Pulled Back (Twin Flames Series)

by Bannister, Danielle

  His aunt takes my registration card and runs it through her scanner. It uploads my class schedule and e-forms my dad will need to thumbprint his permissions on. I'll do it form him one night when he's asleep. He'd never do it on his own.

  When Nail-Lady finally finishes with me, I gather my stuff and turn around. Mr. Greek God is still there, flashing his pearly whites at me. Obviously, this is meant to impress me. Please. I’m not gonna fall for his trap. Still, I don’t want to make enemies with the likes of someone like him, so I give him my best attempt at a smile.

  “Thank you,” I say, before plowing past him.

  “Hey, wait!” He takes my wrist, unknowingly grabbing hold of my leather cuff and the cuts beneath it. I swallow the pain; glare down at his hand and then back at him, eyebrows raised to the sky. He lets go. Good boy.

  “Look, I’m sorry,” he says. He flings two registration cards at his aunt before he turns back to me. By now, my arms are firmly crossed over my chest. I don't know what this guy's deal is.

  “I was a prick back there,” he says. “Sometimes I forget that just because my aunt works here it doesn't mean I own the place.”

  He ducks his chin to his chest and looks at me with the saddest excuse of puppy-dog-eyes I've ever seen. He must really think I'm a dope if he thinks I'm gonna fall for that. I roll my eyes at him before I start for the door.

  “Wait! Let me make it up to you. I’m about to have a late breakfast with my buddy. Come with us. My treat. Please?”

  The request is so random that I actually find myself stopping to contemplate it. My stomach does a small grumble and I hope he doesn't hear. Still, I don't know this guy, so no dice.

  “Thanks, but I'll pass.”

  My feet make quick, yet clumpy, strides down the hall and I curse myself for wearing these stupid boots.

  “They have real coffee!” he shouts after me.

  I stop in mid-clomp. Slowly, I turn around. I can't help myself. “Really?”

  “Really.” His eyes twinkle.

  Okay, maybe I am crazy to go somewhere with what is essentially, a perfect stranger, but real coffee is real coffee. Sometimes a girl's just gotta take a risk.

  Chapter 3

  Tobias

  The breakfast rush at Nathan's hasn't started yet, so I'm able to snag the corner booth with the killer view of the woods. The trees are just now starting to change. In a month, those big old maples will turn this town into a tourist's dream. Until then, the locals claim the booth.

  As I slide in, I can't help but brush my fingers over the worn leather that covers the seats. The hairline scars etched into its deep mahogany skin speaks volumes of the abuse it’s gone through over the years. That’s why this is my favorite spot. I love its history.

  The host drops the two menus I asked for and then disappears around the corner without so much as a hello. Not that I expect one. People don't know how to talk to the dying.

  I open the menu even though I already know what I am going to order. The house special: The American cheddar omelet, home fries, and the biggest chai in the county. Hawk will get the flapjacks, extra sausage, a side of hash and a glass of egg yolks. Gross.

  Across from me, a couple of waiters busy themselves by making fresh napkin rolls. Their fingers move like lightning as they roll the silver inside the red cloths. They make it look so easy.

  Glancing down at my own utensil roll, I unravel it. The pieces clink together in objection. I make a few halfhearted attempts of my own at rolling them back together like they do, but I can't seem to achieve the crispness the roll originally had. I frown. Un-rollers remorse. I push the mess aside, frustrated.

  It's while I'm putting my hand down in my lap that I notice it. The tiny hairs on my arm are all starting to stand on end. It’s more than just a chill. It’s like each one of my hairs is being pulled straight up by something. Freaking out, I look around to other customers, assuming there must be some sort of electrical storm happening or something, but no one else seems to be afflicted by whatever is happening to me.

  I glance back down at my arm. The hairs are completely erect now. What the hell? I try to brush them down, but they refuse to lay flat no matter what I do. That's when the oddest sense of deja vu comes over me. I swear I've tried to push down these stubborn hairs a hundred times before.

  Panic hits me. Maybe I am getting sick?

  As I feel my forehead for a sign of a fever, a wave of something hauntingly familiar hits me. Lilac. It's way too late in the year for lilacs, but it's lilac all right. I should know – I'm allergic to it. Methodically, I start to dig out my inhaler, but stop because the urge to cough is absent, which doesn’t make any sense. If that really is lilac I'm smelling, I should be coughing my head off right now.

  I close my eyes to try and calm down, but that's when I'm assaulted by an image so strong, it almost knocks me out of the booth. In my head, I see a pale looking girl with jet black hair and the kindest eyes I’ve ever seen. She looks so familiar to me. It's her smile though, that unglues me. A smile that is filled with such love and tenderness – that it actually hurts to look at her. A name screams in my head: Naya!

  Then, just as fast as it came, the face fades away, leaving my heart feel oddly hollow.

  Okay, who the hell was that?

  Opening my eyes, the business of the restaurant has come back into focus, leaving no trace of the vision I had left behind.

  I rub my temples trying to get a grip on what I just saw. The host flies by my table, almost knocking my elbow off the edge. My eyes follow him as he makes his way around the corner to greet some new arrivals. Everything seems back to normal.

  But then, just as before, everything shifts in the blink of an eye. As soon as the host disappears, my muscles tense up – locking me in place. Instantly, my heart begins to hammer out a staccato rhythm in anticipation. But anticipation of what? Of who! My head shouts back at me.

  The tightness builds in my throat and doesn't let up one iota as the seconds drag by. My stomach is tying itself into huge knots waiting for something to happen. It's almost like everything is going in slow motion.

