Nine
1224 Words
Zoraya
Jayden didn't come back for a few days after he left. I was starting to think that we would die of hunger when he suddenly showed up one evening.
He squatted before me and rubbed the back of his hand on my cheek.
"I'm sorry," he muttered in his bass voice, making me realize how much I'd missed him.
I was so excited to hear his voice again that I didn't realize that I had made a sound until I saw the raise of his brow and the lines on his forehead.
"I wish I didn't....."
He paused and turned away from me as if the words were heavy and wouldn't come out of his mouth.
"I'll go get you something to eat," he went out of my sight as soon as he said that, leaving me confused about his unspoken words.
The look on his face told a different meaning to his words, like he was only taking care of me because he owes me something.
I have nothing, so I wonder what it could be.
"You should clean yourself up and get ....."
He paused again like he was afraid of completing the sentence.
I don't know what is going on with him or why he acts so strangely. Sometimes he is carefree and loving, and sometimes he acts like I was a thing to be avoided.
"Wash your hands before you eat," he said as he set the food down before me.
I wanted to ignore the food and ask what was wrong, but I knew that I would only annoy him further because he wouldn't understand what I was saying, so I chose silence as usual.
However, the loud rumble of my belly made it impossible for me to ignore the food.
I went towards the room to wash my hands as he ordered.
"Don't walk on all fours!" He yelled as he dashed towards me.
He pulled me up and made me stand on my feet.
"Walk on your feet!" He shouted before letting go of my hands. "You are human damnit. So act like one!"
I swallowed the bile rising in my throat as my heart sank at his loud voice. He reminded me of my days at the Graysons' mansion when Julius would hit me badly.
"Go and sit over there," his voice suddenly became low again as he washed my hands and pointed at the chair beside the bed.
I tried to move. To go and sit as ordered, but I couldn't. It felt like my legs were heavy.
"Didn't you hear me, I said move!"
I took my steps one after the other as he took my hand and showed me how to walk. He was a few inches taller than I am, and it felt good to see that I wasn't as small as I always thought.
Jayden helped me move towards the chair before letting go. His eyes wandered around my body, and he suddenly closed them as if he couldn't stand the sight.
I was so hungry that I couldn't wait to eat all the food, but I remembered his teachings about good eating manners, so I tried to mimic his eating style.
He smiled as he noticed this.
Soon, food was done and the three pups, who were now able to run around the room, sat beside me.
Suddenly, I felt strange in my stomach, and before I could realize what was happening, my mouth opened and everything I ate came back out, splattering all over Jayden.
"s**t!" He cussed as he rushed to get himself cleaned up.
My vision blurred as more of it came through my mouth, messing up the floor. My body shook as the food forced its way out of my mouth.
"What have you done?" He hissed as he came back to see what was on the floor.
I blinked, speechless.
He frowned as he looked at my face. Grabbing his hair, he groaned loudly. He was obviously angry. However, his eyes changed from anger to worry as he touched me.
"Go clean yourself up, I'll handle this."
I wonder how his emotions switch so quickly.
I moved to go do as told but suddenly felt dizzy. At first, I thought it was because I didn't know how to walk on just my legs, but when my vision darkened, I knew something was wrong.
"Blue!"
Jayden screamed as he caught me before I could hit the floor.
I didn't know what happened afterward, but when I opened my eyes again, I was surrounded by a lot of people.
What is going on? Why are there so many people? I wondered as I looked at the strange faces staring back at me.
The small room was now filled with people. They were murmuring and talking at the same time, so that I couldn't understand what they were saying.
I sat up and looked around for that familiar face. I found him at the door with two men as they walked towards me.
"Who are you?" One of the men was quick to ask.
They wouldn't understand me if I spoke, so I chose silence as usual. I turned my gaze to Jayden hoping that he would explain to them, but the look on his face got me perplexed.
"What are you doing here?" The other man asked, but my attention was caught by the men holding Annie and Ronnie.
They were barking loudly, struggling to be free, but the man held them without pity.
I looked around for Bobby, but couldn't find him. Instead, I noticed that the basket where the pups always sleep was covered in blood.
I rushed towards it, running on all fours, my heart gripped with fear. My heart sank as I saw him there covered in blood.
I didn't care if they understood what I was saying, as I screamed out in anger.
"Did she just bark?" I heard one of them say.
"What is she?"
"How did she even get here?"
They all spoke at once and everyone came at me, dragging me out of the house.
"She must be cursed!" Someone shouted from among the crowd.
"She even has puppies instead of children!"
"We mustn't let her stay here!"
I ignored their words and went toward the man holding Annie and Ronnie. He threw them at me as soon as I got close to him.
"We don't want you here!" They screamed as they all threw stones at me.
"Leave with your cursed pups!"
I was relieved to have the pups with me. So, I waited for Jayden to come to our rescue, but he stood there unfazed.
"How did they even get into Alpha's cottage?" Someone asked, and Jayden immediately looked at me.
He was probably afraid that I would tell on him, but he must have forgotten that I couldn't even speak properly.
"Does the Alpha know her?" A lady asked from the crowd.
Jayden looked away from me, and directed his gaze towards the lady that just spoke as he said, "Of course not!"
My heart shattered so loudly that I could almost hear the sound. However, the pain of his denial was nothing compared to the pain of being broken as his next words broke me completely.
"Why would I know an animal like her?"
- Writer
