I laughed while sliding his phone open to the keyboard. “Don’t have one, actually.”
“Really? Your parents won’t let you have one?”
“Yeah, yeah. Something like that. I’ll be right back.” I stood up and walked to the diner’s restrooms.
Truth was that Gabriel and I could have a cell phone any time we wanted, except we would have to pay for it. And since we couldn’t get a normal job with actual monetary income, it would be impossible to pay the monthly bill. Also, it wasn’t like I carried around a purse with me, so the phone would go in my pocket and as a result, probably break in a matter of days.
My life profession left no room for today’s technologies.
Chapter Fourteen – John
When I told her that we were going to get some good food, I didn’t realize that it was late and that all the places with good food were closing up. I had to take her to the diner that was only a few minutes away from the school, the one that was very cheap and very greasy.
I hoped she wasn’t a freak about eating healthy, otherwise she’d just have to suck it up and eat the food. That or starve. But the reason we came here was for her to eat, so I didn’t think she would choose the second option.
And it wasn’t like I didn’t have money. I did. I had plenty. If it was open, I would have taken her to the nicest place in town.
After shoving some fries in my mouth and noticing that she was sniffing her burger, I asked, “Smells good, huh?” Kass definitely was a strange girl. And for some odd reason, I loved it.
“Yes,” she lied. I knew she lied, because this all smelled like shit to me, too. I had a nose. I didn’t have anosmia. Which, if you didn’t know, was the inability to smell. How I knew that, well, it was a long story.
I couldn’t stop myself from smiling while I watched her consume the whole plate in a few minutes. She could eat. I glanced down at my own plate. I was roughly halfway done. Wow. And I thought I ate fast. Kass was like a marathon eater.
Soon I realized that I was still smiling at her. Damn. I felt like such a creep, since I was ninety-nine percent certain she didn’t have any feelings for me whatsoever. I wiped the smile off my face quickly as she said, “John, can I borrow your phone?”
I nodded and reached into my pocket, handing it to her without a second thought. I’d give my car to her if she asked. “Sure. Can’t find yours?”
Her small frame shrugged it off, saying, “I don’t have one, actually.”
I found that hard to believe. What kind of teenage girl didn’t have a cell phone on her at all times? Not any that I knew. Then again, Kass was unlike any other girl I’d ever met, so there went that theory. “Really? Your parents won’t let you have one?”
“Yeah, yeah. Something like that.” Kass stood up. “I’ll be right back.”
Well did she avoid that question or what? I mused. As she walked to the bathroom, I couldn’t stop myself from watching her walk. Watching the way she moved. And yes, I also watched her ass. Who wouldn’t? No guy in their right mind, that’s who.
I finished off my plate and thought, God, I needed so much help. The way I was feeling wasn’t natural. Well, not natural for me. For geeky and nerdy guys, yeah. They probably felt like this all the time.
But me? I’d never felt like this. Not once.
And that’s saying a lot, trust me.
Chapter Fifteen – Kass
After entering the women’s restroom, I peeked under the stalls to make sure no one else was there. I dialed Michael’s new house number, thinking hard, because it’d only been four days.
Didn’t want to get the number wrong.
It rang twice before Michael picked up. “Kass, where are you? Gabriel’s back already and you should be, too.”
How the hell did Michael know it was me calling from this random number? I didn’t know, so I decided to ask. “How’d you know it was me?”
I heard a sigh on the other side of the phone. “Gabriel saw you leaving with a boy named John, and I noted that a cell phone’s number was calling, so I figured it was you borrowing his phone. I was right, undoubtedly.” Michael’s explanation came quick, and was flawless.
“Yes. Don’t worry, I’m coming in like fifteen minutes,” I reassured Michael, who had just went on a tirade about how I needed to get home now. “But after I hang up, I need you to do something. Get Raphael.”
There was a long and somewhat awkward pause before he inquired, “Why? Was there a problem tonight? Kassandra, are you alright?”
