Aries: The One Who Stole My Heart Read online

  ~*~ Prologue ~*~

  "Use your powers, Aries..."

  'I don't have any powers?' I argued.

  "Shoot him!"

  I froze. 'Shoot him? With what?' I asked.

  Ken tore my shirt and leaned on me.

  "ARIES NOW!"

  *

  WHO WAS I? AND WHAT I DID? AND WHAT I'VE BECOME...

  IT ALL STARTED WITH THE DAMN BITE...

  ~*~

  CHAPTER 1

  I love gazing at the sky. Space, the emptiness, the limitless stars, the attraction has always continued to fascinate me.

  But like space, I too lacked life.

  My life was very dull. I didn't have friends. I never did anything exciting, never went to a restaurant or a coffee shop, never went to see a movie in a theater, and did not even go to the mall.

  In school, I didn't take part in any school activities and only minded my own business. I purposely try to maintain some distance from others. I recognized a few faces, but I don't acknowledge them in class, or when I see them in the school corridors, that's why I never stored anything in the school locker. I always carried all my books according to the schedule.

  I always got to the class before anybody else and selected a seat near the door. That way, I was still the first to leave.

  And during recess, I love sitting under a tree. It was my favorite place where I could immerse myself in reading and writing and eating my lunch. This was the school life I'd designed to obscure myself from everyone.

  Why? You might ask.

  Because, I have a secret profession, and I didn't want anybody to recognize me, and so I keep myself shrouded in an oversized hoodie.

  I don't want anyone to find out my secret, I'd lose everything - good grades, good credit, and high regard from teachers - that I'd worked so hard to reach my goal. I wanted to get into the right college, hopefully with a full scholarship and run far away from this town, from all the exploitation and find my way to one wholesome dream - new place, new home, new hope, and freedom.

  ~*~

  Sunday at midnight, when the clock struck twelve, it was my birthday, I turned eighteen today. Unfortunately, I didn't have anybody to celebrate with or a cake or a candle to make a wish, so I closed my eyes and made a wish to the stars. The only word that came to my mind was 'LOVE.'

  ~*~

  Monday afternoon after school, it rained hails. I'd no choice but to wait for the storm to stop. Some kids were trying to catch small ice balls in their hands, only to melt those by the heat of their skin.

  "Dude, could you move a little? You're in the way." A voice came from the back.

  "Um, sorry," I said.

  "Woh, you're a girl? I always thought you're a guy in that hoodie." He chuckled. "You're in my math class and chemistry too." He said. But I didn't respond.

  He came close and stood next to me, and I hid my face under the oversized hoodie even more. I recognized that voice. He sits in the back, not too far from me. I was shocked that he knew that we have classes together.

  "You are always so quick to walk out of the class—" he continued, and I stepped out in the hailstorm, prepared to ignore him and walk away.

  "Hey!" He called. I felt a tug on my hoodie. I turned around and frowned my eyebrows at him in annoyance. He was staring at me, and that feared me. I quickly pulled the hoodie back over my head and dashed out of there. The tapping noise from the hails irritated me as I walked faster.

  He was; Leo Carter. The most popular boy in the school, a football champion, an honorable student known for his sincerity, and always nice to everybody.

  Some say he has a gift. He had saved people from burning buildings and accidents. At school, he'd stopped bullying and protected girls from jerks and lunatics. He was known for his ability to defend in a violent confrontation and has proved himself a hero. He was a remarkable guy—inferior in every way, from prowess in a fight—to popular among girls.

  ~*~

  I reached home, soaking wet. When I entered, I saw my older cousin Skye sitting on a workbench in her room. This room was huge and equipped with tools from soldering and rolling mills to drilling machines. She was paraplegic and used a wheelchair. With her disability, she usually stayed inside the house, and occasionally stepped outside to collect mails or packages. She kept herself occupied all day long, making jewelry and selling them online.

