by Slick, Tabi
“That’s what they all say,” I laughed.
Duran stood up straight and leaned in closer.
“Seriously, I’m not,” he said.
I covered my nose as I got a whiff of nacho cheese and popcorn, but no alcohol.
“So, you’re faking?” I gasped, “Why?”
“No offense, man, but that’s a little lame,” Kain added.
“It was a contest,” he replied, “some of the guys bet a hundred bucks on who could get wasted first. But I don’t want a repeat of the last time I fell for that bet. I was really drunk.”
I shook my head as I took a sip of my drink.
“So, you’re playing fake drunk for a hundred bucks?” Kain asked.
“Pretty much,” Duran replied.
“Okay,” Kain shrugged, “good for you, man.”
“Cheater,” I laughed.
“Hey, I’m winning, aren’t I?" He shrugged.
I decided to go and find Kia and made my way back towards the entrance. I scanned the room with no luck and so I went to search the rest of the house. I crossed the living room and went upstairs. There were a few doors and one of them was opened. I entered the room and found a group playing video games.
“Hey, Iz,” Laurent called.
“Hey, what’s up,” I replied.
“Wanna play?" He asked.
“No thanks,” I said, “have you seen Kia?”
“Nah,” he answered, turning back to the screen.
I left and went back downstairs. It was like she had just disappeared. Then I found the reason I couldn’t find her. There was a door off to the side that was halfway closed and I decided to see if she was there. I opened the door and there she was, wrapped around a tall boy with curly hair that I recognized as Amadeus. He seemed to be everywhere these days.
A flood of rage that I knew I wouldn’t be able to stop surged up my spine and burned my skull. But this time the rage did not paralyze me. This time I sprung forward with a power I had never felt before, tearing Amadeus from her as I threw him across the room.
“What the hell?” Kia shrieked, “Izzy!”
“Funny,” I spat “that’s what I was going to say.”
I spun around and glared at Amadeus, who was picking himself up off the floor. He looked up at me and his glaring eyes pierced me. I grabbed my skull, but my hands burned me. I looked down to find my hands burning red. What was happening to me? My hands were on fire!
“What’s going on in here?" A familiar voice asked.
Duran had come in to find Amadeus attempting to put a broken lamp back together. Lee and Kain were not far behind as well as a couple other curious Georges who had heard the commotion.
“Nothing,” Amadeus said, “I fell.”
I tried to even out my breathing as I hid my hands behind my back.
“Yep,” Kia agreed, “come on Izzy, let’s go dance!”
Her abnormally high voice was hardly nonchalant and matched her pleading eyes as she linked my arm and led me out of the room. She smiled at Kain, flirtatiously and I felt my jaw tighten in disgust.
“What the hell was that?” I shouted.
“I’m sorry, okay?” Kia sighed.
“Oh, right, you’re sorry,” I laughed, sarcastically, “you’re practically on a date with my brother and that’s all you got?”
“We’re not on a date,” Kia replied, defensively, “oh and how did you throw Amadeus all the way across the room like that? I’ve seen him bench press like two hundred, or whatever.”
“No changing the subject,” I scoffed, "ya know, I thought you were cool. Not to mention a decent person, but this?!?”
“Seriously, Iz,” she said, “you have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Then explain it to me," I barked.
“Well,” she began, “believe me or not, I was looking for the bathroom and Amadeus jumped me.”
“Wow,” I laughed, “can’t believe you’d make up such a pathetic lie.”
“I knew you wouldn’t believe me,” she said, crossing her arms.
“You’re right,” I agreed, “and I don’t think anyone could believe that.”
“But it’s the truth,” she said, “not to mention Kain and I aren’t even dating so I really don’t understand why you’re so upset.”
“Fine,” I said, “tell yourself whatever you want.”
I turned on my heel and left. I grabbed the nearest beverage and stormed through the front door for some fresh air. It was dark outside, but somehow I made it to the dock. I took off my shoes and sat down, letting my feet soak in the water.
