C A R N A L

Uncle Phil

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I walked through the sandy field and felt the wind as it danced around my feet and blew the hem of my dress. A small smile grew on my face as the cloth tickled my legs. I came across an Easter lily cactus in full bloom and picked the flower, careful not to prick myself, then turned to make sure Cassidy couldn't see and quickly put the flower in the folds of my book to press it. If she saw it she probably would've taken it and done lord knows what with it.

She yelled at me to hurry up before she hopped back into the van and closed the door. Next, Phil got in and immediately lit up a cigar.

I hated cigars, I hated Phil.

I ran to the car and opened the door only to be greeted with a jerking of the tires and a fall on my ass. "Whoa kiddo, didn't see ya there!" Phil smiled, showing his yellow canines. I knew he saw me, he was watching me the entire way to the car, leering at me in a way only he could.

"Get in the car Sophie, we don't got all day!" Brenda screeched in her heavy southern accent. Wordlessly, I got in the car and shut the door, immediately looking out the window.

We were moving from the quaint little town of Fredericksburg, TX to the not-so-quaint city of New York, NY. I was told last minute by Brenda, day-of actually, that I would only be able to bring what I could carry. I never really had that many things to begin with and fit them all into my bag.

I wasn't told why we were suddenly picking up camp and leaving but I didn't ask either. So I gazed out the window as we made our way to our new- most likely cockroach-infested - home. Devin was sleeping in the back and would probably wake up any second now to ask for food that we didn't have, just so he could throw a fit and beat at the back of my head to release his anger. He was a brat, I'm not gonna lie.

About halfway there we sputtered to a stop at a gas station not too far from a McDonald's. Brenda, Cassidy, and Devin all got out and headed for the McDonald's with a fifty dollar bill in tow. I didn't ask for anything, the answer was always no anyways.

I grabbed a five dollar bill from my bag and got out the car. Phil grabbed my arm, I winced but collected myself before he could see me in pain, putting on a blank face and looking him in the eye.

He loved to see me in pain.

"And just where do you think you're goin'?" He said in his Jersey accent, leering at me like he always does, giving me a once-over like he always does.

"Gonna get some Twizzlers." I tried not to use long sentences when I spoke to the people in this family, more specifically, Philip.
He nodded and let go of my arm. I exhaled slowly through my nose and turned to leave. "Get me some cheese puffs while you're in there!" He shouted, his voice scratchy from the cigar he'd just dragged.

I nodded and headed inside. The moment I stepped foot into the tiny junk-food market, I felt eyes on me. I walked up and down the aisles looking for the Twizzlers. I smiled when I found them and held them close, I hadn't had the delicious licorice in months. I then proceeded to find Phil's cheese puffs. When I turned the corner I felt a sharp gaze on the side of my face instantly and looked down so I wouldn't make eye contact with the man behind the counter. I put the food down and he grabbed the Twizzlers just as I set them on the counter, our fingers brushed and I felt my heart rate excel as a shiver traveled through my hand and up my arm. My nerve endings were usually tame.
"That'll be $4.62" his voice was deep, strong, and felt snug and safe to my ears- like everything not Phil. I laid the money down on the counter even though he had stuck his hand out to receive the paper. He insisted on bagging the two items for me and as he handed me the plastic bag, our hands brushed again and I couldn't help but smile at how it made me feel.

I heard him laugh under his breath as he rang up the items "cute.".
He whispered so quietly I wasn't even sure if I heard right. I blushed anyways and played with the hem of my dress. Out the corner of my eye I saw him reach out to to give me my change and I held out my hand to accept it, only to have him hold the change in the exact same way he had been, unmoving. I looked at his chest -that's as high as I was willing to go- and asked, exasperatedly, "Are you going to give me my change?" He chuckled and it reminded me of thunder. He put the change on the counter in front of me and I went to grab for it but he slapped his hand over it lightning quick. "Sure, but first you're gonna tell me your name." "Kaitlyn" I lied through my teeth as I went to reach for the change but found it still covered by his large hand. He tsked at me and shook an admonitory finger in my face. "Don't lie to me." he says with an undertone of amusement. Why would he care if I lied about my name? He'd never see me again anyways.

Again he asked, "What's your name?"

"Sophie." I replied with more confidence than I held.

He leaned his elbows up against the dingy counter, "Sophie..." he said, like he was dancing with each syllable, gracefully. "I like Sophia better," he said. Out the corner of my eye I saw him nod to himself.

"Would you like to try making eye contact, Sophia?" I blushed, and scowled mainly at myself for being so embarrassed. I slowly looked up from the pack of Twizzlers and was met with the most striking pair of grey eyes I had ever seen, they were so bright, yet extremely dark, like those monochromatic pictures with different shades of grey in between the solids. He had sleepy eyes encased by lashes any girl could envy and long, pitch black hair that seemed unruly but perfect all the same, to top it off, he carried a defined jaw that led into a muscular neck. I didn't realize I was staring until I realized he was staring. Then our eyes met and my heart broke he was so stunning. I think I died at some point because by the time I snapped out of it, he was over the counter and too close for comfort. I looked down at my feet, scared and a bit shocked he got over the high counter so easily.

I could feel how warm he was from where I was standing and his scent wafted so close, corrupting any sane thought in my head. I couldn't pinpoint any exact scent but I knew he smelled delicious. It was almost like he bathed in testosterone and walked out smelling like ... like himself. Like musk and sweat and something else that made me warm in a way I had never felt before. It was intoxicating.

I backed away hesitantly, needing to breathe -relatively- fresh air. I sighed softly, still feeling his heat linger on the cotton of my dress.

He looked at me dead in the eye and I squirmed under his calculating gaze. "You're really small. did you know that?"

It was then that I realized the huge height difference between us. I weighed in at 5' flat whereas he was at least 6' 8" if not taller. I was also just overall petite though he was -suffice to say- a giant.

He reached out and I flinched as he hesitantly took a springy curl of my hair in his hand, pulling it slightly so it bounced back, but not in the same place. My breathing became intense and I felt blood rushing through my ears, my pulse was erratic and I exhaled a shaky breath and I backed away yet again from the stranger whose name I hadn't even received yet.

This thought woke me up from my dazed state and with a start, I felt myself coming back to reality, a sense of normalcy overtaking me as I stared at the adonis in front of me. I didn't dare look into his eyes, instead looking at the top of his head as I gave him a glib goodbye and nodded, heading out the door in a hurry.

"Sophia stop."

He grabbed my hand when I was halfway to the glass door. Through it I could see Phil making his way over, probably wondering what was taking so long. My heart rate spiked.

I wrenched myself out of his grasp. He grabbed me by the waist and I yelped, surprised. I tried not to feel his hands against my waist but they were set there firmly. he turned me around and brought his hands further up, just above my navel. I jumped and burst out laughing when his grip tightened and tickled my stomach. He looked at me amused and all thoughts of Phil flew out the window ... until he came through the door.

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