Call Me Red

Prologue

Aardleton was quaint. 

There were numerous bakeries, a few fast food chains that in all honesty couldn't use a deep fryer let alone clean their oil, a stretch of local businesses and it was surrounded by woodland. Basically if you went to the middle of foresty nowhere; that's where Aardleton was. If you blinked; you missed it. 

Jesse was new, and unfortunately alone. Living in a tiny flat and working as a tour guide. 

It was amazing, how quick he found a job. There wasn't many available in the village-like town. Not many good ones anyway, at his golden age of seventeen the best option was the dastardly take-out places. He was at least two up from that on the occupational scale. 

On a day just like any other, Jesse was on his lunch break. Bored as usual, at his regular table and sitting in his familiar iron seat. Uncomfortable, but his seat. And most of the people who dined at the cafe he did knew it. Not knowing what else to do once he finished his chicken and salad wrap, Jesse typed his passcode into his phone and absentmindedly scrolled through his social media. That was, until he heard fussing; disrupting the peaceful atmosphere that Aardleton had despite it's size and most of it's residents.

"Watch what you're doing, kid!" 

He looked up from his phone screen and saw who was raising their voice, and who they were raising it at. A man, most likely in his late thirties and overdressed in a suit and tie yelling at a small girl. Paying no attention, Jesse turned back to his device. 

"I'm sorry, sir. I really didn't mean it."
"Why don't you keep your nose," Jesse heard a thud, and a loud gasp following that thud. "Out of the book?" 

When he looked up again, eyes too sore to stare at the screen any longer he noticed the man's hands holding the front and back of the girl's hardcover story. 

It was then that he decided to notice her. She had hair as red as ripe strawberries, green eyes so bright they shone, freakishly pale skin and pouty rose-coloured lips that took the attention away from her complexion. But he realized why she was pouting when he looked at her button nose and how red it was.

Her bottom lip trembled, eyes welling with pools of tears and she ran away. Leaving the book she was apparently very interested in with the stranger on the street. He mumbled to himself before throwing it onto the ground and leaving it there. 

Jesse left his seat and picked up the book, observing it. The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.

When his shift was over, he made it his mission to find the girl and return her book to her and after looking all over town for hours on end, he was exhausted.

Despite being the most recent addition to the Aardleton population, Jesse had already taken a piece of town for himself. As far as he knew, no one else ventured deep enough into The Evelidon Woods to realize that there was a waterfall beyond the crazed haze of evergreen trees. It was a quiet waterfall, but perfect in size; unrealistically so in temperature as well and the water that gushed from the elevated rocks to the pools below was as clear as glass. It was the most fitting place to recharge.

So instead of going home Jesse took a detour and wondered through the seemingly endless amount of trees until he saw his waterfall. And he strolled towards the water, ridding himself of his shirt in the process. It was when he was unbuckling his belt and heard a sneeze that he stood still, back muscles tightening in the light of the evening. He turned around slowly to be met by someone small leaning against the bottom of a tree trunk.

"Who's there?" He called, doing his belt back up and walking towards the tree. There was a small squeak and then an even quieter answer.

"Beg pardon?"
"Lorraine!" The voice said, much louder that time as a red mass crawled out from behind the pine tree.