Apollo's 11

by Anna Collins

  "Thanks for helping me," I said again. That was the least I could do. This time I thought I saw him giving a nod. Dude! Speak up! A part of me wanted to yell at his face, but the rational part of me managed to calm me down.

  Yet he didn't care to answer! What an arrogant piece of ass! I cringed my face at him; if I wasn't injured and helpless, I would have given him a proper solution to his attitude problem. "Why are you so proud of yourself? Are you the prime minister or what?" I taunted. Instead of getting a strong comeback, I heard the sound of a small laugh; did I imagine things again? The curious worms in my brain were dying to know more about this stranger. I was practically hugging this guy. Still, there was an unnatural kind of ease and relaxation in my body. His touch, his breath, it felt like my body was immune to his touch; he wasn't a stranger to my reflexes. That made me more nervous and not to say more curious; why was I feeling so...so...connected with him?

  "Okay, maybe you are shy, so I'll go first. Hi, I'm Freya Lawrence. Now it's your turn," I said again, shamelessly, and the courtesy went to the curious worms of my brain; happy now? And shy, did that even count as an excuse? What was I thinking? No Freya, you weren't thinking at all, if you were then you wouldn't be in the arms of a complete stranger and feel nothing wrong about it, said the voices in my head, and they were absolutely right.

  "Put me down, I said put me down," I shouted and threw my legs here and there. Few of the people who were just there to enjoy a morning walk halted at my chaos.

  "Hey, stud! Are you trying to kidnap this girl?" Asked a young guy.

  "No...He was helping me and..." I was trying to find the right words when Mr. Dark finally decided to put me down.

  "Step behind boy. I think it's a husband-wife thing, we shouldn't interfere," said a middle-aged woman with blonde hair and fake lips; she kinda looked snooty to me.

  "Hey, he's not my husband, he just helped me when I fell down," I explained, and when I looked back, I couldn't spot Mr. Dark. Did he vanish into thin air? I thought.

  "Where did he go?" I scratched my forehead.

  "There, he's near the main entrance," pointed out the young guy; he looked like he was in his early teenage years.

  And I knew it was him because I had seen the white lion logo on the back of his hoodie. Shit! I needed to catch him, but it seemed kinda impossible with this sore and swollen foot.

  "Hey, will you help me, please? Run up to the guy and ask him to stop, please," I asked the boy.

  Maybe he took pity on me and nodded with a smile. The boy was quick to catch up on Mr. Dark. As they both indulged in a conversation, I slowly made my way towards them. As if sensing my presence, Mr. Dark was about to run away again; the curiosity in my mind which had now turned into desperation and something else I couldn't comprehend, caused me to tug on the black material of his zip up shirt. He halted, and his body shook in surprise, but he didn't turn around, "Hey, show me your face," I demanded.

  No response.

  My hand now gripped on his shoulder, still holding the material tightly. He jerked his shoulder, but my hold and determination both were tight. My suspicion was right; this guy was hiding his face on purpose, and he surely had to do something with me. There were already too many unanswered questions waiting to be answered in my mind, and I didn't want to add more. "I’m not letting you go this easily, tell me your name," I demanded again.

  As I pulled on further on the back of his shirt, a part of his shoulder became visible, and then I saw something which blew my mind.

  My hold loosened because my cold hands were shivering uncontrollably. Getting this advantage, he leaped in the air and ran away as if a firecracker had just gone off. My hands reached to cover my mouth which was now opening and closing as if I was a goldfish. How could he run so fast? It all appeared like a blur, and after catching my breath, I was finally able to recognize the person who was trying his best to escape my eyes.

  I didn't even think about following him because my mind was too occupied resolving the pieces of the puzzle my wide eyes had just captured. That guy had the same tattoo on his back; yes, it was perfect and more refined than the raw sketch Eric had drawn, but the images were the same. Well, as much as I could see. And that much was enough for me to remember where I had seen the disastrous tattoo. I had seen this unique tattoo on Zack's body. Did that mean Zack was alive? But what was his connection to Eric?

