Shattered Tears mxb

Chapter 6

Riley’s POV

“Hi I’m Riley, it's very nice to meet you.” I extended my hand out to shake, but instead she grabbed it and started inspecting my palm.

She traced the lines of my palm with a faraway look on her face. “Hm you’ll have quite the life.” She whispered, staring at the trees behind me.

I snatched my hand from her grip, getting really creeped out by her words,“Um thank you?” I mean, what could she possibly know about my life? She’s not a witch.

“I tend to be able to predict things. I hope you have a strong will.” She casually walked back into her house leaving the door open, but I don't know if I want to go through it.

However, it’s not like I had a choice. Not a lot of people are renting or looking for roommates in this small town. The inside of her house is exactly what I envision a “witch” to live in. There are a lot of plants decorating the living room along with dry herbs hanging in a dark corner. As we walked through the kitchen I could see a shelf filled with mason jars that had different colored liquids in them. Despite the peculiar style it was actually quite organized for such a heavily decorated home.

We walked through a small hallway that had three wooden doors which were weird themselves. The first one to the right was 2 slabs of wood joined by black epoxy with dried flowers. The second one was plain wood with the exception of a small wolf  carved in the middle, and the last one was a thick wooden door with a metal X across the whole door.

“This will be your room. My only rule is to not touch any of the mason jars.” She gestured to the door with a wolf carved on it. “I won’t be around much, but if you need something just knock on the black epoxy door three times.”

“Okay. Where is-” I turned around and she was gone. “Right, great.”

I walk into my room surprised with the amount of space inside. The bed is placed in the back wall of the room with a small wooden nightstand on either side. There's a small desk on the opposite wall with two doors next to it, one of which I’m hoping is the bathroom.   

I start the exhausting process of bringing all of my belongings into the house. It is at these moments that I really wish I had super strength so that I could bring many boxes in at once. I walked back outside to hopefully manage the last three boxes so no more exercising took place.

I lean back against my car bathing in the sun’s warmth combined with the chilly breeze. The weather here was absolutely perfect. The perfect temperature between warm and cold, surrounded by nothing but fresh air.

“Hey, need some help with that?” I shriek at the manly voice behind me. Behind me is a very handsome and bulky man. Shaggy blonde hair that rested on his shoulders, strong jaw and neck. Jesus his biceps were the size of my head. “I'm Leo in case you want to put my name in your dirty thoughts.”

I blush finally looking away from his shirtless body. Who even walked around shirtless in public? “Um no thank you. Miss Ruthie wouldn’t appreciate strangers in her home.” I stare at my feet counting the ants that are crawling on the driveway.

“Don’t worry about her, I'm her favorite wo- local.” I look up at his pretty green eyes trying to understand why I feel connected to this stranger. He grabs the three boxes like nothing and begins walking into the house. I stand on the driveway trying to clear my head of this awkward feeling.

I lock my car before going back into my room where Leo is staring at the unpacked boxes with curiosity. “Thank you for your help.” I rub my neck, not sure on how to politely ask him to leave. This day has been way too over stimulating.

He sits on my mattress staring at me intently. “Why did you move here?”

I really hope not everyone in this town is nosey. “I moved for school.” I glance around the room not liking the feeling of being interrogated.

“But why here? There are better schools.”

“I should start unpacking. It was nice to meet you.” I hug myself waiting for him to leave. I just wanted to organize my room and take a long shower.

He walked out my room choosing instead to stand in the hallway. “I'm sorry I came off really intense. It's just rare for people to move here, 100% of the students at the university are locals and I guess now you.”

Maybe moving to a small town was a mistake. How could all the students be locals? Behind my back I anxiously pick my nails, already picturing all the stares I would get on Monday. Fuck. Maybe I could take all my classes online.
“Hey don't freak out.” He approached me slowly, putting his hand on my shoulder. “You can hang out with me and my friends.”

I really didn’t want to make any friends. I just wanted to be left alone with no one knowing I even existed, but if it meant I didn’t have to deal with the stares alone then maybe it wasn’t a bad idea. “I would like that, thank you Leo.” I tried to smile but it probably resembled a grimace.

“No problem,” A beaming smile took over his face. “I’ll be waiting for you at the entrance.” He walked out my room and the sound of the front door closing followed a moment later.

I stand in the room enjoying the silence. Being in this town makes sense, even if it terrifies me. It feels like I belong here.