Korova Avenue || ONC 2022

Chapter 1

"Alex, I dare you to kiss the hottest person here."

Crow Dukas sat on the steps of his father's shop with his friends, playing truth or dare while they waited for the bus. The rising sun had just started to peek over the buildings, and it cast deep shadows on the ground.

"You'll pay for that Dukas," Alex muttered as he scooted over to Crow and kissed him on the cheek.

On his next turn, Alex turned to Crow. "Truth or dare?"

"Dare."

"See that shop," Alex pointed down the street in front of them, "the one with the dark windows, that no one ever enters? Go in there, and buy something."

The streetlight in front of the store flickered, and the tattered sign creaked in the wind.

Crow was reluctant, he'd heard many rumors about that shop. Apparently the last person came out acting crazy, muttering nonsense about elves and fairies. They were gone for two days.

Crow didn't want to believe the things he heard, but he knew nothing else about the store. In fact, his dad had even told him to stay away. Something about danger, he'd said. But, Crow was younger then, maybe he'd be safe now.

Crow looked at Alex's face, and saw the evil grin that spread across it. "Ya chicken?" His friend asked.

Crow never backed down from a dare, so he sighed and began to walk across the street, but before he could walk up to the shop, he heard a screech. Crow froze and turned around slowly. He almost cheered when he realized what it was.

Their old, beat-up school bus had arrived at the stop. It may have once been yellow, but years of use had worn it down. It was a miracle that it still ran.

"C'mon Alex," he dashed back across the street and grabbed his backpack. "We don't want to be late."

"I expect you to bring me something from that shop tomorrow," the look on Alex's face told Crow that he wasn't kidding. Why did they always take this game so seriously?

—

Dominique walked down Main Street with her cloak over her head. She passed many shop windows, but it was late enough that the few people who were around, didn't bother to look outside. She preferred it this way. She wouldn't be seen.

She took the same route every day, and no one ever noticed her. Dominique was glad to get a break from the running and hiding that took up most of her life. Here, she could just walk, with caution of course, to her destination, and slip inside, unnoticed.

When she turned the corner, something unusual caught her eye. She walked in front of the familiar storefront, and paused. The light was on inside.

There was nothing else different about the façade. The shutters were pulled tight, and the sign on the door read "Sorry, we're closed." It still put Dominique on edge.

She saw a flicker of movement in the window, and flattened herself against the wall. Someone was inside.

She knew it was risky, but she needed to get across the street, so she pulled her cloak tightly around herself and ran.

Once she made it, she slouched at the door and caught her breath. She watched the other shop closely, but didn't see anything else.

In the flickering light over her head she could just make out the street sign. Korova Avenue.

Dominique entered the dark shop and removed her cloak. She visited this mysterious little bookstore every night.

She walked into the connected apartment, and waved to the woman sitting at the kitchen table.

The woman lifted her head and sighed. "Be careful Dominique."

"I will."

Dominique grabbed a small lunch bag off the counter and began filling it with food. She grabbed apples, oranges, a loaf of bread, and a bag of cookies.

Before she left, she looked at the woman, "I'll be gone for a few days, so - uh just thought you should know." Then she turned and entered the main area of the shop.

Dominique walked to the back wall, the only one that wasn't overflowing with books and pulled out the volume titled "The Portal." She stuck her key in the keyhole that she had uncovered.

She was just about to swing open the secret door when she heard a voice behind her.

"Excuse me?"

—

Crow sat behind the counter as his father closed the shop. He had planned to complete his dare sooner, but he got busy after school. Of course Crow was scared to enter a mysterious place at night, but he'd never hear the end of it if he didn't .

Crow's father started towards the stairs leading to their apartment, but he stopped to glance at Crow. "Go to bed, Crow."

"Just a few more minutes."

"Okay, but don't stay up too late"

Mr. Dukas sighed and trudged up the stairs. Crow watched his father with a hint of worry in his eyes. When had his dad started looking so old? He tried to push the negative thoughts out of his head, as he made his way to the door.

Crow peeked around the blinds at the shop across the street. He was in the middle of preparing himself, when he saw a figure out of the corner of his eye. He darted into the shadows as a wave of fear coursed through him. 

Who was out there?

After a few minutes, Crow had managed to calm down enough to take a look outside. He scanned the street several times and convinced himself that it was just his imagination. After all, who walks down Main Street in the middle of the night anyway. The town was small enough that Crow could predict where most people would be. Alex for instance was almost certainly at his girlfriend's house, and Alex's father, Mr. Sinclair, would likely be having a drink with Rob Lafalle at the tavern.

Crow knew of no one that would pass his shop at this time of night, so he felt a lot safer. He grabbed a light jacket off a hook and unlocked the door. He pushed it open and stepped out in the cool night.

Crow made his way to the alley with tentative steps. He walked up to the inexplicably abandoned-looking shop and pulled open the door.

A soft jingle caused him to jump as he stepped inside. Crow looked around. It was a quaint little bookshop, filled with many volumes that appeared to be very old works of literature.

Every wall was covered with overflowing shelves. Crow couldn't believe that he'd never been in here before. It was so cool!

He ran his hand along a row of novels, feeling the gloves of their spines. He pulled one off the shelf and stuck his nose in the pages. The smell of old books overwhelmed his senses. Crow was captivated.

While he was reveling in his new discovery, a person entered the shop. She came through the back and went about her business, without so much as a look in Crow's direction.

Since there was no one else there, Crow assumed she was the owner and went over to ask for help. He stood behind her for a moment and cleared his throat.

"Excuse me-," he was going to say more, but he stopped short when he saw the bookshelf. The girl had her hand on a book and was using it as a handle to swing open the shelf. It was a secret door!

a/n: I really struggled with this chapter because I wasn't sure how long I wanted it to be. Was this a good length or would you have preferred longer?