by Dawn Brazil
“Um. Is there something wrong?” I asked. My stomach clenched and my heart pounded in my chest. You’re creeping me out, I wanted to say. But I didn’t.
“You’re beautiful.” He looked serious, as if he was seeing me for the first time. “I mean you’re gorgeous. Your beauty radiates from inside of you…outward.” It sounded like a question, not a statement.” You’re too cute to be this weird. “I wish I could prick,” he actually pinched me, “you and draw out some of that beauty. I am positive it would be worth its weight in gold. It’s remarkable.” His gaze traveled to my eyes. “You’re remarkable. But I can’t figure you out. This out…how you’re doing this.”
“Doing what?” I asked, confused by his behavior.
His eyes bore into me and his mouth formed a sideways grin. But he said nothing. He traced his finger along my collarbone. I closed my eyes, waiting, concentrating on that familiar feeling.
It didn’t come.
I wasn’t sure what to say next. His behavior made me uncomfortable. He lay beside me and stared. Why am I acting like this? You like this guy. This was what you wanted. Remember.
But somehow, it was different.
Then without warning, he jerked himself on top of me. He hovered above me with his hands stationed on either side of my head. He bent to plant kisses on my neck. I tried to pull him off, but he won me over with his gentle touch. He kissed my lips, then my neck, my jaw, my cheeks. I had to remind myself to breathe. Though the electricity didn’t flow between us, his touch still sent shivers down my spine. Painstakingly slowly, he lowered himself onto me and moved his pelvic area as we kissed, sounding an inner alarm.
I had to stop this.
I pushed at his shoulders to pull him back. “Come on.” He didn’t budge. His kisses landed on my neck and shoulder. I pushed with more force. “Chris. Stop!” Still, he continued, as if I hadn’t said anything. “Chris.” I pushed him even harder. “Stop, we aren’t doing this.”
He continued his torturous kisses, down my neck, my jaw, my chest. He moved his right hand to my bra, and attempted to unclip it. I gasped. “I need you, Amanda,” he whispered into my neck. Not comprehending why he continued after I’d said no, I did the only thing I could think. I raised my right hand and brought it down on his face as hard as I could. So hard, it stung my own hand.
He jumped to his feet and grabbed his cheek. I rubbed my sore hand and gaped at him.
“What the hell did you do that for?” His eyes were wide and his mouth twisted into a snarl.
“Are you kidding me?” His behavior had me dumbfounded. What’s his deal? “I tried to get you to stop but you wouldn’t. What’s the matter with you? Are you crazy? Did you really think I’d sleep with you?”
He rubbed his cheek while I spoke. I shook my hand at him, outraged. My bottom lip quivered. I sucked it in. I swallowed a lump in my throat, trying not to cry in front of him. “You made me believe you were a different person–”
He took a step forward. His eyes glistened with anger. His hands clenched into tight fists by his side. Sitting on the bed still, I gripped the bedspread with both my hands. My eyes held his, unwilling to glance anywhere else. Frightened to look away.
My heart slowed. Something had gone seriously wrong. Why? A strange noise escaped his lips. I didn’t understand the garbled mess.
I pulled myself forward, feeling guilty for slapping him. I stepped down from the bed, still a distance from him. Maybe I was harsh in slapping him, but I remained adamant about not giving up my virginity tonight.
As I inched closer, his snarl turned upside down and a smile played at the corners of his lips. Gulp. I reached my hand out, keeping the distance between us, to rub the side of his face. With my hand in the air, poised to touch him, he vanished. But not fast enough for me to miss the rage in his eyes and the hatred that resonated from him.
I plopped down on my bed, confused, hurt, and angry all at the same time. What the hell just happened? I shook my head, trying to understand.
Would he talk to me again? He’d have to, I was certain. If I were to be part of his superhero clique. Possibly he and I – or he and Amanda – had been that intimate and maybe…
It didn’t matter. Whatever he believed, it should’ve been different. The thought of him not speaking when we arrived at the lockers in the morning crossed my mind. Him not talking to me at all made me feel awful. And as soon as the lights were off and my head rested on my pillow, I cried. For the love I never got to really experience.
