“Look, I'm sorry I got mad at you earlier,” she said. “I just...didn't want to watch that tape again. I wandered around town, got something to eat. I saw this church and thought maybe this was the place, you know?”
“You're right. This is it.”
“You want to look around?”
“No. You were right, Cindy. We should have left. There's nothing for me here. I'm done asking questions.”
She nodded. “Okay. I'll drive home this time.”
I helped her back over the fence and we went straight back to the hotel. We packed and left. I almost left the tape in the VCR, but decided to take it with us. I was quiet the first hour of the drive back, just reflecting on everything.
Chapter 17
A human with the powers of a demon, who could cross between three worlds. Nice. What the hell did that mean for the future? How would I tell my future wife that? Of course, that would assume I'd ever date again. Between having a crush on Cindy and feeling like a freak, how would I ever date anyone? How would I live a normal life, ever?
Then there was Mark and Sarah Fuller. I hated them so much, but I made the demons let them go. I started to regret that on the drive home, and I felt guilty for it. I hoped that meant I was still mostly human.
There's a lot of problems twenty-three-year-olds have. Worrying about that old car. Trying to get that new girlfriend. Trying to find a direction for a career. I was worried about my demonic powers.
Still, our little trip put one thing into focus. My real family.
We crossed the Maryland state line when I turned to Cindy.
“Hey, where's your phone at?”
“My purse. Behind the seat. Maybe you should get your own cell phone.”
“But then I'd have no use for you.”
“Funny.”
Alicia answered the house phone after a few rings. I felt bad, her being alone at the house without her big brother an apartment away. That feeling went away when I heard music and voices in the background.
“Cindy?” she said, obviously reading the caller ID.
“Try again.”
“Shit. Hey Michelle! Turn that music down! How you doing, big brother?”
I smiled. “You wouldn't be having a party, would you?”
“On a school night? Please. Just a few friends over.”
“Alright. I won't tell Mom. Cindy and I are heading home now. Just wanted to check in, tell you I love you, all that corny family crap.”
“I love you too, Alex.”
A voice in the background. “Aw! She loves her brother!”
Then another. “I love him too! Have you seen Leese's older brother?”
Alicia was mad. “Hey, would you two shut up?”
I laughed. “Go do your thing. Stop by tomorrow for dinner.”
“Cool. Say hi to Cindy for me.”
I hung up and dialed another number.
“Hello?” Mom sounded exhausted. It was close to eleven o'clock on the west coast.
“Mom. How you doing?”
“Alex? Hi.” She sounded tense, a little afraid.
“Cindy and I are driving back now. We'll be home tonight. Just wanted to call and let you know everything's cool.”
“Glad to hear it. Honey, I'm so sorry I didn't tell you everything earlier.”
“You got nothing to be sorry about. I love you. I'm so glad you're my Mom.”
There was a pause followed by a sniffle. “I wasn't there for you growing up. I was either in school or working. You practically raised Alicia while growing up yourself.”
“Mom. I'm who I am because of you. Alicia and I are lucky. Don't ever forget that. I love you.”
“I love you too.” We were quiet a moment. Afraid to admit I almost felt a tear coming on. I held it in. “Okay dear. I think I'd better go. I'm having dinner with a client, and I don't think it's too smart if I start crying.”
I laughed. “No problem, Mom. I'll call tomorrow.”
I put Cindy's phone away. She was looking at me.
“What? What's up?”
She smiled. “You're gonna have me calling my folks soon.”
“Nothing like seeing your biological parents try to kill you to make you realize there's worse things than your sister waking you up in the middle of the night cause of bad dreams.”
“Yeah, true.”
“I couldn't have done this without you, Cindy. Thanks for coming with me.”
She looked surprised, then embarrassed. “You know I'd do anything I can for you, Alex.”
“Same here.”
“Great. Can we have sex now?”
I laughed. If only. “I probably couldn't handle you.”
“Nah. We'd do fine.”
