Chapter 4 - Only time

  The breeze of cold air from indoors led me to take a glimpse inside, Elderly people with their offsprings tailing behind them as they spot for eligible candidates as spouse for their child. Wait a minute.. Could he be here in seek of courtship? Right that moment, I had an epiphany of what my action could've done. I stopped and stared at him,

"Hey umm.. You don't have to do this if you don't want to." I fidgeted. There was confusion in his eyes as he ran over what I just said. I continued on about how I wasn't intentionally forcing him into this and the fact that I might be in the way of his quest to seek for courtship. There were like other girls out there he might want to take a chance with . On went my endless muttering till he started laughing again like the ignorant guy he was.
   He offered me his arm after he recovered from his laughing fit as I fumed at him, confusion overcame my frustration as I gave in and linked my arm with his.

"What's wrong ? I think we make a great pair since apparently you're a trouble magnet and according to you, I'm a trouble seeker." I couldn't resist hitting him on the shoulders for that. But he just brushed it off and continued on " Besides, can't you see the match making war going on inside? I'm too young to die." I scoffed at that.

 *cough* "not young" *cough* , He gave me a glare which I returned with a cheeky grin.
"C'mon old man, we gotta report for duty." I said as I dragged him indoors by the arm while ignoring the fact that he was probably glaring holes into my back by now. Perhaps I really read the whole situation the wrong way.. my bad then. Since the misunderstanding was cleared up, I felt so much more light hearted now.

   My heels clicked as we made our way insides, passing under the glistening chandelier in the grand hall . Aunt Amy should be here somewhere ..probably basking in the glory of having such an "amazing" niece. Not far from my sight, Someone was signalling me to go over to that group of women. Yep.thats her alright. 

 
 "Looks like you're up for auction." Chase nudged me,seemingly amused by the situation. I ignored him and set my gaze at the evil hag beside my aunt making him look there as well. 

"Pray tell,would you be the highest bidder or should I put you up for auction as well ?"  Chase contemplated for a while and replied

"The latter is no different than commiting suicide now don't you think?" I didn't get to give him a reply as we neared the group of ladies arm in arm . We simultaneously flashed a smile at the group and let my aunt do all the introductions. 

  "What a lovely pair, fantastic performance earlier.I shall love to see both of you dance again,reminds me of my younger days." Exclaimed one of the ladies with a bonnet. "Well of course, Kate here has been taking classes since she was a child after I talked her mother into it. " claimed aunt Amy. I simply nodded while reminiscing the times when I was forced to attend dance lessons even with two streams of tears down my face.

  "Which reminds me, We need to take pictures for the charity album. Ohh! There's the photographer over there. Wait here while I go get him." exclaimed aunt Amy whilst she yet again disappeared into the crowd. Sigh.. Why does she do this every time? She left us to fend for ourselves against a bunch of old ladies who'd sink their teeth in the moment they know our relationship status.
 "My, my. Young man you have a great eye. Make sure this young lady is yours to keep." yep, there comes the first attack.
      Continued with other successive attacks which we simply defended with a nod and thanks. But the boss level monster of the game has just arrived, the hag dressed in her blinding black sequined dress made her move.
"Chase, Your performance was great! do you think you can teach me how to dance later? I'm sure I'll get the hang of it if you teach me. " said the hag with her usual annoying voice with a hopeful tone whilst she completely ignored my existence.

    I couldn't help but picture them both dancing together, the look of discomfort in Chase's face as the hag "unintentionally" gets closer to him than needed with a contented face. I smirked with the picture in my head and with a failed attempt, tried to cover it as soon as possible before Chase catches me laughing at his mishap.

   Probably tired of getting harassed, Chase pulled me nearer to him by the waist all of a sudden which made me stumble into his side. If not for his firm grip, I'd probably end up on the floor. 
  "I'm sorry, I already made a promise to accompany this lovely lady here for the whole night. It would be bad to break a promise , no?" He replied in the most gentleman-ly way possible making it look like I'm the culprit for messing up the hag's chances with him. 

 Under normal circumstances a normal girl would be blushing due to such close contact with a man but hell, I wasn't a normal girl by any means. I was too busy plotting on how to murder the hag and perhaps give Chase a lecture about treating me like a soft toy.
"Its okay DEAR, I suppose just one dance wouldn't hurt . I'm the selfish one for keeping you all to myself. "  Chase went slightly pale at my reasoning.
"But SWEETIE, A promise is a promise. I'm a man of my word. Besides, I'm the selfish one who can't bear to see you dancing with anyone other than me."
This may look like some everyday lover's quarrel to the others but from our perspective..
THIS.MEANS.WAR.

