Enjoy~

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Chapter 1 - As time passes...

-10 years later-

"Wake up, honey!"

A young boy tossed over in his bed, groaning loudly as he shoved a pillow into his face in a futile attempt to block out the voice that disturbed his dreamful sleep.

However, the damage was already done. Already awake, he let out another unsatisfied groan as he forced himself to get up. A loud yawn escaping his lips, he thrust out his arms in the air above him, arching his back in an overly exaggerated yawn.

Finishing his morning stretch, he let his small feet plop onto the ground as he jumped down from his small, worn out, bed. He sluggishly walked towards his window with half open eyes, being careful not to fall over due to his still sleeping brain.

A sudden cheery smile appeared on his face however, when the smell of boiled tomatoes and herbs wafted into his room, tickling his nose with ecstasy. Now wide awake, he pushed open the windows, letting the warmth of the sun wash over his body.

The sunlight reflected off his platinum hair, erecting a majestic feel, as his unusual teal eyes gazed out from the window to the scene laid out before him.

Like every other day, the town was having its usual busy morning, with streets filled with people of all ages hustling to whatever destination they wanted. Being upstairs in his bedroom, it also allowed him to view the lake out in the horizon and the mysterious forest looming over at the edge of it.

Closing his eyes, he absorbed in the sound of people conversing, birds singing, and cicadas buzzing, as a content smile stretched out across his face. The moment didn't last long however, when he was interrupted once again.

"Calum! You're going to be late!"

"Ha..." Calum let out a long sigh. Distracted by the serene and peaceful morning, he had forgotten something important. Today was the day.

"Coming, mom!" He replied hastily, closing the window just before rushing out to greet his mother.

He was halfway down the narrow, wooden stairs when he suddenly realized what he had forgotten to do. Looking down, he was butt-naked save for some white undies covering his private "jewels".

"Ack!" He embarrassingly squealed out, clamoring back up the stairs to hide his exposed body.

"Calum? What are you doing up there?" His mom probed, taking a moment to look up the stairs, curious of what was taking her son so long.

"Sorry! One minute.. Don't come up here!" Calum stammered out, rushing back into his room to find some clothes to put on. He wanted to surprise his mother with the new uniform he got,  and show her he wasn't a little baby anymore. His lips cracked a smile when he imagined the proud look on her face, patting his head softly while saying, "That's my.."

His daydream was suddenly interrupted when he tripped over a hard object on the floor, falling face first into a pile of fluffy, organized clothes inside his small closet.

"Oof!" He spluttered out, reaching his hand up towards his forehead to feel a slight bump forming right at the center of it. The thin layers of multiple clothing had done nothing to cushion his inelegant fall.  

'Uuuu, why am I so darn clumsy!' He silently rebuked.

Glancing back at what he tripped over, Calum saw a small wooden frame, still intact, lying on the floor. Picking up the small mount that contained a precious drawing he received when he was little, he neatly tucked it away into another small compartment and placed it under his bed.

Then, remembering the real reason as to why he rushed into his room, Calum cautiously walked back into his closet, this time more conspicuously to his surroundings only to see a horrifying scene that was laid out before him.

Mouth agape, he looked over at the huge mess he had created. Clothes lying everywhere on the dusty floor, it was almost impossible to imagine that it was all in neat piles just moments ago. Most importantly, his proud uniform was nowhere to be seen.

Bending down, Calum frantically dug through the heap of clothes, searching for any signs of his missing uniform. In fact, it should've been an easy task, as the bright colors of the uniform were easy to spot; red and orange.

However, much to his terrible luck, he came out empty-handed even after sorting through the entire pile.  His mind set on wearing the uniform, he prepared his hands for another repetitive sorting process, when he heard a familiar voice firmly call out to him.

"Calum, this is the last warning. Get down now!"

Noticing the unmistakable irritation in her voice, his heart beat desperately as he looked around for anything he could wear. His life was more important. He had to get down there NOW, before his mom actually got mad. Calum silently shuddered at the thought of his angry mother, suddenly remembering something that should have been sealed in the darkest chambers of his mind forever, never to be opened again.

*FLASHBACK*

-5 years ago-

"Weeeeee!" A toddler squealed in delight, as he was thrown up gently into the warm air of his home. Chilly winds flew freely outside and battered the windows, making eerie knocking sounds that vibrated all across the house. Inside, a family of three paid no attention to these winds, due to their celebration of a happy occasion. They had just moved into their newly bought home.

