Chapter 3

Chapter 3

My eyelids fluttered opened and I found myself back in my own bedroom. The Test was finally over. I tried to remember what had happened but I could only vaguely remember being directed to a room with white walls. Everything else, I drew blank.

I sat there for a good ten minutes, thinking over and over but my mind seemed to be blocked. Feeling the need to use the bathroom, I got up from my bed.

Big mistake.

My body ached, my muscles sore. I grimaced at the immense pain that throbbed throughout my whole body. What went in that Test that made me feel like crap?

I stood motionless in my bed for some time and tried again. It still hurt like hell but after a thousand tries, I was at least able to prop myself up, leaning against the backboard of my bed.

Ugh this sucks.

I massaged my arms and my legs, where it hurt the most.

While I was attempting to soothe my aching body, I heard my phone chime. With much effort, I grabbed my phone and read a text from Carly telling me to meet her and the guys at the café.

How in the world was I supposed to go if my body ached so much?

I groaned as I got up and tried walking. My legs violently shook at first but after getting used to the pain, it wasn’t as bad.

Carly better thank me.

I felt a little grimy so I pulled on a sweatshirt and some comfortable jeans. I shoved my phone in my pocket and headed out of the house.

My parents wouldn’t be home until evening because of work which gave me a good five hours to pass which came by pretty quickly when you’re with Carly.

When I entered the café, they all waved at me, ushering me to the table. They all smiled looking fresh and clean unlike me. I was still sore and groggily but it didn’t keep me from coming.

“Hey, ready for Kings Dominion?” Carly said ecstatically.

Facepalm. I totally forgot about the plans we had made the other day.

“Haha, you forgot,” Daniel teased. My face must’ve given it away.

“Shoot. Sorry,” I said guiltily.

“Well, at least you’re here,” Max assured me, checking the time. “We can still go.”

“Yeah, of course. We have plenty of time,” Carly said smiling. We all got up from the table and Carly linked arms with me. She dragged me along and to my unluckiness, decided to skip the way to the car. I grimaced at every jump she took but she didn’t seem to notice, too drunk in her own happiness than to realize her friend wincing in pain. The rollercoaster was going to be hell.

We all walked out of the café and into Daniel’s Jeep. Carly and Max hopped in the backseat for a little “privacy,” leaving me in the shotgun which I didn’t mind at all since Daniel was driving. Daniel, being Daniel, opened passenger door for me and jogged up around the driver seat, cranking the engines when we were all safely buckled up.

“Ready?” he asked back at the two lovers in the back.

“Always,” Max replied grinning, turning his attention back to Carly. She giggled.

Daniel and I exchanged funny glances. I rolled my eyes but in the end we laughed. This was going to be a fun day.

The drive wasn’t that bad. Although, Daniel and I couldn’t look back in the backseat because of the lover’s constant mooching, we still had a good time joking around in the front.

I rolled down the window attempting to keep myself awake. It did a good job too. The warm summer air turned chilly from the early fall, giving me a good wake up call.

Daniel drove on making a turn with ease, one hand at the wheel and the other on his lap. He caught me staring and I embarrassedly pulled my gaze from him and pretended to be interested in the road. From the corner of my eyes, I could see him grin but he didn’t say anything.

The moment passed and we were finally at our destination. We all climbed out of the car and paid for our tickets. When we entered I gasped.

So many people were walking around, laughter was easily heard from the crowds that passed by. I felt a little claustrophobic. I wasn’t exactly good around so many people.

Daniel reached for my hand. I gazed up at him.

“You’ll get lost you know,” he said, making an excuse to hold my hand. His hands felt safe as we all faced the crowds. Daniel guided me safely through the park, pulling me along. We swerved through the crowd and went in line to one of the rollercoaster with Carly and Max closely behind us.

I didn’t really bother to look at what rollercoaster it was but as we got closer, I heard the reactions of people who had just rode them.

“God, that was the scariest ride,” one girl said, breathless.

“Agreed,” a boy said, nodding his head, his eyes bulging out from the thrill.

I was terrified to hear those responses, feeling the need to run. This was not good but I knew it was too late to back down now. Daniel must’ve seen the horror on my face.

“It’s okay Julie. I got you,” he said massaging my shoulders. He was such a nice guy that I couldn’t help but smile. He always had my back and I was thankful for it especially in a time like this.

The line trickled down until we were next. I nervously got on one of the seats making sure that I was tightly buckled to the seat. “You ready?” Daniel said giving me an encouraging smile.

“No,” I squeaked, making him laugh.