   The "lovers quarrel" was cut short with the presence of aunt Amy and the photographer. The hag reluctantly retreated but I doubt she is anywhere close to admitting defeat . Aunt Amy instructed the photographer to take pictures of the both of us and later including Uncle James and her as well.
 "C'mon sweetie, It's gonna be a waste for charity if you don't put a smile on that pretty face of yours for the picture." "Oh gee,thanks for being so concerned for charity dear , the world would need a lot more pictures of us to be a better place." I exclaimed and both of us simultaneously flashed a smile at the camera in amusement.

   After the picture-taking session,we made our way to the dining area for some snacks and to escape the wrath of the evil old hag whose been eyeing Chase the whole evening and glaring at me every chance she gets.
"Ya know Hun, She's pretty desperate for you. Even stalked us all the way from the main hall to sneak a peak... scratch that. openly ogle you from the next table. Careful, She might even knock on your door tonight." I bluntly stated as I took a bite out of my chocolate lava cake with vanilla ice cream. "Tch,troublesome woman. Don't worry darling, I don't open my door just for anyone." He continued  while ignoring the hag's attempt to catch his eye every time he looks at my direction. ( She chose to sit behind me, how convenient for her.)
"hmmn.. really? how fascinating. I'm totally interested in your affairs with hags dear." And another bite out of the cake. Gawd... melted chocolate oozed out from the center. I feel so lucky for managing to get the last piece of chocolate cake to even care about the war going on between tables. That sense of contentment vanished as Chase ate the last bite of my cake out of my fork to ward off a group of elderly  women looking for a son/daughter-in-law from our table.

"Oh dear, what an adorable scene.Young lady, that cake looks absolutely delectable.Of course not as delectable as this young man here. Where did you get it? " Said the elderly woman humorously.
"So sorry to tell you this madam, but unfortunately this is the last piece from the dessert section. I have no idea where this young man came from as well. Perhaps he too, was from the dessert section?" The group of elderly women roared with laughter at my statement and joked about heading for the dessert section for more delectable "goods". As soon as they left, I crossed my arms and leaned back and glared at him. "You owe me lots of chocolate. And ice cream too." I know it was unreasonable but hey, anything to cover up that embarrassing statement of him coming from the dessert section earlier. I was expecting him to start ranting on how it was unreasonable that he should get me treats but instead he nodded and agreed. "Hmmph.. I still won't forgive you for taking the last bite of my cake." Yep. Me being unreasonable due to the sudden flustered feeling. Perks of being a girl huh?

"Kate, the president wants you by her side for the closing ceremony now." Guess who interrupted our lovely conversation over a cake? Yep. You guessed it. My aunt's evil secretary. Perhaps one can't really dodge the inevitable huh? I got up from my seat and bid farewell to my date for the night.
"Duty calls,thanks for putting up with me old man." I joked with gratitude.
"No big deal. Till we meet again troublemagnet."   I'm sure he was slightly annoyed by the "old" statement but heh, "Till we meet again trouble seeker."

I tailed behind the hag as we left the dining area to aunt Amy's whereabouts. The hag kept a steady pace to keep a distance between us. Seems like someone is a bit on the jealous side tonight. If it weren't for the crowd we were in, she'd be clawing me if not less to stay away from her prey--Chase the golden bachelor.  The event ended with fireworks and me rushing around making sure everything is in order while Aunt Amy thanks everyone for coming at the exit.I didn't see Chase after that but I suppose he left early to set up booby traps in front of his room for the hag. Who knows? I'd do it if I were him.
My day officially ended when I stumbled into my hotel room barefoot and free from the killer heels. I practically sprawled on my ridiculously comfy bed the moment I got in. I was like that for I don't know how long till I finally convinced myself that I needed a shower really bad to actually get up from bed.
   Frustrated with myself for being such a good and lazy kid, I reluctantly got off the bed . And that was when I noticed a package on the table. Was that there before? I don't recall. Taking a closer look at it, I notice the box looked damn classy. With gold inscriptions and sapphire blue casing. Next to it, was a note.

To Miss Troublemagnet,

Chocolates as promised for compensation for the last bite of cake. Don't worry,I still owe you lots of chocolate and ice cream. I'll clear my debt in time  (if I happen to be in the dessert section)

Sincerely, The Trouble seeker

What on earth arghhhh... Part of me is annoyed for being teased and the rest of me is like "CHAWKLEEEET!!!"OMG HE GAVE ME CHAWKLEEEEEEET." I can't deny the fact that I was overjoyed by the gift , perhaps overjoyed was an understatement . My mind wandered to Chase the trouble seeker?  Not bad. Not bad at all. I actually look forward for the ice cream and chocolates from him in the future, the hag would probably assassinate me if she knew but hey, chocolate is to die for. I retired to bed that very day feeling over the moon after packing the box of chocolate into my rucksack. Till we meet again old man. Till we meet again.

