History thing I mentioned in chapter 2!

Irma's parents were terrified to hear that Irma was dating a 'violent' boy. They ordered her to break up with him; when she refused, they threatened to disown her, kill her pets and tell the police he raped her. To save herself such pain, Irma hastily did as they said. It caused her more pain than she could have imagined--more than she would have endured if she had been disowned. After she saw their true characters, Irma was more independant--shockingly so.

Chapter 3: On her own.

There was several issues about living on her own. First of all, Irma couldn't cook. Secondly, she didn't have much clothing. But far worse was the simple fact that Irma's new home didn't have an alarm clock.

Irma woke up at 8:15 instead of her normal 6:30. Her classes started at 8:30. She looked around uneasily, wondering if she should just hurry and run in late. Then she remembered that she would need to have a parent or guardian to sign her in, and there was no way she would call her parents to meet her at the school and let her sign in.

Irma pulled on her second outfit of 3 outfits she had. It was a rather plain looking outfit, but she expected that it would make the cut. She hurried out of her room and began to walk down the road. Adults stared at her until she finally lost all her patience and ran down the road.

A bookstore beckoned. The same bookstore Cedric worked at. Swallowing her pride, Irma walked into the store.

"Hello?" She shouted loudly.

A voice shouted its reply. "Just a minute!" Within 5 minutes, Cedric appeared from the back and promptly froze. "Aren't you supposed to be in school?" He asked bluntly.

Irma shrugged. "I overslept. And I moved out of my parent's house." She replied. Then she took a deep breath to continue--and smelled a fragrance like donuts. "Do you have any food here?"

Cedric arched an eyebrow. "In the back. Didn't you eat?" He added.

Irma shook her head. "I didn't have any food." She replied as she followed him into the employee lounge. "So why aren't you trying to kill me yet?" She blurted.

Cedric narrowed his eyes. "Unlike some people, Lord Phobos isn't so finicky. He forbade us from killing you--and I know that if I told him what you're doing, he'd want me to know all the details." He replied meaningfully. "He cares for you yet, Irma, and he makes no effort to hide it."

"I'm glad no one told him to change." Irma replied. For a moment, they both fell silent, and then Cedric spoke again.

"Do you plan to ask me for a job then?" He said quietly. "Is that why you fled here?"

Irma looked up. "Well, yeah. I'm 16 anyway, and I might end up dropping out of school sooner or later." She tried to sound rational rather than desparate.

Cedric took a sip of coffee. "Give me one reason why I should hire you." He replied, and now his eyes were cold.

Irma paused, trying to figure out if he owed her a favor. No, if anything I owe him a favor. Irma thought. Then she swallowed. "Because Phobos will want to hear what I'll tell you." She said softly.

Cedric folded his arms. "Which is what?" He said pointedly.

"The only reason...that I broke up with Phobos is that my parents forced me to. They threatened to disown me if I told anyone what all they said. I still have feelings for Phobos too." She said quietly. "But now I have disowned myself, and I don't care if he knows."

Cedric looked up, blinked a few times, and then handed her a nametag. "Go organize that pile of books, Irma. I have to go use the bathroom." He said briskly.

Irma smiled silently and fell to her work.

Phobos looked up at Cedric with an annoyed look on his face. "I could have sworn that I told you to never interrupt my quiet time!" He said in a threatening tone.

Cedric bowed. "My lord, I have employed the lady Irma at my bookstore, and she has told me several things." He said politely.

Phobos looked interested. "Go on."

"Her parents forced her to break up with you; it was not willing. But now she has ran away from home, disowned herself, and confesses to still having feelings for you." Cedric rattled off the list, feeling proud of himself.

Phobos looked up. "Hm. This could work to my advantage." He said musingly. "Find out where the lady Irma lives. And keep an eye on her!" He shouted after Cedric's vanishing figure. "I have a plan to get--and retain--my lady love."