Why were guys so stupid and yet so incredibly perfect at the same time?
When I awoke the next morning, I dreaded going to school. I knew I had to face Chris. To discuss what happened. However, I didn’t see how our relationship would be the same after we talked about what had happened.
I was so jittery about the conversation we’d have that I couldn’t eat anything. I looked up from my nearly untouched plate to find Mother staring at me in the doorway to the kitchen. I gritted my teeth.
“Is there something going on with you that I need to be aware of?” she asked as she strolled into the room dressed in a black three-piece Burberry pantsuit.
She grabbed a cup of coffee from the counter where our cook, Margaret, had placed it for her. Then she sat and pulled two pancakes from the stack at the center of the table. Eyeing me the entire time.
I swallowed softly so as not to alert her. She was a lawyer, trained to tell if someone was lying. “No, I’m fine. I have a test today in Biology. So I guess I’m a little nervous.” I looked up and met her eyes with a half smile. I think she’s going to buy that.
“Nervous. You?” Matt said, laughing. My head spun around and I glared at him. “You probably helped your teacher write the test. I thought intellectuals such as yourself only worried about Office Depot running out of pocket protectors and calculators.”
Matt was smart, but you could never get him to admit it. He treated intelligence like a plague.
“I thought an animal with such a small brain couldn’t think at all. Does the zoo know you’ve escaped? Maybe I’ll turn you in to get a reward.” I smiled at my own wit. It usually took me forever to come up with things to say back to him.
“That’s funny, Chloe.” He beamed at me then stalked out the door with a pancake hanging from his mouth. It dripped syrup as he walked. Margaret ran after him trying to clean up the sticky mess. I shook my head and smiled at his stupidity.
“You’ll do fine, dear,” Mother said. “You always do.” She was right. Science had always been my favorite subject; I should’ve picked a better lie. Could I take a class to make me a better liar?
When I arrived at school, I searched the student parking lot for Chris’s black Jeep, but I didn’t see it. Our confrontation would have to happen another day. I exhaled a deep breath. I wrestled all night with what to say to him.
I walked into the building and rounded the corner to the junior locker hall. I waved hello to Jennifer and a girl I didn’t recognize as they stood by her locker. Today will be a good day. But not really. Because even if we were going to fight about last night – I wanted to see him. How do I keep getting into these impossibly stupid situations? I kept my face straight as I headed to my locker, but I was in pain.
“How could you?” a masculine voice shouted.
I jumped and hit the locker next to where I’d been walking. My head spun around to see who’d shouted and why it pierced my eardrum. But no one looked up. They talked and walked around like normal. I swallowed hard. What the hell’s the matter with you? Get a grip, Carmichael.
“How?” the voice screamed. I spun around looking in all directions. I swallowed hard then bit down on my bottom lip to gain some composure. I put my head down and stared at my feet.
“Chris,” I said softly. But I hadn’t seen his car. Or maybe he didn’t want me to see it. I thought about turning and going in the opposite direction. But what was the point? I had to face him eventually. It would be better here in the crowded halls than in my bedroom alone. T
he chicken in me squawked in fear.
I didn’t see him immediately, but his voice was clear now. In my head. His face came into view, too. He was at his locker. He shouted without moving his lips a fraction, but his scrunched brows, scowling mouth, and squinted eyes conveyed his wrath just fine. I ran my hands through my long hair nervously.
“Why?” he shouted again. Really. He was upset.
“Stop it,” I shouted, using my inner voice. I wasn’t certain he could hear but after a second, he was quiet. Did he purposely park his car so I couldn’t see it? He ranted, more furious words into my head. His anger was like a clap of thunder right next to me. I took a deep breath. I was nearly to the locker. You can do this. You don’t always have to be the chicken.
Once I reached my locker, Chris leaned on mine and didn’t appear to want to move. He had his head bent looking at the floor and didn’t peer up once I stood in front of him.
