by Shelly Crane
“You’re too young,” Kyle countered. “And she’s only seventeen. You’re both too young.”
“Tell that to my imprint.”
“You know what? No.” Kyle once again came and got in between us and as soon as Caleb’s hands released me, his heartbeat went with him. I was beginning to be irked with Kyle but wasn’t sure why. “We have a date. And we’re going on it.”
“You want to take my significant on a date?” Caleb asked and cocked a brow at his cousin.
I couldn’t speak. I just stood there and let them fight.
“Yes, exactly. If she is your significant, she still will be when we get back won’t she?”
“We have to talk about this, Kyle. We have to tell the family.”
“I know. But I’ve been waiting for this all year and I think you can spare her one night, since you’ll apparently be spending the rest of your life with her,” he said snidely.
“Kyle, don’t be like this.”
I finally found my voice.
“Ok. Ok. Ok. I have no idea what’s going on. I feel strange. I feel...really strange. Why are you both talking like I’m not standing right here?”
“Maggie, I’m sorry.” Kyle turned to look at me. “I never wanted you to get mixed up in all this. I never would have thought that this could happen.”
“What? What could happen?” I said a little hysterically. “What are you talking about?”
“There’s some stuff we need to discuss, but first, let’s just go. Ok? We can get away from here and I’ll explain when you have a clear head.”
“But- What are you...I mean- I don’t understand.”
Kyle grabbed my arms to steady me as I swayed.
“Caleb. Tell her. Tell her it’ll be alright.”
I looked up and there he was as Kyle handed me over to him. He was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen. How had I not noticed this before? He looked the same to me. Same cute guy but so different now. Like a new light had been shone on him. My blood was singing in my veins at having him touch me. I wanted to touch him too, hug him, pull him to me to see what his scruffy chin felt like on my jaw. Anything. He smiled and leaned close to whisper to me.
“They’ll be plenty of time for that.” I gasped and blushed furiously as I realized he’d heard my thoughts. “It’s ok. Don’t worry.” His warm hands closed over my shoulders and his fingers brushed my neck sending another sense of warm calm through me, which I’ve started to think wasn’t a coincidence. “It won’t always be like this. You’ll learn to control it. Where I’ll only hear the thoughts you want me to hear. But for now, go ahead and go with Kyle. He’s right. You need to clear your head and I have to talk to my father and the family anyway and it’d probably be better for you if you weren’t there the first time. They’re a little zealous.” He bent to look closely into my eyes. “Don’t be scared. You feel that I’d never hurt you, don’t you?”
I did, loud and clear. I nodded.
“Why? Why do I feel that?”
“Because you are my significant, my soul mate. And I’m yours. We imprinted with each other. I guess because you saved me... I’m not sure. It usually doesn’t happen when we’re this young. And it hasn’t been happening at all with the families.”
“Imprinted?” I said breathily.
“Imprinting is when we sort of…stamp a seal on each other. You’re imbedded in me and I in you. And it’s very rare to imprint with a human.”
I gasp again and he smiled sadly.
“Human? If I’m human, what are you?”
“I’m human just not completely. We’re Virtuoso, or Charmed. We call ourselves Aces. We have abilities once we reach a certain age after we imprint.”
“What kind of abilities?” I asked dazedly.
“Lots. Look, Maggie, I’m gonna tell you everything. I promise. But first, I have to inform my father. He’s the champion of our clan, the leader. He has to know what happened and then we’ll talk, ok?”
“So, we imprinted,” I mused and thought about what that could mean. “Like werewolves in a vampire novel or something?” I asked and they both chuckled.
“Kinda. You read vampire novels?”
“Sometimes.”
“Me too.” He smiled and then sighed. “Ok. Kyle. You know you have to be careful with her.” He looked at his cousin sternly. “Don’t bombard her with information, just wait, she’s very fragile. And don’t start your crap. It’s harder on humans-”
“I know all this. I grew up a Jacobson too, ya know.”
