CHAPTER 1
"Mum! Dad! Charlie!" My head jerks up, lungs pumping with the sound of my heartbeat driving rapidly. I touch my hands, feet and nose. They are all intact-I am still alive. A part of me is disappointed that I am not dead along with the others, but another part of me is 'joyful' although I should feel guilty because I was probably the only Venusian who survived in the war.
I inspect my surroundings and see that I am in an unusual bedroom about two metres in width, three metres in length and four metres in height giving a volume of twenty four cubic metres [I'm a nerd] with a single bed which has ponies all over the blanket and mattress. The walls are painted pink and there is a single cupboard which has picture of a girl called 'Dora, the Explorer.' This room makes me feel so 'girly' and 'childish.' I'm a fourteen year old girl named Fatima and my nickname is 'Fati' which I completely loathe. I was constantly bullied and teased at school because of the 'name' which led to five school transitions in the nine years of my schooling life.
I walk out the door hesitantly and down the corridor, assuming we're still in Venus apart from the 'Dora' girl and gasp at the sight of the brown-haired boy who had kidnapped and knocked me unconscious.
"YOU!" I point towards him and rage engulfs my body. He stares at me as if I'm some sort of crazy-maniac girl and laughs. His hair is in a side-fringe up to neck height and I blush at the thought that comes to mind. He's hot. Not just ordinarily 'hot.' Sexy. I blush fiercely and ask,
"Why did you bring me here? Why not just let me die in beautiful peace?! I feel like a traitor, the only one Venusian who survived this random war. Do you know how much your people have had on me? A massive impact, that's for sure. You and your stupid little sh-" He cuts me off and says,
"Shut up already. You talk too much. Didn't expect a pretty girl like you to be so aggressive and annoying." The words are like an axe through my head.
"Oh my god! You are so going to pay for this!" I charge towards him like a tiny bull, but with swift movement, he evades my strike elegantly. Not giving up yet, I aim for him once more, but the result is shockingly the same. I hesitate and throw my hands in the air in defeat.
"Stupid sick bastard," I mumble towards myself.
"You think I don't have good hearing?" he asks, close to laughter.
"Oh, my, god. Stop embarrassing me already! Don't you think I've had enough?" My lungs are inflating and deflating speedily, exhausted after only two 'three metre' runs. I feel like an unfit, inactive sloth. I haven't been exercising regularly, which probably proves why my movements are lacking. I also have the nickname 'Aggro Slowpoke Girl' because of my aggressive behaviour and being the slowest runner in class at my school.
"Okay, I'll stop. I just like teasing girls, that's all. You know, how girls always talk about me about my looks and then I find it annoying and tease them in revenge. You know…"
I stare at him with eyes wide open. He doesn't like being called attractive? That's odd. Usually all the good-looking boys are always boasting at school. Ten boys had asked me out at school, but I rejected them all. Maybe he could be different. I wonder.
"So, what's your name and explain where we are. This doesn't look like Venus."
"Right, my name is Christiano. Christiano Orcardy to be precise. We are currently on planet Earth, a planet with over 70 percent of it made of water. For some peculiar reason, we can survive on Earth even despite its weather being dramatically colder than Venus and Mercury. By the way, if you were wondering why I saved you, it's because your special and I don't think you know it yourself. Anyway-" I cut him off there and look into his brown, glimmering eyes.
"I'm special…Laugh out loud? What the hell are you talking about? I'm just a random girl who is regularly bullied at school but despite that has been asked on a date ten times or so now."
"And you rejected them all?"
"Correct."
"Okay, I'll explain in detail about the war. Our country Mercury has always strived for power and the leaders had always had meetings on which planet to invade first. Since I was one of the important people, I had to listen to what our leaders had to say. They were planning on declaring war on Mars first, but it would have been too cold for us there so they adjusted to Venus, the closest planet to ours. Venus is hotter than Mercury, but we can manage it due to our protective armour our people have created. They plan on striking Earth next, I'm pretty sure, but it will take time. I'm here with you because I hate war and I personally don't agree with 'power.' I don't see what power will achieve. It will only bring misery and pain towards the victims. It's just plain stupid and worthless, but Mercurians don't seem to understand. If I were to open up about my opinion about this war during the meetings, I would have definitely been put into a gaol cell. Even my parents would agree with the sentence. They never cared about me, specifically my father. In return, I'm going to try and put a stop to them, as I am Prince of Mercury, and I plan to do so."
His words are so passionate and convincing, that it automatically makes you want to have faith in him. He's like a knight in shining armour. He would be an amazing role model. My feelings for him have instantly changed and I have to admit, I really do admire him.
"So… I was wondering what your name is."
"It's-" but before I can fully answer, the ground begins shaking vigorously.
"Holy shit! What the hell!" I scream in fear and lose my footing. I tumble over and begin rolling and rolling and just when I think I am never going to stop rolling; a firm hand reaches out and grabs me by the end of my shirt. It's Christiano, Prince Charming. I gaze into his eyes and try to say my thanks, but just when he is about to lift me up, another tremor explodes from the ground and Christiano loses his footing. He topples over and lands right on top of me and our lips miraculously touch. I am lost for words. I feel as if I am in my own imaginary world. His breath is warm and his lips are so delicate and soft.
Is this the feeling you get when you kiss a Venusian? I've already kissed Charlie; my previous boyfriend who I assume is dead. His head chopped off, stabbed in the heart, burned to death... I think of all the possibilities which could have led to his death but I snap myself awake and focus on the present. Christiano is kissing me like I'm the most important person he's ever met. His lips are so much stronger and more powerful then Charlie's' was, I have to admit. I want to stay in this position until the world ends, I keep thinking over and over again. Just when I think the ground will never stop shaking, the movement on the floor comes to a halt, and the earth stops in its track.