I rolled my eyes at his ridiculous attitude. How dare he be mad at me? “Um…” Swallow “I don’t know why you’re so upset. You don’t have a reason to be mad at me. I had every right to do what I did last night.” Whew, there it was. I said it and I meant it, too.
He looked up with sadness in his eyes. I backed up a fraction. The sorrow in his eyes touched me – almost overtook me. “I love you. The least you could do is lie.” He shook his head as if unable to comprehend my words. He took another deep breath, then put his head back down.
I ignored the love part of his speech. I had to or I’d succumb to it. To him. “Lie about what, Chris? For what?” I shook my head and placed my hands on my hips, waiting for him to explain. Was he crazy? Had he gone mad?
He raised his head and stared at me with hard eyes. “Who was it?”
“Who was what?”
“You know exactly what I’m talking about. Don’t play games with me.”
I swallowed more nervous saliva. Crazy people can be violent, dangerous. Right now, he was the crazy person. I backed up more, just in case. I glanced down the hall. No one paid any attention to us. I turned my attention back to him. If his eyes were fire I’d be scorched. He bore them into me with an intensity I’d never seen.
“Was it him?” He pointed behind me at someone. I spun around to see who he referred to. He pointed to a senior named Blake who happened to walk by.
Chris lifted his hand, made a circular motion with his index finger, and Blake tripped over himself. He fell, face forward with a thud to the hard wood floor below. Stumbling, he picked himself up and looked around nervously.
Chris wasn’t finished with the punishment for whatever offense he believed the guy to have made. He formed a circle in the air again with his right hand and Blake went face first into the locker beside him. The poor guy cried out in pain. This time he attracted the attention of two girls walking by. They didn’t stop to offer assistance. They looked at him as if he’d insulted them when he fell. They gave him a you’re-such-a-freak look, then kept moving. I twisted my hands over and over, wanting to go help him. But I was afraid to move.
I turned and glared at Chris. “Stop it. Now. What’s wrong with you? I barely even know him.” I glanced at the guy sympathetically. “What happened last night was no one’s fault but yours.”
Chris sighed loudly then ran his hands through his hair. “What did I do?” I looked at him startled. “Can you tell me what I did?” My mouth fell open. I couldn’t move or speak.
With the wave of his hands, a silence fell over the school: everyone and everything became frozen in place. I spun around, gawking at the scene.
Melissa and Emily were at their lockers, staring and pointing at us. Blake was leaning on a locker and rubbing his sore cheek. Mrs. Battle, the honors English teacher, had her hands thrust in the air, in surprise, because Jennifer Riley must have bumped into her and caused her papers to scatter. Jennifer stood in front of her with her hands clasped to her mouth and a shocked expression on her face.
“Please,” he said with a measure of caution in his words. “I want you to explain so I can understand.” With one quick motion, he reached for me. He pulled me so my back was against the locker in front of him. What I had been searching for last night was now present, the electric current that passed between us. Why can I feel it now? He glowered at me as if he were trying to get answers to some unknown question from my head. This is all too much.
“I’m so confused. I really like you, but I don’t understand what’s going on. Your behavior last night. Your odd behavior now.” I crossed my arms in front of me defiantly, not willing to allow him to make me feel guilty. That’s right, stand up for yourself.
“What I did last night.” His voice raised an octave and broke at the end. I shrieked and pushed against the locker, wishing I could crawl inside.
“I didn’t even see you last night. You were holed up with someone in your room. I tried to get to you, but you blocked me. I even had Sam try and she couldn’t get to you. But she heard you.” He looked me squarely in the eyes then and took a step forward. I swallowed hard, eyes bulging.
“We all heard you. Just one thought. You wanted whoever you were with to kiss you. So I’ll ask once more.” He pulled me by the loop of my jeans so that I was close to his side. I sucked in a shocked breath. He grabbed my right arm and held me firmly in place. So close his chocolate mint breath made my head spin. “Are you going to tell me who you were with? Or do I just start smashing more faces?”
I croaked out what was supposed to be a laugh. “Are you serious? Is this some kind of… initiation joke? I was with you last night.” I pried my arm from his grasp. Now I was officially freaked.
