by Keya Jay
***
Azalea constantly heard kid’s running back and forth screaming once the sky fell to complete and utter darkness. Azalea didn’t really like being in the dark so she lit the sky around her house with bright and shining stars. She was only sleep for 2 minutes it felt like, when she felt like her blood was boiling form with in her. Azalea shot up in bed knowing that the only time she felt like that was when Llorel was around her.
“Relax you didn’t have to get up, go back to sleep.” Azalea snapped her head toward the direction of his voice and saw him sitting on her window sill.
“How’d you get in here?” Azalea saw him point out the window as if that was some type of answer; she narrowed her eyes and decided to rephrase the question. “Why are you here?”
“For you of course, there’s no one else in the house is there?” Azalea rolled her eyes and refused to lay back down knowing that he was in her room. Llorel is in my room!! She yelled in her head not yet wanting to believe it. “Get out!” she said.
“I can’t do that,” he said shaking his head as if it was impossible, and that she was stupid for even suggesting it.
Yes you can,” she insisted. “Do it the same way you came in. Don’t you have a costume party to attend to anyway?”
“Yea but why aren’t you there?”
“I think we both know why I refuse to go there.”
“You’re afraid,” he accused matter of fact like.
No I’m not afraid, I’m just not stupid.”
“How so?” he asked furrowing his brows.
“When someone invites you somewhere and lets you know ahead of time that you will be served as a certain someone’s main chorus I think it’s pretty obvious that you shouldn’t want to be there.”
“Oh so this is about what Stacie-Ann said to you?” Azalea felt as though that was a question she shouldn’t have to answer so she didn’t. “Do I look like I eat people? If I wanted to eat you I had a plethora of opportunities to do so. I mean if you want me to I will eat you and I don’t mean it in the way that Stacie-Ann led you to believe, I want to let the record show that I’m no cannibal.”
“And I just want to let the record show that I would NEVER let your mouth anywhere near me. Why are you here?”
“Look baby Mary I don’t have time for 100 questions If you really want to know then I suggest you come with me.” Azalea scrunched her face up in utter confusion.
“Who the flip is Mary? And I am not going with you anywhere.” At that moment he jumped down from the window sill and walked further into her room.
“If you come with me I will explain everything in the car.”
“Are you trying to bargain with me? We haven’t spoken more than 2 words to each other since the school year started and now you’re begging me to talk to you?”
“I would never beg I am simply asking you to come with me and in return I will answer any questions you may have.”
“I get some information first before I go anywhere with you.”
“Are you actually considering this?” Azalea heard a familiar voice say form in her doorway. She looked over and seen a very shocked Jaiden leaning against her door frame.
“Jaiden?”
“Yes Green?”
“What are you doing here?”
“Lea told me to stop by; she said that you were here alone and that she wanted me to check on you.”
“Well I’m fine.”
“Are you sure about that?” he asked eyeballing Llorel like he had a gun in his hand.
“I would like to speak to her alone if you don’t mind,” Llorel said.
“I think you’ve said enough,” Jaiden retaliated. Azalea looked between the two boys. Deciding that she needed those answers. No she didn’t just need them she wanted them more than anything. She’s been waiting for some type of answers and she doesn’t think she can wait anymore.
“I’ll be fine Jaiden,” she said looking over and resting her eyes on him as he stood so frigid in her door frame.
“I know you’ll be fine Green but that’s only if you come with me, he cannot be trusted,” he said holding his hand out toward her.
“Well I trust him,” she said standing in-between the two of them.
“Since when?” he asked turning his hateful glare toward her.
“Since he’s the only one who’s bothered to give me answers around here.”
“Green you don’t need any answers you’ve been doing fine on your own,” he said his voice and eyes softening a bit.
“I need the truth Jaiden, I have to keep an open mind and take my chances.”
“He could be lying to you Green,” he said his voice and eyes getting rough and accusing again.
“It wouldn’t be the first time that I’ve been lied to, I can handle myself I’ve done it before and I’m capable of doing it again.”
“But remember that was the problem, you didn’t want to do it by yourself anymore,” he said his face expression turning soft again. This time Azalea walked toward him and placed her hands on his cheeks. “This is my full time job Green,” he said sounding a bit broken.
“I know, I know but that’s only if I need help. If I don’t go then what?”
“You’ll be safe here with me.”
“But for how long?”
“That’s a good question baby Mary believe it or not I’m not the only one looking for you. The only difference between me and the other guys trying to get you is that once they find you they want to kill you.”
“The only difference between them and you is that you got to her first,” Jaiden stated. Azalea dropped her hands from Jaiden’s face and he held her by her waist so that she wouldn’t move.
“There are people out there that want her dead,” Llorel spoke firmly. Azalea turned—as much as Jaiden would allow her too—and narrowed her eyes at Llorel.
“What the flying monkey chunks do you mean by people want me dead?”
“Just that Baby Mary.”
“Who the flip is Baby Mary?” she quietly yelled at him.
“The person responsible for all of this bull shit!” Llorel yelled not bothering to make it quiet.
“Green?” Jaiden called to capture her attention, what little of her attention wasn’t freaking out. He grabbed her chin with his pointer and index finger so that her eyes were on him. “Don’t do it Green. I won’t let anyone hurt you.”