“Yes. I know. Sorry.”
“Whatever. Come on, Mags.”
I tried but my legs wouldn’t go.
“I can’t. I mean, I don’t want to,” I realized.
“That’s just the mojo working. Fight it, Maggie.”
“Hey,” Caleb said harshly. “That’s what I’m talking about, right there. If you’re going to take it out on her the whole time because you’re angry about this, then I won’t let you take her.”
Kyle nodded and sighed.
“Ok. You’re right. I’m sorry. Help her, so we can go.”
“Help me? What does that mean?” I ask.
“It’s so new,” Caleb explained. “It’s hard on us. Our imprints don’t want to be apart. But I can help you by telling you that I want you to go. Our bodies are in tune with each other. I have to take care of some things here so I want you to go with Kyle and know you’re safe, ok? I can feel you,” he palmed his chest, “in here, if you need me. You don’t have to worry about anything.” I needed him to touch me. It was like my veins were screaming for it. And he did. He cupped my face with his big tan hands and we both sighed at the contact. I heard Kyle muttering behind me but couldn’t think to care right then. “I’ll come to you tomorrow. Ok? Everything will be fine and I’ll explain it all to you. Are you gonna be alright?”
“Yes,” I said and I felt it. Whatever he was telling me, it was like it went straight to my brain, bypassing everything else. He said it was fine, so it was. “Yes. I’m fine. I’m not sure why I’m fine, but I am.”
He smiled beautifully.
“Good girl.” He glanced over my shoulder. “I told you she’d be alright with this. You shouldn’t underestimate her.”
“Ok. Ready?” Kyle asked, still clearly exasperated but willing to cooperate.
“You’ll come tomorrow?” I grabbed Caleb’s shirt front and felt strange for doing so but I had to. “To see me?”
His thumbs caressed my cheeks sending embarrassing shivers down my arms.
“I’ll come get you tomorrow,” he corrected. “You are very special, Maggie. My family will be anxious to meet you.”
I nodded.
“Ok.”
“Just remember. There is nothing to worry about.”
“Ok.”
He kissed my forehead and I closed my eyes at the pleasurable burn, feeling him. Letting his pride at how well I was taking everything wash over me in waves of warmth.
“I’ll see you soon, Maggie.”
I nodded and bit my lip as Kyle grabbed my hand and towed me to his dad’s silver Audi. My body felt like it was being split. I didn’t want to go. I so didn’t want to go. But Caleb said I would be fine.
Kyle buckled me in and we started to back up down the driveway. The whole time, my significant’s eyes were locked on mine.
Three
“Significant? What does that even mean?” I asked Kyle after about five minutes of silence.
He’d been driving around, not going anywhere since we left his house, his thumb beating an angry rhythm on the steering wheel.
“And why am I ok with all this? I mean, you just told me you’re not human? I think I would normally freak out about that.”
“You’re one of us now,” he said quietly.
“What? You mean I’m an Ace or whatever?”
“Yes. Look.” He looked at me quickly. “I’d explain it all to you but Caleb was right. You can’t handle it right now. Your body is goi
ng through enough just being away from him.”
“I don’t understand.”
“You’re his mate, his one, his partner, his companion, his soul mate, the person you’ll be with forever. Take your pick,” he waved his hand in the air.
“But I just met Caleb. I don’t even-”
I was about to say I didn’t even feel anything for him but that was a lie. In fact, just saying his name was bringing on a little round of hysteria all on its own. My heart clenched, my palms were sweaty and tingly. I had the strange need to grab the door handle and make a break for it.
And I knew that was crazy but I couldn’t stop thinking it.
“Why do I feel like this? Why do I-” I stopped and tried to breath through it.
Caleb told me everything would be ok. I knew it would, but I had no idea how or why.
Kyle grabbed my hand.
