An Eye For An Eye

Chapter 1

I'm staring at the empty blank page on my laptop as if my life couldn't be any more boring than it already is. I'm a writer, a really fucking complicated 24 year old romance writer. I breathe the same air in my apartment every day, and I haven't left since I graduated. I simply have no interest in pursuing a life full of incompetent men with a sense of style and a well stack of cash, or a man who doesn't pursue his choices and leaves them all as options, nor women who have the best accomplished life, which also frown upon other women's success. I want more than that. I have dreams of being a best-selling author, living the dream on my own. Even as a romance author, I don't even like the idea of love or love at first sight. I dream of self-made happiness and self-love. I close my laptop and take a long sip of my coffee, glancing out of my window at the beautiful sight of Central Park, the most beautiful park to be built in the middle of a gigantic city. A knock is to be heard at my door. I set my coffee down and I walk over to look into the peephole through the door. Of course, it's my little brother, Elijah. I unlocked the door and let him in. He has flowers in his hand, resting against his waist down his leg, and a frown on his face, almost as if he had been crying. "Eli, are you okay?" I asked, worriedly. He walks in and drops the flower to the ground to give me the biggest hug I'm pretty sure anyone has ever given me. I let him sob in my arms until he calmed down long enough to tell me what happened. "I went to see my girlfriend to surprise her with flowers, and I saw her in bed with a guy from the pilot academy I went to. I wanted to punch the shit out of him, but I didn't have the heart to. If he's so good for her, he can have her." He says with a low tone in his voice and steps away, out of arm's reach. "Well, you can join me in the life of living single and mingle. I have to attend a party later tonight. Perhaps, you will join me, and we can celebrate this life awakening of getting you away from a girlfriend that probably had sexually transmitted diseases before you even touched her fingertips by accident." I walk over to my counter to grab my coffee and lay down on the couch. He settles himself in the chair beside me. "I would rather stab myself in the eye with a pitchfork than attend a party with people who might actually watch wet paint dry for a living and probably earn thousands of dollars doing it." He exclaims. I glare at him with the piercing green eyes that my mother once had. He had my dad's complimentary cloudy grey eyes, which always left a hole in my heart. Nobody else, besides my own brother, has ever made me feel any emotion besides the power of the world itself. "Do you have a tuxedo, brother?" I ask out of curiosity. "Yes, unfortunately for this certain occasion you're forcing me into, regardless if I like it or not." He swears under his breath. I chuckle. "I have dad's suit in the closet. I'm sure whether or not he's in hell that he would treasure it if you wear it to this event." I comment. He glares at me. "Fine, but on one condition. I invite my friends from the Air Force Academy. Two at most, nothing more. I will make sure they dress up the same." He proposes. "I can work with that. Just make sure they don't fuck around too much. Remember, this is to be single and to mingle, not to fuck and tuck a sperm bank into the ladies." I remark with a sense of seriousness, but also a slight joke, but who am I kidding? I'm honestly not joking, but I'd rather be prepared and aware than deal with whatever jerk-offs my brother invites. I get up and signal Elijah into my bedroom as I walk into there myself. I walk into my closet and grab my dad's suit and business shoes. I hand them to him and make sure to give him a pair of socks. "Hope you're a size 16 in men's shoes. Wouldn't walk the shoes to fall off your little elf feet on the dance floor." I jokingly comment. He hits me on the arm with the shoe. We both laugh it off together. "I'll see you later, Nyx. Be safe, send me the address, and I'll pick you up later." He suggests. "Alright, bye Eli." I nod and hug him. I close the door behind him and go to get ready for the ballroom party. I put my hair up into a messy bun, wrapped around with small white roses and laced with a light purple flower crown. When I walk into my closet to grab my dress, I knock over a box full of family heirlooms. Some are shattered. I drop to my knees and start salvaging what I can. I came across this family photo of me, my brother, and my mom. My mom was kidnapped and murdered when I was little. They never found the killer nor any murder weapons, as she was found at the bottom of a river, like she got held down by chains and drowned with her eyes carved out of her face. That's how my dad described her murder scene when I was old enough, and it only sounded more terrifying as I grew up, knowing what pieces to put together to make that image feel surreal. I throw away the pieces of things from my dad's heirlooms and put everything else back into the box. I grab the family photo and my dress to walk over to my bathroom counter. I rinse my hands in the sink and bring them up to my face. The lights flicker and turn off completely. My hands drop from my face and down to my waist. I see a dark 6'2 silhouette figure behind me, lingering in my closet, reflected into my mirror. My lights flicker back on and he's gone. I rub my eyes in disbelief and open them. Nothing appears. I turn the lights off. Nothing happens. Was I hallucinating? What the actual fuck just happened? I feel hands lay on my waist, but nobody's in the room with me. I've finally had enough. I changed into my lilac  lace dress with floral and butterfly accents all around the skirt. I lay the last brushes of blush onto my rosy pink cheeks and pin the honey brown colored hairs into the bun with a bobby pin. I feel like a princess, but I can still feel a presence. It doesn't feel humane. I put on my handmade lavender lace stiletto heels with beautiful white butterflies at the tip of them. I feel a shiver up my back like a hand touching my neck while I sit on the side of the tub, adjusting my heels to make them fit perfectly. I use my fingertips to trace where I felt a hand grab me by the throat. It feels as if it's still there, holding my hand to feel what it had. I stand up and grab my purse. I pick up my phone and text Elijah that I'm ready and for him to head over. Tonight's going to be fun, I hope. I have a feeling my life will be turned upside down by the end of tonight. At least I'll look pretty doing it.