Chapter 3- Only time

Mornings are supposed to be relaxing and pleasant. And someone ought to tell that to my aunt who barged in to my room this morning and literally dragged me out of my bed while muttering some stuff about being late for free breakfast . Great, messy pony tail, T-shirt and pants and I'm out in public. I wonder if my aunt notices my drag state. She throws me a glance as we were in the lift and said "we'll have breakfast in the meeting room. Only a few committee members will be there." Yep..she totally noticed my underdressed state. 

  We arrived at the meeting room in no time for the sake of free food.My aunt introduced me to the ones around, most of them around my aunt's age. I greeted everyone of them politely and flashed a good kid smile. They were rather friendly folk,unlike my aunt's secretary who sneered and scorned at me . Yep, remind me to stay away from people who judge a book by its cover. She rolled her eyes and continued on the phone with a minister using a voice that sent goosebumps down my spine. I've decided to call her "hag" as calling her a woman would disgrace the female race. Perhaps it was my underdressed state or was it just because I was the prized niece of Amy Ma --you've got to give it to my aunt, she really does know how to brag. In someway, she reminded me of those evil stepsisters in fairy tales who were mean and full of themselves .

   Breakfast was great despite having to bear with the hag's annoying voice . I was trying to figure out how the hag possibly existed or survived when my aunt disrupted my thought.
 "Kate, I'm gonna leave you with Jen while I prepare for tonight. Make sure you're ready."
 Before I could even ask what I was suppose to be ready for, she was already out the door muttering yet again about being late for something.
 "Great.." I was abandoned ... again.
"Miss Kate, my name is Jen and I'm in charge of assisting you with your attire  today." I spun around and saw a polished lady standing before me. Well, at least she looks friendly unlike the hag. Confused, I stared at her questioningly, what's wrong with my attire? Okay perhaps I am really underdressed now but did aunt Amy seriously hire a person to tell me that? 

    

  As she read my expression, she explained how tonight was a big night for me and aunt Amy. So I ought to look more than presentable. I don't know why but something doesn't seem right about it. Do I seriously need to look so extravagant that when I asked her whether or not I could wear the maxi dress that I brought , she simply waved it off saying
 "no,no,no.that will never do." In her no nonsense voice.

    If that didn't do? What did ? 

Apparently manicures,spas and etcetera did. She took me to a spa, I had to admit it felt so damn good I almost fell asleep. Next was a trip for a facial plus a manicure . I mean all this is sort of nice and all but something still didn't click.Why would aunt Amy invest on all these? But then again ,I suppose all these is free which is why she wasn't letting it go to waste by letting me enjoy it since she was oh-so-busy. Yep. That's right. 

    I was pampered from head to toe from morning till evening. Just when I thought we were done, Jen brought in a beige ball gown with slight floral prints that was so simple and yet elegant that I couldn't resist but stroke the material . She helped me put it on and urged me to sit down so she could do my make up. And for the first time since forever,I trusted someone to do my make up. I believe I was in good hands since Jen apparently had great sense of style . She even put my hair up in a simple up do with a hair stick that had pearls at the end. 

  

   When she was done, she moved away so I could take a look in the mirror and damn. "Who are you and what have you done to Kate ?" I chuckled as I stared at my reflection. The gown was absolutely to my liking,not to mention what a great job Jen did to my hair and make up.My jade necklace which was a family heirloom  surprisingly went well with the whole outfit. I looked at Jen gratefully, and hugged her for what she did. A bit overreacting but hey, it's great to know that even I can look like this .

  "It's nothing miss Kate, was a pleasure working with you miss. All the best for your performance tonight." I stared at her blankly.
"What do you mean by performance?"
She shrugged and said that's what aunt Amy told her,that I was gonna perform tonight .That was all. 

 "Crap.crap.crap.. What in the world does she mean by that??"
Just as I was about to make a distress call to aunt Amy, she burst into the door already dressed in her cheong sam and signature pearl earrings.
 "Oh my, you look wonderful my dear. Now,the event is gonna start soon so we best make our way to the venue now."
Before she could yet again drag me along,I managed an
 "Excuse me,but Jen said something about me performing something? Or I probably misheard?" Hopefully I really did misheard . Aunt Amy looked back at me and said in a matter of fact tone
"Didn't my secretary tell you? You're gonna be the leading the first dance tonight."  I stared at her disbelievingly and sighed.. Evil hag was behind this. Great. It's too late to escape now, aunt Amy is already dragging me by the arm to the venue with a death grip. 

