by Piper Hannah
“Whaaaaaat?” Emma asked. She was clearly annoyed, and she sat straight in her seat, looking forward.
My heart pounded a crazy beat. Oh my God. Oh my God. I almost ran her over. A ghost? Did I just see a ghost? I squinted and peered out into the darkness, looking for the lady in white. I bit my lower lip hard. I was suddenly relieved that I wasn’t driving alone. Even a drunk little sister was enough to comfort me at a time like this.
“Did you see that?” I asked Emma.
“See what?” Oddly, I felt that we already had this conversation once when we almost got into a car accident a couple of months ago. As I recall, the end result of that conversation was not good.
So, I lied… again. “There was a coyote crossing the road,” I said.
“Where? Where? I wanna see?” Emma said as she leaned forward and looked over the dashboard, looking for my imaginary coyote. “What did it look like?” she asked.
Since I’ve never really seen a coyote, I really couldn’t say. “Maybe it was just a dog,” I said. Yeah. That sounds about right… except that it was so wrong.
I’m pretty sure I just saw a ghost.
CHAPTER 18
Fifteen minutes later, we finally made it home in one piece with no ghosts in front of us, behind us, or with us. Thank goodness. Unfortunately for Emma, Mom and Dad were waiting for her when we got back. My plan to sneak her in didn’t quite work out because Dad opened the front door as I pulled up into the driveway.
After Emma was lectured, my parents conveniently followed her all the way up the stairs, and I snuck out the back door.
I saw Luke immediately, and I walked towards him. His wings were retracted and his back was facing me. He was talking to someone - a girl. I knew she was there, but I couldn’t quite see her completely because Luke was standing in front of her, and he was blocking my view. It was also quite dark.
“Not in a million years for what you did.” I heard Luke say to the girl.
The girl laughed. “That is not a no. So there is still hope for me, after all.” The girl’s voice was light and airy. Angelic. She was one of them, then.
They were so caught up with their conversation that they didn’t hear me walking towards them. I knew they had really good hearing, so it was very annoying. Who was she, and how was she able to dull my Guardian’s super hearing skills?
My throat started to rumble. Grrrr. I didn’t let that out. What kind of a girl growls, right? Instead, I cleared my throat as I walked closer to them. Trust me. It was much better than a growl or yelling ‘ta-da.’ Luke looked over his shoulder and turned around to face me. I stopped a good three feet away from him. I now regretted coming out of the house. I should have peeked out the window first.
The girl stepped around Luke to see what caught his attention, and she stood next to him. Even in the dark, I immediately knew she was an angel. I couldn’t quite see her clearly, but I’ll bet that she had purple eyes, too. She looked so ethereal in her white dress that I can easily imagine a halo sitting on top of her blonde head, and she was very tall. Luke was several inches over six feet, that’s for sure, but this angel was only a few inches shorter than him… and she was so beautiful. Hello, Ms. Universe – angel version.
In my short experience with angels, it seemed that beauty was something they all had in common; whoever said that beauty was in the eyes of the beholder could not have been talking about them.
However, she was also the girl I saw earlier - the one I almost ran over - the girl in white. She looked at me with curiosity. Her lips had a hint of a smile. She glanced at Luke, who was also looking at me, and the smile quickly left her face.
“She can see us,” she said to him, her eyes widening. She was disturbed by me being here, and it looked like she was about to get angry. Bring… it… on…
Luke didn’t say anything, and she looked at me again. Her eyes narrowed into tiny slits, and she glared at me. There was no mistaking it. She gave me the look - the stay-away-from-my-boyfriend-or-I’ll-kick-your-ass look. I am quite familiar with the look. I have been a recipient of the look a few times from a couple of girls in school. With this blonde, however, the look was more intense, more passionate, and probably more honest. Without saying a word, she was telling me to die.
