Lost In The Parallel World

-Chap:5

I accidentally found two decent dresses in the cupboard of my doppelganger, which came as a surprise to me. But later found out from Jake, they were gifted by Mom to her. Moving my fingers gently over the skirt, I smoothed the creases which developed as I sat on the dining table eating breakfast with my not-so-real family.

"Esme, Jake, your dad came to visit yesterday evening," Mom said, hesitantly, fidgeting in her seat, kind eyes looking between Jake and me.

"What does he want?" Jake asked hands closed into a fist beside his plate as he clenched his teeth.

"Money." She said, looking down and a look of guilt crossed her face.

"And you gave him! How many times have I stopped you not to give him any penny!" Jake shouted in anger, eyes glaring at his mom.

"Jake, there must be a reason she did it, stop shouting at her," I said, softly. Looking at my mom who was crying silently, although she was not my real mother but seeing her cry made my heart squeeze painfully.

"You don't know anything!" Jake yelled back at me and walked out of the house and on his way out slammed the door so hard that the windows rattled.

I heard loud sobs which lead my attention back to her.

I need to handle the situation.

"Eleanor and Maxwell please take your food in your room. I have to talk to Mommy." I said, caressing their heads as their big doe eyes looked at me in worry. Nodding their heads, they left the kitchen.

Walking towards her, I sat on an empty seat and just looked at her. Her hair was messy, and a light purple bruise was forming on her wrist as she was trying to hide but my hawk-like eyes saw it beforehand.

"What happened?" I whispered, my voice soft as fur

"The usual." She said, clearing her thoughts, her fragile fingers wiping her torn face.

I pursed my lips at that. If I asked what was usual, it will cause some problems, so to prevent that I kept quiet and decided to ask Jake what the real deal was. Saying goodbye to her, I walked out of the house and made my way toward my workplace. Throughout my work time, I kept thinking about my plan. I need to work fast and go back home but for that I need money. A few people swing by the shop, I assisted a few women in choosing their dresses and got praised by them for helping them choose a good dress.

Sighing, my feet carried me out of the building after I was done with my job today, not feeling like going home. I decided to explore the city- San Scent, in which I was currently living and which didn't exist in my world. The city was full of greenery and a peaceful environment.

Just my type.

Letting my hair loose as the soft chili breeze caressed my skin, making my insides fill with giddiness. I walked down the stony path which lay in between rows of large bulky trees leading towards the lake. I walked towards a bench which was the only empty bench available. I moved my legs faster to reach it before anyone could take it but just my luck. As I fastened my pace, a man in a midnight blue shirt came out of nowhere and sat down with one leg propped up onto the other. Sighing, I hesitantly walked towards him.

I stopped a step away from it and looked at the man who had his eyes closed. Brown hair was a bit messy but it only added to his beauty. Then I realized.

He was the guy from the Coffeeshop who saved my life!

"What are you looking at?" His silky voice reached my ears. He looked at me with annoyance plastered on his face.

"Hey! It's you, Rhys. Fancy seeing you here." I said taking a seat beside him.

"Did I say you can sit here?" He said, looking at me with those mesmerizing grey eyes. His eyebrow raised in question.

I quickly stood up on my feet and waited for him to grace my permission to me sit there.

"It doesn't belong you to anyway," I said with a duh. Rethinking about my actions.

"Just sit." He said with a sigh and crossed his arms over his chest.

I sat down and kept my face forward. I came here for a reason, minding my own business. I kept looking at the water and the sky but the man beside me, somehow made me restless.

I turned my neck towards him and found him having his eyes closed. As if he felt my eyes on him, he opened his eyes and made eye contact with me. My throat dried at his intense stare into my eyes.

I cleared up my throat and asked him" I am new here, I don't know much about here. Would you like to tell me a bit about this place?"

He blinked at me and said with softness," Why don't you use Google for it?" But it somehow sounded like he was talking to a child.

"I don't have a phone for now. I need to buy it soon." I was lying, my phone was in my back pocket and on silent.

I just wanted to talk to him.

His existence pushes me into curiosity about him.

He nodded his head and sat straight, pushing the sleeves of his shirt up. Making him look attractive but I kept my eyes on his face. Not having him think I was a creep.