   I stared back helplessly at Jen who bid me farewell as I was dragged further and further away. Fingers crossed u don't have to dance with an old man who can't keep his hands to himself ,that would just be.. Unthinkable.

   As we neared the entrance of the venue, I replaced my shock with a friendly facade .This means war you old hag . I'll show you what happens when you judge a book by its cover.  Our presence was acknowledged the instant we stepped in. Basically everyone was up for a meet and greet Amy Ma and my genius for an aunt was using me as a magnet to attract attention and envy from the fellow attendees who were mostly middle aged people from the upper class.
"Heh, might as well play along since she paid for my spa." Time to let the lady to surface and be like one.Lady-like ways to talk, walk and breathe. Most of it drilled into me by my mom from an early age. I couldn't help but think that she was actually preparing me to be the perfect bride when I grow up but heck, that's just weird in this time and age.

   After they finally and thank god dispersed thanks to aunt Amy , I swear I couldn't take anymore people trying to match make me with their son or nephew. I just can't.
"Spit spot, We need to hurry!" Aunt Amy lead me towards the VIP area and there stood a group of people . From a distance I saw the hag there ,she was apparently harassing someone with that voice of hers again.There was a elderly gentleman there who my aunt referred as James. I was introduced to James (more like sold) by my aunt. From the fliers around, It's obvious that sir James is the biggest sponsor for this event. "crap.. does that mean I'm gonna dance with him?"

"What a fine young lady, I'm honored to have my son lead the first dance with you." And with that, he nudged his son who was apparently the person being harassed by the hag to greet me. The hag was disappointed that her conversation was cut short, disappointment was quickly covered with dismay as she saw who the culprit was.

  

   I could hear the hag mentally scowl at me in disbelief when she realized who I was whilst I cheerfully smiled at her. Well who knew revenge was sweet?  Turning my attention back to sir James' son, I realised he was staring at  me. Or was he gaping? He did look familiar actually..have I seen him anywhere before?
"Trouble magnet?" I heard him whisper .
"You?!" HOLY CRAP ITS HIM.
Why does he suddenly look so handsome? Holy crap was I that blind before that I didn't see those mesmerising eyes behind those boring specs of his?
"KEEP CALM KATE.KEEP CALM." I ran the mantra over and over again in my mind just in case sirens went around in my head panicking . Apparently everyone in the group saw our little "reunion" and uncle James and aunt Amy was elated to learn that we have met prior to today . The old hag didn't seem happy with it though.

  "Chase, what are you waiting for? The music is about to start. You better escort this lovely lady here over to the centre court now in time for the dance" said uncle James . He recovered from his shock and nodded at his father's statement. At least I finally know his name now, Chase huh? if I recall correctly, chase meant hunter. 

**Scene music in the player -- it's called the score.*

   Chase extended his hand to me and I accepted it . We made a beeline to the centre of the ballroom,with my hand in his as he lead me. We shared a few looks of confusion, agreement and understanding as the crowd started to clear away from where we were. Giving us space to lead the first dance. 

    The music began and so did we with a bow and curtsy we struck our position. I knew instantly that this man could waltz by the way he held me.As we took our first steps, I felt his clear lead. We smiled, realizing how well we spoke to each other without saying a word. Then he lifted his arm for a single turn and I spun effortlessly. He smiled again, and I could see his mind turning, either thinking of new moves to try or trying to figure out how we ended up here.

  

  I would be lying if I said I didn't enjoy dancing with him even though we had an audience. His shoulders were broad and firm and with the help of heels, I fitted perfectly with his height. I felt this wonderful chemistry between us as we continued to glide and spin and twirl with grace around the floor.

  As the music softly ended, we both beamed with delight. I was breathless with exhilaration. He had shown me how beautiful a dance the waltz can be.The crowd slowly joined in and danced. Both of us looked at each other and silently agreed to get out of there to talk ASAP. 

  He lead the way and we ended up at the balcony .
"Typical place to stay low profile eh?" I chuckled.
"Yep.Just like the movies."
We enjoyed the silence for a while and he finally broke the ice.
" We should get this sorted out right? " he asked.

"Why should we? Isn't it nice just the way things are for now? I had an adventure today, I was dragged out of bed. An evil old hag didn't inform me that I was leading the first dance . I panicked about dancing with an old man who can't keep his hands to himself and I ended up here in the balcony with you." He just looked at me with disbelief.. And started laughing with me too.

"I'm gonna take a good guess and say that the evil old hag is that secretary earlier." I recalled the look on her face earlier and just couldn't help but giggle. If I remember correctly, she was boasting about how  rare it was to see her in a dress which was suppose to mean that she looks drop dead gorgeous now, But I doubt the dress does much difference with her ugly personality now does it? 