She wanted me to stay away from her boyfriend. I get it… but what if I didn’t want to stay away? Let’s say I didn’t pick up on her non-verbal cues. Would she actually go the extra step of hurting me? Or killing me? The way she was looking at me says that she would do exactly that, and I became very afraid. Unlike the girls in my high school, I had a reason to fear from this girl because I wasn’t ready to die.
I couldn’t stop my sudden disappointment. Somehow, I already thought that Luke was mine, but obviously, they meant something to each other. I was just about to turn around to retreat back into my home when Luke spoke.
“Adra was just leaving,” he said. There was a warning in his tone, and his voice was cold. He was looking at me, but his words were directed to Blondie. Blondie. That’s a good one. I think from here on out, I shall call her Blondie… just in my head, though. She’s still kind of scary.
“Greetings,” Blondie said, giving me a very fake smile with flashing teeth and everything. In a way, she reminded me of Colin’s ex-girlfriend, Delia, who smiled at me the same exact way. Maybe she was Delia’s Guardian.
Despite the fakeness of it all, I fell for it. I took two steps in her direction. Luke immediately stepped in front of me, blocking me from her. I went on my tiptoes and peeked over Luke’s right shoulder. I saw Blondie’s upper lip curl, and she growled. Like love, fear was also a very difficult emotion to control. Fear, however, had the ability to make my whole body shake uncontrollably. I moved closer towards Luke out of fear. He was my Guardian, after all, and despite his obvious relationship with Blondie, he would protect me. That much I was certain.
Then, Blondie came at me, her claw slashing and reaching for my face. (Okay… Maybe I exaggerated a bit when I said she had a ‘claw.’ Maybe she had a perfectly manicured and beautiful hand. I don’t know… but she was reaching for my face, and it was dark, so ‘claw’ it is.)
Even though she came at me with lightning speed, Luke was faster. He caught her arm as I stumbled backwards. Since gravity was always on my side, I fell, hitting my left palm on a small rock. Lucky me. I felt my blood wet my hand, and I quickly wiped it on my shirt. I wasn’t going to give Blondie the satisfaction of seeing me hurt. I was strong, and I will not cry because of this. I tried not to wince as I stood up.
Blondie quickly turned away, and I saw her wings. Black! Even in the darkness, I was positive that her wings were black. I watched her take three quick steps away from us. With a graceful leap, her black wings snapped open, and she flew, disappearing into the night.
Luke turned around and faced me.
“Who was the psycho?” I asked, trying to sound casual. “Ex-girlfriend?” I kind of answered my own question, but whatever. My heart was hurt, and my hand was bleeding.
“Adra,” he answered, but that wasn’t what I wanted to know. I already knew what her name was. I wanted to know who she was… to him. I raised an eyebrow.
He winced. “That was… a very long time ago,” he said. He sighed as he lifted my left hand, and covered it with his own. I felt a spark, as my palm glowed under his. After a few seconds, my palm was healed. It didn’t even leave a scar.
I knew what he meant. It meant that I was right all along, about her being his psycho ex-girlfriend. I pulled my hand away and shook it lightly wiggling my fingers. I wrapped my arms around me. I am not doing well. That psycho can totally hurt me, and now, I definitely know the reason why.
“Why was she in the middle of the street? Was she trying to kill herself?” Her being an immortal and all, there probably wouldn’t have been any damage… well, to her. I knew they were strong. It would have been like hitting a brick wall. However, there would have been damage to me and Emma.
“Was she trying to k
ill me?” I asked in an unusually high pitched voice.
Luke shook his head. “She was only trying to get my attention,” he said. “She does that sometimes.”
“Her wings are black,” I said, but of course, Luke already knew that. It wasn’t a very good look on her, and it kind of clashed with her whole ethereal look. Well, that’s just too bad.
“She is one of them,” Luke said.
And by ‘them,’ he meant demon. (See here. I already knew him so well that I already understood his lingo.)
“She was an angel years ago,” Luke added.
