THIRST

Chapter Fourteen: Meeting the family (Bane)

The last few hours of school went by in the blink of an eye like I had never seen it before. I said farewell to Setekh as we parted ways from the student parking lot, but I couldn't help but shake the feeling that his eyes were upon me until I turned the corner and stepped onto the sidewalk that would take me straight to the center of town. Citizens ranging from young to old, went about their lives like they did every day. Some walked for exercise while other's rode bicycles or jogged for exercise.

Shop owners smiled and waved as they put up signs and decorated the windows while I reached for the shop keys from my coat pocket and turned the lock as I stepped inside before turning on the lights and disarming the security system.

I flipped the closed sign to open, walked around the counter, set my bag down on the floor and turned on the register. Then I went to the office as I opened up the safe and took out the cash drawer as well as the shop book that contained detailed records of every item , sales goals at the end of every month and various shipping forms. Once the cash was sorted, I started to work on my homework until the first customer walked in. An elderly lady with a beehive hairdo, she was dressed elegantly with real pearls draped around her dainty neck as she approached the counter with a friendly smile.

"Hello, Ma'am. How can I help you today?"

She smiled. "Oh, I'm just looking, thank you. By the way, I love that amulet you're wearing. It's very pretty."

"It belonged to my mother."

"I was sad to hear about her passing. She was always since a nice young woman."

"Yeah. She really was."

Her pale blue eyes seemed to sparkle as she reached across the counter and touched my hand before exploring the antiques and jewelry. As I returned to my textbooks and began writing down study notes, I heard the door open and close again. It didn't take a genius to know that it was Setekh; his tall, massive, muscular frame towered over the counter as he stood in front of me. Putting the pen down on top of my notebook. I reframed from making eye contact with him and managed to make my way to the back of the store as I headed into the office.

As I pretended to fumble around the desk searching for something that was not important, I took a step back and felt hit a wall of soft fabric and hard muscle. I glanced over my shoulder as I felt the blood rise in my cheeks while Setekh stood motionless behind me like a statue. When I turned to face him, his eyes were warm and kind, as he reached out with his hand and softly stroked my cheek. Then he tiled his head to one side, a glance that told me he was about to kiss me. And he did.

"What are you doing here?" I asked.

"Waiting for you to get off work, little one."

"But it's only 3:30. The store doesn't close until five."

"That's okay. I don't mind. I'm a very patient person."

A voice called out from the front of the store as I brushed past Setekh and quickly returned to the counter. The old lady was eagerly ready to purchase an antique red teardrop ring. I entered the amount into the register and with a friendly smile, told her the price as she dug into her purse and paid in cash. After I boxed up the ring and put it in a small white bag with the store's name written across the front, she thanked me with a warm smile and left the store having been happy with her new piece of jewelry.

Two and an half hours later, I was finally able to close up shop for the evening. As I switched the open sign to close and flipped the lock into place, Setekh immediately emerged from the office and wrapped his arms around me. He picked me up as he set me down on top of the counter. His face had the look of concern written on it, but I could tell he was trying to make the best of it.