A Touch of Scarlet

26

[ 4:30 pm ]

"What are you doing?" Valentina asks.

I jump and turn to face her,

"How did you get in here?!".

She points to the wide open window.

"I really need to ask Carter to put a better lock on that thing" I murmur.

"What are you doing" she repeats, gesturing to the clothes thrown carelessly all around the room,

"I'm trying to pick an outfit"

"I figured" she says, a slight smile appearing on her face.

"I'm going on a date"

Her bright blue eyes widen, "with who?"

"A guy from my art studio"

"What's his name?" She asks, surprise clear in her voice.

"Nick"

"Hmm"

"What?"

"Nothing" she says quickly.

"I need help"

She walks towards my closet and starts to riffle through the clothing.

After a few minutes she pulls out and passes me a spring dress, "put it on".

"Yes ma'am" I reply simply,

As soon as the outfit is on I walk towards my full length mirror.

The blue and white patterned dress clings nicely to my chest,
then loosens around my hips and falls in a loose swirl to my mid-thighs.

"Perfect" we chime in Union, I turn to face her and we both burst into short fits of laughter.

"You know for an old woman in a teenage body your pretty great"

Her smile turns into a deadly glare.

"Umm to soon?" I ask with a shoulder shrug and a small smile,

She rolls her eyes and gives me a small smirk.
"You look great, what are you two doing?" She asks, brushing off the earlier comment.

"I'm pretty sure we're going out for dinner somewhere then he's dropping me off at Carter's,

"Fun, can you text me when you get home safely?" she asks.

"Um okay" I reply.

⋆⋆⋆

[ 6:45 pm]

"Can I please get an order of Szechuan Chicken Lettuce Wraps?" I ask the young platinum-blonde waitress.

The blonde woman gives me a nod and quickly scribbles down my order.

I glance across the table at Nick who sits across from me. When I notice that he's still looking down at his own menu I lean towards the waitress.

"Can the chicken be undercooked please?" I ask quietly,

The woman gives me a strange look.

"Ma'am are you aware that chicken can carrie diseases when undercooked?" She whispers back, her gaze darting quickly to Nick then back to me.

"Please?"

"Sure ma'am I'll tell the chef" she says, her tone uncertain.

"Thanks" I give her a smile.

"Are you ready sir?" She asks Nick patiently,
"Yes, can I get a Cheddar Bacon Burger?"
The waitress gives a quick nod, adds his order to her list and walks off.

"So" he says,

"So" I repeat.

"Tell me something about yourself",

I smile, "how cliché".

"What? I actually want to know",

"Okay well ... I got into a serious car accident this past fall and since then I've been living in-between my friends houses"
"Were you alright?"

"I'm alright now"

"Good. What friends have you been living with?"

"One of my childhood friends named Carter, and a couple other guys that share an apartment that I'm really close friends with".

"Should I feel competitive that your living with a bunch of guys?" He asks sarcastically,
I pause and give him a mocking smile "no".

"Good" he says with a short laugh.

"I forgot to order something" he states suddenly,
"Do you want me to call the waitress over?" I ask.

"No it's alright I'll go deal with it myself, just wait here" he says, before getting up and walking towards the kitchen.

Before he walks out of my sight I notice a small bag in his right hand with some sort of purple-ish coloured plant leaf in it.

Weird.

⋆⋆⋆

[ 10:15 pm ]

Everything burns.

I look around, taking in my dark surroundings.

What the hell is going on?

I rack my brain for memories of how I could've gotten here.
The pain is unbelievable, it's as if I've swallowed liquid fire.
I attempt to lift my head but end up sliding lower down the wall, that I now lean against.
I was on a date, at "Cactus Club".

With Nick.

The waitress had brought us our food ...

I'd happily bitten into the meal that I'd ordered. I rack my brain for what could have led up to this. My head burns as I try to recall the details of the meal.

I let out a yelp as the pain worsens, then it's comes to me: I recall the glint of purple seasoning in the sauce that was on my chicken.

I remember pausing as the taste had hit my system, a slight burn had coursed throughout my body but I'd ignored it, thinking that it was just spices and continued to eat.

Nick had been watching me carefully throughout our entire meal and conversations.

Then we'd gone to the car so that he could drop me off, everything after that is a blur ...

What happened?

Wait ... Szechuan Chicken doesn't have purple seasoning.

Oh dear Lord. I was drugged. Does Nick know? Did Nick drug me?!

No it couldn't have been him, he's so sweet.

I attempt to lift my head again, every muscle in my body screams out in agony, pure agony.
The fuzzy room starts to clear.
The dark blurs turn into walls and the thick, dark, lines morph into pipes.

Pipes?

I'm in a basement I realize.

What the hell do I do now?

The little bit of energy that I have left turns into an anxious shake,
an ice-cold tear slides down my cheek silently.

Help.

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Author's Note:

Hey everyone, thank for reading this far!
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