“I didn’t know you of all people would be scared of something as little as a rollercoaster.” He was probably right. I was one of the toughest girls in school but I had to admit rollercoaster was not the way I rolled. I wasn’t going to let him know that though. Instead I gave him an easy smile.

“I’m not scared. I got this.”

“Well then. No worries,” he said giving me his wicked smile.

Suddenly, the rollercoaster started to move, giving me a little jump.

“Are you scared yet?” he asked raising his eyebrows, very amused.

“Of course not,” I scoffed. But the truth was I was scared out of my mind and my stomach gave a violent tug, telling me that it couldn’t take this. I closed my eyes, steadying my breathing, I guess trying to find some kind of “inner peace.”

The next thing I knew, my butt seemed to be floating in the air, the wind crackling in my ear. I opened my eyes, regretting in doing so. The ground seemed to be rushing towards me fast and I heard Daniel yelling in delight. I heart jumped, my throat clogged of the fear, making me unable to scream.

Suddenly, I was launched abruptly to the right, then to the left, my head wobbling from my body, feeling like they would dislocate. Not the best experience I’ve had. After more series of twists and turns, the despicable ride was finally over, freeing me to the safety of the ground.

As we got off the ride, I tried to control my inability to walk but Daniel caught me before I had a chance to fall.

“Steady there,” he laughed helping me balance myself.

“I’m fine, I’m fine,” I said waving him away. We found our way out of the exit and found Carly and Max holding hands. I smiled at Carly and she winked, smiling. I rolled my eyes laughing. The boys gave us a look which only made me laugh even more.

We decided to go to ride more other roller coasters and I soon got used to them thanks to Daniel’s patience and support. Riding the rides surprisingly passed a lot of time. The sun was seeping into the horizon then, turning the sky to a soft pink and pale blue.

Needing to use the bathroom, I excused myself and told them that I would call and meet up with them at the next rollercoaster. I went off on my own to find the restroom when suddenly; I felt the presence of someone different in the crowd. The energy hit me like a wall. I carefully looked around as if looking for a friend but I was trying to locate the where the weird feeling came from.

That’s when I saw him. The guy wore all black with dark, tinted sunglasses that hid his face well. He had dark black hair that was short that it spiked up naturally. He would’ve looked hot if he didn’t look like a creep in the middle of an amusement park. He looked more like a stalker than a guy who would hang out in an amusement park. His attire consisted of a simple black leather jacket and black jeans. I couldn’t help noticing but it made him look taller and cute but the creepy vibe was still there.

Suddenly, his straight face curled into a smirk as if he found what he needed. That same nauseating feeling hit me harder this time.

His face was set at a different direction than where I was but I couldn’t tell if his eyes were on me because of those stupid sunglasses. I felt unease and tried to blend with the crowd but to my disadvantage, not many people were around anymore. Lots of people were heading home, the sun dangerously set low, threatening to hide its light under the horizon.

When I walked, he walked. I started to panic and sped through the park looking for a girl’s bathroom where I would be safe and be able to call Daniel. Or maybe I was being superstitious. He could’ve easily been waiting for his girlfriend who was coincidently in the bathroom which explained why he was going the same way I was.

Finally I found the red sign showing the women’s room and pushed through the doors. I sighed and splashed water on my face, trying to regain my posture. I turned the water off and grabbed a handful of paper towels, wiping my face from water and sweat. I looked back at the mirror to check anything that might’ve been on my face when I noticed the same guy behind me from the mirror’s reflection. I froze in fear but acted what I thought a typical teenager would react.

“Um, you know this is the girl’s room,” I said, trying to sound annoyed, not daring any fear seep into my voice.

“I am aware of that,” he said. His voice was like silk and instantly drew me in. There was something odd about him. His whole aura seemed dark and sullen. I thought I really saw some sort of dark matter waver around him but I shook my head trying to clear my vision. I was delusional.

“Well then, I’ll excuse myself out then.” I was about to exit the bathroom but he blocked my way. “Excuse me,” I said, the annoyance clearly etched in my voice but he didn’t budge at all.

“You’re coming with me,” he ordered and I almost did follow him. Something about his voice made me want to listen to him, made me want to follow him. What’s wrong with this guy? What’s wrong with me?

“I should get going, I have somewhere I have to be,” I said casually but he grabbed my shoulders.

“You’re coming with me now,” he said forcefully. I wasn’t terrified anymore, maybe a little but the anger overcame that feeling.

“What the hell? I don’t even know you,” I said jerking my shoulder away from his grasp.

