"Cassie, this is the third time this month you've submitted late and worse, it's mediocre work."
The words cut through the stale office air like a rusted blade. Cassie Ross stood across from her boss, drenched in sweat and humiliation. Behind her, the clatter of keyboards and the low hum of conversation continued without pause, but here, in the glass-paneled office of Marlowe Publications, time crawled.
"I just..." she started.
"No excuses," Sandra snapped, flipping the sketchpad closed and dropping it on her desk like it offended her. Her blood-red nails tapped the wood with a rhythm that spelled doom. "You used to draw with soul. Now? It's like watching someone trace outlines from a wet napkin."
Cassie winced. "You know I've been going through a lot..."
"So has everyone else. You think the world pauses because you have problems? If I don't have something brilliant next week, I'll be forced to replace you."
The final word hit harder than any slap: replace.
Cassie nodded, stiff-lipped. She turned on her heel before Sandra could see the way her eyes burned with unshed frustration. Down the hallway, past the frosted doors and soulless motivational posters, she escaped into the city's biting wind.
The streets were clogged with honking taxis, blaring advertisements, and the wet stink of half-dissolved garbage. Rain threatened in the clouds above, and all Cassie could do was walk, head low, hoodie up, mind spiraling.
Replace me? She thinks I can just conjure brilliance out of thin air?
She sighed and reached into her bag for her sketchbook if she could just draft something decent on the ride home...
But her bag wasn't there.
Because in that very moment, it was being yanked off her shoulder.
"Hey!" she shrieked, spinning just in time to see a lanky figure in a dark hoodie sprinting off with her bag. "You son of a....come back here!"
Cassie ran after him.
The thief darted into traffic, forcing her to dodge a screeching moped and leap over a puddle. She cursed so loudly a mother covered her child's ears as they passed.
"That's all I have, you jerk! Get back here before I rip your spine out and use it as a coat hanger!"
He kept running. She kept chasing.
Down a side street, past the rusted fire escapes and graffiti-tagged dumpsters, the thief finally stumbled into a dead-end alley. Both of them were heaving for breath, sweat and rain mingling on their skin.
The thief turned, incredulous. "You're crazy! What kind of chick chases someone into an alley over a damn bag?!"
Cassie doubled over, panting. "The kind of chick who's tired of getting kicked while she's already buried underground. That bag has my sketchpad, my bus pass, and my last granola bar. So unless you've got a death wish, you better hand it over."
The thief blinked. "You're serious."
"Dead serious." She pulled off one of her sneakers, cocked her arm back, and chucked it full-force.
It smacked him right in the face.
"Ow! You...psycho!"
He lunged at her.
Before he could lay a hand on her, something zipped through the air with a sharp thunk. An apple hit him squarely on the temple. He staggered, eyes wide in confusion, and crumpled to the ground.
Cassie froze.
The alley was empty. No windows open. No movement. The apple rolled across the ground, stopping at her feet like a question.
"What the hell…?"
She grabbed her bag from the thief's unconscious hand and bolted.
From the shadows behind a rusted fire escape, a tall figure watched her silently. His silver eyes narrowed.
He calmly picked up the apple on the floor.
The bus ride home was slow and wet. Cassie leaned against the window, her bag clutched tightly in her lap. Every bump in the road made her jaw clench.
My life is a cosmic joke, she thought. The kind with a laugh track.
She arrived at her apartment well, for now, anyway. The building was a mid-century disaster held together by duct tape and faded optimism. The mailbox groaned as she opened it.
A letter with bold red print stared back at her.
Final Eviction Notice.
She let out a strangled laugh. "Perfect. Just… amazing."
Her key jammed in the lock three times before the door finally opened. The warm smell of instant ramen hit her like a punch to the gut.
Inside, her roommate Janey sat cross-legged on the couch, happily slurping from a steaming bowl.
"Oh hey! I made dinner. Kind of."
Cassie stared in horror. "Is that… my last packet of ramen?"
Janey blinked. "What? I thought we were out of food. It was at the back of the cabinet. Ancient history."
Cassie dropped her bag. "That was my emergency meal! You know...the one I was saving in case I got fired, mugged, or evicted."
Janey gestured with her chopsticks. "I mean, it's been a week. I thought you forgot."
Cassie lunged.
Janey squealed and leapt off the couch, bowl in hand. "Don't you dare! This is boiling hot!"
They danced around the coffee table, Cassie swiping, Janey dodging, noodles sloshing onto the floor.
"Give me the ramen, traitor!"
"You'll burn your face! Respect the soup!"
Finally, Cassie collapsed onto the floor, arms splayed. "I give up. Take it. Take it all. The universe already has."
Janey peeked over the edge of the couch, concerned. "Hey… you okay?"
Cassie covered her face. "I got threatened with replacement. Chased a thief through an alley. Nearly got punched. Got magically saved by a flying apple. And then I come home to find my only food eaten and my lease terminated."
Janey lowered the bowl. "Whoa."
"Yeah. Who did I offend? Was I a mob boss in a past life? Did I run over a nun?"
Janey came over and gently placed the half-finished bowl beside her.
Cassie sniffled. Then muttered, "I hate miso anyway."
Janey smiled faintly. "We'll figure something out. We always do."
Cassie stared at the ceiling, arms sprawled, wet hair clinging to her face. "No. You figure something out. I'm going to lie here and wait for the ground to swallow me."
Janey reached over and booped her nose. "Then you better pack a snack."
Cassie groaned. "I can't even afford a snack."
Outside, the city thundered. Somewhere far away, the sound of a distant bell rang out.
And far above them, on the rooftop of the building across the street, the silver-eyed man watched through the shadows.
The girl with fire in her eyes and chaos in her soul had no idea what she was stepping into.
But soon, fate would knock.
And death would answer.