Chapter 4

"Is that what you want? You want her to be your owner? Fine, since you like her so much, you can stay with her for good," I spat.

I only said that out of spite, just to be stubborn.

But to my surprise, as soon as Slinky heard me, his whole face lit up with excitement.

With blood still smeared on his mouth, he eagerly wiggled his tail and wrapped himself around the girl's wrist, like he couldn't wait to stick with her.

The girl burst into tears the moment she heard me, crying and kept saying "thank you" again and again, barely able to get the words out.

When I saw Slinky and the girl all wrapped up in each other like that, my heart twisted with jealousy and bitterness.

I was completely fed up. With all the anger boiling inside me, I shoved the girl out and slammed the door shut so hard behind her.

That night, not long after they left, I grabbed a cab and headed straight to the hospital.

After getting my shot, I headed straight to the pet store and snagged the scarred snake for half off.

Seven years and Slinky still never really felt like mine, so I decided to let him go and find a snake that's all about me, and only me.

That night, even though I'd just brought home a new snake, I still felt totally down in the dumps.

I didn't even bother to interact with the new snake. I set it down on the coffee table and went straight to the bathroom to take a shower.

But just as I was drying my hair and stepping out of the bathroom, something totally unexpected happened.

The new snake slithered up and coiled itself tightly around my wrist, holding on like it never wanted to let go.

Its black scar stood out against its snowy white scales, making it look just like a unique, exotic bracelet wrapped around my arm.

The sudden icy touch made me freeze mid-motion, towel still in my hand.

I was about to put the new snake back in its tank, but as soon as I touched it, it hung its head, looking so pitiful and needy, like it was begging me not to.

It was a look I knew all too well; when I locked eyes with it at the pet store, it had given me that exact same expression.

I could feel its panic, its unease, even its fear.

I let out a long, helpless sigh. In the end, I couldn't bring myself to shove it back in the tank.

With the snake still wrapped around my wrist, I headed over to the couch, started blow-drying my hair, then tugged off my towel and got changed, never once taking it off.

When I finally finished everything, I looked over at my new snake again.

Its head was sticking straight up, with this totally dazed look in its eyes, and there were even a couple of faint drops of drool hanging from its mouth.

Seeing it looking all goofy and clueless like that, I couldn't help but burst out laughing.

I rubbed Opal's head and laughed. "Why are you so wild? You couldn't take your eyes off my body, huh?

"You're acting like some kind of perv."

With that, I walked over to the bed, pulled back the covers, and lay down. That was when Opal finally seemed to snap out of it.

With a flick of its tail, it quickly unwound from my wrist and instinctively sprang away from me.

But for some reason, it got its direction wrong and ended up landing right on my face.

Its tongue even flicked out and brushed against my lips.

I felt a chill seep in at the corner of my mouth, and Opal froze again, stuck on my face.

I instinctively tried to pull it away, but Opal flicked its tail and ended up coiling tightly around my neck. Its tongue flicked out, almost like it was savoring something delicious, barely brushing against the corner of my mouth.

The touch was so faint, yet for some reason, it made me feel strangely warm, almost flushed.

But I didn't stop it. After all, Slinky was never this affectionate or eager with me. Even getting it to curl up and sleep on my stomach took lots of premium beef to coax it.

A pang of bittersweetness welled up in my chest as memories surfaced, but I still didn't push Slinky away as it kept playing around my lips and teeth.

I patted its head and said, "Be good, alright? I'm tired, so she's going to sleep now."

After that, I slipped on my eye mask and went to sleep, not bothering with whatever it was up to.

But as soon as I fell asleep, I started dreaming again in the middle of the night.

In my dream, I was lying on my bed when a strange boy with skin so pale it seemed to glow, sporting an intricate tattoo on his back, was crawling over me.

Before I could even cry out, the boy pressed his lips firmly against mine.

"Milena, be good. Don't move. Let me give you a kiss," he said.

When I woke up the next morning, I just lay there, dazed for a while before I finally snapped out of it.

It was impossible to shake it off. That dream last night felt so real, like the boy had been messing with my lips and teeth the whole time.