“Why do you want him? That’s what you were going to say? It’s because you imprinted. It’s like...both your souls saw each other and decided they wanted the other. It’s something that’s always happened in the clans. We’ve always imprinted to find a wife or husband. Usually it happens when you’re older, like about twenty two or three. I’ve never heard of it occurring this young. And it rarely happens with a human but sometimes it does.”
“So what does that mean? I have to marry him now?”
I thought about getting married at seventeen and what everyone would think of me, that I was loony or worse- pregnant.
“No, silly.” He laughed. “You just...belong to each other, now.” He chuckled again sadly and squeezed my hand. “Just when I finally got you to go out with me, too.”
“I’m sorry.”
“You don’t have anything to be sorry about. You can’t control it.” He sighed. “Ok. Let’s stop talking about this. You don’t need the stress and it’s sure depressing me. What do you want to do?”
“I don’t know. I’m pretty hungry.”
“Ok. Pablo’s it is.”
We pulled into the restaurant parking lot and he got out, running to my side to open my door for me. He grabbed my elbow to help me and I thought, he’s sweet but going overboard, but then I started to wobble. I felt lightheaded and he grabbed my other arm to steady me.
“What’s wrong with me,” I croaked.
“It’s like withdrawals. You just have to bear through them. They’ll get better.”
“Withdrawals from what?”
“Caleb,” he said and curled his lip like it was disgusting. “Come on. You’re with me. You’re fine. We’re gonna have fun but we gotta stop talking about him, alright?”
“Alright.”
His hand slid down, his fingers locked on mine and I had a strange sense that I was doing something wrong.
“Stay close, ok?” He opened the door to the restaurant and we went in, wafted by a strong sent of delicious pasta and garlic.
Pablo’s was the best half Italian half Mexican place in town.
“Hey, look. There’s Rebecca and the guys.”
I pulled him to a stop.
“Please no. I don’t want to see anyone tonight,” I begged.
“Because of what happened? You’ll be-”
“No, not because of what happened. I had a fight with my dad and I don’t feel like being in a crowd. Ok. Please?”
“Ok. Let’s go sit back here.” He towed me to the back and we sat in a dark booth. Our waitress came over immediately. It was a junior from my Lit class. “Hey, Callie, I’ll take a root beer. What do you want, Mags?”
“Sweet tea.”
She eyed us both with a little smile.
“Congratulations on graduating, both of you. I can’t wait.”
“Thanks,” Kyle muttered and she went to fetch our drinks. “You ok?”
“Yes.”
“What’d you and your dad fight about?” he asked as he fingered his silverware.
“He’s a jerk.”
“Aha.”
“My mom left last summer. Did you know that? Right before school.”
“Yeah, Chad said something about it.”
“He did?” I said with surprise.
“Yeah, he was pretty strung out there for a while after you guys broke up. Course, I only really saw him at football practice and lunch.”
“Yeah.”
“So why did you break up with him, anyway?” he asked and I looked up to see that he was serious.
I started to tell him the truth but Callie came back with our drinks.
“What’ll you guys have?”
“I’ll have the...parmesan eggplant,” he answered.
“Cheese ravioli.”
“Ok. I’ll get that right in for you. No appetizers?”
“No thanks,” I answered and as soon as she was gone I turned my glare on him. “Chad broke up with me. He didn’t want to date anyone his last year because he knew he was leaving.”
“What? Then why was he so upset about it? I just assumed it was you...I mean, that’s why I kept asking you out, because I thought you broke it off with him which meant you didn’t want to be with him anymore.”
“We had talked about it. He thought it’d be easier that way but I didn’t want to. He did it anyway.”
“Ah, man. What an idiot. I actually felt for sorry for him, moping around.”
“Well, I mean, he had a point but I guess I just thought it’d be better to spend our last year together than apart, even if it would be hard for him to go, ya know?”
“Yeah.”
“Ok, enough about Chad. Where are you going to school?”
