My heart was beating so loud I could barely hear what the hell they were saying.
If they headbutt me, I might black out. If they knock out a tooth, I do not have money to fix it.
My mind was scrambling for anything that looked like a tool to knock the shit out of them, but I was nowhere near anything I could reach.
"What? You Serena?" one of them questioned. Even these people think I look exactly like her.
"Serena? No, you've got the wrong—" I faked a smile to appear polite.
"Shut up!" the other man barked, pointing a jagged finger at me. "You think we'd forget what you did, huh? You think you can walk around like nothing happened?"
"I.....I don't know what you're talking about!" I stammered.
"Don't play dumb. After what you pulled that day, you think we'd just let it slide? You know who it is, don't you?" the first man sneered.
You know who it is, don't you?" the first man sneered.
"You must be mistaking me for someone else," I yelled.
"Don't even try to deny it. You might've fooled them, but you ain't fooling us."
I began to rethink what I was getting myself into. I had no idea she was living a life like this, and it in a place so dangerous that even my dad wouldn't be safe here. The streets were empty of regular people, but the ones who were there had wild tattoos, looked massive, and carried all kinds of weapons. There wasn't even a proper address. I couldn't find anything specific. The address I had led me to this street, this place, and it made me feel like giving up on my search for her.
What had she done to make these people angry?
"What do you want from me?" I finally choked out, hoping to buy myself time.
"You owe about a thousand dollars. You little scammy thief. I should have known you were a notorious thief. If you want to survive this night, you'd better bring that money."
To my astonishment, a man with beautiful eyes and a black hat stepped forward, grabbed the men, and slammed them to the floor. I don't know how he did it, but he took them single-handedly. The men groaned and immediately apologized.
"What did he want?" he asked.
"They wanted my money. They said I owe them a thousand dollars," I replied.
He pulled out a sack of cash and threw it to them. "That's two thousand dollars. So, you know what? Stay away from her. Because the next time I see you with this girl, I'll kill you. Do you understand?"
They nodded their heads and ran away like cowards.
"Thank you so much. Thank you for helping me," I smiled as I dusted my dress. I recognized him. He was the guy I had seen at the voice talent contest.
I had no idea someone could have this effect on me. The moment his words left his lips, my heart pounded harder.
Oh, that scent of his, I wanted to breathe it in all day.
And his eyes… they weren't just brown. They were a rare shade of brown.
"What is your name?" I asked as I leaned forward.
He simply nodded and walked away, just like that. He didn't say a word.
I picked up my scarf and made up my mind to leave. Just as I turned, a random guy approached me.
"Hi. Are you lost or something?" the random guy asked as he picked up my earrings that must have fallen.
"Yeah, I'm looking for someone. I'm looking for this lady," I said, showing him her image, trying not to sound too desperate.
"Oh! That's Serena. You....I thought you were her for a moment back there. You do look a lot like her. Wait! You're not Serena?" he asked, as he leaned in closer.
"Yeah, I'm not her. I'm Miwa. We....we're completely different people." I stammered. "I was about to leave before you came. Nice meeting you!" I gave a slight bow, then turned to leave. I had gotten myself into so much trouble today.
"Wait, please!" the random guy called out. I paused and turned over to face him.
"Can I see you without a scarf?" he asked softly.
I nodded and pulled off my scarf, revealing my face. His expression immediately changed, and I could see the shock and curiosity written all over it. He stepped closer to me, and I instinctively took a step back.
"You… you look just like Serena without her mask," he said, studying my face intently. "She always wore that half mask, and I always wondered why. This must be what she looks like without it. Are you two sisters or somehow related?"
"Um...I don't know. I don't think we are," I replied.
"You look beautiful. You don't need to hide yourself. And...red hair?" His hand reached up, gently brushing against a strand of my hair. "Why have you been hiding this?"
"Hey, I haven't been hiding anything. I'm new to this area, so I have to be undercover, you know, cover up a bit of myself since I'm a lady. I don't want to appear too flashy or draw too much attention. I don't usually wear a mask or scarf. It's just, I prefer to keep things low-key sometimes, especially going to places I'm not familiar with."
