DeCode. || Her Cyber Love (#Wattys2020)

tyPo

"I want a person who comes into my life by accident, but stays on purpose."
--Unknown

Meliora is online.

17:12 from Meliora:

I'm coming. Promise not to harm him.

Nathaniel is Offline.

17:34 from Meliora:

Hello???

Nathaniel is offline.

Meliora is offline.

Mel sighed and put her phone back in her pocket. 

The crowded train was almost too loud. Two girls around Mel's age next to the seats across her were whispering and giggling, sneaking glances at a couple of older boys with skater jackets a few feet away from them. The girls reminded Mel of herself and Ellie – her inseparable friend whom she could almost call her her twin – who also had no idea that Mel was on a train to a town she'd never been. She would tell El about the situation with Nathaniel, but she'd been using all her battery to try and get a hold of him, or this kidnapper who had presumably abducted her boyfriend away from her unless she gave in a hundred thousand dollars. 

Of course she didn't have that much money. And she couldn't just go and ask her so-called family to lend her some after purposely ignoring all of them for such a long time. Even if she did so, how was she going to explain where the money was going? To her soulmate whom she'd met online and dated for almost a year and a half? 

Ridiculous, she'd imagine Rosaline scowl.

After she packed her things, all she had to do was tell Rosaline she was leaving town. That bit couldn't have gone easy enough.

"You're leaving Eastwood?"

Obviously, Mel overestimated her stepmother's reaction to her departure. Mel expected an interrogation on her whereabouts, a series of questions regarding on the time she'd be staying there, and of course, a serious discussion on the matter of "responsibilities". 

Of course, if Rosaline ever did bring up the matter of responsibilities, Mel would be happy to point out several examples to indicate that the matter simply did not run in her family. 

In fact, she'd been hoping Rosaline to point the matter out. Mel had been preparing her little "response" for quite some time. But all she'd received was a lift of Rosaline's eyebrow, and her soft, calm tone carrying out her only question. Mel had called in her father's assistant to merely address her take off; as far as she knew, to get in touch with your only blood-related family required a scheduled appointment.