"BINGO,congratulations you win a prize." I said as I  gestured and handed him an imaginary prize. It was albeit a bit childish thing to do but he actually pretended to accept it.

"You look beautiful " I looked behind me,making sure it was actually directed to me .
"Thanks,You don't look too bad yourself."I beamed. Can you believe this ignorant guy started laughing at me because of that?
"You don't get compliments like that often now do you?"  

"From old folks with bad eyesight? Plenty. From a guy who looks for trouble? Not till just now." I said whilst trying to cover up the blush.
 "Perhaps we should head back in before my dad and your aunt go sending for a search party." He suggested.
 "Yeah.. Wait. Can we collaborate and be partners tonight? I doubt you wanna dance with evil old hags that view you as an eligible bachelor and I want to avoid pervy men."
I stared at him, waiting for an answer.
"So what makes you think I'm not one those pervy men?" He smirked.
 "Really? Fine. I'll tell the hag you're interested, I'm sure she's keen." His facial expression changed and we finally came to an agreement to go as partners for the night.

**authors note ---wheww...that was long.so what do u think?**

    

   

    

    

   

Chapter 2- Only time

 Great. I've been assigned a mission to disguise myself as a perfect parent's friend's child who is an all rounder. Good manners, great academics and most importantly -- presentable.  Who appointed such task? It's non other than my oh-so famous aunt Amy who despite my reasoning about being unwell insists that I help out with that event of hers. She is the president of some chinese charity funding organization if I'm not mistaken, I never bothered to find out the details .
   
     This wasn't the first time she asked me to help out at an event, and fingers crossed its actually the last.  The first time was .. pure torture. My aunt just told me to look presentable which actually means wear a dress and act like a proper girl and that my job was to only take down names at the reception. I trusted her and all hell broke loose. When we arrived, the job for receptionist was filled in and I ended up in the hands of a middle-aged woman who started literally caking my face with make up and later on turned me into an usher to escort the VVIPS on stage. All through that my aunt was no where to be found.

   This time there was no difference, the same old instructions other than the fact that I was suppose to look extra pretty since the event was held in some high end place. Not to mention the fact that the event is to take place tomorrow and I'm suppose to be there by tonight. My mom only chuckled when I told her about my dreadful "mission" , so much for an understanding mother.  I proceeded to pack my stuff albeit begrudgingly, now came another major problem.

   "What am I going to wear?! ugh.."
I looked into my wardrobe filled with monotonous sweats and plain T's and sighed. If only I spent some time shopping other than sleeping...nah. I'd take sleeping over shopping any day. It was apparent that today wasn't one of it. I was about to head out whilst I still had time to shop till I bumped into my mom who handed me a black maxi dress . Great, talking to understanding mothers works after all. She saved me so much trouble and I don't need to worry about explaining to people about my knee injury.

   I grabbed my duffel bag and threw in the dress and some other girly essentials like heels, classy but useless clutch and most importantly .. make-up. I don't think I can resist punching people for caking my face with make up anymore , I can make a clown cry with the amount of make up they apply on my face. Contrary to popular belief, I enjoy playing with make up despite that dreadfully horrible experience. Of course, no one has to know about it. After bidding my mom farewell and having my cat see me off ( I swear the darn cat just said "May the odds be ever in your favor" in that furry little head of his whilst rejecting my offer of coming along with me )

   I caught a train and arrived at the location where the event was to be held . The venue was so fancy schmancy the receptionist with a sleek bun and professional outfit had to do a double take when I told her I had a room reserved under Amy Ma. I guess I couldn't blame her since I was just cladded in a grey T-shirt and sport shoes with a standard army duffel bag. Perhaps I did look very out of place among all these classy ladies in killer heels and gowns so long it's bound to make someone trip and fall.My aunt would kill me for ruining her reputation if she saw me now, but thankfully I didn't need to see her until tomorrow since she had some fairly important meeting about choosing between red napkins and white napkins for the event.
 
    Oh well, at least I have the whole evening for myself at this place. Maybe I could do a bit of exploring after I check out my room. The place is built on mangrove trees which is totally awesome and so darn cool.  I decided to walk around the veranda and see if I could spot any crocodiles in action. And just my luck I saw a pair of bumps bulging ever so slightly above the peaceful waters.

 "Gotcha ! " I murmured to myself as I crept to the edge of the balcony to take a better look at it. I observed the crocodile for a very long time, secretly wishing it was gonna do something other than just staying stationary with the occasional disappearing acts as it sinks under the water. Just as I was starting to lose hope and opt to go walk around somewhere else instead, I felt a presence coming towards my direction and stopped beside me.