  Then all of a sudden everything started to make sense; that's why I felt so comfortable in his arms, and he didn't speak much because he feared I might recognize his voice. A part of me wasn't really able to absorb all this, and again I began questioning my sanity.

  My eyes fell to the young guy who was standing next to me. "You saw that right? You saw he ran away and the tattoo on his back," I spoke a few broken words.

  "Yes, I saw it. Dude! That guy has the speed of a tornado. But why are you getting all worked up for a stranger?" He asked in awe.

  I leaned back and wiped the drops of sweat from my forehead. Stop being crazy Freya, you can't let your emotions overwhelm you. You need to resolve this mystery, you got this girl, the voices in my head sounded very encouraging, for a change.

  I wasn't hallucinating, there was no other way to explain the weird behavior and stormy run.

  "Hello, are you okay?" A voice shook me, and I looked down at the young guy; well, not literally looked down because he was almost of the same height as me. I managed to put on a smile because he was too cute with red cheeks and all. "I'm all right, thanks for following that weirdo for me," I said.

  "By the way, the name's Duke," he held out his hand. I shook it gently, "Nice to meet you, Duke." He reminded me of Robert's cousin; I wonder where he was now, we two used to share a good rapport, but then everything changed. I didn't even see him after Robert's death. I hoped his selfish mother took good care of her son.

  "Who was that kid? And why was he helping you walk?" Kate looked at me as if I was an alien or something. I had barely entered the house, and she put on her inquiry officer cap. How did I tolerate her for so long?

  "I slipped and fell. Anyways, it's not important. Now tell me why are you all decked up? Whose life is getting spoiled today?" I teased her as I steadied myself on the couch and started taking off my jogging shoes.

  "Whoa! Look at your foot. The injury looks serious girl!" She said touching my foot.

  "It's nothing, I'll take care of it. Now tell me where are you going?" I asked.

  "You forgot, right?" She rolled her eyes at me.

  "Umm...guilty," I bit my lip.

  "Today is aunt Rosaline's wedding. She chose me as a bridesmaid, and you were about to accompany me; you have even arranged the sitter on day and night schedule," Kate frowned, pouting her red lips.

  "I so sorry, I completely forgot. Actually, there has been a lot on my mind lately. But you should totally go ahead, this smoky makeup looks perfect," I smiled.

  "Oh, thanks. I guess you are right, you take the day off, and I'll try to flirt with some guys at the reception. It will be a shame to waste this perfect look," she winked.

  This girl! She was made for flirting, I laughed a little.

  Kate was reluctant to leave me alone, but I reassured her it was nothing compared to the amount of misery stored in my heart.

  After she had left, I sent off Eric for his therapy sessions. He went with the sitter, partly because my foot was too sore, but the main reason was I didn't have the courage or the right words to answer Edward's question. I hated hurting people; I knew how it felt when you got a bundle of pain instead of love.

  Chapter Eighty-Nine

  Freya

  "And everyone lived happily ever after. End of story, now, go to sleep," I closed the book and tossed it on the side table. Jeez! Reading monster stories to my brother and telling him everything got happily settled in the end, was a difficult task when I, myself was fighting with demons each and every day, with no happy ending for me.

  The reality was monsters always won, and imperfect huma
ns like me were too weak to fight them. My whole life destroyed in front of my eyes, and I couldn't even mourn over it. Yes, this was the reality, where no one came to save Robert when he was struggling for his life. There was no light of goodness to protect him when his whole body burned to ashes.

  "Sis, are you crying?" Eric peeked at me through the light of the night lamp. My eyes were moist, but I had managed to hold back my tears; time and bad situations had made me an expert in swallowing my tears of pain. "No dear, maybe something’s in my eye," this was my all-time favorite excuse, and everyone seemed to believe it.

  "You know sis, today Edward was asking about you, but as you forbade me, I didn't tell him about your swollen foot. I did good, right?" He grinned.

  I ran my hand over his forehead, "Yes my brother, you can never do wrong. My good boy. Now go to sleep. Otherwise, monsters will come for real," I made a weird face and punched lightly on his belly.