Something weird was happening. I didn’t usually get that upset over things like this, not to mention I had never thrown anyone across an entire room before in my life.
I looked down to see what drink I had gotten. Beer. Perfect. I took a sip from the bottle, hoping I could drown the anger.
“Can I join you?” Lee asked, standing next to me on the dock.
“Sure,” I said.
He sat down on the dock, his arm curling over my shoulders.
“It’s nice out, huh?" He asked.
I nodded in agreement, taking another sip.
Without warning, he took the bottle out of my hands and set it on the other side of us. I looked up and he was looking at me very seriously.
“What?” I asked.
“You shouldn’t drink when you’re upset," he said.
I turned my attention back down to my hands. He was right. I wasn’t acting like myself. I mean, the part of myself that I actually liked. I was falling into the introverted, angry part of myself that I despised.
Lee’s hand took one of mine as he continued to study my pensive expression.
“You and Kain are a lot alike,” he commented.
“What makes you say that?” I asked, looking up.
“I mean, you’re very different,” he added, “but you seem to react to situations very similarly.”
I had nothing to say to that. To me, Kain and I were nothing alike. Despite our looks, he was usually the loner and I was usually the outgoing one. Sure, I had my introverted moments. But I tried to hide them from everyone else because I didn’t like how it made me look. Kain seemed to always be more comfortable with being different.
“We are related,” I said, shrugging it off.
“Yeah,” he chuckled.
I turned back to the water and felt a painful spasm. I let go of his hand and pressed my fingertips to my temples. I blinked back the blinding tears that stung my eyes, but as I did so a dark haze seemed to intrude upon my vision.
“Are you okay?" He asked.
I couldn’t reply. I opened my mouth, but no words came.
“Seriously,” I heard Lee say, “Izzy? Izara?”
I felt strong arms lifting me from the dock and carry me away from the darkness. I heard hushed murmurs and startled gasps as we entered the house. I felt myself being lowered onto a soft mattress.
“She’s okay, guys,” Lee’s voice announced, “she passed out. Probably drank too much. She just needs to sleep it off.”
I heard a door close and the next moment my whole body started burning into flames. I opened my eyes, to see if I was actually on fire, but my body looked normal. I closed my eyes again. I had to be dreaming, I told myself. But the pain felt so real!
My back arched as yet another wave of pain surged through my body. I let out a bloodcurdling howl as something pierced through both of my shoulder blades. I wondered why no one burst through the door to see what was happening. But then I must have still been dreaming.
I felt the fire settle into the palms of my hands and I opened my eyes. At first, everything I looked at was dark red, but as a blinked my vision started to clear up. I looked over to find Lee in a deep sleep. Why couldn’t he hear me?
I felt my body roll over the side of the bed. I should have hit the ground, but instead I was floating, my nose inches from the floor. I let out another silent scream as something ripped through my skin, sending sh
ivers through my entire body.
Once my body stopped trembling, I picked myself up. It felt strange. My feet seemed to fall much lighter on the ground than normal. My head also felt a bit fuzzy. I turned and froze when I caught myself in the reflection of a full-length mirror. I glided forward to get a closer look. My eyelids had sunken into my skull and my eyes were red! I reached up to touch my pallid skin only to gawk at my hands. My fingernails had been replaced with dark, black claws.
“I’m a monster,” I hissed.
My eyes flashed up to meet my reflection once again and soon my clawed hands were the least of my worries. Two black, very large things were moving ever so slightly, blocking the reflection of the rest of the room. I looked over my shoulder to find huge, black-feathered, wings folded inwards. Probably so that they didn’t knock anything over.
“What the⎼?” I gasped, looking back at my reflection.
I had wings! How could this happen?
Suddenly, I felt something strange. Nothing had touched me, but I felt a pull in my chest. It felt like another heartbeat. I glided towards the window, about to open it when the whole wall disappeared. I looked back to see Lee on the bed, still sound asleep. Then I stepped through the space into the night.
I looked up at the full moon and felt something pulsing through my veins. Something was calling me.