“Yeah,” I shook his questions off. “I’m fine. Just…get him over there. We need to get into full research mode. So get him there, okay?” That’s when I imagined Michael’s reaction. He most likely nodded, pushed his glasses farther up his nose, and ran his hand through his hair.
“Alright. I will. Hurry home.” And after saying that, he hung up.
Michael hung up on me. Without prying any further for an explanation. That was so unlike him.
I made my way back to find John sitting at a clean table. He greeted me and stood up. “Everything okay?”
I wasn’t sure if he was genuinely concerned or simply trying to be nice. His facial features made it out like he was sincerely worried. But then again, he could be a really good liar, like me.
“Yeah. Just had to call home. Thanks.” I smiled, handing him his phone back.
“No problem.” John returned the smile. We walked to the door and he motioned to his car. “Come on, let me drive you home.”
I thought about declining for a few reasons: John did not need to know where I lived, I could have made it home faster by running, and I did not want to be in a car with a stranger. I mean, I knew John, but I didn’t know know him.
But did I decline?
Not exactly.
Chapter Sixteen – John
My mind was still reeling from the sight of watching her walk to the restroom when I noticed that she was back already. A quick call. I stood up. “Everything okay?” I feigned interest, when in reality I wanted to take her into the bathroom and do some unspeakable things to her.
I was a horrible guy. Precisely why I needed to stay away from her.
“Yeah.” Kass gave me my phone. “Just had to call home. Thanks.” She smiled, making me want her even more, if it was possible. And…yeah, I just checked. It was possible.
“No problem.” I placed a twenty dollar bill on the table and we walked to the door. “Come on, let me drive you home.”
She thought for a few moments. If I were her, I wouldn’t trust me either. After all, she didn’t know me. She didn’t know me at all. I wanted her to know me like I wanted to know her, but I didn’t know if she felt the same. I could only imagine the things that were going on in her head.
Did she like me? Did she hate me? Did she want to run away from me screaming bloody murder because I was being so creepy around her constantly?
I had no clue.
But she didn’t say no, which made me very happy. I couldn’t recall the last time I’d felt so happy, in fact.
Kass’s green eyes lit up. “Okay.”
Okay. She said okay. Oh, my God. I was going drive her home. I was going to be in the same car as her again. I was going to try to pay attention to the road when all I really wanted to do was turn to her and show her what a man could do yet again, just as I did on the ride here from the game.
I needed to be locked up.
Chapter Seventeen – Kass
On the ride to my house, I was debating on telling him to stop a few houses down from mine. Would there be repercussions for a lie like that? I was pondering the answer to that for a few seconds as we began heading down my street.
But then I stopped.
I saw Gabriel standing at the base of the driveway, looking directly at us. His blonde spiky hair was messy, his strong arms crossed in a way that revealed he wasn’t thrilled seeing John with me.
John noticed my steely gaze and glanced around. Spotting Gabriel and his stance, he com
mented, “I didn’t know Gabriel lives on the same street you do.”
“Yeah,” I said slowly. John didn’t know the half of it. Well, he didn’t know any of it, really.
“He seems upset. Should we see if he needs help?” Before I could say no, John pulled the car over and rolled down the window. He yelled “Hey Gabriel!” while I covered my face.
Gabriel strolled—really, he strolled to the window and leaned on it, looking directly at me. “John. Kass. Have fun on your date?” His words were slick with venom and annoyance. I wasn’t sure if it was because of the date part or the John part.
Anyway, date? John and I weren’t on a date. Were we? No, no. We weren’t…were we?
I was about to voice my opinion on the matter, but John answered first, “Yeah. We had lots of fun. Jealous, Gabriel?” John winked at me.
Though I was still covering my face, I saw that wink. No doubt Gabriel saw it as well. Fantastic.
The blonde’s dour expression morphed into one of mischievousness. He looked like the cat that swallowed the canary, smiling like the Cheshire Cat. “Take her out all you want, if it’ll get her outta the house more.”
Oh, no. This was not happening.
