 to 06:30 p.m.?â
âOkay sure, that works for me. Thank youâŠWhere should I proceed with the payment?â
ââŠ.Yes Maâam sure, let me check her schedule onceâŠshe has appointments all dayâŠso could you come at around sayâŠ06:00 to 06:30 p.m.?â
âOn that day itself. Youâve had your registrations done on your number, so all you need to do is speak to the front desk of the specific department, pay your consultation fees and wait till they call you. Standard procedures.â
âThank youâŠâ you want to ask but are too nervousâŠ
âYouâre welcome, is there anything else we can assist you with?â
ââŠHow have you been?â
ââŠAlright, same old same oldâŠyou? Weâve been missing you, didnât think youâd totally cut off tiesâŠâ
âIâm sorry, it just, you knowâŠâ
âYeah I knowâŠanyways Iâd have to cut the call now, but see you on Sunday?â
âYes yes thank you, on Sunday.â
âOh dear Iâm gonna get a looong lecture from Dr. StryxâŠâ
âŠyou eat while your mind goes back to wandering about that man you saw at the auctionâŠwhat intrigued you the most were his eyes and the power they held in themâŠhis nameâŠyou still couldnât recall⊠âSomething with an S? Yea yes SâŠbut S what?â
âŠSunday evening arrives soon, time feels as if itâs passing by too fast, you dreaded today, neither did you want to go, nor get the check upâŠyou sigh as you enter through the automatic doors of Akso, and insideâŠit was like any other usual day, patients, doctors and nurses here and there, stretchers, wheelchairs, the familiar smell of antiseptic, youâd grown used to at some point in your life, but now it all felt too foreign. You smile and greet Serene, as she does too, and walk to your designated place. Fingers crossed hoping you donât run into you-know-who.
âŠOof finally you were done with it, she told you to take care of yourself better and take every medicine and supplement on time, giving two new ones to start with and advised you to continue with your old ones as prescribed before. Writing about the tests to be done in your prescription. Now the question remains when should you do them and with whomâŠMaybe youâll take the break on the first half on a Saturday and take Raya alongâŠyou hate needlesâŠAs you walk along the escalators to the ground floor guess who you run into!
â(Name)âŠitâs been so long, how are you holding up?â
She really had the audacity to ask you that? After everything? Sheâs nice and you admire that about her, but often times sheâs just too nice, and that annoys the heck out of you. Your eyes meet his for sometime as you soon move your gaze awayâŠoh it was gonna bother you tonightâŠ
You smile politely, âIâve been alright thank you. If youâll excuse me Iâll have to leave nowââ
âOh⊠ok alrightâŠ.take careâŠâ, as you leave without sparing them a second glanceâŠ
Why did you have to meet them? You were finally making progress little by little, but then this happensâŠYes you understand you were at the hospital where he workedâŠbut still why why whyâ
You thoughts wander haywire, âWhere were they going, to get coffee? Or maybe early dinner? Maybe to a sweet shop or bakeryâŠhe looked so calm, his gaze was so soft with herâŠnever was the same with meâŠno no no Iâve had enoughâŠI canât not now, not when Iâve been making gradual progressâŠshould I call Raya, sheâs not offf work yetâŠughâŠâ, as you desperately try to shove away any past memories cluttering your mind. You walk ahead and straight, setting your destination to Destiny Cafe, somewhere in the mess in your brainâŠ
You reach the shop, hoping that they wonât be coming hereâŠas you enter, eyes scanning the place, they werenât thereâŠphew... Your eyes stop their search as they fall upon a similar pair of slanty-sharp red eyes, silvery white short hair, and a tallâŠtoo too tall of a figure sitting at the table by the windows, scrolling through his phone, even though his eyes stared down at his phone, you could see the familiar strong presence emanating from within them, that was how powerful their color was. Oh it was himâŠit was him it was him it was himâŠ
You get the sudden urge and curiosity to walk upto him and talk maybe introduce yourself and a word or two? Why? Again you had no answer for yourself, it was something in those eyes that drew you inâŠYou walk in, because of course you canât hog the doorway forever, customers enter and exit at all timesâŠwalking up to the counter you place an order for your usual Boba-drink and find a place to sit, not at your usual, but just a table behind him so that he couldnât see youâŠgirl youâre seeming like a creepy stalker stopâŠSoon you come back with your drink, have it while still contemplating. âShould I go or should I not go?â
Finally as I push you with my words, an invisible urge strikes inside of you, making you stand at your seat and walk over to his tableâŠfuck your palms and feet were sweatingâŠ
âUmm excuse me, helloâŠâ, his eyes fleet up at you, a color of nonchalance painted all over his face. He doesnât seem like the type to initiate a conversation, you thought, so you went ahead.