  "Great.. you have company. Just turn, smile and leave so you don't look like you hate his presence. Got it Kate? Turn.Smile and Leave. " I thought to myself as I stared ahead at the direction of the crocodile, seemingly fascinated by it's stationary state. I was about to carry out my escape plan which sadly didn't happen when that person decided to open his or her big mouth.
 
  "You know..the crocodiles here are fed and tamed , wouldn't even budge if you were to even volunteer as prey in front of it" came a man's voice.
And a really nice voice at that.
   "Crap Kate, don't loose it just because he has a eargasmic voice" I thought to myself begrudgingly. "Well hello, you volunteered as prey before?" I asked as I turned around and faced him.
He was a rather tall and lanky man even with a relaxed posture as he leaned on the balcony rail looking straight ahead, suddenly fascinated by the branch before him.

 "Perhaps." he said as he suddenly changed his subject of his interest who I'm afraid currently.. is me. As our eyes met, I thought he was rather average looking with a pair of glasses on his nose. Those strong and defined jaws were definitely a plus to his looks, holy crap I have got to stop ogling at people. Especially people who barge into me making a fool of myself.
"Well now, aren't you an adventurous person? Or do you simply enjoy to seek for trouble?" I said as I tried to compose myself.  He smirked and replied
 "For someone who has been staring at a croc for I don't know.. an hour? I could say the same about you."
"Hn. Perhaps." I said.

  Darn, he's good. But I'm better. The conversation--discussion--debate--argument.. went on for the whole evening even when it started to rain cats and dogs. We continued at a gazebo made of glass nearby which was more like a lounge with big and comfy swing chairs. Our topic went from anything to everything, it felt nice to talk to someone who actually knows stuff instead of plain ranting on empty facts. Despite what happened earlier, I quickly found this young man's presence to be enjoyable. He was mature and witty at the same time,  which is quite rare among guys his age. But of course, I will never tell him that, not after he pointed the fact that I was a walking trouble magnet after enquiring about my scars. The pitter patter of the rain was urging my eye lids to descend and let my weariness from the long journey earlier to take over.

  "Miss? Miss."    someone.. someone was nudging me...Holy crap who's there?!
 "Yes?" I said as I woke up instantly and stared at the culprit. I took in my surroundings and realised I was still at the gazebo and he was no where to be found. The hotel staff who woke me up professionally flashed a smile and said
"Miss, A gentleman asked us to kindly wake you up in case you fell asleep,please retire indoors as you might catch a cold out here."
I nodded and gave my thanks, hoping she would leave me be as I walked back to my room whilst trying to figure out what happened. And it just struck me that I actually fell asleep during our chat and I still didn't know that ignorant guy's name.He could've just woke me up now couldn't he?

 

 

Chapter 1 - Only Time

     My weekends were starting well, slow and lazy as I planned it. No training, no elders and no rush. Absolutely nothing, just the way I like it. I was excused from energy draining activities such as leaving the house and taking out the trash after emphasizing to my mom on how my wounds would risk opening up again if I were to even bend my knee. My mom didn't buy it but she let me get away with it anyway, she's probably used to me getting injured by now due to my interest in taking part in unlady like activities . And every single time I get injured , there would be loads of beauty products piled on my shelf ranging from sunburn treatments ,essential oils to aloe vera freshly grown in a pot. Mom would go on nagging bout which cream I should apply and drone on and on till I have no choice but to just shoot back at her with some statement bout how I will eventually be able to get married anyway, don't worry bout it. That retort always succeeded in letting my mom be at ease bout her daughter's future not to mention granting me some peace and quiet. It's quite queer actually, a scar doesn't make me much less of a woman now does it? But of course , My culture was brought up to believing that girls should have flawless porcelain skin and good breeding, there's not much I can do to change their mindset. Thank the jade emperor,jade rabbit and all the gods up there that I inherited great skin from my dad , so far I still managed to grow back my skin back to its original state with a little scar here and a little marred there. No harm done right?

   I had my feet propped on a small chair and my favorite furball on my lap. The sun on my skin felt like I was being hugged by sunshine itself. Mom was a genius bout extending a veranda to our tree house which is by the way, our real home and not some vacation spot. Landed houses were mostly abolished after the rebellion. Landed and multi-unit houses such as apartments and condos are now replaced with residential areas made up of tree houses. The tree houses come together with a simple lift that is powered by solar energy so that the young, the elderly and the crippled--like me. Can still go home without climbing up the old fashioned way.  To get down from the tree house, you can either take the lift or just use the tree slide that swirls around the tree. Much has changed since the rebellion, tar roads replaced with cool solar panels that can be programmed to light up the road and power the lamp posts and other facilities. Transportation replaced by flying fox from tree to tree and solar powered trains for long distance travel use.  Trees grew without being contained and controlled like it had before the rebellion.