The toddler, currently held by his father's arms, was in the bright living room in front of a large radiant fireplace. The beautiful charred wood sizzled and crackled from the heat, its warmth spreading across the entire house, as the father continued to play with the small toddler. The mother's soothing humming could be heard in the kitchen, an obvious smell of a fresh-baked pumpkin pie, mixed in with the radiating heat of the fire, drifting out the oven.

"Kwahahaaha!" The baby laughed again, thrown up high in the air. A warm fuzziness filled the room, supplied by the look of pure joy the toddler had. It was clearly evident that he loved getting thrown up in the air by his dad.

"Dear, what are you doing?" The mother's gentle voice came from the kitchen. "The pie is almost ready. I'll hold Calum now."

With a loving tone, she sauntered out of the kitchen with her apron still on, her hands resting on her curved waist, showing off her perfect hourglass figure.

"The pie smells delicious, honey." His father replied heartily, Casually throwing a wink at his beautiful wife. "You should go ahead and rest, I'll just be playing birdy with this little guy. Haha! He loves it! He.." His laughter stopped dead in its tracks when his "manly" instincts suddenly conveyed to him that something was very wrong.

'Did the fire go out?' He wondered to himself when he felt an unusual coldness settle in the room. Seeing his wife just outside of his peripheral view, he turned to her to reassure himself that nothing was in wrong. However, what he saw next was the complete opposite of what he expected.

He stiffened up with fear and broke out in cold sweat, his pupils widening to the size of grapes as alarms blared in his head, desperately urging him to run from whatever was in front of him. His wife had transformed before his very eyes.

Her normally calm and loving demeanor slowly changed, and her face contorted in an all-consuming anger; her nostrils flaring, eyes spitting rage and closing into slits, and her mouth quivering with aggravation.

The poor husband, having dealt with her wrath before, knew that her rage couldn't be quenched no matter what he tried. Having accepted his fate, he inwardly sighed to himself, realizing too late the mistake he had made.

'And here it comes..' He mentally braced himself.

Fists clenched, his "gentle" wife lunged forward like a panther preying on a defenseless rabbit, while letting out an unearthly scream.

"Let. Go. Of. HIM!" She snarled, showing no trace of the gentleness she portrayed just moments ago.

Gently snatching the baby away from the bewildered husband's arms, she held him close to her chest like a sacred treasure.

The baby, who would usually cry from loud noises, was shocked by his mother's sudden change. Instead of crying like his normal self, he stared at his mother with huge eyes and a small gaping mouth.

The mother noticed this and instantly changed back into her gentle personality. Patting his small head, she reassured him with a soothing voice.

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"Aww, it's okay my baby. Mommy's just had a little issue with your retar..." *cough* "with daddy." She said, while glaring at her husband with the last few words.

Their son, still shocked to the core, retained the same expression of shock on his face. Hugging him close to her soft and alluring chest again, she smiled and slowly strode towards her husband. Her smile however, didn't reach her eyes, and were still full of contempt and anger.

Resting her chin on his right shoulder, she stood up on tippy toes and brought her lips close to his ears.

"We are going to talk about this tonight, my dear husband." She whispered non-seductively, rage still dripping from her words.

The sound of a large *gulp* could be heard near the man's throat. He knew what was coming for him.

Later on, Calum learned that his dad wasn't given dinner for 2 weeks.

*FLASHBACK END*

Hurriedly putting on some black shorts and a blue T-shirt that complimented his eyes, he rushed downstairs just before his mother's last straw was pulled.

"Calum! You have... Oh, you're here!" She corrected herself, still busy in their small, but efficient kitchen. Long platinum hair, very similar to Calum's, draped across her left shoulder down to her slim waist, and ended with a nice curl at the end. Her blue eyes and almost perfect facial features made it seem like she came right out of a fairy tale. With no wrinkles and such, she looked to be about 28.

Setting down whatever she was doing, she walked over to where Calum was standing.

"Oh, you've grown so much!" She exclaimed, as she bent down to fix his bed hair.

"Hehe, that's right! I'm not your little baby anymore!" He said while giving her a proud look.

"You'll always be my little Calum, no matter what." She firmly, but lovingly replied. Finished with his hair, she gave him a motherly hug as a final touch.

Calum, who doted on his mother, loved to be babied by her. Letting out a satisfying smile, he looked around and appeared to be looking for something.

"Where's dad?" He probed, finding it unusual that his father wasn't up and about already. "He's not sleeping still, is he?"