  Skye paused from whatever she was doing with flat nose pliers in one hand and gold wire in another. She looked at me from head to toe and was a little annoyed. I stood there, fidgeting my fingers, a nervous habit of mine. I was trying to come up with something to say. I thought maybe I should make a compliment on the peacock feather earrings she'd made, and they looked beautiful. So I went open my mouth, but Skye turned her back at me and carried to work on her jewelry. I sighed, lowering my gaze, and then went to my bedroom.

  Taking off my hoodie, I sat next to a heating vent on my bedroom floor to warm up. I freed my long blonde hair to dry and laid there for ten, maybe fifteen minutes or so. I was famished, but I had limited food choices—I was put on a strict diet, forbidden from getting anything from the pantry and refrigerator, and Skye was put on a food patrol by Judin.

  I lived with my aunt and uncle, Ken and Judin. Ken was a truck driver, he practically lived on the road, and only occasionally comes home. His wife Judin works at a nightclub.

  Their one-story house had three bedrooms with one bathroom. It was a very old-old house.

  On my way to the bathroom, I passed by Skye's bedroom. "You should start driving to school," she said. I halted in my tracks. I looked at her with confusion. First of all, I didn't have a car, and she did. Wait, did she mean I can use her car?

  This was the second time she'd spoken with me. The first time she talked to me was about six months ago to allow me to get food from the pantry and the refrigerator, and promised not to tell her mother.

  "I'll think about it." A smile formed on my lips as I felt good that she cared like I had a big sister. Skye carried herself back to twisting the gold wire.

  Going to the kitchen, I was welcomed by a sink full of dishes left for me to be clean. I sighed, and began to work, cleared the kitchen mess, wiped the counter clean, and loaded the dishwasher.

  After munching on a light snack. I went to my room and got ready for a dance rehearsal in the garage. The garage was made soundproof and had Bluetooth speakers. A shiny dance pole had installed, and on the other side, an aerial hoop hung from the ceiling. This is where I rehearsed my dance moves.

  Yes, I was an exotic cabaret dancer, though not by choice.

  Judin and her husband were heavily in debt. She discovered my talent for singing and gymnasium and decided to use me to pay off their debt. One day she took me to the nightclub she worked at, and to ask her manager to give me a job as a waitress. I was only sixteen years old, but I could get in only because she worked there for a long time. She forced me to wear an erotic costume. I denied, but she was forceful. I begged not to do this to me. I cried, but she never listened to any of my pleas, and instead, she dragged me by my hair and threw me on the stage for an audition.

  She picked me up from the ground, "Let's put on a good show, okay, and remember until you're eighteen, I own you. Now go and smile."

  After a few weeks of training, I had my first performance. As the curtains rose, Judin introduced me to the audience. I tried to cover myself with my hands but failed miserably. My vulnerable state only made the sleazy customers happy and turned on. They laughed, whistled, moaned, and threw money at me. I could hear their taunts - 'Take it off baby'; 'Come to daddy'; and 'Yeah, baby! Work that!' all the vulgar comments were thrown at me. I hate this, them, and everything that I was doing.
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  That made me feel sick. I felt cheap, violated, and disgusted.

  Judin had threatened me; she'd throw me out of the house and into the homeless shelter for vultures to nibble on me if I talked about it to anyone. I promised her not to say anything to anyone and to perform at the club quietly. In return, I only asked her to let me study, to go to school, and protect me from horny people in the club. So far, I'd have no problem from her side, as long as I keep my end of the bargain.

  And this was one of the reasons why? I keep my head bowed down in the school, or anywhere I go. You never know who goes to the club and recognizes me.

  In the beginning, I didn't like doing what I did, but I taught myself a couple of tricks. First, I muted all the noise and comments by singing a song and filled my ears with music and focused on my dance. Second, I thought of myself as an artist performing on a stage, just like pop stars.

  ~*~

  After rehearsing, I took a shower and started doing my homework. As I tried to concentrate on the math assignment, words started pouring over me. They were a bit jumbled and not exactly rhymed, but I needed to write them out, or else I'd forget them.