âHi! Umm Iâm so sorry if I just came here out of nowhere, I usually donât do so promise me, and Iâm so so sorry if itâs creepy, I donât mean any of that. I really just wanted to have a small conversation with youâŠI umm I donât think you remember meâwell of course you donât, there were a lot too many people thereâŠanyways what Iâm trying to get at is I guess, umm I was at the Banquet Hall of Mr. Jamesonâs last to last week, I saw you thereâŠwell actually what happened was that me and my friend, we were there for a delivery service, and he told us to enjoy the nightâŠI donât know why I just told you thatâŠbut yes so I uhh, we were about to leave and I didnât want to leave before I could see the one of the famous things of an Auction event, the bidding so we stayed for sometimeâŠAnd there was a call, starting price 1 Million and you immediately called 5 Million, that intrigued me really, I was like wow! And then I guess our eyes met for a while, but you donât remember probably and I really wanted to get a chance to talk to you and now Iâm here rambling, Iâve probably made you all uncomfortable, Iâm sorry Iâm so so sorryâŠâ, dang girl you rambled on, in one flowâalmostâŠ
He letâs out a small, husky laugh, as he waves his hand, âOkay first of all breatheâŠand secondly, Iâm flattered to hear that I intrigued you~ To answer to another question, yes I do remember you, you were the girls who got the flower bouquets, I had my eyes aroundâŠâ
âPlease sit, you entered the shop thinking how to approach me and talk to me and came all the way from your table after contemplating so hard upon how to do so, Iâm thoroughly impressed.â He smirked slightly, as you sat, feeling embarrassed.
âIâm so sorry if I came out a little too strong, ohhh this is embarrassingâŠsooo Iâm (Name), itâs a pleasure to meet you officially!â, you hold out your hand.
âSkyeâ, he shook it⊠âthatâs it just Skye? But it doesnât bring out the tone I heard at the auctionâŠcould he be lying about his name?â
You see him text on his phone, trying to study his expressions but all you could decipher was that he was texting, you couldnât understand the emotion beneathâŠmaybe he was good at hiding?
âYou said you were intrigued, you might have question flooding your mind? Maybe one like if thatâs my real name, or what you heard at the auction sounded different yet you canât recall itâŠor maybe how to try and read my face as I text.â, he spoke while texting
âDamn heâs good! Fuck I feel like a fool, uhh can I divert or dodge his accusations somehow? I donât wanna look like a creepââ
âItâs okay to be curious, youâre not a creep.â
âAre you a mind reader or something Mr. Skye?â
âWho knows.â, as he stood up, before you could even think of anything else to ask him.
