Ella Sullivan is an 18-year-old high school senior with a sharp wit and a penchant for sarcasm. Her life revolves around her close-knit group of friends and the love for her dog. But her world is thrown into disarray when she encounters Ms. Catherin...
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———༺✵༻——— POV Catherine ———༺✵༻———
I wake up slowly, blinking against the soft light filtering through the curtains. My head is resting on Ella's chest, her steady heartbeat a comforting rhythm beneath my ear. My arm is draped across her waist, holding her close. The warmth of the blanket wrapped around us wards off the chill of the morning, but I can already feel the cold seeping in from the room around us.
It's morning now, and the fire has long since gone out, leaving only the faint scent of wood smoke lingering in the air. The house is quiet, the kind of stillness that makes you want to stay wrapped in the cocoon of sleep just a little longer. But something pulls at the edge of my awareness, a faint noise from outside that disrupts the peace.
I lay still for a moment, trying to dismiss it as nothing more than the wind, but there it is again—a shuffling sound, deliberate and close. My senses sharpen, the last remnants of sleep vanishing as I strain to listen.
Another sound—this time, closer. My breath catches, and I carefully slide my arm away from Ella, trying not to wake her. I prop myself up slightly, still listening, trying to decipher what I'm hearing. Could it be an animal? A deer, perhaps? But no, it's too close, too steady.
As I sit up, Ella stirs beside me. Her eyes flutter open, groggy but alert. "Catherine?" she mumbles, her voice thick with sleep. "What's going on?"
"I heard something outside," I whisper, keeping my voice low. "I'm going to check it out."
Ella sits up, the last traces of sleep fading as she looks at me with concern. "Do you want me to come with you?"
"No, it's probably nothing," I reassure her, though I'm not entirely convinced myself. "Just stay here. I'll be right back."
Reluctantly, she nods, and I get up from the couch, quietly pulling on the thick sweater I left draped over a nearby chair. The wooden floor is cold beneath my feet as I move toward the hallway, the darkness of the house settling around me like a blanket. I reach the front door, pausing to listen one more time. The sound comes again—a soft, deliberate crunch of snow.
I take a deep breath and open the door, the cold morning air hitting me like a shock. The front yard is blanketed in a thick layer of snow, untouched and pristine. But there, at the edge of the porch, is a figure.
She's bundled up in a heavy coat, her breath forming small clouds in the frosty air as she peers down at something in her hands. As I step out onto the porch, the creak of the wood beneath my feet catches her attention. She looks up, and the surprise on her face quickly turns to recognition.
"Rumani?" I ask, my voice a mix of confusion and relief.
"Catherine!" she exclaims, her face lighting up with a smile. She steps closer, holding up her phone. "Look how cute you two were!"