“Oh, but I know so much about you Ileana,” he said slyly. My old name. The name I chose to forget when I moved to this town. He must’ve seen my surprised look because he grinned.

If he knows my old name, I should be able to somehow recognize him. I tried to fit him into any memory of my old life but nothing came. I had some sort of amnesia that made me lose most of my memory. The freak accident was really getting in the way of coming back to my memory.

“I don’t know you,” I said shakily, hating the fear that started to make its way to my voice. Damn it.

“If you don’t listen to me, I have to do this the hard way,” he said sounding a little irritated and annoyed.

I wasn’t going down without a fight. I backed up to give us some distance so I could think without his scent protruding my mind but he quickly closed the space between us. I was about to shout for help but he covered my mouth as if he was reading my mind.

“Don’t even try,” he said baring his white teeth to a sneer.

I had Plan B. Carefully, I slid my hands in my pants to get a hold of my cell phone but it was snatched out of my hands within a millisecond.

“You looking for this?” he said smirking as he revealed my cell phone. I had no idea how on earth he could’ve gotten a hold of it. My face tightened. This wasn’t going to end well, I thought. That’s when the weirdest thing happened.

The stranger held out his palm and out of nowhere, a ball of bright fire hovered over his hands. It wasn’t burning him at all but it seemed to be mingling in his hands. I gasped. It might’ve been some magic trick or some sort of alchemy.

Whenever he moved his hands, the flames moved with him, dancing with his hands as if they were one.

“Follow me, now,” he said, threatening me again. He drew the fire close to my face as if to frighten me even more. I tried to turn my face away from the heat of the searing fire but he held me tight. I saw the fire glint off his sunglasses and saw my own frightened expression reflecting them. The only part of me that was free was my legs.

Without really thinking much, I did the first and only thing that popped into my head. I kicked his groin as hard as I could and he stumbled, briefly letting the fire away from my face for a second. That gave me enough time to cross to the other side of the bathroom, away from him, but the stranger still blocked the door.

I felt a jolt of energy, adrenaline from my escape. I felt a weird tingling sensation coarse through my body, making me feel more awake and recharged in an indescribable way. All I felt was that I was ready to take on this creeper.

The stranger looked in my direction. I couldn’t really tell if he looked straight at me or if he was looking somewhere else since he still had those damn sunglasses.

 I knew he was looking at me when he grinned and pointed his palms in my direction. A burning pain shot through my body as if my body heat raised well over one hundred degrees. My head started to pound and I began to see black dots appear in my vision, mocking me that I’m too weak. I think I screamed but I didn’t really get to find out because I blacked out.

When my eyes slowly opened, I was still in pain. I must’ve been out for only a few seconds because the stranger began walking towards me.

I was on my knees, grasping my chest, trying to take away the immense pain. I felt some sort of darkness in the way he moved, like as if darkness itself was dancing around him, encouraging him to make the kill.

Let go. Let go. It whispered to me. I wanted to let go, give up the pain but something inside me didn’t want me to. My head told me to get back in the game. Somehow, I knew what I had to do.

Weirdly, I found myself saying something in Latin, “Obscurum, absum!” (Darkness, be gone!) Somehow I knew what I said. The stranger gasped in surprise.

“Ileana?” he said quietly, the darkness behind, gone but only for a moment. It came back but it was weak and flickering. He stumbled against the wall. I had no control after that. My arms started to move in a flowing way as if I was actually touching something, like magic. I lost control of my body as if someone else was controlling it, knowing exactly what to do next.

Suddenly, I felt something slid in my sweating palms. It was a sharp, green-black looking sword. I felt familiar to it as I found myself holding it up towards the stranger’s neck. I had no idea how I did that but it felt great.

Finally, I started to come back, in control again. The sword was too heavy to carry now and it clattered to the floor. We were both breathing hard, both unsure what just folded before us. I took off his damn sunglasses to figure out just who my attacker was.

It revealed a familiar face that I couldn’t put a name to. He seemed so vaguely familiar as if we met in a past life but it was hard to think with a huge headache. All I knew was that he had the most beautiful, smoky gray set of eyes, which looked stormy at the moment. He looked the other way as if afraid that I might know who he was but I honestly didn’t.

As quickly as the anger left, his anger and hatred came back. A tint of red started to form in his grey eyes and the darkness began to crawl back to him. I still didn’t know what the hell that was, only that it was not good news.

I knew this victory was by sheer luck and there was no way I could beat him again. So while he was still shocked, I grabbed for my phone and ran the hell out of the bathroom, leaving him utterly shocked. I didn’t even wait for his full anger to come back on his pretty face. What a waste.