  Those were dark times, where the politicians encouraged everyone to move into these grand towers and condominiums. Urbanization, they said. The urban city was better, all the job opportunities were there and soon after, everyone left their homes for urban city. The ones who didn't had no choice but to move there as well as the government had started cutting out all the power and water supply to areas other than the urban city. People were quite content with the urban city at first, everything you could possibly need is within a tower's reach. They hardly need to go out anymore and thus was unaware of what the government was scheming. Until one day a man found it odd on how he couldn't get the doors leading outside to open and opted to go through the ventilation ducts like he had seen in the movies . The moment he got out, He was short of breath. Something was wrong, why was it so hard to breathe? And as he first took a glance of the outside world after such a long time, he gasped at the view before him. The trees were gone and the hills were stripped bare from any sign of greenery.

    It struck him hard that the people have been deceived and all those times when they looked out the window and saw the same old sceneries of hills and houses were all fake. The windows were programmed to deceive the people and have them all believe that all is well. More truths were revealed as the people rebelled against the government for destroying mother nature. The government threatened to cut the oxygen supply if they were to cause and uproar and that did scare the people a bit as their only source of oxygen was from this snow globe like structure with trees grown inside and the oxygen being connected to the towers via pipes. Nonetheless, the rebellion still carried on and the people managed to succeed by unity and of course, a few assassinations involved.

 "Thank goodness for the rebellion huh ?" I stated to the furball on my lap. Min just yawned and went back to basking in the sun.
"Heh, you'd be cooped up in a tower filled with air conditioning and no sunlight without the rebellion you ignorant cat ."
  But maybe that was why I adored him, nothing really bothers him much. Running my hands across his back, I relaxed and enjoyed the slow pace of the day or so I thought until my mom yelled and made Min jump out of my lap .
"KATE! Aunt Amy wants you to help out at some event again! She's on the phone now! "
Oh well,So much for some needed peace and quiet.

 

               

 

               

Prologue: Only time

   I was frustrated.
   I thought sleeping would help but apparently falling asleep proved to be way more harder than it actually is. Maybe some fresh air and a run would help I guess,  I grabbed my shoes and headed out for a much needed jog. Perhaps pretending that I'm running away from the problem would help. The air was fresh and roads were washed from the downpour earlier, this might be a good place to vent out my frustration and bottled up stress. Hell ,it'll be so much more awesome if it started raining right this minute, and just let the rain wash away my worries and my fears. 

  The run was going just fine until .. I slipped. I was like a penguin gliding on my stomach except for the fact that I was no penguin and my body wasn't build for gliding. Fortunately, I managed to somewhat break the fall halfway with my hands and knees else I'd be gliding down the wet street . Much to my relieve, I was spared from the glide. Blood was starting to seep through my knees . However,  I wasn't really concerned about it. My limbs gave out and I rolled over and stared up at the trees with my back on the ground. My mind went blank. Did I pass out? No. I wish I did, for the next thing I did was something pathetic. Something so pathetic that I can never bring myself to do in front of anyone. I had an emotional breakdown.

  They say the pain in the heart goes way beyond physical pain.  Its true. The pain felt emotionally makes it feel as if the pain felt physically feels like nothing at all. But as I stared down at my bloody knees, The sudden realization that I have something I can actually cry about right this instant hit me. And it hit me hard indeed because in less than a second, all the pent up stress and dread leaked out of me in the form of tears and sobs. It was quite an intense emotional training session if I might say so myself. Perhaps for once, just this once I would allow myself to be vulnerable. To let down my guards and just plainly cry my heart out. After shedding blood and tears for quite a while now, I figured I'd better stop in case my eyes scream "I JUST CRIED" to anyone I set my gaze at. But something's wrong... I couldn't bring myself to stop crying. With my hand covering my face , I went on sobbing like a lost child until I felt something furry nudging my elbow ,begging for it's presence to be acknowledged.

  As my hands uncovered my face, I felt my feline friend looked straight through my weary eyes and straight into my soul with those blue eyes of his. My sobbing came to an abrupt stop followed by a stream of strayed tears down my face. I slowly sat up and wiped away my tears.
"Min? What are you doing here?" I asked while gently petting his back. He managed to sit on my lap and just gazed up at me , seemingly asking the same question as well. I'm trying to hold in the tears but crap, why does my cat have to be so darn knowing? ugh...
  "Kate is fine. really. See? I'm not crying anymore.Kate is perfectly fine."
My attempt to coo the cat to believe that I was perfectly okay was an utter failure with my hoarse voice and tear stained face. Min was a know-it-all that sometimes makes it feel like such a shame that he isn't in the interrogating department sometimes.

