The Curse Of A Stranger's Gift 13 Training

Zheira felt cheated. It's as if the stranger knew she'll never be able to come back to the Martins even if she wished to. Melinda would not allow it. She didn't want to trust him, but she felt obliged to comply with his words. After all, he's a manipulative jerk who desires nothing but his goals. She also has this hunch that Vladimir was aware of her pledge that she'll never come back to her adoptive parents unless she understood her nature. Was it possible that he could read minds? It's likely. She could read memories. Maybe, he possesses such prowess.

For what she remembered, Eleanor had said that they're vampires. So, she's guessing she's one of them. The question was how? Maybe through Vladimir's blood. But if that's the case, why wasn't she immortal like them. She could still be wounded and all. There's something sinister to these circ.u.mstances, and she'll only uncover it by staying here. Though, she's not aware of how she'll survive. Knowing herself, she's not the type to be with anyone. Was this the time to change?

She sighed before standing to the mirror she had seen in the corner. It has cracks on its upper part, but its gla.s.s was still allowing Zheira to see through her reflection. Her eyes were back to its normal shade. She couldn't understand why a feeling that she missed something yesterday lingered in her heart. What she knew was that her eyes have a different shade and after the red shade was stained with gold, everything blacked out. She's lulled to a deep slumber.

Shaking her head, she stared at her eyes. He wanted him to practice eye-contact. Well, she's got no problem staring at herself. She couldn't say it's the same case to others. It's just that every time there's a lot of people swarming around her or even just one, she felt suffocated. Their presence was unbearable. Maybe, Vladimir's right. She'd been shielded by her parent's care that without them, everything felt strangely new.

"You're on your own, Zheira. If you still want to go back to them, try surviving alone," she whispered while tracing her fingers to her reflection. Like staring at herself, she has no issue talking alone. Again, that's way too different when someone's around.

Breathing in and out, she removed her jacket. It's been filled with dirt. She's still wondering how she gets those, but what she must focus now was improving herself. She needed Vladimir to speak of the truth he promised to have. She's not trusting his words, but she felt no lies to the way he'd spoken. He's exceedingly confident, and that ensures her that he's telling the truth. She might be wrong for all she knew, but she'd learn to trust her judgment. Most often than not, her hunch seemed to be correct.

She changed with the black loose t-shirt and gray shorts in the cabinet. It was big for her, but it's the only clothes she'd seen hanging in there. It might have been Vladimir's. Once more, she peered through the mirror before tying her hair with the red ribbon lying on the floor. With one last smile, she left the room.

A mouth-watering smell made her stomach groan. It was pasta. How did he know it was her favorite? Maybe he's right when he said he knew everything about her.

The house was small. It only has two rooms. Its grounds were made solely out of woods. Outside the room she slept into was a door facing hers. It might have been Vladimir's, so she shrugged it off. She walked to a narrow hallway with her mind filled with the possibility that the house might crumble down. Nevertheless, she found the smell resting over a round wooden table.

The kitchen seemed to be used rarely. There was a spider web hanging on one of its corners and the cabinet hanging against the wall was filled with dust. She shivered. She's left wishing not to go inside. It's too dirty.

Vladimir beckoned her towards a wooden stool. Zheira swallowed when she saw a spider web hanging underneath it. A couple of antlers were playing around it.

He cleared his throat. "It will not hurt you. Sit down now and eat. It was an effort for me to cook, so don't waste anything." When he patted the stool, the antlers and the spiders ran out of it. Zheira screamed and jump as it pa.s.sed to her. She hated insects more than ever. They're way too creepy for her. Once, she has had the privileged to feel them crawl on her skin, and she didn't like it one bit. They're sticky and it made her itchy.

"Don't be afraid with things smaller than you," he said seriously, though, his cheekbones were moving as he suppressed himself from laughing. Her expression was way too much for him.

Zheira did not dare open her mouth, she might shout again, and it's not good for the ears. Before relaxing her b.u.t.t to the stool, she made sure that there's not a single sign of any disgusting insects.

"This is your favorite, right?" he asked, pushing the plate of pasta towards her. "I made it just for you."

Well, the pasta looked good. He sprinkled too much cheese, though. But, it's okay. She loved it even more. "Aren't you going to eat?" Her brow furrowed. There's only one plate of pasta, but she could share. It's just too awkward to eat while someone's looking at you.

He frowned. "That would not fill my stomach."

"Oh!" She grabbed the fork and rolled it playfully before stuffing it inside her mouth. At first, she did not remove it and her eyes were wide as she stared to nothingness.

Vladimir's face fell. "Is it horrible?" For the first time since she'd seen him, his forehead was creased with lines. He looked up and rubbed his chin. "Hmm. I did put the ingredients the way it should be. It's also complete. Wonder what has been wrong," he muttered, more to himself than to Zheira.

She chuckled. "It tastes good. You have nothing to worry about." When she smiled, a deep dimple makes a hole in the corner of her lips.

He cupped his cheeks. "You look beautiful when you smile."

Her cheeks flushed red. She then busied herself finishing her breakfast. Though, she couldn't help noticing his golden irises focused on her. She coughed when something felt stuck in her throat. He gave her a cup of water while patting her back.

"You should be careful, you know. It's not a good idea to put choking as the reason for your death. You'll be a laughing stock, then."

"S—stop teasing me, okay? I—It's uncomfortable."

"I'm not teasing you." His blank face was back. "I'm not that good of a joker." He sat on the stool, but his mind seemed to wander elsewhere.

After that, they were engulfed by a deafening silence. It lingered for a moment until Zheira was done eating. She cleared her throat, trying to catch Vladimir's attention. He seemed to be afloat. He was there but was unreachable.

"You're done?" he asked, his voice sounded lifeless. When she nodded, he straightened and looked at her seriously. "For the next few days, Zheira. I will train you—"

"Train me? For what?" she interrupted. The idea of training sounds exhausting, and she felt tired by just thinking of it.

Vladimir crossed his arms. "To prepare you. Did you know that your reckless decision to let your soul control you almost destroy that body? If you have a death wish, you should have drowned yourself. That way it'd be painless."

"I—I didn't know." She looked down.

"If your body was physically ready, you should've been immortalized. However, due to your adoptive parent's stupidity, you've been spoiled. I a.s.sure you, one flick of my hand would be your death. Now, this is a serious matter, so I want you to be serious as well. Do you understand?"

Zheira swallowed before nodding. Vladimir's brow draws towards each other. "I said do you understand." His loud voice made her heart race.

"Y—yes—"

"Look at me, Zheira. Look at me."

"I—I don't—"

"I said look at me."

She didn't know what happened but she found herself tilting her head until they were eyes to eyes. When their eyes locked, she felt something inside her turned upside down. She couldn't divert her gaze. Those golden irises were attracting her too much.

"Do you understand?" His lips did move, but Zheira couldn't hear any of it. All she could hear was the loud beat of her heart and the constant scream inside her head. She didn't know what it was. It was making her numb.

Before she knew it, she was writhing on the ground. Her eyes were tightly closed as she felt thousands of thorns wrapped around her body. She couldn't understand what she felt. All she wished was for the pain to stop.

All of a sudden, the pain disappeared. She tried opening her eyes but was shocked to see herself engulfed in a fire. What's odd was that she couldn't feel anything as the heat raged in the surrounding. She's about to shout for help when she saw Vladimir sprinting towards her. His face was filled with sweats while his hands were shaking continuously. As their eyes locked, her senses shut down. She felt sleepy. Before she lost consciousness, she saw him running away with a baby in his arms.