The Puppet Girl

Evita!

"Don't t-touch m-me!" Summer stuttered and broke into a sweat. Her heart was beating faster than usual now. 

"Hey, cute accent. You aren't from here, are you?"

 Summer scratched the surface of the seat as she clenched her fist and went stiff. Much as she wanted to run, her body had turned numb to move an inch.

"Let me go...please" she protested and avoided their gaze.

 "What's the hurry my lovely? The night is still young..." one of them leaned over and whispered in her ear.

"There you are! I have been looking all over for you!" 

Rain appeared out of nowhere and startled everyone.  Pushing the guy aside, he embraced Summer and expressed how worried he had been. "Hola! Thanks for taking care of my girl, you know how dangerous it gets at this hour. I must say you guys make Madrid a safe place to live in," he saluted them and pulled her closer as they casually made a move towards his car.

Perplexed, the rogues looked on until one of them comprehended what was happening. "Hoy! You think you're quite smart, eh?" He raised his voice and sent the other to bring her back. Summer winced when he grabbed her arm. "Get your own one, we saw her first!" The other remarked while she struggled to free her arm.

Rain smiled and held the rogue's wrist. He pressed it so hard that the rouge was compelled to release her. "Eh, you actually want to keep her? Trust me she is very bori..." he paused the second one of them raised a knife to his face.

"Interesante! Made in China...Uhmm?" he raised his brows and pretended he was unfazed.

"No, it's a navaja you fool!" the man snorted. (A navaja is referred to a folding knife that originated in southern Spain.)  He caught Rain by the collar and brought the blade closer to his face.

"Hoy! I think you're mistaken... Look it says right here, Made in china!" Rain lowered his gaze and touched the tip. Unsure, the rogue lowered his knife to check the origin, just as Rain had expected. "There nothing mentioned here!" he frowned before  Rain punched him in the face. 

"Que te den! My nose!" the man cried and alerted the other two.

Rain took them on, one at a time before receiving a cut over his face. "Oh, Merida! Not the face!" he winced in pain and helped Summer get in before knocking them out one last time. 

Having dealt with the nuisance, he quickly got in and sped away.  Leaving the rogues far behind, he slowed down and pulled over. "You okay?" he expressed his concern and studied her expression. Failing to receive any reaction,  he continued to drive again.  Running his bruised fingers over the fresh wound on his face, he shuddered to imagine what could have happened had he not spotted her at the bus stop. 

Summer was still under shock and remained quiet with her arms crossed over her chest. Her eyes had swelled up, yet she managed to hold back her tears and control her emotions for only she knew what she had been through. Those four hours of nightmare had mentally drained her. Rain could feel it, but was unsure how to handle the situation.

"Summer, I'm sorry! It was my fault. I should have informed you earlier," He sighed and began apologising. He explained how his friends came over and whisked him away to the club. "I was so excited about participating in the Dj face-off event, that I completed forgot you were inside until I reached home."

"Please say something...," he looked at her reflection in the rearview mirror while she merely stared out the window. Not bothered to cover her head with the hoodie, she let her golden hair rest loosely over her shoulders. For her everything had fallen silent, she didn't care about his explanation nor was she interested in his apologies. All that mattered was to reach the villa and rush to her puppets.

It wasn't long before they reached the villa. Summer stepped out and slammed the car door in anger. Without turning back she darted up the stairs and walked straight inside. 

"Summer! You're back," Mrs. Guerrero exclaimed in relief and followed her to her room until she shut her out and refused to open it.

"Garcias a Dios! She's back, I hope everything is alright," she returned downstairs and looked at her husband while he narrowed his eyes at Rain as he walked in later. "Oh Dios! Rainerio, what happened to your face?" she gasped and held his chin.

Concerned, she rushed to provide him first aid but stopped midway. Fuming,  she stormed to where Summer had locked herself.

"Summer! Summer, open the door dear!" Mrs. Guerrero tapped the door and repeatedly called out to her, but in vain.

She gave up and decided it was best to give her some space. She had noticed how upset Summer looked and after seeing the condition in which Rain had entered, she guessed something bad had happened.

"She won't open it! She's just overreacting," Rain muttered as he walked past his aunt. Annoyed at his insensitive comment, she slapped him across the face and left him humiliated.

"Women!" he grinded his teeth and stared briefly at the closed door.  Un-buttoning his shirt he walked into his room and hit the shower. A burning sensation gripped his face as his wound came in contact with the hot water. 

"This is what I get for saving you from those rogues," he grimaced at his own reflection in the mirror. "I ruined my face for you and all you did was locked yourself up?  he spoke to himself and rummaged through the shelves for the first aid kit.

It wasn't that Rain had no heart, he was concerned, but felt she was making a mountain out of a molehill. He had expected her to fall in his arms and thank him for saving her, but when none of that happened he felt she was just being ungrateful.  While he mulled over it and put on his headphone to hear some music, Summer lay in bed crying and pouring her heart out to her puppets. Only she knew what she had been through. Tears rolled down her face and drenched the pillows. It had been a horrible experience for her in the new city, something that would remain and haunt her for a long time. as the hours passed, she cried herself to sleep.

Her favourite puppet Eva stared at her from above the mantelpiece. The pretty glazed eyes of the puppet appeared as if it felt sorry for her. The room gradually fell silent and so did the whole villa. There was something different in the stillness of the night. While the Guerrero's and the attendant slept peacefully in their respective rooms, Summer's room was where the unusual activities began. The windows pushed open on its own and let the curtains dance in rhythm to the wind that blew in. As it swayed, the edges touched the puppet and pulled it down. No sooner the puppet hit the floor, a pair of feet tiptoed across the room and picked it up.  This strange figure looked in  Summer's direction and approached her cautiously. Sitting beside her the figure ran its fingers over Summer's face and gently woke her up. 

"Oh, lord! Who are you, how did you get in?" Summer recoiled seeing a young lady before her. Summer turned on the lights and was captivated by the intruder's beauty. Her face was as radiant as the morning glow, her intriguing eyes spoke a mystery of its own and her rounded lips curled into a smile like the petals of a rose.

"Ssssshhhhhhh...I'm Evita, you can call me Eva," she spoke in her Spanish accent and handed over the puppet to Summer.

Summer took it from her hand and glanced back at Evita. She stared at her beautiful face and the river like flowing black hair that ended till her waist. There was something quite serene about her. Though she was an intruder in her room, Summer felt as if she already knew the lady or had seen her before.

"Summer! Dear open the door please,"  a voice followed by a knock on the door pulled her out of her thoughts.

"I think you should open it, she is very worried," Evita glanced at the door while Mrs. Guerrero continued knocking.

Heeding her advise, Summer turned to step out of bed when all of a sudden she hit the floor and opened her eyes. Her room was no longer dark, instead, it was bright and lively. Summer looked around feeling disoriented.  

"That lady...Where did she go?" She gasped and looked around until she was alerted by another knock on the door

"Summer are you there, please open the door dear. I have brought breakfast for you," Mrs. Guerrero begged.

Summer shook her head and realised that she had been dreaming all the while. She didn't feel like opening the door and answering Mrs. Guerrero's questions, neither did she want to appear rude and keep the old lady waiting outside. Reluctant she walked past the mantelpiece and noticed the portrait. That's when she realised why the lady in her dream looked so familiar. Right from the features to the traditional attire, it was a perfect match. Summer rubbed her eyes in amazement and wondered why she had dreamed about the flamenco dancer. "Evita..." she whispered and stared at the portrait before opening the doors for Mrs. Guerrero.