As if on cue, a grunt could be heard as the front door burst open revealing a handsome young man with a well toned body staggered in. Looking to be about 31, he stumbled to the kitchen while holding a freshly caught rabbit.

"Dad!" Calum excitedly yelled, running up to his dad with stretched out arms.

"Haha there he is! How's my little man doing?" His free arm reaching out, he picked up Calum effortlessly and lifted him up onto his shoulders.

"Honey, that's a little dangerous..." His mother anxiously warned.

"Ha! Alright, let's get you down Calum, wouldn't want your mother worrying now, do we?" Giving a quick wink to Calum, he set him down and made his way towards his wife.

Casually giving her an affectionate kiss on the lips, he looked around the kitchen, finally setting his eyes on a steaming pot set on the counter.

"Watcha cooking, Ellen?" He inquired, obviously hungry.

Slightly blushing, Ellen unintentionally stuttered out her answer. "Th.. That's Calum's favorite tomato soup."

Of course Calum, witnessing this fruitful interaction, was put into an even happier mood. It was nice knowing that his parents still acted like newlyweds and were fresh in their love for each other.

"So what's with the rabbit, dad?" he asked, breaking the sweet moment between his parents.

His flustered mother looked away embarrassedly and started preparing plates for the small family, trying to act like nothing happened.

"Ah this? I was thinking about having rabbit stew tonight... Anyways, anything important today Calum? You're almost never up this early." His father replied, still staring at his wife out the corner of his eyes.

Calum rolled his eyes at this common occurrence, and stared at his dad with judging eyes.

"I'm starting school today dad! I've been telling you since three days ago!"

"O..Oho! Of course I knew that! I was just making sure you still remembered!"

Choosing this exact moment to enter, his mother set bowls onto the table filled with tomato soup, the rich smell making both Calum and his father's stomach rumble with hunger.

Flirtingly elbowing his wife, he softly whispered into her ear, making sure Calum wasn't listening. "Nice save!"

With a questioning look, she gave him a confused smile and sat down at the table with them.

Nothing escaping his sharp ears, Calum slightly shook his head and pretended not to hear anything. He was more focused on his favorite food in front of him anyways.

Finishing the soup in almost one go, he eagerly picked up a blue book bag and put on a pair of worn-out shoes.

"Bye, mom! Dad! Love you both!" With a final goodbye, he stepped out the door.

He heard his parents say something from inside, but paid it no attention due to having only one thought on his mind; school. Until now, his family had been too poor to pay for school and supplies. No choice but to help his parents with chores and housework, he had rarely gone outside. He was a shut-in; awkward with social interactions, and virtually no idea how to hold a conversation. Although a little nervous, he didn't let that fact hold him back. He couldn't wait to meet all kinds of new people.

Looking back one last time, the smell of the fresh tomato soup wafting out the door tickled his nose, beckoning him to come back into the comfort of his home. Fighting the urge, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath, before finally making his way towards the school.

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"You think he'll be alright?" Ellen worriedly asks after washing the last of the dishes.

Hearing her beloved son's steps echo further and further away, she continues staring out the small window by the kitchen, yearning for the safety of her child. Tears could be seen glistening on the edge of her eyes, some slowly dripping down her gentle cheeks.  

"What are you worrying about, El? C'mon, you know Calum can handle himself perfectly fine." Her husband answered freely, helping her clean their small kitchen.

Noticing her tears, he walked over to her and gently wiped them off, caressing her cheeks in the process. He slowly leaned forward and gave her an affectionate kiss on her forehead.

"I know, but I... Eek!" Suddenly lifted up in the air, Ellen let out a girly shriek, unfitting that of a mature woman.

Lifting her up with ease, Calum's father spun her twice in the air in an effort to lighten the mood. Setting her down softly, he covered her flustered face with his broad chest and gave her a warm, loving hug.

"Let me do all the worrying, little Elly. You're gonna get wrinkles if you worry too much." In truth, he was also uneasy about Calum's first day. What parent wouldn't be?

"Yo..you promised not to call me that 9 years ago!" Ellen protested, but didn't refuse the hug.

"Hgh! As expected, a woman's memory is nothing to take light of..." He also made a side note in his mind to warn Calum abut this later.

"Hehe." Letting out a cute laugh fitting her beautiful features, she returned the hug with both arms. "You're so warm."

This tender moment between the two was enough to make any couple watching burn with jealousy.

"I love you, Draiek."

"I love you too, Ellen. I love you too."

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