A Clockwork Affair | Chapter Three

~Ashelia’s POV~

I had never been happier with my life. At least, I didn’t think so. Granted, I couldn’t remember anything about my life, but surely, it couldn’t have been better than it was now. Obviously if I had lead a happy, meaningful life full of love and laughter, someone would have come to find me and claim me, wouldn’t they? That’s how I looked at it. So maybe my accident wasn’t a bad thing. Maybe it was a blessing in disguise. Because I was happy, and I didn’t want anything to change.

I liked the house I stayed in, and I liked the hobbies I had picked up. Painting was the best feeling in the world, and I loved to learn. Thankfully, my savior – and housemate – was very accommodating when it came to everything I was interested in.

Hyde was an amazing man. Smart, passionate, dedicated. He was also quiet and composed, with a rugged exterior that was hard to get past. I had been living with him for over two weeks now, and while I had learned much about him, I still didn’t feel like I knew him. He kept a lot bottled up inside, I could tell. It showed in his eyes – he looked so sad sometimes that it hurt me. I hated not knowing his story, but I guessed that I would learn it all in time, or at least I hoped.

One morning I woke up before dawn, full of energy. Hyde wasn’t up yet. I went to knock on his bedroom door but decided against it – I knew I didn’t like to be woken up, and he probably didn’t either. I would have to find some other way to busy myself until he rose for the day. I decided I would go back to my room to start on a new painting, when my gaze landed on the door beside the one that lead to Hyde’s bedroom. I thought back to the first night I regained consciousness, when Hyde gave me a tour of his home. This room had gone untouched. Frowning, I approached the door and grabbed the handle, turning it with no avail. The door was locked. I tried to pry it open, but it wouldn’t budge. Whatever was in there, Hyde didn’t want anyone getting into it. That made me want to go in even more, but I knew I would have to wait and ask him about it later.

I went to my room to paint as I originally planned. Later, I began to hear movement in the house and knew that Hyde was up and about. I went to look for him and found him feeding the fish, which made me smile. I had teased him for having a big, empty aquarium until finally he went out and caught some fish to keep in it. There were six living in there now.

“Good morning!” I called to him cheerily. He had yet to dress and still wore his robe, which I had never seen him in before. He turned and gave me a sleepy wave, stifling a yawn.

“Good morning, Ashelia.” He said to me, “How in the world are you so chipper already?”

“I’ve been up since five am, and you taught me how to make coffee. Remember?” I smiled.

“Oh yes, how silly of me to do so.” He said, a hint of teasing in his voice. He joked and smiled more now than he had in the beginning, or so it seemed to me.

“Don’t worry; I made a fresh pot for you.” I told him, and he laughed softly.

“Great. Thank you.” He turned to head to the kitchen and I stopped him.

“Wait,” I said, touching him lightly on the arm. He turned back around to face me, an inquiring look in his brown eyes. “I wanted to ask you something.”

He nodded, urging me on.

“That door there,” I pointed to it. “What’s behind it? It’s the only room I haven’t seen and it’s the only door in the whole house that’s locked.”

Hyde let out a sigh and shook his head. “It’s just storage, Ashelia. Old junk and things I have no use for anymore.”

“Oh.” I murmured, looking into his eyes. I got the feeling he was lying and I wanted to press the issue, but the look on his face told me to leave it alone. I put on a smile and shrugged, “Okay! I just thought it might be something exciting and fun. But if you wanna keep your old junk in a locked closet …” I teased, and he shook his head at me. I followed him into the kitchen to make some breakfast while he poured himself a cup of coffee.

After breakfast, Hyde excused himself to his lab to work on some inventions. Ever since the repo woman had come by, Hyde had been working extra hard in order to keep it from happening again. I kept a continuous string of paintings going to the consignment store and was earning a good bit of money myself, but Hyde was determined. I think he had been humiliated more than anything when that happened. I felt bad for him and would have liked to strangle that woman for making him feel that way.

While Hyde went to work, I went to do some research in his study. I was beginning to run out of books to read, so Hyde had taught me how to use the laptop to gather information on whatever topics I was interested in until he could pick up some more books. I logged on with the intention of researching shading methods for my painting when I got distracted; an advertisement on the side of the screen read “Midnight Hollow’s Foremost Source of News and Gossip” and lead to a site called MidnightTattle.com. I normally wouldn’t have been tempted to click on it except for the fact that the advertisement included a photograph of Hyde. Curiosity got the best of me and I clicked on it. Once the site loaded, I scrolled through for a bit until I found a headline that caught my eye.

“Mad Scientist, Madly in Love? by Lounds Hollister
Midnight Hollows’ Own Doctor Strange Seen Out With Morbidly Beautiful Mystery Woman…
Click Here For The Details!”

A photograph that was taken on the night Hyde and I went to The Coffee Bane accompanied the headline, and we were completely unaware we were being photographed. I was tempted to read the article, but I didn’t click on it. I didn’t want to know what it said. I was confused for many reasons, and more than a little upset. Why did someone feel the need to write about Hyde being seen in the coffee shop with me…and what the hell was “morbidly beautiful” supposed to mean?

I shut off the laptop and sat there for a few minutes. I didn’t know what to do. Should I tell Hyde, or try to keep it from him? I was afraid to mention it, but I also didn’t want people harassing him about it the next time he went out to the consignment store or to do repairs for someone. Plus, I was bothered by it as well. I didn’t like having my photo taken without my consent, and I didn’t like what the article was implying about Hyde and me. It made me feel icky.