I was also really good at reading his facial cues, and Luke was definitely sad about that. He still cared about her, and this was not okay with me. I was jealous. I mean, seriously, how could I compete with the ethereal blonde who happened to have wings? Although, maybe having black wings were considered ugly to a Guardian.
“What if she comes after me?” I asked.
“Angels and demons - we can live forever, but there is a certain order to things,” Luke explained. “When an angel takes the life of a human, he becomes a demon. When a demon takes the life of another human, the demon dies. It’s the balance of the world to keep humans safe from us. We only get two chances, and then, we die. Otherwise, we probably would have killed all of the humans a long time ago. Humans would be extinct by now if we were allowed to kill more than twice.”
“That’s not true,” I said. “I’m sure that angels have our best interests at heart. Angels are the good guys.” I’m sure what I just said was written somewhere - like the Bible or something.
“Unfortunately, humans have more to fear from angels than demons. Demons are scared of death, just like humans. None of us know what happens to a demon’s spirit when a demon dies. Some say there is… nothing there for them,” Luke said. “Regardless, I will protect you from Adra.”
I stopped asking questions about Blondie. I didn’t want him thinking about her anymore, but I had to know.
“Have there been a lot of girls in your life?” I asked.
He shook his head. “Paige,” he said as his hands grasped my shoulders. I felt myself spontaneously holding my breath and biting my lower lip. “There was Adra.”
My heart sank. Those were not the words I wanted to hear, but then I saw it in his eyes. He was silent, but he wanted to tell me something else.
I waited. I was hopeful that there was some good news coming my way. If there was Adra, then why was he looking at me as if he wanted to be with me?
“And then there was you,” he said softly.
I savored his words. And then there was me… That’s right, folks… there was me.
Gently, Luke pulled me against him as he bent his head down towards me. He closed his eyes just before I closed mine, and then my angel kissed me.
And his kiss… it left them all behind. Every single thought I had was gone, every problem was forgotten. Luke gripped my shoulders tighter, and my arms wrapped around his waist automatically. Luke’s hands drifted upwards slowly until he was clutching my face as he kissed me. I think that we might have been floating, and I think there might have been music playing in the background.
Luke pulled away slowly, and when I opened my eyes, he was staring down at me. The expression on his face was thoughtful as if he knew that kissing me was wrong. I already knew it was wrong, especially if a certain female demon was ready to kill me for it, and Adra could be lurking in the dark even now.
Kissing Luke was not a smart thing for me to do, but then whoever said that I was smart?
CHAPTER 19
Instead of dozing off in my Algebra Two class, I thought about my situation with Luke and Adra very carefully. This is what I came up with. I’m a cheater. I mean, it seemed like Luke and Adra were involved in some way, and I’m like the other woman. Do you know what I mean?
My teacher, Mr. Lee, wrote something on the board. Luke was standing in the back of the class, and I forced myself not to glance at him too often. Usually, Luke waited for me outside of class, but since Adra showed up in our lives, he had been following me around almost everywhere. His new mission was to guard me from Blondie.
He was very distracting, especially when he would say something interesting, and I have to force myself not to respond. I always pretend not to see him or hear him, of course. I kind of had to. I mean high school is tough enough when people think you’re normal. If anyone saw me talking to myself, I would be voted ‘Most Likely to Be a Bag Lady.’ Who wants that kind of label, right?
Do you ever see people in the street, walking alone, but they seem to be having an actual conversation, even laughing? Then, you feel sorry for them when you realize that they are crazy, and you want to give them money because you realize that they need help. Ever think that maybe they are talking to someone, someone real, and someone only they could see? In another twenty years, I could be one of them. Hold on. Wait a minute. I think I already am one of them.
“Ms. Harper?” I heard Mr. Lee call my name, jerking me back to reality. My teacher was looking at me. Crap! Why does this always happen when I’m not paying attention?
“Can you solve the problem on the board?” Mr. Lee asked.