"This is not a big city. You can ask around for directions for where ever you want to go," he spoke, moving his arm up and looking down at the watch latched onto his wrist.

I hummed and when he didn't say or move his head, I looked away from him.

It was hard to approach him.

The vibes I get from him aren't bad. It is my gut feeling. Gut feelings are never wrong. You all should pay special attention to it.

"I came here to rest but I guess it seems I can't hear," he whispered loud enough for me to hear but not too loud for others to hear.

I opened my mouth in surprise and turned to look at him but found him walking away with his hand in his pants.

"Mean," I said nonchalantly.

My fingers went inside the pocket and pull out the list that I wrote.

-find out in which city I am.

- work and earn money.

- Find Esme's friends and ask them about her.

I cut the first two things on my list. I felt proud of myself, I completed the two tasks in two days.

I tapped the paper with a pen in my hand as my mind raced with thoughts.

I need Jake's help with the third task. Taking out my mobile, I looked at the time, it was nearly 6 pm.

Jake must be at the restaurant.

I decided to visit him there and eat dinner as well. If he is nice enough, I will ask him to make me the same pasta he did before.

I just fell in love with that pasta. It was heavenly and delicious.

I took my time reaching the restaurant, thinking and just taking in the surrounding me. The Google map was of great help otherwise I must have been roaming the city right now.

The bell chimed as I entered the shop. A few heads turned my way and I felt their eyes looking at me in a way that makes a woman uncomfortable. I have been through this so many times that now it feels just a pinch at the back of my mind.

Not self-complimenting but whoever met me had told me I was really beautiful with good body proportions and height to kill for. My height is 5'7 which is not so common for girls nowadays. No offense but mostly girls range till 5'4.

I walked towards the counter, and the boy who must be in his early twenties looked up at me.

"What would you like to order Ma'am?" he spoke politely and gave me a kind smile.

"May I speak with Jake? He is a chef here. I am his.. friend," I hesitated and decided not to tell them the truth. I may not be his real sister by soul but by face I was but it was not like they have seen me before.

His eyes widen in surprise and looked back at my attire. He must be surprised to find a big difference between Jake's and my look. He nodded his head and entered the door behind his back.

I turned around and located an empty table to sit. My sandal clicked on the floor as I made my way toward the empty seat near the fake flower pots.

My insides were itching to take a picture of this decorated corner and post it on i********: but I had to keep my profile low.

Taking a seat, I swiped open my phone and clicked on the contact icon on the phone screen. Scrolling through my phone contacts and felt my insides churn with pain. My fingers lingered on the screen as my eyes stayed focused on one contact. My dad's contact.

I dialed the number knowing it doesn't exist in this world but I wanted to fool myself.

I let out a breath of air from my mouth in utter defeat.

"Why the long face?" I heard the familiar voice which made me look up and was met with Jake's brown eyes.

"Nothing," I spoke as I shut my phone and put it aside from me.

"So what brings you here?" he asked, intertwining his fingers on the table with eyes full of curiosity.

"Well, I wanted to ask you a few things, and," I stopped and looked at him with a smile

He frowned as he analyzed my expressions.

"And what?"

"And I want to eat the pasta you made me before. I am hungry,"

Upon hearing me, he wore a smug look on his face as he leaned back in his chair and folded his arms over his chest.

"I mean like, I know I am kind but I can't just make it for you for free," Jake said, a mischievous glint in his eyes. Rolling my eyes, I grabbed my bag beneath the chair and pulled out my wallet. I looked up at Jake and found his eyes following my hands. Taking out a few dollars from my wallet, I slide it toward him and said, "I know,"

As his hand approached the money, I pulled them back and was provided with a glare from him.

"Not so fast. You have to answer my questions first and then I will you money for the food," I said, putting the money under my phone. He sighed in defeat and nodded his head.

Smiling at him, I nodded my head and let my thoughts run free.

"So tell me, what was Esme like, not physically but as a person,"

"She is a selfish and careless person from the start. Being the dad's favorite kid spoiled her to this point. Mom's futile effort to make her a decent person only led her to rebel against her. She never cared about us, only thought of her. I tried understanding her but couldn't. I haven't met anyone this selfish than her," he told me, while his eyes were cast down.

I only hummed, don't know what to say.

