The Skin Walker

05 | No Sleep At All

"All I can do is say that these arms were made for holding you,"

18 One Direction

R U T H

The sound of a bird chirping jolted me out of the few minutes of sleep I had gotten. I lay tucked beneath the black duvet of the bed, not daring to drift into a deep sleep. I was sleeping in a home with multiple families and knew this because I heard the faint racket of men talking a few times as they passed my door.

I checked my phone for the twentieth time over the last ten hours, and still, I had no signal. Could these people afford no cell service when they lived in a mansion as large as a castle?

Deciding it was time to get out of bed, I sat up and scanned the room I had time to process overnight. The high ceiling was majestic, and the constellations embedded into it were the only things that calmed me down when I felt a sense of panic. There were two doors to my right, one which I discovered was the bathroom, and the other, a closet too large to be placed in a guest bedroom.

I noticed that, in the entire house (or of what I'd seen so far), there were no traces of silver. Only gold coated some of the furniture and housing items, like the doorknobs that encased every entrance. I got out of bed and walked to the closet where I didn't hesitate to pack my clothes. Sure, I might've only stayed for one or two nights, but it was too empty and beautiful not to put to use.

I opened the door to the walk-in wardrobe, sighing deeply at the sight of the wall-sized mirror taking up the furthest wall. Both to my left and right were empty shelves and closet rails. I'd only fit my clothes into one long shelf, and took out what I needed to wear today.

Closing the closet door, I moved to the one beside it. It was the bathroom, looking like a vintage, old-money-styled room. The tiles were black and white, and the walls matched the rest of the house, but the beige clawfoot bathtub took up an entire section. I wasn't surprised that the handles were gold in here either.

"So, they're rich rich," I whispered to myself in awe.

A knock from the main door caught my attention before I had the chance to use the bathroom. I walked to the unmade bed to place my clean clothes down before walking to the door and opening it.

Reese stood on the other end, wearing a black t-shirt that exposed his buff biceps as he crossed his arms, black cargo pants and boots. His dirty blonde hair was pushed away from his face, giving me a view of his stony blue eyes as he narrowed them on my bed hair.

"You're a sight for sore eyes," I sarcastically told him with a tight smile. He could've said the same about me.

"Freshen up fast. Everything is provided in the bathroom; toothbrushes, toothpaste, hairbrushes, soap, and shampoo. If you need anything, tell me. I'm going to wait here for you so that I can escort you to the kitchen. Don't take your time." Without another word, he slammed the door behind him, and I could picture him sulking in the hallway, waiting for me.

I didn't want to make him any more impatient and went straight to the bathroom to prepare myself. I brushed my teeth with products I brought from home and was grateful I'd packed my own soap and shampoo. I used them in the shower, deciding I wouldn't get the chance to use the bathtub.

Once I was out of the shower, I used a clean towel that hung on a rack to dry myself and my curly hair, which had gone frizzy already. I made use of my hair tie and wrapped my hair into a low bun, a few short strands of hair swaying on my face.