âKeep your question bank to yourself for now, and when we meet again pour them out. And try to recall harder, maybe youâll find your answerâŠâ, he exited through the doorsâŠ
That night when you returned you paces around your room trying to recall what was that you heard at the auctionâŠfinally a pleasant distractionâŠ
âSkylar? NoâŠthatâs like a birdâs nameâŠooo ooo maybe Sans! âŠnope nope nopeâŠSteven? Not even close⊠it was like a âshhhâ soundâŠlike a âshhhh-iâŠshyâŠâ shy? Ughhhhhh!â
You take the help of your trusty old friend, âthe Internetâ, typing âRich business man names starting with the word SââŠyou read out most of them, some do fit, others simply ruin your moodâŠYou search up until, 01:30 in the morning, that was when you started getting sleepyâŠbut you didnât want to give up just yetâŠyour bed was a mess, food pieces here and there, pages from your notepad lying around, having scribbles on them everywhere, pen thrown across the bed in frustration, when google literally gave you a search list of eligible bachelors in your area who are businessmenâŠYou get up to clean everything up, yawning to yourselfâŠwhile you mind was still reeling over the names, seeing if their tones hit the right vibeâŠbut none didâŠYou soon closed your laptop, keeping it away in itâs proper place as you get to bedâŠ
âŠâShyâŠShyâŠShyâŠshylâŠit had an L for sureâŠshileâŠno no a YâŠshyâŠâ âShylock!â, you shout out as Raya looks over at you from the section where the Iris flowers were arranged at display, âHuh?â âOh nothing just nothingâŠâ âSo you randomly yell out Shylock in the middle of the day and claim itâs nothing? Youâre lucky itâs our break time, and no customers are here.â âNothing nothing just something I rememberedâŠâ âAbout the Merchant of Venice?â âNo leave it, do your job.â, as she goes back to neatly arranging them, while you go back to pondering while you eatâŠ
âOh btw! Oi Raya listen.â âHmm?â âI have my CBC and Haemoglobin tests this SaturdayâŠdude please accompany meâŠyou know how much I fucking hate needlesâŠâ âYeah sure Iâll be free Iâll goâŠâ
That night a flicker of something strikes you while you were eating dinner. âSylus! Yes! That was it! Sylus something surname, not important but yes! Now the question remains why did he hide his true nameâŠâ, you were almost done with dinner as you quickly finish up and in your bedroom you dash off to, opening your laptop to search⊠âSylus business manââŠ
As you read the results gaining info about him, well the one publicly available, then thereâs also some Govt. sites but you donât open them⊠âHeâsâŠone of the most feared and successful mafia leaders of the N109 ZoneâŠhead of Onichynus, richy rich richâŠwhatâs that? Probably the name of his organisationâŠemmm emmmâŠwowâŠthe Linkon City police are all after him, but nobody knows about his whereaboutsâŠwell I do nowâŠmakes sense why he has an aliasâŠIâm freaking out too, I might seem calm, but I amâŠI talked to the guy, what if heâs planning to execute meâŠcuz I found out his identityâŠwhat if heâs watching me nowââ, you look around your roomâŠwell duh even if he was you wouldnât see a drone or something thing in plain sight just zooming around⊠ââwhat do I do nowâŠdo I tell the police? No no no Iâll get takenâŠshould I tell RayâŠsheâll freak out, best not toâŠhe did say weâll meet again, maybe he knows about my locationâŠdammit why did I ever go upto himâŠ!â
âŠSaturday arrives. âI think I mightâve gotten a good bone bruise in my right handâŠâ âIâm sorryâŠIâll buy you coffee as compensationâŠâ âThatâs a sweet offer but Iâll have to decline, got a call from my mum, have to go now, my nephewâs coming over so gotta take him to the parkâŠâ âoh! Well goodbye thenâŠtell them I said hi! Text me when you reach.â âWill do!â, as she walked in the other direction, while you head towards the coffee shop, dreading each step, as you felt a ominous ring to the idea of going thereâŠwhat if heâs there and he takes you awayâŠwell maybe not in broad daylight but still. Suddenly your mind reels off to Zayne, since youâve always relied on him and his presence whenever you felt uneasy or scared or anxious, it always calmed you down, although now that you think about it, it was all out of compulsion, always has beenâŠSo you have two options to yourself, go home and cry about Zayne, orrr go to the coffee shop and meet your probable doomâŠ
âLatter sounds better, at least the chances are highly unlikelyâŠI mean if heâs a mafia leader, heâs probably out to do something there, whatever it maybeâŠâ
So you head in the direction of Destiny Cafe, plus you would like to blame your Destiny for putting you in such a messâŠ
You were just about to enter as you see a similar figure looming over you, eyes glued to his phone, entering at the same time⊠âUh ohâŠthis is itâŠâ
You watch him take his seat, where he sat earlier and you quickly avert your gaze, hoping heâd not notice youâŠand walked over to your usual seatâ
âIâm assuming youâve figured out.â
ââŠif I say anything will I be hurt?â
âThat depends on your next action, which will determine the result whether you will be or wonât. It is as simple as a causal-effect relationship.â
You donât speak any more, youâre genuinely scaredâŠ
âCome on sit, maybe we can have a deal and arrangement to see which path you lead to.â
You go obeying, sitting across him.