  He giggled, "I know you will save me. My sister is the bravest."

  His honest belief in me, made me want to crawl into my bed and cry. I was a hero in his eyes, but in reality, I was nothing but a loser.

  I smiled sadly and kissed his forehead, "Sleep well."

  I heard the wind crawling against the window of my bedroom. It sounded more like someone was tapping on a door. I dropped my tab on the cozy pillows propped against my bed and went near the window. The golden light coming out of the fireplace and the white curtains of my room had created a soft ambiance. It was almost midnight, and I had just finished checking the profit details of our new contract with a Turkish company. Actually, my brain was tired from all the hocus pocus running restlessly in the pathway of my life.

  I opened the glass window, inviting in the bright moonlight and the cool breeze to kiss my face. Sucking in the night air seemed like a better idea than suffocating myself with those vague, endless questions.

  As I stared into the dull, foggy yet cloudless sky, the half moon stared back at me; it looked so pale and incomplete without its other half. The sky wasn't fully illuminated by its weak beams, yet the moonlight was somehow lessening the inky blackness of the night, but too much to dull the stars sparkling and glittering like diamonds.

  I looked down at my crystal ring. Like the stars, it was also shining brightly, and then an idea popped into my mind. I closed my eyes and concentrated so that my thoughts would lead the ring to find out some clues about the past, present, and history of Zack. Zack, it was a shame I didn't even know his full name; once he said he didn't have any surname because he was an orphan but that couldn't be true, right? Everyone had a last name.

  I found nothing but disappointment; the ring didn't show me anything about Zack, it was completely blank. Impossible! My eyes opened wide in shock; this had never happened before. The ring failed to find anything on Zack. I growled in frustration as I realized I had fallen into a deep and dark black hole. If Zack was able to 'restrict' his information, then he must be more powerful than Rebecca. I had no enmity with Zack; all I wanted to know was what his damn connection with Eric was.

  When yelling and cursing didn't help, I felt a tugging sensation on the nerves of my head. Somehow I needed to calm myself down, and alcohol seemed to be the easiest way for this. Taking a deep breath, I reached to the upper shelf of my bookcase; I always hid a bottle of bourbon behind the fat books. It acted as a medicine during times of excess stress.

  Each sip of the amber liquid made me feel better and better. I was so exhausted I didn't even bother to pour the bourbon into a glass. With my fingers wrapped around the bottle, I felt the world around me had turned into a blur. It occurred to me as nothing else was more important than myself at the moment. Why was I spending my energy trying to find someone who left me on a curb and never dared to look back? I was thinking about Robert because I was getting strong vibes he was still alive. Even the detailed scenery of the car crash was unable to melt down the burning candle of my belief. A prominent part of me refused to believe anything, except for the emotions I had seen in his ocean blue eyes. He is alive, his existence is as real as the stars in the night sky, said a gentle voice inside my head. Then why was he staying away from me? And what's this scene with Zack?

  Arghhhh! I clenched my fists in agitation; even the strong liquid couldn’t calm me down.

  With shaky, uneven steps, I tried to reach my bed. My head felt heavy. Shit! Maybe the neat bourbon wasn't a very good idea after all. The white walls around me were moving up and down like a ping-pong ball. And I knew my half closed eyes weren't the reason for this frosty vision. Thankfully Eric had slept; he would have freaked out seeing this weak and drunk woman.

  Once reaching to my bed, I got into a half sitting and half lying position. I leaned on the hill of soft purple cushions, with my brown hair lying over one shoulder of my lilac colored T-shirt. I lolled my head to one side so I could get a clear view of the moon and stars.

  Then I closed my eyes, but I wasn't sleepy at all. Maybe just a bit tired from the pain of my swollen foot.

  A sound of footsteps was added to the sound of breezes and my heavy breaths. Though I was under the influence of alcohol, I could clearly hear the steps approaching me. I clutched on my pillowcase as my lips trembled in anticipation. It was him, every beat of my heart told me he was coming to me. But I didn't dare to open my eyes, thinking he might be a dream, and he would vanish if I made a single movement.