  ~Now in loneliness, my eyes are searching~

  ~For that one curious face.~

  ~That one time you looked at me,~

  ~And my heart started beating loudly.~

  ~Sign my red lips with yours and make it a ritual .~

  I had only written some shady songs for the club for my performance, but these words were romantic. None of this made any sense as I scribbled the words down word-to-word.

  A loud sound of thunder startled me. I looked outside the window, it had started to rain again, and I thought of someone - Leo.

  I didn't know what made him try to stop me from walking in the hailstorm or even come after me, but what affected me more was the way he looked at me and made my heart thump and how he trapped me inside his body and was leaning forward in his eagerness, an ardent desire to... kiss me.

  Now that was crazy.

  ~xXx~

  A Glimpse On Leo's P.O.V.

  Sitting in his seat in the classroom, a sweet fragrance of Vanilla, Jasmine, attracted Leo's attention. His eyes darted at the black hoodie seated near the door. The sharp sense of smell was adversely affecting him coming from there. He wanted to find out who that person was behind that hoodie.

  He was always curious but never got a chance to speak, meet, or see this person. With his friends, they all thought he was a boy.

  Leo is a dominant Alpha, who was feeling weak by this enticing perfume even from afar.

  He was twitching, squirming in his seat.

  "Hey man, you feeling okay?" Jedrek, his buddy and Leo's best friend sitting next to him asked, as he saw noticeable unsteady movements in Leo, he seemed very distracted too.

  "Y-yeah," Leo said through his clenched jaw, avoiding Jedrek’s eyes.

  Leo's eyes were bored at the black hoodie. He was getting anxious and restless. He lost all his focus from everything around him as the overpowering aphrodisiac scent hit him hard. He was getting high.

  Rapid heartbeat. Increased respiration. Eyes changed color. Talon shot out and raked on the desk.

  "Jesus! Leo, what the fuck is wrong with you?" Jedrek snarled at him, only because they were Werewolves sitting among the humans. "Put them back inside."

  When the bell rang, the person in the hoodie escaped out of the class, and Leo too dashed out of the classroom, running—after the one.

  ~*~

  Leo spoke and when he heard her soft voice with an accent that made him curious. They all thought it's a boy, but it was a girl in the hoodie.

  Keened and lured by her sweet voice, Leo stood close to her, but she went further inside to hide her face in the hoodie. But why? - he thought.

  He spoke again, and before he could finish the sentence, she walked out in the hailstone. Leo got worried and he went to stop her and accidentally pulled her hood.

  And when the hood slipped, it revealed her face.

  Wow! was the only word that came to his mind and onto his lips. Her gold locks swept across her face revealing her natural beauty. Her blue eyes, her pink lips, and everything about her were beautiful. Even though her furrowed brows held arched with annoyance, she still looked beautiful. If she is so lovely, with her annoyed face, I bet a smile must make her look even more attractive. Her innocent face struck him. So angelic, he thought.

  'She's the one.'

  "Jedrek, do you know who she is?" He asked, his eyes never leaving her sight.

  "Who?" Jedrek asked.

  "Her, the one in the hoodie."

  "Isn't that a boy?" Jedrek questioned.

  "No, and I'm going after her." He said and chased her down the street. He pulled her in, under the bus shed just before the lightning struck in the sky.

  "Ouch.." she yelped when he grabbed her arm a little too harshly then he intended. Their faces were only inches away from each other. Both their hearts beating loudly. She was scared and he was dazed.

  "It's not safe. It would be best if you stayed inside... with me," Leo said. Her beauty had captured him, so much so that he wished never to blink.

  "Who are you? What's your name?" Leo asked, but she never replied to him, her wide eyes pierced through him, her scent madden him.

  'MINE' His being growled within and suddenly Leo felt the one thing he wanted to know and do. He bends down to kiss her.

  Before he knew what he was doing, she'd pushed him off. He wasn't prepared for that. Leo was a strong man, and nobody could budge him, but since he was too engrossed in his lust, he got pushed away by her easily, and he fell.