"When was the last time you saw or met her?" I asked, carefully observing him

"As she went to college, she got out of hand. Things weren't so bad in the start when one day we got a call from the police station that Esme was caught selling drugs to other kids in the college. Dad lost his temper that day and when he brought her back home. He scolded and yelled at her for always being disobedient and disrespectful towards them. Instead of apologizing, she accused Dad of losing his job and spilled the tea about Dad's real reason for leaving the job. She told us that Dad was caught selling drugs to other employees which led to kicking him out of the company. She blamed Dad for all this, which made Dad angry and he slapped her. His favorite child. She couldn't handle this and yelled at them to leave the house. She went to our parent's room and took Mom's saved-up money but that b***h didn't even care about Mom begging her to let off the money and stay. She didn't let go. She grabbed me and pulled me out of the house and told me to bear the pain now and deal with this as she was done with us. Then she left and that was the last day we saw her," his voice broke here and there but he kept his emotions at bay.

I found no words to say to him so I simply, leaned forward and patted his hand on the table. He looked up, surprised.

"It's okay." That's all I said to him and then we fell into silence.

"I should make your food now. I can't break this long or else my boss will scold me," he said, standing up.

"Yeah yeah. Go go," I said, gesturing for him to go.

I sat back and thought about what Jake told me about his sister.

She was a piece of s**t.

I took out the pocket diary that I bought earlier and a few pens so that I don't have to ask for it from people. Flipping through the pages, I stopped at the blank page and pressed it down to smooth it. Making it easy for me to write on it, I jotted down whatever ran in my mind at that time.

-Find the person who sold drugs to her. And those who bought it from Esme.

-Find Esme friends and have a talk with them pretending to be Esme.

-With whom she went off to live?

Clicking the tip of the pen against the diary, I sighed. Putting the pen down with a thud, I rubbed my temples in burden.

When will I be able to do all this? What if I am not able to find anything and get here forever!?

Slamming my hand on the table and heard," Oh s**t," making me look up with a face flushed, finding Jake's wide eyes staring back at me with a tray in his hands.

"Sorry. Don't be angry, I got another order in between, and I -"

"It's not because of you. I was just. Just sit," I told him, gesturing no, face etched with worry, I sighed.

"What happened?" he asked, voice soft and small.

Grabbing the bowl from the tray, I picked up the spoon and fork and started stuffing my mouth with food. I was so hungry.

I never had to wait for my food ever in my life. With a snap of my fingers, my food would be present in front of me.

The realisation brought unwanted tears into my eyes but I gulped down my emotions along with food. Not wanting my outburst in front of Jake, I took breaths in between. Jake sat in silence and just watched me eat.

"How is it?" he finally asked, with a tilt of his head and a curious look on his face.

"Oh sorry. I was so hungry, I forgot to tell you," I told him while dabbing my mouth with tissue paper. He chuckled and gestured it was okay.

"It's delicious. Thank you," I said and went back to eating before giving him a thumbs up.

"Uh. Esme. I mean- wait what should I call you?" he asked, forehead pulled into a frown as he scratched his head.

"Whatever you are comfortable with," I said with a shrug.

I grabbed the Sprite can and opened the lid.

Phsss.

I find this hissing sound so satisfying. Taking a sip, I went back to my food.

"Esme will be okay. Otherwise, if I give you another name, I might start using it in front of the family which will be big trouble for us," he said, nodding to himself.

I nodded agreeing with him.

"Oh yeah. I almost forgot. I wanted to talk about something too," he said, looking at me closely.

Raising my eyebrows, I put my spoon down and nodded my head.

"The kids and mom is asking questions about you. Like why are you back and how did you change? I think it will be better for you to move out, otherwise, the kids will grow on you and Mom will get suspicious. I somehow handled things for now, but I suggest you should think this out," I drank my drink as I listened to him explain.

I agreed with him. The other day I went back home, and the kids came to my room at night. Asked me why did I leave them and why I am being so nice to them and Mom. Their question's surprised me, they were mature for their ages. I had to lie and say sorry to them. Giving them chocolates which I bought for myself, I managed to shush them to their rooms with a smile on their faces.

"You are right. Ask around your colleagues for any good apartment, let me know then," My spoon hovering over the bowel, as I talked.

"Now shush. Let me eat," I said and went back to my food.

I love food. Wait who doesn't?

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