“Good old University of Tennessee.”
“So, is that where all your family goes?”
“Pretty much. We try to stay together as much as possible.”
“So, where’s, uh...” Just thinking his name made me feel shaky all over again. “Where’s Caleb from?”
“From here, well two towns over. His family lives there along with the rest of our clan. We’re the black sheep who decided to live somewhere else.”
“Why?”
“This is where my mom’s parents were from. She and my dad are the last members of our clan to be imprinted. Something is wrong and it’s stopped happening. There are a lot of single people in our clan right now.”
“So, nobody in your family has gotten married since your parents?”
“Well,” he took a long sip of his drink and leaned back. His feet touched mine under the table, I scooted them back. “My uncle got married but it was a big scandal. He wasn’t imprinted, he just married someone from a clan that he fell in love with, big no-no.”
“Because he could imprint with someone while already being married to someone else,” I said, understanding.
“Yep, I mean, he was thirty one when he got married, no one ever imprints that late, but still. Why chance it? You can’t control it. Think about what his wife would feel if he imprinted with another woman. He wouldn’t be able to control the way he felt.”
“So you can love someone even if you aren’t imprinted with them?”
“Yeah,” he said softly and looked down quickly so I tried to act like I didn’t notice.
“So, what happens after you imprint? Caleb said something about abilities.”
“Nuhuh. That’s his territory. He has to explain it to you.”
“Another no-no?” I asked, sensing there was probably gonna be a lot of rules.
“Nope, I’m just not gonna be the one to break it to you.”
“Ok, so.” A silly question popped in my head but I hoped it’d lighten the mood. “What about Werewolves? Real?”
He laughed.
“No. Not even close.”
“Wizards?”
“Hardly.”
“Angels?”
“Bible.”
“Aliens?”
“Science Fiction.”
“Sparkly vampires?”
“Young adult science fiction,” he said laughing loudly.
An older coup
le beside us gave us a not happy look at his outburst and we laughed harder before I started quizzing him again.
“So, none of the myths are real?”
“None that you would think of. Food’s here.”
“That was fast.”
“They always are. Good ol’ Pablo.”
“Here you go,” Callie said and she set our food down. “Ravioli and eggplant, you need anything else?”
“Nope. I think we’re good. Thanks, Callie.”
“Ok.” She lingered and looked a little uncomfortable, twirling her pen in her fingers before turning to me. “So, um, you and Chad broke up right?”
“Yeah,” I answered and hoped this wasn’t going where I thought it was.
“Would you mind if I called him? I mean, we’re both going to Florida. I’ll be there next year. I just figured, since you dumped him you wouldn’t mind if I asked him out.”
“Jeez, Callie, blunt much?” Kyle said and looked at her like she had two heads.
“What? She’s the one who dumped him. He’s moped around all year waiting for her. He needs to have some fun for a change.”
“She didn’t dump-” he started to defend me but I stopped him.
“No, Kyle. It’s ok. Yes, Callie. Call him to your little hearts desire.”
“Are you funning me?” Her hand went to her hip. “Cause I don’t always catch the sarcasm.”
I wanted to sigh and I had to mentally push out the blonde joke rattling around in my head.
“Look. Call him. If he wants to go out with you, fine. Thanks for the ravioli. We don’t need anything else right now.”
“Ok,” she said warily. “I’ll check on you in a bit.”
She walked away and Kyle looked at me sympathetically.
“She’s such a ditz. Some people have no couth.”
“No, really it’s fine.” I had an epiphany. A revelation that made my cheeks spread in a smile. “I don’t care. For the first time in a year...I don’t care about Chad.”
“It’s the imprint.” He shook his head. “You won’t care about anyone but Caleb now,” he said almost grudgingly.
“So, there’s no way to break it or stop feeling it... or whatever.”
“No. Why, do you want to?”
“No,” I answered too quickly and he grimaced.