  She took advantage of this opportunity and practically flew out of there.

  He stayed down on the floor, smiling at himself and fell back on the floor, saying, "I love her."

  ~xXx~

  CHAPTER 2

  Tuesday at school was nothing out of the ordinary. As usual, I walked in early to the empty classroom, sat near the door, and walked out as soon as the bell rang. Half the day of school just went by.

  I was in the chemistry lab and was picking up a test tube when a shadow fell over me, from the tall figure that stood next to me. I looked up and blinked twice - Leo.

  "Hi," he said, standing right in front of me. His blue eyes were looking at my face, and at the moment, I too held his gaze. I had admired him from far away, like the Sun. He had a smile that always warmed up the faces of those around him and a laugh that brightened up the whole room. Nevertheless, I've never seen him up close, this close, close enough to be touched.

  I wondered, how would he feel if I ran my fingers through his hair? Oh my god, did I just think of... I shook my thoughts away. He has a girlfriend, and she might hate me or worse... kill me.

  I realized I was staring at him, but so was he. The test tube felt slippery in my sweaty hands. I blinked rapidly, breaking my gaze, and lowered my head quickly.

  He cleared his throat before saying, "Do you see extra gloves somewhere?"

  "Um...gloves...what size?" I asked.

  He looked at his hands, inspecting them as if he just discovered them. I bent down to search for the gloves and handed a pair to him.

  "I need a large size," he said, looking at them.

  "They are," I said with a giggle. I never giggle, why did I do that now?

  "Oh... thanks," he said with a smile.

  Leo's smile faded, he looked as if he was either getting amazed or— Did he just growled? Mrs. Roger was calling Leo, asking him to grab a table but he was dazed in his thoughts as if hypnotized. His eyes held a motive like he wanted to grab, seize, hold something—me??

  "I am..." he continued, trying to say something, but Mrs. Roger continued to interrupt.

  "Do you mind?" Leo snarled at Mrs. Roger.

  The whole class let out a gasp.

  "Go to your table. Now." Mrs. Roger yelled at him. She then began to explain what we all were going to do in the class. Leo gave her a stern look, and
with that note, Leo went back to his station, somewhere in the back.

  ~*~

  I tried to focus on my work, fighting an urge to look back to see Leo, if he was okay. I was less bothered about my work and was thinking more about him. I did not know - why? He is taken. He was with Vivian. I reminded myself.

  As time passed by, my curiosity aggravated even more, and I looked over my right shoulder, but he wasn't there. I sighed and went back to mixing two chemical compounds and waited for the reaction to happen. The more I thought of Leo, the more I brooded over it. I peeked again, this time, I glanced over the left shoulder, and our eyes met. Instantly, my heart thumped loudly. 'Shit, he noticed me.' So I casually rolled my eyes around the room, pretending that I was just observing my surroundings. My eyes returned to my table, and I found myself smiling for no reason.

  For over a year, I'd tried not to get any sort of attention. But doing so, was I getting one?

  The bell rang. I shoved my books in the backpack and rushed out of the lab in a flash. It was the last hour of the day, so I quickly headed home, walking with my thoughts, thinking of what to cook today. Hmm... maybe fajitas.

  To ask Skye if we had all the ingredients at home, I searched for my phone but didn't find it in my back pocket... or any of my other pockets.

  "Ah... crap, I forgot my phone in the lab." I scowled at myself.

  I turned around and followed the exact trail that I took, watching the ground for a phone that might have slipped from my pocket and fell.

  I reached the school, but still, there was no sign of my lost phone. I grew irritated and annoyed at myself for being careless. I sighed and dragged myself inside the building. The hallway was quiet, the entrance seemed long and cold without the swarm of students I was used to seeing during the school hours.

  A mumbling sound behind me broke the quietness. I took a quick peek over my shoulder and noticed two male bodies from the corner of my eye. I wished I'd my phone, but then again I wouldn't be here—alone—looking for it, now would I?