  His cold fingertips drew a pattern on my cheek, giving me goosebumps. His finger was dancing on my cheeks as his breath fell on my face. Like me, he too was breathing heavily, and it occurred to me that maybe he was as desperate to get near me as I was.

  I flinched a little as his stubble filled cheeks pressed against my soft ones. He kissed my eyes, his wet lips encountered with each of my closed eyelids. A rush of heat went down my cheeks; I wasn't a sparkly eyed teenager, and he was not kissing me for the first time. However, each touch of his lips on my skin made me shiver and gasp. I was certain my trembling lips hadn't gone unnoticed by his searching eyes. I got the feeling he was somehow reading my mind because my plump lips became his next target. Very slowly he trailed down his index finger on my lips like he was drawing something.

  My eyes were yearning to see his face, and my lips were begging to be kissed by him. He stopped; his finger broke contact with my skin. He was all set to disappear again. No! You can't let him vanish again, do something before he leaves you. Stop him Freya! You know he is your life. Shouted the voices in my head, waking me up from the intoxicated state. And with all the aching I felt in my heart, I yelled: "Stop!".

  I quickly opened my eyes, and yes, he was still there, standing near the window. My shout had startled him, forced him to stop for a bit. Soon his reflexes became active, and he reached near the window. He was wearing a black jacket, black jeans and an ash-colored hood had covered his head. He was a step away from the window from where I guessed he was planning to jump out.

  I tried to run so I could catch up to him, but I slipped on the white rug and fell down on the floor "God! No!" I cried in pain.

  "Freya!" He turned around immediately and rushed to me. As he sat crouching next to me, with his hand on my foot, I grabbed him by his arm, digging my nails in; I did it with much force because I wanted him to feel the pain. It didn't happen. With the leather jacket, I was sure he didn't feel an ounce of pain.

  "Does it still hurt?" He asked, his deep voice reached right into my heart, and I could detect pain in it.

  I swallowed a lump of air, "Not more than what you have caused me," I muttered in a trembling voice filled with the pain of betrayal. Yes, he had betrayed me, my love and my trust.

  He went back to his silent move, but before he could think about leaving, I pulled back my tears and lifted his hood.

  As those ocean blue eyes looked back into me, every doubt in my heart cleared. He was Robert, my Robert.

  Robert

  I did my best to hide my eyes because there wasn't enough courage in this world to stare b
ack into those baby brown eyes, which were full of pain. I tried my best to stay away from her, but I failed, I failed miserably. I decided to become the heartless Robert Hudson, the selfish businessman who only thought about his own profits; but when it came to Freya, I couldn't fight with my own emotions. How could I fight with a heart that had already surrendered itself to her?

  Words failed me, emotions froze me. All I wanted to do was to run back and get lost in the darkness, but this aching heart was dying to get a sight of the one for which it beat continuously.

  "Freya! Don't look at me like this, I...cannot…" I uttered in a weak tone.

  "Why are you sitting here then? Go, disappear like you disappeared from my life once. Run away! Like the coward you are," her voice was cracking from the overflow of emotions.

  "It wasn't by choice Freya!" I yelled, unable to control the aching pain in my heart.

  I looked up at her; she was clearly shaken, her body was trembling slightly, and a thin film of tears had gathered in her eyes.

  I sighed and pulled her into my arms, with her face against my chest, and my hands got busy smoothing her tangled hair. "Freya! You will not understand what I have been through. I was thrown into a valley of fire and was asked not to get burned. I just wanted to save you from the fire now burning inside me. I just wanted to protect you, my love, because you are my everything, my world, my life, my reason to live," I spoke softly.

  She moved her face away from my chest and looked at me, right in the eye, "Then make me understand. Tell me everything. I want to know what took you away from me," she spoke rigidly and continued. "Trust me, Robert, if you leave now then I will never be able to forgive you. And all this love you see in my eyes will turn into fumes of hatred," she stated.

  "I will tell you everything. I promise I will not leave you alone again," I smiled sadly and kissed on her forehead.