Warning Sign

Chapter 1: Green Eyes

Well, fuck. 

I groaned as the screwdriver slipped from my grip and hit the concrete ground by my feet. I took a couple of moments to glare at the object — as if that would magically return it into my hand. 

"You're going to break half of my shop one of these days, Reed," Rafael said from behind his desk. 

I narrowed my eyes at him and he flashed me a grin in return. There was only one thing left to do — I stuck my middle finger up at him. A chuckle escaped Rafe's throat. 

He was my boss. On paper, anyway. In reality, we were about the same age, both of us in our early twenties. We've known each other for quite some time before he inherited the body shop from his late father. 

It wasn't big but we had our loyal customers and that was good enough. 

"If it's your shop, then why am I doing all the work?" I asked as I bent over and picked up the screwdriver. 

Rafe didn't look up from his piles of paperwork, though a smirk tugged at the corners of his mouth. 

"Because I'm the boss. Obviously," he replied, very as-the-matter-of-factly. 

I rolled my eyes and pulled up the sleeves of my oil-stained shirt higher on my forearms. My gaze landed on the rose inked into my skin and I was unable to hold back the sigh. 

My mother, may she rest in peace, taught me at an early age that I needed to fight for what I wanted. I always figured that only meant for material things. Little did I know, I would lose the ground I had been walking on the moment that girl with big green eyes would show up on my doorstep. 

In the course of four-point-five seconds, my life was turned upside down. I had my own ray of sunshine by my side. 

Until she was ripped away from me. And again. And again. 

So, there I was — half-broken and waiting. Hope was all I had left. Hope, that someday things would be different. 

I always knew that love was meant to make you feel things you wouldn't feel otherwise. It's meant to deepen your connection, not only to the world but to another person. It's supposed to make you a better human being. 

I could safely say, she had made me the best version of myself. Vivi. 

The bed seemed so cold without her there. The closets were too empty, though I made sure to save a couple of her things. Just in case. Always, just in case. 

It had been four weeks and two days since she last forgot. It had been a week and four days since I last saw her and it had been three minutes and sixteen seconds since I last thought of her. 

I needed a smoke. 

"I'm taking a break," I announced and Rafe only nodded in response. 

I walked towards the exit, my fingers already trying to get a firm grasp on my pack of cigarettes. 

Before I even fully stepped outside, the pack slipped and fell onto the ground. Lovely. I stepped forward, trying to grab it but kicked it further away with my boot. The small package slid further down the sidewalk. 

Can this day be over, yet?

I pinched the bridge of my nose and closed my eyes to try and convince myself not to roll into a ball in a corner and fucking stay there. 

"Hey, is this yours?" a familiar voice questioned. Too familiar. 

"Huh?" 

I opened my eyes and sought the source of the feminine voice. A breath got stuck in my throat and I choked on my own saliva like the moron that I was.