  "Perhaps I ought to face the fact that I'd have to make the decision soon by now shouldn't I ? I'd have to face the elders sooner or later for that matter. I don't even know whether or not I should seal the contract with them but to hell with it for now eh ? "  No reply came from Min but I swear he was urging me to go home and patch up my wounds and take the time to make the decision. Or maybe I was over thinking it. I don't know. But hell, The elders wouldn't have chosen me for the scarring ceremony if I were nuts now, or would they? 

Tales of swords and love

  It was cold outside, The downpour earlier left behind a chill that made campers wish they had someone to snuggle to. As always, Trainees had to camp out while the seniors and superiors got to be in the cabin situated not far from the camp siteIt would've sucked, big time, to be camping out alone in a weather like this. But rules are rules, The authority prohibits anyone from sharing a tent for fear of any unwanted relationships that might cause a ruckus. Even so, I always tell them to keep their head in the game, once you join in, there's no turning back. Many have failed to survive though physically capable, determination is the key to survive in this blood war. Be mentally and physically prepared , And luck shall be on your side..if luck favors you at all.
   
     I was lucky enough to be indoors enjoying a late night talk around the table and breaking the ice among newcomers, enjoying his presence beside me.I got to talk to his elder sister, She started off the conversation  by asking me about my knowledge in Feng Shui. I must admit that being a chinese doesn't mean that the knowledge is already in my blood but hopefully those times where I used to snoop into the prohibited study to read all about it would come in handy right now. We got along just fine in our conversation , an on and off thunder in between joined the discussion whilst the flash of lightning lit up the whole room. It took me quite some time to compose myself from jumping whenever the thunder struck, luckily the warm atmosphere indoors did some justice in calming me down.  At some point she asked me to crack the code of this daily occurring dream of hers which consists of being tracked down by a massive tiger with silver eyes, which occasionally turned gold. Interpreting dreams wasn't really my thing ,but trying to impress her was . I excused myself from the table saying I needed to go to the toilet for a sec, Hopefully the trip to the toilet could buy me some time to come up with a reasonable explanation about her dream.
   
      I ran through several possibilities about the dream as I made my way to the toilet situated near the trainee campsites. The moonlight mirrored a soft glow on puddles and lakes, Only the sound of crickets and the occasional snore from heavy sleepers were heard.
   "Thats it! ", I thought to myself. I'm just gonna tell her I've got no leads in what her dream is about but something about the dream was quite .. off. I couldn't put a finger to why the thought sent chills down my spines but the way she started trembling when she told me about the dream was down right scary.
 
    Just as I made my way out of the toilet, My ears picked up on shrieks and screams coming off from the trainee campsite.
  "SHIT!WE ARE UNDER ATTACK" the thought urged me to rush in mindlessly like an idiot to save my comrades but thank god all those years of hardcore training made me do otherwise.
 
    I let instinct take over and scanned around for a weapon. I sent my sword for forging today and an idiot I was for doing so on this very day. Thank god the blacksmith shed was nearby , But my sword wasn't there. The blacksmith had some serious explaining to do after  the war , I grabbed the prototype of my sword that was left somewhere in a barrel where I left it the other day.
  Feeling way more secured with a weapon in hand, I charged out of the shed and intended to slaughter each and everyone of those buggers who dared to cross the borderline. I intended to make my way to the cabin where all the others were, where he was. But truth to be told, fending the enemies off took up quite a lot of concentration than I liked. Wielding the prototype of my sword was nerve wrecking, the weight wasn't just quite right and several times I scarcely escaped from death whilst adjusting to the sword.

     I fought side by side with the trainees and eventually exhaustion took over. I couldn't hold it up much longer without my own sword. Much to my surprise, he showed up wielding two swords right in front of me. One of the two swords, was my very own custom made sword. I didn't have much time to question him as he literally threw the sword in my direction willing me to grab it .
   The moment I grabbed the hilt of the black mischief, I felt the sword grasping my hand and slowly extended its way up to my arm and gradually equipped me like a gladiator. This sensation felt oddly reassuring but there wasn't much time to dwell on that. The sudden upgrade granted me more speed and agility not to mention the usage of elements. I could fend off more opponents this way and need not worry about shedding more blood than intended with this armor clad. The fight came to a point where .....

(sorry for cliffhanging, I didn't know how to continue since all the above was from a recent dream. Hope you guys enjoyed it, or not. Some parts didn't make sense but dreams don't make sense in general anyway :P, as for the title, tales of swords and love, i think its more about swords than love.As for the constant He and Him's , to be honest I myself dunno who or what he is . And so he remains nameless.This post is totally random as most of my posts are, sorry for no colors :P )