“Wait…” John glanced from Gabriel to me. “What?”
My hand slid off my face as I stared at Gabriel. I was giving him my famous death glare, but he didn’t seem to notice at all. “Oh, yeah.” He smiled a toothy grin, ignoring me completely as he added, “Kass lives here too.”
John looked at me for a moment, then back to Gabriel.
Gabriel didn’t miss a beat. “Oh, you mean she didn’t tell you? Yeah, she lives here with two men that she’s not even related to. One being a highly born Englishman and the other me. Jealous, John?” He mimicked John’s question perfectly.
“Wow. Yes. I’ll admit. I’m jealous,” John had a kidding tone in his voice, like he was taking this whole conversation with a grain of salt. But I could tell his tone was strained. He was trying to be cool in front of the girl he liked.
Me, weirdly.
“Good.” Gabriel grinned at me after opening the door. “Raphael’s here, just like you wanted.” His attention went back to John for a second, “You know, another man. One of those tall and handsome ones. With sparkling green eyes. And muscles. Lots and lots of muscles. Not as many of me, of course.”
John’s mouth dropped open a little bit. I felt bad for him. It was bad enough that Gabriel told him we lived together and weren’t related at all, but now Gabriel was describing Raphael as if he were the perfect man. Gabriel was crossing the line here. And there wasn’t a doubt in my mind that he knew it and didn’t care.
I was shocked. I couldn’t even make myself move my arm and unbuckle my seatbelt. I couldn’t believe this was happening and that Gabriel was doing this. I managed to shake my head. “Gabriel…”
“Hm? Oh, you want me to unbuckle your seatbelt? Anything for you, Kass,” Gabriel leaned across me and unbuckled me.
But before he completely left the car, I grabbed his shirt and pulled him close so that my mouth was near his ear. His face was still facing John, so Gabriel smiled awkwardly and said, “My shirt’s stuck. Hold on.”
In a voice I knew only Gabriel could hear, I whispered into his left ear, “Leave and go back into the house.” Gabriel started to say a but, except I cut him off. “Now, Gabriel.” I shoved him away.
“Oh, look. Shirt’s not stuck anymore. Sweet. See you later, John.” Gabriel stood erect and backed directly out of the car.
My eyes squinted towards him. Go, I mouthed. When I knew he was out of earshot, I turned to John. “Sorry about him. He can be a little…”
“Overprotective?” John offered. “Standoffish? Arrogant? Pigheaded? I think any of these words would describe him perfectly.”
“Yeah,” I agreed. But that was a lie. I knew none of those words were really Gabriel. Except maybe the first one, in this particular situation.
“Can’t believe you live with him…and you’re not related. How the hell did that happen? Foster kids or something?”
I looked at him and saw him for what he really was. A boy. A real, live boy that was genuinely, truthfully, honestly jealous. I couldn’t believe it. Yeah, it’s understandable. I got that. But still.
“It’s a long story.”
He held up his hand, waving my excuses away. “It’s alright. It’s a little weird, but it’s alright. I’ll, uh, see you Monday.”
“Okay.” I got out of the car and lightly shut the door. I leaned down by the window and smiled at him, saying, “And thanks for everything tonight, John.”
Why was I egging on this relationship when I knew it could go nowhere?
The walk up to the house seemed abnormally long. I had no idea how to describe what happened tonight. What that thing was, what was going on between John and I.
I only knew one thing: it wasn’t a Nightwalker. But I feared that statement wouldn’t be enough to do anything. That’s why I called Michael and told him to get Raphael over here. Raphael had to know something. He had to.
I reached the enormous front door, where Gabriel was standing and waiting for me. I was not happy with him right about now.
He smirked, “Did he kiss you goodbye?”
I ignored him, fearing that my only response to that would be a kick to the place where no man ever wanted to get kicked. A really hard kick.