I looked at her. Weird thing to say. Obviously she was kidding, but those jokes definitely put pictures in my head.
I was saved from having sexual thoughts of my best friend by a roadside restaurant. We grabbed a quick dinner before heading back home. It was late when we pulled up in front of the apartment building. We grabbed our bags and stood in front of our doors. I was still wide awake, but Cindy looked tired.
“You going to sleep?” I asked.
“Yeah. I'm beat. But I got a few more days off. I'll stop by tomorrow morning when I wake up.”
I smiled. Things were already feeling normal again. “Cool. See you tomorrow.”
It felt great to stand in my own living room. Just a few hours ago I'd seen things I'm pretty sure no person had ever seen, nor should. Blood-filled churches, a world just outside our own, spirits being tormented for decades. But standing in my own quiet apartment, I felt I could at least try to put some of that behind me.
I did feel overwhelmed as I turned on the TV and poured a glass of tea. How was I supposed to deal with something this big? When I finally got over my little crush on Cindy, how would I tell the next person I had feelings for that I had a little bit of demon in me? Would anyone be able to accept me?
I sighed as I crashed on the couch. I tried not to worry about it too much. One thing at a time. Right now my biggest priority was trying to enjoy the rest of my days off.
It was around midnight when I finally passed out on the couch.
I wouldn't get much sleep.
*****
I awoke in the middle the night in a cold sweat. The TV was still on. I sat up quickly, a little too quickly. Dizziness took over and I came very close to throwing up all over the carpet. I had a quick mental flash of a bathroom that wasn't my own. I recognized it right away as Cindy's. Then I saw another flash of Cindy on one knee in front of her toilet.
I wasn't sick. She was.
I slowly stood up and took a deep breath. I was fine once again. That definitely wasn't fun.
I left my apartment and knocked quietly on Cindy's door. It was unlocked, like usual. I poked my head in.
“Hey, Cindy!” I whispered. “You in here?”
Her apartment was completely dark except for the open bathroom. The light spilled into the hallway. I heard a sound that I'd heard many times, the sound of someone leaning over a toilet. It lasted a few seconds, followed by Cindy's weak voice.
“Alex? Get out of here, please.”
Like a good, stubborn friend, I didn't listen. I softly shut the door behind me and walked down the hall. I peered in the bathroom to see Cindy on all fours, wearing her pajamas. Thankfully I couldn't see any details of what she was putting in the toilet, or I might have joined her. The sound was bad enough.
She got done another round and turned to look at me. She looked terrible. Her face was almost green and dripping with sweat. Her eyes were half closed and puffy from exhaustion.
“Come on, Alex. Leave. This is embarrassing.”
Cindy's hair only went a little past her shoulders. But it was still long enough to cause some issues when throwing up in a toilet. I sat on the edge of the bathtub and held her hair back. I was just in time as she gripped the sides and went one more time. I had to look away. Funny thought. I g
ot done seeing blood and guts not too long ago, and came out of that fine. But I could barely handle my friend throwing up.
“Goddamn restaurant food.” She collapsed next to the toilet. “Last time I stop at a place I've never been to.”
I felt bad for her.
“What the hell are you doing up?” she asked.
“I wasn't. I sensed you were sick.”
She managed a smile. “Let me get this straight. I get sick, and you sense it?”
“Yup.”
“Damn. You must be in love with me.”
Her eyes grew big and she leaned in the toilet once again.
She was right. That's when I first realized it. It wasn't a simple crush I had on Cindy. It wouldn't go away. It wasn't just a matter of Cindy being gorgeous. She was the one I wanted to be with. As I sat there on the tub next to her, holding her hair back while she puked, with her looking the worst she's ever looked, I realized I was in love with her.
Wonderful. As if I didn't have enough to keep me up at night.
“Shit,” I complained.
“Huh? What's wrong?”
“Nothing. How you feeling?”
“Like shit.”
I tried to grab her under the arms. She forced me away. “I can get up by myself.”