“You feel it, too,” a voice came from behind me.
I spun around to find Kain. He looked just like me with his sunken, red eyes, right down to the claws and wings.
“Is that your pulse?” I asked, as the other beat in my heart got more pronounced.
“Yes,” he replied.
“What’s that pull?” I asked.
“I don’t know,” he admitted, then paused, “let’s find out.”
“What?” I asked, gawking as he jumped into the air, his wings spreading to their fullest, "How’d you do that?”
“Just jump,” he replied.
I looked down at my feet. I had been standing on my tiptoes the entire time without even noticing. I jumped up and let out a gasp as I soared higher and higher into the air.
“That’s incredible!” I breathed.
“I know,” he laughed, “I can’t get used to it.”
“You’ve done this before?” I asked.
“No,” he admitted, “but I’m sure this won’t be the last.”
I laughed, looking down at the land below us. I could see everything. Like I was wearing night vision goggles. I could hear all the others breathing deeply below in the cabin, all asleep. It was the strangest feeling ever.
“Come on, let’s go," Kain said, soaring away from the cabin.
“Where?” I asked.
“Don’t you feel that pull?" He asked.
“Besides your pulse?” I asked.
“Yeah,” he said, “it’s like the blood inside my veins are surging and pulling me.”
“I do, actually,” I replied.
We flew over the Arbuckle lake, towards Davis and Sulphur. Flying seemed so easy, as natural as breathing. We both moved through the air like we’d been doing this our whole life. I smiled as I felt the wind gliding over my wings. It was a new kind of freedom that I couldn’t explain.
We passed Davis in record time and were soon in Oklahoma City, making nearly a two hour trip in five minutes. It was definitely a lot faster than driving. We dodged the lights as we passed over the city’s bricktown and baseball stadium. I already felt Kain’s decision before he spoke it.
“Let’s⎼”
“Got it,” I replied, preparing to land.
We soared closer to the ground and landed gracefully onto the asphalt. Luckily it was a darkened alley so we were protected from the few night owls that were lurking about.
Suddenly, a drunken biker stumbled out from a side door, probably the back entrance to a bar. I grimaced as he vomited onto the street. As he did so, he caught a glimpse of our shadows and stumbled backwards, looking up into our darkened eyes.
“What’s goin’ on?" He slurred.
I glanced at Kain and he nodded. I suddenly stretched out my hand, my fingers tensing as flames sparked and soon my palm was on fire. I threw the cluster of fire towards the drunk, who immediately became enveloped by scorching flames. We glided out from the alley and down the dark street, letting the pull take over us. We soon came upon a brick house. As we got closer, the pull became so strong that I couldn’t take it anymore. We soared to the window and flew right through the wall, into a master bedroom. A woman was fast asleep, completely oblivious to our presence. I sniffed the air, smelling the tang of her blood rushing through her veins.
“It’s not hers," I hissed.
“I know,” Kain replied.
Come. I heard him think as his heartbeat tugged on my own pulling me to leave the room.
We soared down the stairs, barely touching the steps, and soon we were on the first floor. We could smell him, the one who pulled us forward and we would find him. Kain opened a bedroom door and as he did so, the doorknob bent into the formation of his hand.
What was that? I thought.
I flashed Kain a warning look.
“I don’t know,” he said aloud, answering my thought as he let go of the crushed knob.
We glided passed the door and out the backdoor onto a patio. There stood a man in a bathrobe, blowing smoke from a cigar into the night.
I gasped, smelling him immediately. It was what we needed. I didn’t know for what, but it was what had been pulling us here.
Do the honors, I nodded at Kain.
He let out an earsplitting growl, surprising the man as he spun around. When he saw us his face twisted into a look of incredulous fear. I sneered, the anger in my body surging. Kain flew across the patio table, knocking the man to the ground and pressing his claws into his neck. Suddenly, a sharp knife appeared in his hand and he brought it towards the man. I felt something strange fly into my hand and looked down to find two corked vials. I had no idea how they had appeared, but somehow I knew what to do.