âNowââ, his eyes still glued to the phone, âPlace your offers and Iâll see what can be done.â
âB-But I donât have enough money on me now, only a couple hundred bucks andââ
He suddenly breaks out laughing, in that similar deep, husky voice of hisâŠ
âThat was fun.â, he looks up from his phone. âLook I donât know how to make you convinced, but Iâm not going to hurt you or anything, youâre not on my radar.â
âSo you do have targets!â
âSeldom, but yes. Also a bit softer please, youâll scare the whole cafe like thisâŠor maybe even give them the wrong context.â
âYou wonât harm me rightâŠ?â
âWhat if I tell the police?â
âIâll be gone before you ever get the chance.â
âWhy do you dress like some sort of frat boy street biker guy aesthetic?â
âMaybe because I do have a bike.â
âYes Iâll get some drinks for usâŠâ
After sometime he brings them to your table, your usual Boba flavour that you get, and an Americano-Large for himselfâŠ
âI told you Iâm keenly observant. Iâm not stalking you if thatâs what you think.â
âWhat if you added something in my drink or poisoned themâŠâ
âWell unless I had magical, invisible substances on me, or the barista was my subordinate, I couldnât have done soâŠâ
âSo the barista is your subordinate?!â
He sighed, rubbing his temple, âAt this point Iâll just let your imagination run wildâŠâ
âIâm not gonna drink it still.â
His earlier tone seemed to be quite believable, but you still had your doubts, heâs a criminal, he can fake emotions and tones like itâs a piece of cake.
âLook listen, the last day you had ordered and I heard it.â
âYou remembered it becauseeeeâŠâ
âI knew today would come.â
âNow youâre being all creepy againâŠâ
âOk ok I sincerely apologise, do ask me whatever you want to ask me.â
âWhat business do you deal in?â
âWoah straight-forward. Iâm in a successful fruit selling business, Iâm a real good fruit vendorâŠâ
You take a sip of your drinkâŠ
âAnd Iâm supposed to believe that? I wouldnât even have believed that if you told it last timeâŠâ
âWell sweetheart, I canât go on spewing my real profession now can I, you searched it yourself, the police are after me.â
As you both drink in silenceâŠit was awkward for you, maybe not for him. He takes out his phone and texts. You canât help but ask.
ââŠYouâre telling your henchman the time and place to take me hostage arenât youâŠâ
âVery creativeâŠbut as a matter of fact, Iâm texting my âBestieâââ
Pffft Bestie? That sounded funny in his voice.
âIs that a codeword forââ,
He letâs out a hearty chuckle and sighsâŠfinally showing you the phone and itâs contents as wellâŠit was a chat opened, with many messages, here and there with the username of the other person saved as, âKittenâ, huh weird? Itâs funny, also kinda cringeâ
âIâm sorry for suspecting you but Iâm still suspecting you.â
âIâm fine with that.â
âŠSo that was how your second meet went, he was a bad guy(?) but at least he had a sense of humour.
âIsnât it only fair that you tell me your profession too, since I told you mine.â, he spoke as he stood up from his chair, smirking.
âYou know mine, you did say it last day, me and my friend came to deliver the bouquets.â
âMhm so youâre a delivery person?â
ââŠI donât want to tell you but then again you already knowâŠIâm a florist, I work at a flower shop atâno not telling you that no no. Besides you lied about your job.â
âWell you know the truth. See you.â, he left
It grew amusing and kind of concerning to you? As over the next few weeks, youâve had both your third and fourth meetings as well.