I changed clothes – Hyde liked for me to wear work clothes and protective goggles anytime I was around him while he was working – and then I ran for the lab.

“Hyde!” I yelled breathlessly as I descended the stairs. My heart was pounding in my chest and I had to be careful not to fall and break my neck.

“Ashelia!” I could hear the worry in Hyde’s voice as he put down his welding torch and came over to me. “Ashelia, what’s wrong?”

“Hyde, something’s happened and it’s … well, it’s weird…” I babbled, still struggling to catch my breath. Hyde put his hands on my shoulders to try to calm me, although I could see the worry evident in his gaze.

“Ashelia, breathe. It’s alright. Tell me what’s going on; you’re beginning to scare me. Are you hurt?”

I shook my head and took a deep breath. I had to just spit it out. “Have you heard of MidnightTattle.com?”

Hyde paled as I told him what I’d stumbled upon, and when I was done, I wasn’t sure if he was about to throw up or destroy everything in sight. He was angry and disgusted and I couldn’t blame him. I was too, now that I had gotten over the shock of it all. To my surprise, Hyde didn’t explode. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath before he spoke again.

“Ashelia, I want you to forget about this and let me handle it. Can you do that?” He asked me, an eerie calm to his voice. This bothered him more than he wanted to let on, I could tell.

“But it’s wrong,” I told him, shaking my head. “They shouldn’t be allowed to post those things about you. And where do they get off calling you a mad scientist?” I scoffed, feeling myself growing angrier. Hyde was the best person I knew – granted, I didn’t remember knowing anyone, but still … – if it wasn’t for him, I might not even be alive. It made me angry to think that someone was talking about him like that.

“Ashelia,” He said with a sigh. “People in this town have looked down on me ever since I stopped practicing medicine. They think because I stopped being a doctor to become an inventor, that I’m … that I’m crazy or something.” His voice was shaky, and I felt like he wasn’t tell me the whole story. “I’ve learnt to ignore that, so I don’t let it get to me. But they have no right to bring you into it. I’ll put a stop to it. Don’t worry.”

“But, Hyde …” I began, and he cut me off.

“No ‘buts’, Ashelia. I’ll handle it.” He said finitely.

I wanted to argue him, but I didn’t. I trusted him. And even though I hated for people to talk about him, if it didn’t bother him, I couldn’t do or say anything about it.

“Fine.” I said with a sigh. I didn’t feel fine, but I was willing to put it behind me for now. I took a breath and smiled as best I could at Hyde. “Well, since I’m down here, does that mean I can finally convince you to pose for a sculpture?” I asked. I had been trying to get him to let me practice my ice sculpture skills using him as a model for days, but he had been adamantly refusing.

Hyde rolled his eyes and sighed. “I suppose I can finally cave.” He muttered, but I saw the little smirk that he thought he was hiding when he turned away.

He got his pose ready while I went to change clothes again. It was hard for me to maneuver the chainsaw well enough unless I was wearing something loose and comfortable.  Unfortunately, the statue came out less than stellar. Thankfully, it would just melt away, getting rid of all traces of my horrible attempt at capturing Hyde in ice form. We both laughed it off and then went upstairs to have dinner.

Hyde offered to cook, but I insisted. I liked cooking, and it helped me to take my mind off the creep who was butting into our lives.

Dinner was unusually quiet, and I knew that was because of me. Usually I was the one inciting conversation and trying to get Hyde to talk about something other than formulas and inventions, but this time, he was the one urging me to speak.

“Your paintings have been selling exceptionally well, Ashelia,” He told me. He knew mentioning my favourite past time was a sure fire way to get me to talk. “Not that I’m surprised. You’re a true artist.”

I smiled. I was my own worst critic, and hearing Hyde compliment my talents made me happy.

“Thank you, Hyde.” I told him, blushing slightly. “Whether they’re good or not, I’m just glad they’re bringing in some money. I think if I ever see that repo woman again, I’ll pull her hair out.”

That made Hyde chuckle. “I won’t lie, Ashelia, I think I would like to see that.” He smiled.

Sometimes when he smiled, his entire appearance seemed to change in a way that made my chest feel funny. Not that his usual appearance was bad – not at all – but something about his smile made him seem so much more alive, and whenever he smiled at me, it was even better. I tried not to think about that though, and just finished my dinner while Hyde and I discussed various topics, although my heart wasn’t in most of him. I couldn’t help but continue to think about that stupid website I had found.

After dinner, I decided to turn in early. Hyde thought I was sick and insisted on taking my temperature, but I insisted I was fine. I said goodnight and went to my bedroom.

While I changed into my sleepwear, my mind wandered back to that headline. I couldn’t help wondering what the entire article said. A part of me wanted to get back on the laptop and read the damn thing, but another part wanted to just leave it alone. I knew that was the best option, but still. Something was nagging at me and I couldn’t quite place it.

A noise brought me out of my daze. I turned to see that my window had blown open as it tended to do on windy nights like tonight. Normally I wouldn’t mind – I liked sleeping with my windows open – but Winter had set in and the night air was too cold for my taste. I turned to close and lock the window, but stopped short.

I saw something that made my blood run cold, and I gasped. I stood frozen in place for a moment before I screamed as loud as I could.