I backed up with a smirk on my face. My Cindy, always strong and stubborn. As she stood up, I saw her knees shake a little. I caught her before she could fall.
“I'm dizzy.”
“I can see.”
I scooped her up in my arms.
“What the hell are you doing?”
“Come on, Wonder Woman. Let's get you in bed before you pass out in the bathroom. Then I'd have to take pictures and put them on the Internet.”
She smiled and wrapped her arms around my neck. “I should get sick more often. A free lift is always nice.”
I was a step away from her bedroom when she stopped me. “Uh, can't go in there. I, uh, threw up on the bed.”
“Nice, Cindy.”
I carried her to the couch and gently lowered her down. She threw an arm over her head and closed her eyes. It took me a few minutes to get her settled in. I grabbed a spare blanket and pillow from the closet, and the trashcan from the kitchen, in case she had just a little more in her. I took her blankets off the bed and put them in the washer right next to our apartments. When I finally got done, I thought she had fallen asleep. I carefully took off her slippers and tucked her in. I turned the bathroom light off and was nearly to the front door when she talked to me.
“Alex?”
“Yeah?”
“Stay here. Keep a sick woman company.”
I sat in the chair across from the couch. She had the most comfortable chair in the world. I settled in and leaned my head back.
I had no idea how I was gonna deal with my feelings for her.
“Remember Steven? Freshman year of college?” she asked me out of nowhere.
I did. An ex-boyfriend of hers. Asshole. Cindy fell head over heels for him. It wasn't her fault. He hid his nasty personality pretty well in the beginning.
“Yup. You miss him, don't you?”
“Ha. Please. Remember when I got the flu? His idea of taking care of me was trying to have sex.”
“Yeah I remember. When Alicia found out I thought she was gonna kill him.”
“Yeah. It's sad, isn't it? You take better care of me than any boyfriend I've ever had.”
I could hear the sadness in her voice. It wasn't like her to reflect back on old boyfriends. I guess being sick brings out that crap. Despite how I felt about her, I had to make her feel better.
“Don't worry, Cindy. You'll find that guy who drives you crazy.”
She was quiet for a second. “I hope you're right.”
“I'm always right.”
“At least I always have you as my whitest friend. That's depressing,” she joked.
Friends. That's what we were. I had to repeat that to myself over and over to get it through my thick head. I was mad at myself for that little stunt I pulled, carrying her to the couch. That wasn't what friends did. That's what guys did when they were looking for any kind of excuse to touch someone they had the hots for.
I had to stop that sort of thing.
“Goodnight, sickie.”
“Night, Alex.”
Chapter 18
I had a few relaxing days off till the weekend. I spent most of it with Alicia and Cindy, and some time alone relaxing in the apartment. I did surprisingly well with Cindy. I was determined not to let my feelings for her rule me. I shoved them deep down. If I could control all the other crazy things I could do, I could control my feelings as well.
The first thing I did when Alicia came over for dinner was give her a hug. Definitely put everything in perspective, and the bottom line was that it didn't matter at all that I was adopted. I was lucky, and I knew it. I would never take Mom and Alicia for granted.
It was Friday afternoon. I had a nice lazy morning watching a few movies, then decided it was time to hit the weights. I had two hundred thirty pounds over my chest when the front door swung open.
“Alex!” she said. “What the hell are you doing?”
I didn't respond until I was done eight reps. I racked the weight and sat up. Cindy stood near the front door with a shopping bag from the mall.
“Well, I'm trying to give all the women something to look at.”
She rolled her eyes. I laughed. She knew I was only kidding. I didn't have an ego, which made my ego jokes all the funnier.
I stood up and grabbed the curl bar from the floor. I looked at Cindy, and could have sworn I saw her looking me up and down. Nah. Wishful thinking.
“I talked to Tina while I was at the mall. Her and Dave are heading out tonight. You game?”
The gang. I hadn't seen them in what felt like forever. “Yeah. I'm up for that.”
“Cool. If you're nice I'll dance with you. See if we can get you a woman by making them all jealous.”