No, not really… but I got up slowly and walked to the whiteboard in front of the class, anyway. Mr. Lee handed me his marker, and I looked at the problem with dread.
No idea. I had absolutely no clue. Nada.
From behind me, I heard Luke’s voice as he helped me through the problem. My fingers followed his instructions as I solved the equation on the board.
Mr. Lee nodded, and while still dazed and confused, I walked back to my seat.
“Good work,” he said as he wrote another problem on the board and called another student to solve the next problem.
Great. Just great. Now my angel is helping me cheat.
I am a cheater.
***
I am not a cheater.
As Luke explained it to me after school, his relationship with Adra was definitely over. I believed him. I mean, he wouldn’t lie to me, right? He’s an angel, for crying out loud. If I couldn’t trust an angel, then, who can I trust?
He said that their bond had been severed over three hundred thousand years ago. That’s a really long time to be over. I must remember, however, that time is a bit different for angels because they can live up to eternity. If you still have problems grasping this idea, you can think of it this way. Angels calculate human years like humans calculate a dog’s life in ‘dog years.’ They just live longer than we do.
Luke has lived for over four hundred thousand years, and he has been single for the last three hundred thousand. So, Adra should just get over him by now because they are ancient history – like more ancient than Rome. They split up over three hundred thousand years ago, and this makes me happy. Okay, not happy, just less sad. She is like a really old stalker, and I am definitely not a cheater. In my world, this is how I see it: if a pet bunny is to be boiled, I wouldn’t be the one boiling the bunny. Do you know what I mean?
I do have a pet dog, though, and Adra might mistake her for a bunny because Buffy’s ears are kind of floppy. I need to talk to Luke about this. I need to make sure that Adra stays away from my dog. No one messes with my dog.
CHAPTER 20
“Our sixth year anniversary is coming up in a week,” Raine said during our lunch break. She counted her dating years with Tommy like married couples counted the years they’ve been married. It was cute in a sickening vomit kind of way. They were so in love, and they were two months away from getting engaged. Seriously. How cool is it to be her right now?
I sat on the bench next to her, sitting underneath the sun, and I placed my messenger bag on the floor. “Where’s Tommy?” I asked.
“Getting our food from the cafeteria. I told him to get yours, too.”
“What are we having?”
“Don’t know. Do you want me to call him and ask?”
I shook my head. “It doesn’t matter.” It was a
Wednesday, so we were probably having pizza.
“Tommy’s making reservations at a fancy place for our anniversary next week. I don’t know where though,” Raine said.
“When you two get married, will you be celebrating the day you got together, or the day you get married?” I asked.
Raine thought about it for a second. “Probably both,” she answered. “Why not?”
Why not? There was absolutely no reason why not. Happy couples – real couples, that is - probably celebrate their relationships all of the time.
“Do you want to go with us to Disneyland on Sunday?” I asked.
“And intrude on the annual Harper Disneyland family tradition? No thanks.”
I smiled. Yes. We Harpers have our many family traditions, and hitting Disneyland before Spring Break was one of them. Maybe the parents didn’t realize that Emma and I weren’t so little anymore, but then, I suppose, it didn’t matter; it was a family tradition, like Thanksgiving or Christmas. It was our Disney holiday, and it was the type of holiday I would like to have someday with my own family.
However, what kind of family would I have with Luke? Having already decided that I wanted to be with him, what did I willingly sign up for? Or more importantly, what was I willing to give up to be with him?
For one thing, I realized that Luke and I could never have children. How could half-angel children, possibly invisible children, make it in this human world? That thought hurt. I felt my babies dying, my future babies inside of me, who were still waiting to be born. These were the babies I wasn’t ready to have right now, but the babies I always planned on having someday. In my mind, my babies were crying, begging me to change my mind, hoping that it wasn’t too late to make the right decision. My babies were telling me that I could still live the life I had always dreamed of living.