Hidden Whispers

m i k a e l a // 10

The market place of Glenville had turned quite different than how I remember it. New shops were installed here and there, a number of cafes hoisted up solemnly and a large number of luxury houses also were blessed by the thick snow.

Our childhood sensation shop, Antiques, was lost amidst the furrowing and buzzing flashes of money and gold dripping pockets. The wooden doored shop had in it home and happiness.

It was up to no good that I had to find that shop among hungry eyed women and stone cold men who walked or sometimes sashayed to their preferable stores. Antiques had in it something called love and family, which now was getting lost with each passing fragment of time, vanishing slowly into thin air.

Soon I spotted it. The wooden sign carving out the name in a haphazard fashion, peeping out from a small alleyway.

Carefully hidden from the harsh world, and still looking like home, the shop was still wood covered but now embraced beautiful greens, and potted plants. The wood carvings on the door were new too.

Slightly opening the door and letting myself in, I inhaled a sharp gasp. The interior had changed completely. The normal wooden racks were now replace with glass slabs and the walls were now covered with golds and silvers and bronzes. Towards the right lay the same grandfather clock, and the ceiling had a humongous chandelier. It was as if I had come into the Royal Museum.

"The chandelier isn't really for sale, you know," a cheeky voice said.

Looking down from the chandelier to the girl in front of me, I nodded. She couldn't have been more than twenty, with striking black hair in a bun and hazel almond shaped eyes. Her flawless skin reflected back my growing self. She was wearing a simple sweater and a pair of Bermuda pants.

"What can I get for you?" She asked, looking at me up and down.

"Didn't Brianna work here? As a part time member?" I asked casually.

"You mean Bri? Yeah she did, as far as mom told me. Why?" She asked, interested.

"I'm her cousin. Can you tell me why she resigned?" I inquired, looking at the girl carefully.

She furrowed her eyebrows, and motioned me to the seat. I looked sideways and a brown couch waited for someone to embrace it.

Sitting down, I looked at her. She sat down beside me, and sighed.

"Mikaela, next time you come here, at least give a call," she whispered.

I raised both of my eyebrows, studying her face. And then I gasped.

"Lee?" I asked, softly.

"Yeah. Hi." She nodded.

The girl in front of me in no way resembled the little kid I adored. Her hair used to be brown, and she was chubby with cute little freckles.

"It has been 7 years, Mikaela. And you still look the same. Sounds crazy that I still remember, doesn't it?" Leesha asked.

The kid I left used to be eleven. Aunt Choi used to work here, and her daughter used to walk around here and there, throwing snarky comments at people. Leesha was this kid who knew no rules, and played games her own way. At least she used to be, at 11.

Crazy that she remembers me.

"Yeah, it is. You've grown up," I smiled softly and touched her hair.

She slapped my hand away, and looked at me with stone cold eyes. "Why'd you lie? Why'd you want to know about Bri?"

"I thought that I'd maybe catch up with her, given the fact that we used to be close, and now that I'm finally back the people told me that she isn't here anymore. So, I made my way here. Maybe Aunt Choi would know," I explained, " And if I revealed my real name, the person here might have been suspicious."

Leesha raised her eyebrow yet again. She didn't believe me.

"Brianna used to work here, yes. I remember mom telling me about her. Crazy girl, right? No, we don't know where she is now. I'm pretty sure she left Glenville and settled somewhere outside." Lee said grimly.

"So you mean she left? Telling everyone?" I asked.

"Obviously. She didn't run away, no, not like some specific cowards," she looked at me with hatred.

"I'm sorry Lee, but I had no choice whatsoever. Claire's death horrified me, and I couldn't be near her, ever. What happened to her was gruesome, horrible! It pains me to even think about it. To be the first witness, ugh!" I buried my face in my hands.

Leesha sighed. "And then, something like that happened again, didn't it? Sasha Mason?"

"I heard about it. How ugly is the world now?" I asked, and she sighed, yet again.

The world is not okay anymore. Brick by brick, happiness is falling down, crashing into millions of pieces. Starting from poverty to economic crises, the globe has turned as ugly as it seems. And then comes gruesome killing, both physical and mental deaths occurring all around, blending into what we call today as 'Global Downfall'. What's peace now, anyways?

"Anyways, I hope you found your answer, Mikaela. Bri doesn't live here anymore," Lee got up.

I got up with her, and then gave her a soft glance. "I'm sorry, Lee."

"Don't. It's okay," Lee nodded.

Walking out of the store, I sighed. People hate me now.

The icy cold air was replaced by a soft warmth. Soft sunlight blessed the thick snow taking long naps on the roadside. Children and parents walked, some window-shopped while others went inside the lined shops, and came out with paper bags filled with soft linen or cashmere.

My boots were sinking in the plush snow, so it was hard to walk at first. The little things around me were so pretty and beautiful; one could never experience the wondrous melody of the birds or the green woods as precisely in New York as one could here. Revitalization, they say.

The market was about ten minutes from my home. I started walking towards that direction.

The slinky but alluring knitted sweater that I had on wasn't much of a show snatcher as I supposed it would be. Being a part of a fashion magazine did not teach how to dress at a place where no one really cares about what one was wearing.

Not purposely, but suddenly, someone bumped into me. I took a step back, and the woman looked at me with her steel blue eyes, apologetically.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't see you there," she touched my arm gently.

"Hey, it's okay. Chill," I brushed it off.

"We cool? I'm still sorry though," she apologized yet again.

"Yeah," I nodded ferociously.

The woman walked away, her sleek pony moving in harmony with her steps.

I knew her. But I didn't know from where. That eye shape, that face slightly resembled someone, but I couldn't pinpoint whom.

I shook my head, and I walked.

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