Assassin

Mesmerized

Alice, Rosemary and Catherine were from some rich families in town, and they always acted like they owned everything. They were of the same age as us three, and they always picked on us because we were also somehow rich but not as rich as them, and they thought they were better than us.
I just ignored the girls, and John was now looking at the three approaching girls. His eyebrows were knitted together as he could sense something was off.
Juliet spun around to face the three girls with an annoyed expression, “We’re very busy right now, get lost,” she hissed.
“Why are you being so rude, Juliet?” Alice said with a hint of sarcasm.
I looked at John, and he caught my eyes. He gave me a confused look. I smiled weakly at him.
“So I see you’ve got a new friend,” Alice plastered a fake smile across her face, and they were obviously checking John out, “Aren’t you going to introduce us?” 
“We aren’t even friends so why do you bother knowing our friends?” Anna said and pulled a face.
“Don’t be so rude!” Rosemary exclaimed using her sick voice, “You don’t want to leave a bad impression in front of your new friend, do you?”
I could tell that they were trying to hook on John. Especially Alice, as she had the biggest crush on Alex out of the three, and she hated me so much for getting Alex’s attention. So she was trying to flirt with John, who was standing close to me, our arms almost touching, and she could tell John was the closest to me in terms of relationship comparing to Juliet and Anna.
“John, they are Alice, Rosemary and Catherine. Well, this is John,” I said in a flat tone.
John smiled at them, and for a moment I could feel jealousy burning in me. I knew I should not have felt that, as I had just met John, for crying out loud! But I felt this bond between us that got me so attracted to him. He was like a magnet, attracting me to him. And honestly speaking, the three girls were quite good-looking, so at that moment I was scared that John was going to be part of them.
But it turned out that my worry was unnecessary. Alice reached out her hand and attempted to shake hands with John, but John quickly pretended to scratch his head, so Alice let her hand fell down, and I could see her eyebrows pull together for a second, and she shot me a dirty glance. John had guessed at least part of the situation between us and the three girls standing opposite to us.
“Well John,” Alice began, her smile returning to her face, fluttering her lashes, “Since they said they’re busy, would you like to hang out with us instead?”
I nearly ripped her head off just listening to that. I was overreacting, and I could not help it. This sounded possessive, but I felt so angry towards Alice; she kept trying to lure John away from me.
“I mean WE are busy, including John,” Juliet told them, one hand on her hips, the other one clutching the paper bag.
I tugged on Juliet’s sleeve, as it was getting a bit embarrassing. John and I barely knew each other, and she was acting like John belonged to us, although I did feel that way deep down in my heart.
I glanced at John and his expression changed. He played along, “I’m afraid I can’t; Juliet was right,”
I was so glad to hear that. The three girls’ face immediately changed. Alice’s face had got red, “Alright then, if you say so. See you later,” she forced a smile, and winked at John before turning around to leave, with the other two following behind. My anger began to subside when she walked away.
“So who exactly are they?” John asked me.
“They’re just those rich girls in town,” I told him, “We don’t really get along.”
“I could tell you’re much sweeter and nicer than them,” John smiled at me. I blushed and I heard Anna and Juliet giggle beside us.
We walked through the market together, looking around and we were having a great time. John and I kept chatting while Juliet and Anna went into shops after shops.
John and I got to know more about each other, but mostly it was me who was telling him about me. He seemed a bit reluctant when it came to his life. All I knew was that his parents had died, and he was living on his own. He was a year or two older than me, and he did not come to the market very often, as he lived in a remote area outside the town. No wonder I had never seen him before.
I also noticed something weird about him. It was like he knew about my injured ankle, and he had his arms ready beside me when we walked up and down some stairs and across some unevenly paved areas. I decided to ignore it; he was probably just a gentleman, and I liked it.
Then finally it was time to say goodbye.
“Can we meet up again?” I asked, scared that I would never see him again.
“I’m sure we will meet again,” John said, smiling small, “I really have to go now. See you!”
“Wait!” I yelled after him, but he was already jogging away, melting into the crowd.
“Why was he in such a rush?” I mumbled, disappointed.
“(Yn), cheer up, I’m sure you’ll meet again,” Juliet gave my back a gentle pat, “Maybe he really does have something important to do.”
“I think he’s really nice,” Anna said, “And not only does he look nice; his personality was so far really good. (Yn), next time if you see him, don’t throw your opportunity away like you did with Alex!”
“I don’t think she will,” Juliet giggled, “I can tell she’s finally crushing on a boy!”
I blushed, and Juliet laughed. Anna joined in and said, “That’s amazing (Yn), you’ve finally found the right one!”
“I’m not sure,” I admitted, “But I really do feel something for him. And he’s somehow familiar to me…”
“Have you seen him before?” Juliet asked. I shook my head.
“Maybe you’re meant to be, that’s why you feel attracted to him and think that he looks familiar,”
I just stayed quiet, and they walked me home before leaving.

The following two weeks, I had been thinking about John all day. I still sometimes thought about the assassin, but it was not as often now. Mostly John was filling my mind. His gorgeous eyes, luxurious blond hair, kissable lips…
“(Yn), you’re really distracted recently,” Anna stated.
“Are you still thinking about John?” Juliet asked. We had gone to the market a couple of times in these two weeks, but I did not see John there.
I did not answer, and they took it as a yes.
“You’re like living in your dream right now,” Anna said, “I think it’s starting to get unhealthy. You have to do something about it, (Yn).”
“You keep breaking things!” Juliet complained, “And you’re not as fun as before now!”
“I’m sorry,” I mumbled.
“It’s okay; but I really think you need to do something,” Anna said, “Maybe try to forget about him as you’re not seeing him? You can’t possibly find him because he lives so far away, and you don’t even know where exactly he lives. You can’t just focus on him without seeing him ever again – you’ll have to find someone else or something else to do!”
“I’ll try,” I faked a smile. It bothered me not to be able to see him again.

The next day, I decided to listen to Anna and Juliet and went for a walk alone. I took a walk in the forest not far away from home, and headed to my secret spot. Being in my own small meadow always helped me clear my thoughts and lift up my spirit. Hopefully this time it would also do the trick. I did not want to forget about John, but I hope it would help me bring my focus back on my life instead of my fantasy.
I was walking towards my secret spot when I heard some noises. Just like some people were talking. I walked closer to my destination, and realized the sounds were from behind the bushes which separated my secret meadow from the forest.
I crouched down behind the bushes and peeked through the gaps. I saw a gang of men, dressed dirtily and casually like the ones that tried to hurt Anna, Juliet and me back in the market. I knew I should leave, but I could not resist my curiosity.
They were discussing about something, and I tried to listen to their conversation, but I could not. I could only catch a few words, and it sounded like they belonged to a gang.
At that moment I decided to leave as quietly as possible, as I could tell they were some dangerous people. But when I was about to turn around, I saw a familiar figure jumped down from a nearby tree, landing next to the men.