“I'm always nice.”
“Then you'll get a dance.”
She flashed that bright smile and left. I wished I could let myself think she was flirting with me. But I knew better.
The time passed pretty quickly, which always sucks on a Friday night. Before I knew it the sun had set and I was getting dressed to go out. I walked the three steps to Cindy's and opened the door. The gang was already there. Dave and Tina were wrestling in the middle of the living room. Jenny was in the corner talking on her phone. I could see Alicia talking in Cindy's room. I couldn't see Cindy, but I didn't think Alicia was talking to herself.
“Alex!” Dave called. “What the hell is up?”
That brief greeting let Tina sneak up and put Dave in a headlock. He gave in so he could feel her ass.
“Hi, Alex,” Tina said.
I laughed and waved. Jenny nodded at me from the corner. I pointed at her, my way of saying hi. I headed back to Cindy's bedroom and jumped in enthusiastically. Cindy was sitting on her bed, looking serious. Their conversation came to a stop when I popped in.
“How are my two favorite females?”
“Damn. Look who's here,” Cindy said.
I rubbed my hands together. “Okay guys. I need your help. There are about one hundred women outside mobbing my truck. I need to get them to go away.”
“Just go outside and take your shirt off,” Cindy said with a smile. “That should do it.”
“If I do that, then one hundred becomes five hundred. I can't risk it. It's too dangerous.”
Alicia rolled her eyes. There was an awkward silence. I didn't sense any bad moods, but something was up.
“Guys? Did I cut in to something? What's up?”
Alicia shrugged. “Nope. Nothing going on here. Right, Cindy? Nothing ever going on here.”
Cindy flashed Alicia a dangerous look. Alicia walked out of the room.
What the hell was that all about?
“Cindy?”
She shook her head
and stood up. “Everything's cool. How do I look?”
A black skirt that stopped at the lower thigh. Black sandals. A tee-shirt that showed most of her slender arms.
She looked beautiful. Gorgeous. Sexy.
“You look alright.”
“Thanks. Everyone ready to go?”
“Depends on if Tina whipped Dave's ass or not.”
We walked in the living room to see Tina on top of Dave. He was on his back with his arms stretched out. Tina's chest was pressed right in his face while she had a hand on his stomach.
“Alex!” he called. “I lost! Whatever will I do!”
“Looks like you won to me.”
“Shhh! Don't tell her that!”
“Everybody ready?”
“Yes! Let's go get drunk!”
I gave Alicia a look as we all left the apartment. Something was definitely wrong. We locked eyes for a moment, and I could see the frustration there. Not with me, but with Cindy. She gave me a smirk.
Typical Friday night driving into the city. I drove my truck, Alicia her car. We could hear people on the sidewalks, generally acting like idiots. Laughing, screaming, drinking, fighting.
It felt great to hang out with my friends again. Dave had me laughing at least twice a minute. Jenny was her usual quiet self, but we talked for a few minutes about what was going on in our lives. That guy she met at the club the last time we were out didn't pan out, and her job was going okay. Tina, as always, had her hands full putting up with Dave.
I paid my fifteen bucks and walked into the club. People everywhere, of course. Loud music. Women wearing as little clothing as possible. The guys floated around like wolves looking for prey.
“Bar!” Dave shouted. He grabbed Tina's hand and led her away. I laughed.
“Let's get a spot,” Jenny suggested.
We stopped near the corner of the club. That way we could talk and the ladies could float out to dance if they wanted.
It wasn't a terrible time, but something was going on between Alicia and Cindy, and it was obvious. I left it alone. I'd get it out of them eventually. They barely said three words to each other. After about an hour there, and some alcohol was flowing through Dave, Tina, and Jenny, the women made their way to the dance floor. Only Alicia stayed behind. Dave and Tina were doing some kind of distance flirting thing. It was like she was dancing only for him. I know he loved it. He blew her kisses while she licked her lips and danced with Jenny. I knew what he'd be doing later.
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