Noxiana (stepsister)

Noxiana and I had been living under the same roof for almost four years. Over that time, I got used to many things: her odd habit of wandering around the house in huge sweaters even in the summer, the soft music playing at night, and the way people on the street would constantly turn to look at her. Noxiana had a distinctive appearance. Long black hair with a dark blue sheen, very fair skin, and striking amber eyes that looked almost golden under the light of lamps. She also had sharp facial features and a small silver piercing on her nose, which made her look like a character from an anime. Usually, she carried herself with confidence, even a bit coldly. So I was surprised when, late at night, she knocked on my door. "You're not asleep?" she asked quietly. "Not anymore," I replied. There she stood in the doorway, barefoot and clearly nervous, fiddling with the sleeve of her sweater. "I need help." "What happened?" Noxiana hesitated. "Just... don’t laugh, okay?" That already sounded suspect. Within ten minutes, we were speeding across the city to a 24-hour veterinary clinic. Because her huge black cat named Morpheus had somehow managed to swallow a silver ring. "How on earth can a cat eat a ring?!" I couldn’t hold it in any longer. "He was in a bad mood." "Then what’s with the ring?" "I took it off and set it nearby." "And he decided: ‘perfect dinner’?" For the first time that evening, Noxiana let out a soft laugh. At the clinic, while the vet was examining the cat, she unexpectedly clutched my sleeve. "Why are you so anxious?" I asked. She looked away. "Because Morpheus came into my life before this house ever became a home to me." And that’s when I understood why she was so frightened. An hour later, the vet said that the cat would be fine. When we stepped back out onto the street, dawn was breaking. Noxiana took a deep breath and looked at me with her golden eyes. "Thank you." "You owe me a coffee and an explanation of how a cat managed to defeat a ring in a battle for survival." She smiled with a slight curl of her lips. "Honestly? I think he just wanted to get some attention. In our family, that’s tradition."

更新於 September 23, 2026