I paused, meeting his gaze. "Like I said, I'm not Serena. I'm not her. I....I am Miwa."
"Miwa?" he repeated. I watched as my name rolled off his tongue. "You look so much like my friend…"
He immediately saw how uncomfortable I felt and pulled his hand away from my hair, taking a step back.
"I'm sorry, my lady. I didn't mean to...."
"Don't apologize," I interrupted.
"But what are you doing here at this hour? It's dangerous for a lady to wander these roads alone, especially someone like you. Is there something you'd like to tell me? Maybe I can help."
"Since you know her and you're a friend, I would like you to take me to her. Please," I uttered as I took a step forward. "If you want me to explain the reason, it's kind of complicated. I don't even fully know the reason myself. I just want to talk to her, that's all. I want to clear my doubts," I replied with a smile. I hope he wouldn't lead me to a random place where females are being sold. Besides, it's late at night. From here, I could see that the road forward was pitch black, no streetlight that could have been of great help to me.
He crossed his arms, studying me carefully. Did I sound stupid or not genuine enough to see whoever Miwa could be as normal as it sounds to me, it might be dangerously awkward and strange to him.
"I can't explain everything now. But I know she has some answer I need. Something we have in common. Please, can you help me find her?"
Finally, he nodded. Thank goodness he did, but that was a lot of time to agree.
He grabbed me by the hand and pushed straight through the crowd. "Jump," he shouted, pulling me with him, and eventually we jumped straight into a dumpster
"Oh mine, this is such a mess," I muttered, cursing under my breath.
"I think I have a change of mind ," I said nervously, pulling my hand away from him.
"You wanted to see Serena, didn't you? I'm taking you to her."
"Yeah, but....you know, it's so far," I muttered, glancing around anxiously. "How much farther? Are we close?"
"Definitely," he said, pointing ahead. "Look at that building over there. That's where she stays."
I followed his gaze and immediately felt uncomfortable to go anywhere near there.
"Um, I think I'll head home," I said with an awkward laugh, hoping he wouldn't notice my fear. "My mum would probably be looking for me already."
"Look, listen to me. You've got to trust me, okay? She's here. You wanted to see her, and this is your chance. I wouldn't want you to come back here alone, it's not safe. Believe me."
As much as I wanted to turn back, something inside me wouldn't let me. If I left now, I'd regret it. I couldn't leave without seeing the woman who looked just like me.
We walked together to the doorway, and when we reach, I hung back a little. He knocked, but there was no response.
What if it was a gangster home resident or Killers who sell kidneys.
After what felt like forever, she opened the door.
"Hey, what brought you here?" she asked.
"Someone's here to see you," he replied.
Serena didn't even look past him to acknowledge that I was standing behind.
"Get out. Go. I don't want to talk to anyone." She scowled, clearly irritated. "You just woke me up from my sleep." She yelled and slammed the door shut.
"Wow, what an amazing friend you have," I said, and turned to leave.
"Well, you know, I'm definitely too stupid to give you an 'I'm sorry you had to see that.' She can be nice sometimes, but on other days, she's like this, she's tough, and can be brutally dangerous at times. You know, she smokes, and do some dirty work, like stealing and stuff."
"A man?" I raised a brow.
He nodded. "Why come this late at night?"
Before I could respond, the rain started pouring heavily. "Oh no. No, no, I have to get home," I said, rushing to leave.
"How about you just wait it out? Take a moment, and when the rain cools down, you can go home," he suggested.
"What if it doesn't stop? What if it takes two or three hours?"
"It's going to stop, trust me. I checked the weather today—it won't be that bad," he assured me.
He placed his jacket over my head to shield me from the rain. "How about staying over at my place for a bit?"
"I can't, I'm sorry. I just want to go home," I said, trying to refuse politely.
"Um, okay, if you say so."
As I walked further, the storm worsened. Thunder roared, and the wind picked up fiercely. Something sharp got into my eye, and I winced. "Oh, my eyes, I think something got into my eye," I said, rubbing at it furiously.
The rain and wind made it impossible to open my eyes properly. "What about the other one? Did something get into it?" he asked.
"No, I don't think so," I said, blinking with one eye.