I ran across the park, hoping the stranger would leave me alone when I stumbled into someone’s arms.

“Hey there Jules, there you are,” Daniel’s voice said holding me. He studied my face, his eyes distraught. “You look pale and you’re sweating. Did something happen?” he said deeply concerned.

The bizarre event was too weird and I knew no one would believe me, heck I didn’t even believe myself. I shut my mouth and did my best to put on a smile.

“Yeah, I’m fine. I’ve been running around looking for you guys, that’s all.” Daniel didn’t seem totally convinced but he didn’t ask further questions.

Before he could ask me anything else, Carly and Max came towards us with ice cream in their hands. Carly turned towards the three of us.

“The sunset looks pretty. It would be better to be higher up without being on a fast ride,” she hinted, giving each of us eye contact. I knew what she meant. Ferris Wheel. I was pretty sure Max and her had their own agenda.

“Ferris Wheel, it is,” Daniel nodded, catching on what Carly meant. “Why don’t you lead us,” he said.

Max still seemed pretty clueless. I gently pushed him forward where Carly was walking and talking about how great the Ferris Wheel would be. Max looked back at us but we shooed him away and he obliged, finally getting it.

“Well, that was pretty nice of you,” I said smiling, still watching Carly and Max in front of us get in line for the Ferris wheel.

“Who said I said it for Carly?” he said laughing softly. I blushed. “Let’s enjoy today, OK?”

It was my turn to laugh. “Yeah, of course.”

When it was time, two by two, we stepped in the little box that would take us up. It was perfect for a place where you would take your date but I kept reminding myself that we were doing this for Carly and Max. Daniel and I were strictly just friends but I still couldn’t help myself. I mean we were friends ever since middle school and now it was going to our junior year. It would be way too awkward. We’ve went through too much together, been there for each other in a way that would make dating a weird mix to our friendship.

Daniel sat on one bench and I sat on the opposite. We both stretched our legs on the open space of our designated bench making me chuckle. We were so alike. Doing the same things, acting the same way, caring for each other the same way. Man, this was the life. We both sighed at the same time and laughed out loud.

“This is relaxing,” Daniel said bending his head back. He let the wind catch some of his shaggy dirty-blonde hair. I mimicked him and closed my eyes, sighing. This really was the life.

Suddenly, I felt Daniel shift his weight and felt his presence closer. I opened one of my eyes to see what was up. He was sitting on the ground, leaning against one of the side, staring at me. I arched an eyebrow, my eyes completely open now, full of curiosity.

“What’s up?” I asked him. He was still staring at me. “Do I have something on my face?” I wiped my face just in case.

“No, no. I was just thinking,” he said slowly.

“’Bout what?”

“If I can do this,” he said, rising from where he was, reaching eye level with me. He leaned closer and brushed his lips hesitantly against mine, wondering if he was allowed to. My heart was already thumping so loud I bet he could hear but before I found out, he leaned a little closer, closing the gap and kissed me.

It was a soft, sweet kiss that seemed so natural. My elbows that supported me gave out from the pressure of his lips against mine but he held my head before I hit the bench. I was lying down on the bench with him next to me. My hands somehow found its way around his head and clung onto his hair. It was incredible and to my dismay, his lips slowly left mine, leaving us both breathing pretty hard.

“I’m sorry. That wasn’t necessary,” he said immediately looking away. I sat back up from my bench and pulled his chin as gently as I could so he would look at me.

This time I leaned forward before I could hesitate any longer and kissed him quickly on his soft lips. I wanted to be trapped in that moment forever. Being with him was like heaven on earth but just like every sweet moment, there was an end.

We guiltily parted to the opposite benches, and grinned slightly at each other as if we shared some secret which we kind of did considering that Carly and Max didn’t see or know anything.

Our compartment was led to the bottom and we were ushered out as other people filed in. We waited for Carly and Max to get off and I couldn’t help but notice when Daniel held my hand. His hands were there, keeping me safe, acknowledging what happened up on the wheel. The only other person that noticed was Carly when they came walking back towards us. Fortunately, no one could see her expression clearly because of the darkness that the night produced veiled her face.

“We should be heading back to my car now,” Daniel said when we started to walk again. His voice didn’t show any hint of what happened earlier and I was kind of glad of it. It was better if Carly and Max didn’t know anything although it might’ve been too late for Carly. She would squeeze it out of me later.

We finally exited out of the amusement park and the glittering lights were now behind us. On the way back, Carly and Max fell asleep in the back seat. Her head rested on Max’s lap and his head slumped on the window. I was still wide awake and alert when Daniel suddenly interrupted the silence in the car. “So, did you have fun today?” he asked casually.