“That’s a promise you won’t be able to keep I’m afraid,” she said quietly.
“What are you saying Green? What is this some type of bull shit sacrifice!?” he said in a torn angry whisper.
“No it’s me saying that this is something I have to do so whatever happens, happens, I’m not scared.”
“But I am” he said his voice cracking with restricted emotions. Azalea rose to her tip toes and placed a soft kiss on his lips.
“Don’t be scared,” she whispered as she backed away from him.
“Don’t kiss me then walk away from me, at least give me something I’ll be able to remember,” he said pulling her back toward him and placing a hard kiss on her lips, Azalea could feel her lips push against her teeth, she could feel his tongue on her lips asking for entrance so she gave it to him.
“We don’t have time for this kick your boyfriend out and let’s go!” Llorel demanded causing Jaiden to pull away from her.
“She’s not my girlfriend if she was she wouldn’t be leaving me like this. I couldn’t bear to carry such a title not knowing whether or not she’d come back to me in one piece.”
“Fine! She’s not your girlfriend can we go now?!” Azalea could hear the anger in Llorel’s voice. Why is he so mad did I not say I would go with him? Azalea turned her back on Jaiden and walked toward Llorel.
“Don’t forget you owe me answers.”
“Green don’t do this,” Jaiden pleaded one more time.
“It’s too late Jaiden, either I stay here and be killed or go with him and know what I’m being killed for.”
/> “Who’s to say he won’t kill you before you even find out?” he asked in a harsh tone.
“I’m to say I won’t kill her before she even finds her answers, but I have no reason not to kill you!” Llorel’s said with a harsh tone 7 notches harsher than Jaiden’s. ”Now you leave us mortal and not remember a thing!” Once the words were spoken Jaiden turned around and left. He really left.
“What did you do?” Azalea asked not entirely sure why Jaiden left without another word to be spoken. Llorel let out a heavy sigh
“You have a lot to learn Baby Mary.” “My name is not Baby Mary.”
“It’s Azalea!” she said getting really tired of hearing him call her that.
“Calm down I know what you’re name is but it’s just that you act so much like Mary.”
“Seeing as though I don’t know who that is I’m not taking that as a compliment.”
“Good, don’t,” he said walking over toward the seating area of her room. “You got about ten minutes to get dressed and then we have to go before anymore others come.” Azalea looked down at her boy shorts and cami and quickly turned toward the bathroom to change out of them. She put on some black denims and a blazer over her red cami. She ran a brush through her hair and put it into a ponytail, a couple of curls escaped the ponytail; her hair hated being tamed.
Azalea didn’t quite know why she even bothered with makeup when she doubted anyone would even care. Azalea stepped out of the bathroom and slipped on some boots. She walked over to fix up her bed and ended up stubbing her toe on the foot bar. She bit back the curse word that was forming on her tongue, and automatically swallowed the blood that started to run down her tongue. It was like a smooth warm blanket as it ran down her throat.
“You really—”
“Yea, yea, yea I get it I really need to stop doing that,” she interrupted.
“Do you get Baby Mary because I don’t think you do,” he said between clenched teeth.
“Well then enlighten me what is it exactly that I am supposed to get?” she said as she walked over to stand right in front of him. He stood and literally floated over quickly toward the window sill.
“What the finger licking cheese balls was that?!”
“What’s with the colorful vocabulary?” he asked a bit amused.
“I would get in trouble for accidently swearing around Rose or Dave or any of the other children so that was my way of swearing without actually swearing. I guess it kind of became a hard habit to knock.”
“Yea I heard about you and your mouth and how it always managed to get you in trouble.” Azalea rolled her eyes at the true accusation.
“OK so are we going to play cat and dog or are you more interested in a game of word play?” she asked sarcastically.
“What’s cat and dog?” Azalea looked at him for a minute; like she really looked at him this time.
“Are you serious? It’s a game that all of the kids liked to play in school when we were like 5.”
“Can’t say I’ve ever heard of it.”
“You are talking a bit longer than I would have preferred, and you still haven’t explained yourself to me,” she said getting tired of his stalling games.
“I don’t know about you but this isn’t story time. I can’t just come out and say that—your mother tried to fulfill a prophecy and you’re the results and somehow within it all of this we’re imprinted so that hopefully that would sway your judgment somehow and if not then a war may breakout—without you asking questions and I wouldn’t expect you to understand any of it unless those sais questions were answered,” he said in a rush of words. Azalea believed that she had just lost every grip of her sanity that she had managed to hang on to at this point.
“What sane person wouldn’t have questions?” was the only thing she could possibly manage to get out of her mouth. Her brain was officially working overtime to process everything Llorel had just said. This cannot be happening. “Is this like an April fool’s day prank or something?”
“On Halloween?” he asked in a tone that said ‘are you serious?’
“Don’t look at me like that! If the crap that had just left your flippin mouth is true then why is April fools on Halloween day so dang hard to believe at this point?”
Before Llorel could even respond, Azalea heard a car screech up the road, and then the sound of car doors being slammed, and the doors in her house being flung open. “Oh snap!” she said standing by the window sill near Llorel.