He stared at me for a long moment. He leaned forward, tilted his head to the side, and looked at me with a confused expression. I backed up until I felt the cool metal of the locker touch my arm again.
“Are you certain it was me?”
“I’m positive it was you.” It sounded like a question. Does he think I’m an idiot?
“So there was nothing different about me last night?” He spoke slowly as if he were talking to a preschool child. “Think about it before you answer,” he instructed.
I looked at the floor and not his eyes. Nervous butterflies attacked my abdomen and I twisted my hands together, unable to stop my nervous fidgeting. “Well, you were acting kinda strange. How you talked and you wore your pajamas. I thought that was odd. You talked different, I guess. It was a little weird. Uh…different.” I shrugged my shoulders. I’d keep my mouth shut about the rest because I didn’t need him to lose it.
“Dammit!” He slammed his fist into the locker next to my head. It made a terrible screech and the lock twisted, fell off, and hit the floor. It landed next to my foot. He took a deep breath and looked at me again. I cowered in the small space he allowed me to stand in.
“I’m so sorry. I should’ve never left you alone. I…” he appeared to search the open air for the correct words. “I promise. It wasn’t me in your room last night. I wasn’t even on Earth last night.”
Chapter 14
“So basically, what you’re saying is…I kissed a stranger…who happens to look exactly like you. It wasn’t you…he could’ve just been your twin.” He slouched forward and ran his left hand across his lips then through his hair. “Ah...I see. An evil twin. A doppelganger.” I was irritated with him and this whole situation. I sighed loudly. What have I gotten myself into? I was smarter than this. I should have known better.
“I know this sounds crazy. But I’ve never lied to you about anything. I’m not lying now. It wasn’t me or an evil twin of mine in your room last night.” I stared at him. He stared back. No one moved or said anything for a moment.
“Maybe…I’m just not who you think I am.” I ran my hand across my face and rubbed my throbbing temple. “This is a lot more than I counted on. Much more. I don’t think I’m cut out for this superhero nonsense.” My stomach flipped. Don’t say that, Chloe. You want to be with him. This is how you do it. So shut up!
“No, you are. You’re Amanda. And I promise you – you can do this. But I made a mistake. I didn’t tell you everything. There’s so much still to be told.” He bent closer to me as if someone might hear our conversation, but everyone remained frozen in place. I stared at him, waiting, curious. What’s wrong now?
“The ENO,” he said, “is a shape shifter. Like Raja. I’ve never seen him that I know of. But he can take on anyone’s identity once he has seen them, within a reasonable amount of time. I know that’s who came to you last night.” He grabbed my hand and traced patterns on my knuckles. His hand was moist and soft. Not like last night. His brow creased and he appeared vexed over what he wanted to say next. I didn’t speak. I reeled from his shocking revelation.
“Chloe, I think it’s time we filled you in on some facts.” My face scrunched in confusion. “Not that what we’ve told you so far has been a lie. It hasn’t been. But it wasn’t, um…everything.”
Just then, a blistering wind whipped past me, tossing my hair over my left eye. My gaze followed the movement. When I turned my head, Sam greeted me with a smile. “We should talk.” But her smile wasn’t real. Only half her mouth turned up and her eyes were narrowed. My stomach knotted. She was supposed to be the happy one, too. This must be bad.
“Um…okay.”
“Hi, it’s nice to meet you, Chloe. I’m Sam and I’m a Peacekeeper.” She extended her hand for me to shake. I peered down at it outstretched before me. Confused. Can these kids get any freakin’ weirder?
I turned to stare at Chris, but he had his head down pushing buttons on a small silver gadget he held.
“I’m still the person you met a short time ago, but I have another role, too. I know this is going to be confusing. But hear me out.” I wasn’t about to say anything. I needed to understand, and if she could give answers, I wanted to hear them. “We are all Peacekeepers. Sent to protect humanity.”
“Protect humanity from the ENO?” I asked.
“No…from themselves.” She smiled. A real smile that stretched from one corner of her mouth to the other. “The normals can be cruel and violent without the help of a clinically psychotic being.”
