"Hmm, what is that bright light" Katie thought as she fluttered her eyelids open. When she opened her eyes it took her a while to adjust before she could see properly, she glanced at the familiar room. She looked at the time, seeing it was past nine she jumped up murmuring, "c.r.a.p, I"m late for work".Katie hurriedly dressed up and dashed out her room, down the stairs and out the door. She hopped on a simple bike and rode for about twelve minutes before she reached her destination.
"Look who slept in" an elderly woman walked up to Katie lovingly caressing her face, "good morning darling, hope you slept well?"
"Mum I told you to wake me up so we could leave together; I need to help you more around the shop. I might be a high school drop-out with no future but it doesn"t mean I can"t help around." Katie said in all seriousness.
"Darling don"t say that, your future is as bright as the sun ok? And I didn"t want t disturb you, but I won"t do it again" mother Song warmly consoled Katie.
After opening the multi-purpose shop with her mum, Katie moved around the shop cleaning, checking inventory and completing her task.
Mother Song owned a multi-purpose shop at the town center, they lived in a small town where houses were widely separated, and the only populated place was the town center. Their shop served many purpose, it sold grocery, supplies for farming, and there was a greenhouse for growing the flowers they sold. Father Song owned the only mechanic shop, he didn"t get a lot of business but at least he got all the business the town had to offer.
They lived a very simple life and they were considered the richest in the town. But what no one knew was the dark secret this family kept, it all seemed so natural but it was all so despicable.
It had been a week since the Mansion Rosa incident, James and the others lived their lives in agony while Katie suspected nothing, in fact she knew nothing all she wanted was a simple life.
At mid afternoon a regular visitor walked into the shop, walked up to Katie lifting her up and spinning her around.
"Alex what are you doing?" Katie excitedly asked.
"I got it, I got the job." Alex announced excitedly.
"Wait, the accounting job in the city?"
"Yes the accounting job in the city," Alex answered.
"Alex, darling that"s great. Very soon you will be the big accountant in the city and you will leave me behind" Katie said feeling dejected.
"Of course not wherever I go I"d want you to come along."
"I can"t just leave my parents without anyone to watch after them" Katie said
"Don"t worry they will be fine, next week we"ll go to the city for a dinner with my bosses." Alex said.
They all congratulated Alex some more before he left. Soon it was time for Katie"s break, she routinely go to the lake ten minutes away from the shop, sit on the gra.s.s and eat.
She didn"t understand why but she didn"t feel like herself, she supposedly knew all these people but she felt zero familiarity to them. She didn"t graduate from secondary school and she had short term memory loss (according to her parents anyway) but she didn"t feel like someone with limited education, she had ideas that just pop into her head.
Also she had been having this dream about a version of herself that was successful and was with another man, this made her feel guilty because she should love Alex but instead she fantasized about another man.
She felt like she had no purpose, and she didn"t know why. But at least she had something to look forward to. She had never been to the city and Alex was going to take her so she was looking forward to that.
After eating she returned to the shop to finish her shift, this mundane and simple daily routine repeated over and over making Katie feel like she was a movie being played over and over again.