Entwined Shadows

Cassandra tiredly walked inside the school's gate. Her cherry pink hair was packed up in a messy bun and a few strands fell on her beautiful face. She had hazel-green doe-like eyes. Her lips were pink and dry and she didn't bother to wet them. Her skin was fair and she was amongst the most beautiful girls in the school. She walked in and sat on the closest bench she saw. She inaudibly gasped and took in a few breath before she released them. She rubbed her chest as it was crazily aching her.

She took her water bottle from her bag and took in large gulps of water, not knowing the eyes of a fellow was watching all her movements.

"Do you think she's sick?" The young man, who watched Cassandra gulp down her water, asked his bodyguard as they leaned on his car, whilst petting his furry white puppy Pomeranian.

The bodyguard, Jaden, followed his master's line of sight and saw stared at the young girl who held her water bottle with one hand and the other hand was placed on her chest while she heaved for breath. "Mm. I think she's indeed sick." He agreed.

"Don't you think she might need some help?" He asked, still looking at Cassandra and not at Jaden.

Jaden immediately blocked his master's line of sight, knowing what he was about to do; "No no, master!" Jaden was three times the weight of his master, but his behaviour was nothing like his looks. "We've been waiting for the director for the past one hour, what if you leave and then he arrives?!" Jaden didn't want to risk it.

"Relax, Jade. It's not even going to take up to five minutes." The young man chuckled and walked passed him, walking towards Cassandra.

"Ugh! It's Jaden not Jade! What is he? A doctor?" Jaden was reduced into a mess by this man he was asked to guard. He was thirty years old and all his ten years of working as a bodyguard, he had never come across someone like his master, Elijah.

Elijah walked toward the pink-haired gir l-seated not far away from where he was previously standing - with his pet puppy still in his arms. He stood before the girl who hadn't noticed his presence as her eyes were closed and she was resting her head at the top of the bench.

"Hey." Elijah called out to her.

Cassandra who was disturbed from her rest, opened her eyes to see a gorgeous man standing before her. She wanted to attack whoever it was that interrupted her rest, but whatever she wanted to say sank down her mind like it didn't even appear at all.

This man was too good looking! He was overly handsome. He was over six feet tall and he had a very perfect fair skin. His red hair was combed back with his hands, leaving some strands falling over his perfectly carved face. His eyes were sparkling blue and his lips were pink and small, they looked so soft and supple, his nose were perfectly shaped. His eyebrows were full and carved nicely. He had nice lashes for a man and not even a single spot could be seen on his face. Because the first two buttons on his loose fitting shirt were opened, she could see the tattoo of MOM on the front side of his neck, and other drawings by the sides of his neck. It was a very beautiful tattoo and she had the urge to get one.

She noticed the puppy in his arms and her face really brightened.

"His name is Ted. You like him?" Elijah asked when he noticed how her expression changed when she saw Ted. He was a nice person, but then that was only his persona, not his mind.

"Yes!" She squeaked like a mouse. "Can... I carry him?" She asked but he didn't answer and only gently pushed Ted into her arms. "Gosh, he's so cute." She momentarily forgot her problems. Ted was so white and clean and small. So small she could put him inside her bag and take to class. She was so occupied with petting Ted that she didn't notice Elijah looking at her, her neck particularly.

"Are you alright, though? You look sick." He asked but Cassandra could barely take her eyes and mind off Ted.

"Oh I'm fine, thank you for asking." She looked up and smiled at him before looking back down at Ted. Even Ted was enjoying such pretty company and comfortability.

"Oh, you look like you were almost strangled to death." Elijah said and Cassandra stopped petting Ted, that's when Elijah knew he had hit a spot, like he wanted.

Cassandra's bright eyes immediately turned cold as she looked up at Elijah. His question made her remember the previous night...

Cassandra and her mother were packing up her mother's things inside a large sized traveling bag. Their actions and movements were rushed. They were hastily packing things up as though they didn't want a certain someone catching them in the act. That someone being her mother's husband, her father.

They were finally done with packing up and they exited the room. Cassandra's mother didn't have much belongings anyways, as they weren't rich, so everything fit into the traveling bag. When they came to the small sitting room, they saw her father coming inside the house. His eyes narrowed down to the traveling bag his wife was holding, looking as though she was about to run away from his house.

Cassandra's mother looked visibly scared and shaken to a point but Cassandra was there with her.

"What's going on here? Are you planning on leaving me Sarah?" He laughed loudly like a lunatic and when Cassandra urged her mother to run out of the opened door, the father lunged at them. He slapped Sarah, his wife, across the face. Cassandra pushed him away, with all the force she could muster.

Sarah took that as a liberty to now run out of the house. They had already ordered a ride and he was currently in-front of their house. When Cassandra's father, Bright, rushed to stop his wife, Cassandra dragged him back inside the house with his clothes. Bright got really vexed and pushed Cassandra away and she fell hard on her back and buttocks, not caring if she was his blood daughter. He rushed out of the house but Sarah was already gone, he came back inside the house to face Cassandra with ten-times-fold the initial anger.

As Cassandra was still laying on the ground tired, Bright rushed to her, cupped his strong hands around her neck and started strangling her. It was getting so hard for Cassandra to breathe, but it was as though her father had made up his mind to kill her right then and there.

"You witch! Your harlot of a mother has finally left right?! After all I did for her, you this ungrateful bastard!!"

Cassandra writhed beneath him and flailed her hands until she came in contact with a wine bottle, she smashed it on her father's head. He screamed and finally let her go to hold his head as he was bleeding profusely at the back of his head.

Cassandra took the advantage to get away from the house. She ran to her unmarried maternal aunt's house which wasn't really far from her family house, and the woman was a sweet soul who tended to Cassandra's wounds and let her sleep for the night and however long she wanted.

Coming back to reality, she realised the man was still looking at her. "I'm fine, thank you." She said, this time without a smile. She handed his pet dog over to him as she stood up, she was about to turn and leave when he said;

"Take milk and yoghurts more, it's good for chest pains." He said and before she could say anything, he waved and turned his back to her and left to where he came from. Cassandra didn't dull and entered inside the institution.