Your third meeting was uncalled for too, meeting at the same place, âDestiny Cafeâ, cuz of course, you have such great luck and Destiny. He entered while you were munching onto their star shaped rich buttery cookies, as they would just melt inside your mouth with every bite. It was such a delicate and sweet taste, making you want to gobble down more and more and more.
âHello.â, he sat down.
Your mouth filled, you quickly, try to chew and gulp, while wiping it with a napkin.
âEasy easy there, no rush. Iâm not leaving so soonâ
As you finish it up and take a sip of your Boba, âSorry, excuse meâŠhow did youâŠyou know what doesnât matter. Iâll be nice to you.â
âWhatâs with the sudden change in attitude?â, he speaks while keeping that smirk on his face, you swore it never leftâŠ
âI gave a little girl a yellow rose and she hugged me.â
âYouâre always texting, is it always your best friend?â
You drum against the table a bit, not knowing what else to ask or sayâŠ
âThe Lavenders were really fresh by the way, thank you.â
âI never gave youâoh! So you were one of the special guests of Mr. Jameson?â, of course he was.
âIs he a part of your organisation?â
He chuckles, âHeâs a stand-alone businessman, dealing in Protocores and Aether Cores. Know what they are?â
ââŠWhy did you pick the name Oni-dot dot dot?â
âYou know why did you pick that specific name for your organisation?â
âI have no answer to that.â
âI wanna show you to the flower shop.â, he looks up from his phone upon hearing that, those red eyes, casting a spell of determination within yourselfâŠ
âIâll be honoured then.â, he said with a smile.
âMaybe on our fourth meet up?â
âSure.â, you offered him the last two of your cookies.
âArenât they so good!â
âMhm. You have good taste.â
âIâll have to leave now, get up early tomorrow, weâre having new shipments arrive. When can I meet you again?â
âWorks for me, I leave early on Thursdays. Soooo here at Destiny Cafe?â
âHere at Destiny Cafe.â
âBye!â, as you leave.
Failing to see the soft smile that you had casted upon his lipsâŠnow what might that indicateâŠ
You were at work the next day, it was a Wednesday, itâll be a long day and itâs going to be hectic, with the shipments coming inâŠyet you felt light, it was a strange sensation but it was definitely welcomedâŠ
âGirlll!â âYes?â âWhat are you daydreaming about? The things are here, cmon letâs go look to them.â âOh yes.â
âŠâIs there something bothering you?â âNope.â
Thursday came around very quickly and heck were you excited! You were really excited, you didnât register why but you wereâŠbut you had to keep your guard up, heâs still a dangerous man (?)âŠas you walk towards the cafe, it was a pleasant eveningâŠthe streets bustling with people. âHello!â, you greet him as he stood in front of the coffee shop. He looked up from his phone into your eyes, with a sly smile, âSomeoneâs excited.â
âYou bet I am! I donât know why thoughâŠthe fact that you could still k*dnap me remainsâŠâ
âI wonât.â, he sighs.
ââŠAre we getting coffee first? Letâs take those biscuits on the go! We can eat while we walk.â
âŠThe both of you walk along the streets of Linkon, which were brilliantly illuminated by the street lights. It was a new moon day, so the moon wasnât visible in the sky. As you both chew and walk alongâŠ
âSooooooo itâs down Hashcrew Lane, which we e reached as we speakâŠaaaand taaadaaah! This is where I work, I love this placeâŠâ
âYeppp and thanks, although we are planning on renovating the shop.â
ââŠWhy do I have a feeling you already knew..â
âThe bouquets also came with your shopâs business card.â
âAhh I shouldâve figured it out. That oneâs on meâŠwhy didnât you tell me earlier though?â
âI wanted you to trust meâŠbesides you are always too paranoid.â, he says with a slight chuckle, eating the last of the cookies.
You felt a smile creep up to your face as wellâŠ
On the way back, he nudges you slightly, âSo you finally trust me now, donât you?â
âYes? No? âŠMaybe so?â.
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(All credits, TW, Index have been mentioned on the Storymode page.)
