TWINED
Page 19
I guess I was underestimating how much stress Albert was carrying around with him. I mean he really let himself go last night, drinking almost a whole bottle of that foreign wine by himself. Granted we had a blast, I mean last night was a great time. It was nice to see him let his hair down, so to speak. But I really felt bad for the guy. He always seemed so collected, so headstrong. He has an air of confidence that just draws you to him, whether you want to or not. But underneath he was emotionally and physically exhausted, not to mention lonely, living in a house that used to belong to his parents who unfortunately passed away years ago.
He may be a Twined, he may be supernatural, but he felt things just like any human. I think the whole incident with Lovelock really opened my eyes to that.
I just sat there next to him as I saw my sheets rise with every breath he took. I began to realize that I was wrong. I was wrong about him from the very beginning. I thought at first he just wanted a quick ticket to power. I thought he wanted the perks of a Joined Twined and I was just the witless human to give it to him. Then I began to believe in him. I began to believe that he had my back no matter what. He’s saved my life quite a few times, hell I even saved his once. But more than anything I knew he didn’t want to use me and leave. Everything he’s done, he’s done for me.
I was lucky. If it weren’t for him, for Gray, Jaspit, Vikki, Mayuki and Kisuke, Jessica would have me right now. I was a walking target, putting them all in danger. I couldn’t imagine losing anyone, especially Albert. Just thinking of Harris… no, I can’t do it. I can’t even imagine Albert dying. Dying because of me.
Was it our synchronization that was making me so attached to him? Was this the way things were supposed to work, the way I was supposed to feel? I contemplated this as I traced the outline of his cheekbones. My fascination with him wasn’t just skin deep. I’d never tell him about my growing affection for him, inside and out. I mean sure we argue, but even then I knew we understood each other. Maybe that’s the Twined ideal, perfect and seamless understanding, even in disagreement.
That’s what I wanted our Joining to be like. Perfect symbiotic unity.
But that kind of thinking was too deep for a hangover morning. So with that thought in mind I bent down and rested my forehead against his, pulling my hair behind my neck.
And I whispered, “I’ll find a way to fix this. I promise.”
I patted him on the chest, made my way downstairs and fell asleep on our ugly blue couch and slept like a newborn baby.
****
For once I didn’t have a horrible dream. What a shock. But I was woken up by the sound of my doorbell ringing nonstop. I rubbed my eyes but no afternoon sun shined in through the windows. I must have slept all the way into the night. A look at the digital clock on the table across from me showed it was twelve midnight on the dot.
I got up and walked over to the door. I was half asleep and I didn’t even think to check before answering it. With everything going on nowadays I really should be more careful. There could be anyone on the other side.
I felt my skin begin to flood with goose bumps. I don’t know why, but it was like something was telling me not to open this door. But I kept moving anyway. I kept walking towards it. And when my hand reached the knob to open it I felt a burning sensation. As if my entire arm was on fire.
The door opened by my will. And what I saw on the other side haunted me like nothing ever has before.
I saw a little girl at my door. She was smiling at me, a single tooth missing. An air of innocence wrapped around her and I smelled the aroma of cotton candy flood my entire house. She had tight little pigtails that fell neatly behind her with the cutest pink bows. Her lovely clothing consisted off a cute little sweater donned with tiny cartoon kitties and a skirt that fell to her knees. And as I looked at this girl, this simple girl, this innocent girl, she looked back at me with a knowing gaze.
And in her hand she held a bear. Everything about that bear I could picture perfectly. Before I even looked it over completely, somehow I knew that it was missing an eye. That it had stitches on its right ear. That it was given that blue shirt to wear on a very special day.
They were me. That girl was me, the bear was Dr. Snuggles. And as she cocked her head at me, the words she spoke next cut straight into my heart.
“Hello Avalin. Are you ready to die?”
HOPE YOU ENJOYED THE BOOK!
TWINED: PART 2 WILL BE AVAILABLE SOMETIME LATE 2012!
LOOK FOR THESE OTHER NOVELS
BY A.L. COLLINS!
Bastion: Prequel to War- A magical action adventure. (AVAILABLE NOW)
Scarlett’s- A feel good motivational novel. (AVAILABLE NOW)
Scarlett’s: Part 2- The continuation of Scarlett’s. (TO BE RELEASED JULY 2012)
Utopius- A dark magical story that will feature branching storylines. (TO BE RELEASED LATE OCTOBER 2012)
Twined: Part 2- The continuation of Twined. (TO BE RELEASED LATE JUNE 2012)
Dead No More- A zombie survival horror. (TO BE RELEASED LATE 2012)
Bastion: Rise of Shadows- The second installment of the Bastion series. (TO BE RELEASED EARLY 2013)
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