Gaze (✔)

Chapter Four: The Unfamiliar

Chapter Four: The Unfamiliar

Clara spent the remainder of her day shut up in her room, occasionally venturing downstairs to get food. So far, she hadn’t seen Wyatt. Dylan, however, seemed to be glued to the couch before the television, watching something intently. She’d never really watched a lot of TV, and although she was curious she was too stubborn to do anything amicable with him. She had to remind herself that these people were her enemies, they always have been.

It was nearing two o’clock when Dylan seemed to pry himself from the living room and knock on her door.

He entered before she could consent, bearing his signature bright smile. “I’d like you to meet someone.” He said, walking in and collapsing on the small sofa at the edge of her room. It looked tiny compared to his lanky body. Only a moment later, another person entered. Clara stood from her reclined position on the bed, the book she’d been trying to read dropping from her lap. She’d found the novel in a drawer alone, providing her only form of entertainment in the room.

Her second unwelcome visitor was a girl who looked to be in her teens, bright-eyed and excited. Her white-blonde hair was tied into a neat braid that hung over her shoulder, matched with a short floral dress. Clara hid her cringe.

“Hi!”  She chirped, holding her hand out for her to take. “I’m Amelia.” Amelia’s face visibly fell when Clara ignored her hand, instead studying her with a scrutinising eye. She looked kind of familiar, although she couldn’t really place it.

“She’s my cousin.” Dylan provided, grinning at their interaction. “And she’ll be taking you out to buy some new clothes. No offense but -” he wrinkled his nose in disgust “- your current ones kind of smell.”

Clara scowled at him for a moment before her hand was snatched up by an overly-friendly Amelia. With a sharp glare, she countered the harmless move, taking up the werewolf’s wrist in a painful position.

The blonde girl whined out her pain before Clara let her go. “Don’t touch me.” She warned.

Rubbing her wrist, Amelia frowned and motioned towards the door. “Let’s go.” Reluctantly, she followed the grumpy girl through the door, casting a distressed glance back at Dylan. She really didn’t want to spend the day with this bubbly teenager.

“I’m coming too, Mel.” He called, stumbling to his feet and hurrying after them. Clara opened her mouth to thank him, but quickly shut it. She was being too friendly with these monsters.

*     *     *

Nearly an hour later, they were at the neighbouring – and bigger – town’s mall. Shopping was something she was unused too, so she begrudgingly followed Amelia into the clothes shops, eyeing the bright colours and floral prints with distaste.

After too much time spent in Mel’s favourite store, the werewolf lost her patience. “You don’t like anything?” she cried. Clara only shook her head with a shrug.

“Maybe it’s your whining that’s putting me off.” She suggested, inciting a gasp from the teenager. Dylan found great humour in their constant bickering, although his muffled chuckles were silenced by a piercing glare from his cousin.

“I don’t know why the hell I agreed to this.” She grumbled, stomping out of the shop. Reluctantly, Clara and Dylan followed her, quickly catching up. They headed next into the department store across the hall after Amelia, laughing quietly at her short-temper.

The cheap, plain clothes were more what Clara was used to, so with the unwelcome help of her new “friend” she picked out numerous dull coloured T-shirts, jeans, shoes, and jackets. Although Amelia insisted it wasn’t a lot, she felt like she was buying a year’s worth of clothing. How long did they intend for her to stay with them?