Soon Kain had the man dangling in the air with one hand around his neck.
The vial, he thought.
I immediately threw a vial to him.
Don’t I get to do anything? I asked, without having to form the words.
Sure, he laughed.
I sprang forward, digging my hand into the man’s heart. I stared into the man’s frozen eyes and almost felt pity.
“Izara,” Kain’s voice snarled.
Almost done, I thought.
Kain’s dark growl seemed to chuckle softly. I pulled the heart and took what was needed. We left the man sprawled on the patio, both vials filled.
‡‡‡
“Izzy,” a distant voice called, as a warm hand touched my shoulder.
I grimaced at the sudden movement.
“Wake up, sleepyhead," the voice said again, this time closer.
I slowly opened my eyes, staring into dark brown eyes.
“Hey,” Lee said, yawning loudly.
“Hey,” I whispered.
My voice was completely hoarse.
“Sleep okay?" He asked.
“I slept,” I said, peeling myself from the bed and swinging my legs over the side.
“You were a little drunk last night,” he warned, “your head’s probably gonna hurt a bit.”
“You have no idea,” I said, pressing my fingertips to my temple, “why’d you let me drink so much?”
“Don’t try and pin this on me!" He laughed, raising his hands defensively.
I laughed as I slowly stood up, grabbing my overnight bag. I even forgot to change into my pj’s. I left to find the bathroom, catching glimpses of others who were either starting to get up or still dead asleep. My back was seriously aching!
“Izzy,” Kia’s voice whispered.
“What do you want,” I asked, not really as a question.
“Izzy,” she repeated, grabbing my arm, “come on, can you just listen to me?”
&
nbsp; “Kia,” I protested, “I get it. It doesn’t really matter anyway. You’re free to do whatever you want.”
“That’s it?" She asked.
“Yeah, that’s it,” I replied, "just don’t⎼don’t do anything to hurt my brother, okay?”
“Okay,” she agreed.
“Because I swear⎼” I continued.
“Iz, I get it, I won’t hurt him, ” she said, “I wouldn’t even think of it. I just want things to be cool between us.”
“We’re cool,” I said.
“Are you sure?" She asked.
“Yeah,” I assured, “I mean, Kain will know and make the right decision. Whatever that may be.”
“Okay,” Kia nodded, “fair enough.”
“Now I really have to change,” I said.
“Sure,” Kia smiled, letting out a sigh of relief, “I’ll catch up with you later.”
“Okay,” I replied, heading into the bathroom.
I shut the door and took a deep breath before looking in the mirror. I stared at my reflection and laughed at how messed up I looked. I decided to take a quick shower. I let the hot water wash down my body, washing away the ache in my back. I stepped out of the shower and quickly pulled on the yoga pants I’d brought. Out of the corner of my eye I saw something purple flash in the mirror as I was reaching for my tank top. I straightened and craned my neck over my shoulder. I just barely saw something dark on my back and I quickly turned to get a better view in the mirror.
“Oh my god!” I whispered in shock.
Large, purple bruises were forming under both of my shoulder blades. I stretched my fingertips and pressed down. I gasped as a spasm of pain ripped through my spine. How in the world did that happen? I quickly slipped the white tank on and grabbed the jacket I had brought. I twisted my hair into a bun and ran out as fast as I could. I hardly saw where I was going and smacked right into Lee.
“Hey, where’s the fire?" He laughed at his bad joke.
“Where’s Kain?” I asked.
“I think I saw him in the kitchen,” he said, pointing in the general direction, “want breakfast?”
“Thanks,” I said, spinning on my heel as I rushed down the hall.
I stopped in my tracks as I scanned the kitchen. Few were even awake and some had even left already. I didn’t see Kain anywhere. Maybe I was overreacting. I mean, I could’ve gotten those bruises anywhere. I had been drinking and I remember passing out. Those were the more logical ways I could’ve gotten those bruises…in the exact location I had dreamt about…without remembering how…right?