My mind went instantly back to the scene in the bathroom. I had forgotten all about it. I shook off the tragic event with the encounter of the stranger. He wouldn’t bother me anymore but why did it still bother me? There was no logical way that a burst of fire could’ve stayed lit in his hands unless it was lit by some candle or something. I choose to forget about it.

“Yeah, I did,” I smiled trying to forget the beautiful stranger. “Thanks for the great time.”

“My pleasure,” he smiled the same warm smile I was always loved to earn. “Today was pretty amazing,” he said giving me a flirty grin.

I laughed softly. “Yeah.”

Daniel’s eyes were still on the road but he turned to me directly. “I hope I didn’t make it too awkward.” I blushed remembering every feeling, every thought.

“No, you didn’t,” I said shyly. I didn’t know where this conversation was going to go.

Daniel shifted uncomfortably. “Well,” he began trying to find something else to say. “How was your test?” His own test was just a week before. He hadn’t made it but we were all glad he didn’t have to leave.

“I don’t remember, so that wouldn’t be a question I can answer,” I said.

“I know this isn’t a nice thing to say, but I really hope you don’t make it. I wouldn’t know what would happen if you left.” He turned his head towards me and I saw his pale blue eyes filled with sorrow and desire. When he looked at me, my heart sped up. I gave him an encouraging smile.

“Of course I would never leave you!” I exclaimed kind of taken aback. “I wouldn’t even make it in the first place,” I continued arguing. Daniel seemed to be in deep thought.

“I’m not too sure about that,” he said slowly. “What if you do make it? You’ll be forced to leave then, whether you like it or not.”

What he said was true and that was what bothered me. What if I did make it? I would be swept from my comfortable life in the suburb and stuck in a prep school where learning was all I would do.

“I won’t get in and if I did, they do let some visits.”

“You know some people don’t even choose to come back home. They just seemed to…disappear out of people’s lives.”

“That won’t happen to us. We’ll be together,” I said placing my hand on his free hand. He held my hand, giving it a little squeeze.

“Yeah, I hope so,” he said putting on a smile but it didn’t quite reach his eyes.

Soon afterwards his car stopped in front of Carly’s house. “Hey, wake them up will ya?” he said slowing down.

I reached back and lightly tapped Carly. “We’re here,” I said softly.

She groaned as sat up from Max’s lap. Max stirred and opened his eyes. “We home?”

“Yeah, we’re back.”

“Thanks for the ride Dan,” Max said. Max helped Carly out of the car and waved at us. Max and Carly lived right next to each other. How convenient.

“Bye,” Carly said still groggily from the long ride.

“Bye,” Daniel and I said in unison. They waved and slipped into the darkness that hovered through the early fall air.

Daniel drove a little further to where my house stood. The car slowed down and I thanked him quickly but before I slipped on into the night, he grabbed me.

“Julie,” he called my name softly. I turned to him and he grabbed something that must’ve been in his pocket. “This is for you.”

When he opened his hand, he produced a small necklace in a shape of a Ferris Wheel. I blushed as he handed it to me.

“I got this before we left. I thought it would be a thoughtful souvenir,” he said blushing. It was a cheesy gift but it still had meaning to me. “May I?” he said asking for the necklace back. I handed it back and he brushed my hair back, gently placing the cool necklace just below my collarbone.

I stood there, admiring the necklace. It was sterling silver with colorful gems on the compartments of the Ferris Wheel. I gently touched the gift, feeling overwhelmed by his gift.

“Thanks,” I said softly, still admiring the necklace.

“A gift from our fun, little trip.”

“That’s really thoughtful of you.” I turned to face him and he gave me the familiar, warm smile, dimple and all.

I noticed that the space between us was only a breath away. I could feel his strong, rhythmic breathing. My breathing, however, quicken from the close distance. He looked at me right in the eye, and I took in all that wonderful color of clear blue eyes of his. He leaned closer, slowly and I found myself closing my eyes and tilting my head.

His kiss wasn’t soft like it was on the Ferris wheel but harder and urgent which made me kiss just as hard. Our tongues exploring each other’s mouth, kissing hungrily.

I gently let go and his hands on my cheek, caressing it, wanting more but restraining himself.

“I’ll see you tomorrow?” he barely whispered. It was so quiet in his car, except the chirps of the crickets outside, singing.

“Yeah,” I whispered back, biting my lips, preventing a huge, goofy smile that threatened to emerge. I got out of the car and walked in my house feeling better than I had all day.