Walking with a Collar

Eon turned to the servant and grabbed the box. He walked towards me promptly. I set my fork down with relief.

Eon stopped at my seat and opened the small box. It was the amethyst. Eon pulled a silver necklace from the box. Isabelle was in aw.

"Wow."

"How could the necklace be made so fast?" I wondered.

"The necklace was pre-made. After the gem was installed, it was finished," Eon explained.

The Diablos looked at me with excited eyes.

"Put it on!" Isabelle clapped.

I bunched up my hair and held it up so Eon could put the piece of jewelry around my neck. It was light and sparkly.

"What a gorgeous collar!" Jennifer exclaimed.

I wanted to rip the stupid thing off my neck.

"Where did you happen to get the amethyst from?" Kenneth gave Eon a sly smile.

"I happened to get it from my very own mine," Eon bragged.

"It shines brilliantly!" Mason remarked.

"What do you think?" Eon asked me.

On the outside, I was smiling with a appreciation. One the inside, I wanted to slap Eon. Hard. If I actually did that, though, I'd be locked in my room for weeks.

"It's beautiful, Eon. Thank you," I said with a fake smile.

"Very appreciative of the gift. How nice," Mason complimented me.

Eon gave the empty box to the servant who walked out of the room.

"Now that we're done eating, how about we go to my sitting room and chat. I'd like to know what you've been up to," Eon suggested as he sat down.

"I'd love to chat, but Lumine hasn't tried the steak yet," Kenneth explained.

"I'm sure I will," I said.

The steak taunted me as I lifted my fork. Nervously, I took a bite, chewed, and swallowed.

"It's very good," I lied.

The Diablos began to finish what was on their plates. I gulped and began to eat the rest of the steak. Even if I tried wiping the sauce of, the steak would still be contaminated and Kenneth would be upset.

After I was finished, I thought about getting some water. None was offered at the dinner, and Eon still couldn't trust me to go alone to get some... could he? It just came to me that when I was left alone to buy something from the bakery, I never thought of running. I was so caught up in buying my own desserts.

But I could've ran...

My stomach felt tingly. I took a breath and put my hand over my stomach. It was happening fast. I needed a bathroom. I couldn't let the Diablos know the reason behind me feeling queasy. I also couldn't go alone.

"Eon, may I use the bathroom?"

Eon looked at Isabelle, who had asked the question and replied with, "Sure."

"It's a bit embarrassing, but I've forgotten where the bathroom is," she said sheepishly.

"There are multiple bathrooms. You should run into one-"

"Could Lumine show me? That way, you can chat with Mother, Father, and Mason while I'm gone."

"I guess so."

"Don't worry, Eon. I know my way around," I added.

Isabelle and I walked out of the dinning room. My stomach felt like it was going to explode.

"Let's hurry," Isabelle said.

As we reached the nearest bathroom, my stomach cramped up. I put a hand on my chest and leaned towards the wall. Isabelle opened the door and pulled me through. I knelt down in front of the toilet.

"What are you allergic to?" Isabelle sounded worried.

"I'm not allergic to anything. I just can't stand vinegar," I replied.

When I was younger, there were many occasions where I threw up after meals. Auntie and uncle could never figure out why until one day when I was punished and forced to drink vinegar. Auntie and Uncle made the connection and never used vinegar in my food again.

"Why did you eat the steak? If you knew it would make you sick?" Isabelle asked me.

"How could you tell I knew?" I wondered.

"It was the only thing you didn't eat. Even Eon caught on and tried to stall,"

"I didn't want to upset your father."

"He would've understood, Lumine."

I leaned over to the toilet and let out the dinner I ate. What a waste.

Isabelle held up my hair and necklace. I was panting hard. Isabelle grabbed a small cup from the sink counter and filled it up. I walked to the sink, washed my face, and drank plenty of water.

"You were being to nice for your own good," Isabelle commented.

My face was a bit pale, but slowly began to regain color. I sat on the floor and took slow, deep breaths. Isabelle let out a sight of relief. After a few minutes. We exited the bathroom.

The feeling of queasiness would go away soon.

"Eon is good to you here, right?" Isabelle asked hopefully.

"He is," I said.

"You are lucky he found you. Some people are cruel to their pets," Isabelle shivered.

"I know, Eon has told me the same thing."

"You will come to like it here. I can assure you that. I've spent time here. It's better than you think it is." Isabelle was almost rambling. She wanted me to feel secure.

The necklace felt heavy now. I should've known the present came with a dirty truth. It was from Eon after all.

We arrived back in the dinning room. Eon, Kenneth, Jennifer, and Mason were laughing.

"Good, you're back. Did you find everything okay?" Eon asked.

"We did," Isabelle smiled.

The table was nearly empty. Servants carried dishes back to the kitchen.

"Come on, now. Let's go to the sitting room. I'd like to hear all you have to say, Isabelle." Eon lead everyone to the door.

I followed at the back, where no one could see my face.

Isabelle has a kind smile. She is one of those people you can never hate, no matter how hard you try.