But, apparently, ignoring him wasn’t giving him the message to stop, for he continued, “Kass and John sitting in a tree, k-i-s-s—”
That’s when, after opening the door, I turned and stared at him. Just stared. Silently and menacingly. Of all people, he knew what I could do, so there was no need to voice any threats to him. Simply staring at him was enough of a warning sign.
He trailed off during his final letters, “Sorry.”
I stood and glared for a little while longer before entering the house. Sometimes Gabriel could be an ass and very immature. But, still, he was my immature ass and anyone who had a problem with him also had a problem with me. Unfortunately, when I had problems with him, there was nothing to hold me back. Not a good thing.
My mind wandered away from the whole Gabriel fiasco and back to the thing that I ran into just two hours ago. Was it really a mere two hours ago? It seemed like ages. But I could credit that longer-than-it-really-was time lapse to the scene that happened a few minutes ago. That was like torture. Pure torture.
And being tortured wasn’t fun. Trust me.
“Kass.” Michael rose from his chair and met me midway through the living room. “What’s wrong? You look a little…angry.”
“Ah,” Gabriel’s hand went up in the air, like he was guiltily admitting he stole the cookies from the cookie jar. He’d done that many times. “Yep. That’s my fault.”
“What did you do?” It was like Michael was scolding a five year old kid. It was funny, though, because that’s what Gabriel was. A five year old boy.
“I teased her about her new boyfriend.”
I couldn’t stop my jaw from clenching and my fist from tightening. I was going to say that he wasn’t my boyfriend automatically, but what Michael said immediately caused me to be, well, speechless.
“Kass has a boyfriend? Against protocol, sure, but if I let you go out I don’t see why she can’t, too.” Michael was all believing, and I was so, so speechless.
At last I managed to mumble, “He is not my boyfriend.” Because, unlike Michael here, Koath taught me that relationships between a Purifier and a civilian were doomed to fail, they were basically pointless, and that the only hope I had of ever being in a real relationship that wasn’t a quick fling would be if I found another Purifier that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. Purify evil with. Love and live with.
But Michael let Gabriel go about and do anything. The more dates with girls, the more of a man Gabriel was. In my opinion, though, he wasn’t a man. He was immature right down to his very core. And he probably always will be.
I was too deep in my thoughts that I didn’t even notice that Raphael was standing right beside Michael the entire time. When I noticed him, my mind became focused instantly. “It’s not just a group of Nightwalkers. There’s something…else.”
“I was right about them being led by another Demon?” Raphael queried.
I looked down at his feet. That man was dressed as a priest even though it was eleven at night. Was there ever a time when he was not in those clothes? I wondered if they were comfortable.
Stop, I told my mind, which began to wander once again.
“I saw something tonight, and it wasn’t a Nightwalker. I…” I thought back, remembering every detail. “I’m not sure what it was. That’s why I told Michael to get you here, because I’d figured you’d know.”
Raphael smiled, and I think that was the first time he cracked one in front of us. That split second, he actually did seem like the perfect guy, minus the uniform, that Gabriel had described just five minutes ago. “Good. That is the only decent decision you have made so far.”
It is amazing how some people only compliment others when that compliment was coupled with a direct insult. I chose to ignore the insult part of that sentence.
“Can you describe it?” Michael pushed his glasses up while nodding hastily.
“It was a shadow. Like, there were no details on this thing except the eyes. Its eyes glowed yellow. It was fast and quiet, and when I looked into its eyes, I froze. I couldn’t move. My legs were just…frozen.” I looked up to the three men that were intently watching me. “That’s when John came. When it saw John…I’m not sure if it was scared or surprised or…well, something else. It vanished as quickly as it came.”
Michael was deeply in thought, looking down; Raphael’s hands were holding his elbow and his chin while he was thinking, eyes closed; only Gabriel was still studying me, probably seeing if I was hurt from the encounter. Which I had been, right after. Now I was just freaked out that it wasn’t a Nightwalker.
“Can you remember anything else, Kassandra?” Raphael’s question rang through my brain. That was the moment when I thought of its most identifying characteristic.
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