  By the time the host rounds the corner to seat his next table, I can barely breathe. That's when Hawk emerges from behind him. He's wearing a big goofy grin. Seeing Hawk is almost like a punch to the gut. He wasn't who I was waiting for. Which made no sense. Who else did I think would be coming?

  That's when she appears.

  This stranger that I swear I've met a millions times before.

  I can't help but think that she reminds me of the girl I just saw in my head, except she is her exact opposite. The girl walking toward me with her shoulders slumped is not the confident and kind-eyed girl I had just daydreamed about. And yet, her face is so painfully familiar that it makes my body shake.

  Who is she?

  Hawk's wave grabs my attention, but I can't seem to tear my eyes away from the girl with him. With each step she takes towards me, my chest responds by inching itself forward. I am like a moon succumbing to her orbit.

  When I feel my butt start to slide out of the booth, presumably to get closer to her, I grab the edge of the table in an effort to anchor my body down. The muscles in my forearms fight against the pressure I have to exude in order to stay in my seat.

  What the hell is going on?

  Helpless, I watch her come closer from my locked position. She is quite honestly the most beautiful girl I have ever seen in my entire life, even though I can barely see her. She's got her head down on the ground and she's shrouded herself in dark clothes as though she's hiding. Her golden tendrils obscure half of her face, but even without seeing her, I am undone. I can't help but wonder if this is what Hawk meant about finding 'the one' because right now – I know my life will never be the same.

  That's when Hawk links his arm into hers. It makes my blood steam. Intense rage bubbles beneath the surface. Rage at my best friend.

  Whoa. Calm down dude!

  Hawk doesn't seem to notice my un
called for hostility as he saunters up to the table with his catch.

  “Tobs, this is,” he stops and looks at her. “Wait, I didn't catch your name.” Hawk laughs.

  My mystery girl bites the edge of her lip and I have to resist the insane desire to kiss the spot she just bit.

  “That's because I didn't throw it,” she says, as those soft lips turn into a hard line.

  “Okay, that's fine,” Hawk smiles. “Remain a mystery, but I warn you, I love a challenge.” He winks at her and I grunt at him in annoyance.

  “No-Name, this is my friend, Tobs.” Hawk says, gesturing my way, clearly not picking up on how much I want to rip his throat out.

  “My name's Tobias,” I hiss. “Not Tobs.” The hostility pour out of me and it scares me. This is not like me.

  “Right. Sorry, man.” He gives me a look like he really is sorry before he gestures for her to sit. She slides into the booth and Hawk swoops in right beside her, caging her in.

  Exhaling slowly, I grasp the seat again. I feel the leather buckle and crack from the pressure my fingers make against it, but I'm helpless to stop. I'm suddenly terrified by what I might do if I let go.

  “I was a total prick to her at school.” Hawk says. “So I’m making it up to her by buying her breakfast.”

  “You weren’t a total prick,” she replies. The gentle sound of her voice reverberates inside my head. Its familiarity causes such an intense pressure against my chest that I find myself struggling to form coherent thoughts.

  Foolishly, I risk a look in her direction. It's like she is calling to me from across the table. When she finally raises her head to meet my gaze, I am rendered speechless. Swept away into a world of nothing but her. It's those eyes! They're like the color of melted cocoa, so deep and lush. I've never seen eyes as rich and intense as hers. I am literally hypnotized, as they grow wide to look at me — into me.

  She is going to be the end of me.

  Jada

  When Tobias' eyes land on mine... I freeze. I am lost somewhere between the present and past. Memories I know I've never had, wash over me, forcing my lids shut. In my mind, I see only dark lips caressing mine. A soft tongue slipping inside my mouth making me moan. A second image flashes before I can process the first: a scarred-faced boy smiling at me with Tobias' eyes.

  Blushing ten shades of scarlet, I rip my lids open only to find Tobias still looking at me. This frail-looking boy (that I've never met) is gazing at me with so much heat that it feels like my insides might just melt. A need like I've never experienced before touches my heart.

  Etash! A voice inside my head shouts.

  Who? My heart starts hammering, but no one seems to notice.

  “So,” Hawk says beside me, taking me away from the torment of Tobias' eyes. “Did you just move to Webster or is it really possible that I’ve not noticed you until now?”

  Nothing like a cheesy pick-up line to bring a girl back to her senses. Does this crap really work with other girls? A lock of his choppy cut hair tumbles deliciously across his forehead. Yeah. They fall for it. And why wouldn't they? The guy is seriously hot. Too bad he knows it.

  “I moved here last month. My dad was... relocated for work,” I say, hoping they'd believe the slight exaggeration. Because, let's be honest, my version of the truth that's so much easier than what really happened: Actually, we move all the time because my dad's a drunken basket case ever since I killed my mom coming out of her womb. Pass the syrup?' See? My version is better.

  “That must suck having to start at a new school,” Hawk says, leaning in closer to me.

  I shrug. “I’m used to it. We move a lot.” I hear the sadness in my own voice and it infuriates me. The last thing I want is anyone's pity.

  “Well, at least you have friends now, right?” Hawk reaches over the table and smacks Tobias' shoulder with the edge of his menu causing him to flinch. Bully.

  The waiter comes and takes our orders. I mumble out what I think is coffee and eggs, but I can't be sure. I'm too focused on the boy sitting across from me. My brain is insisting that I need to look at Tobias. Demanding that I remember the taste of his lips on mine.

  Whoa. That wasn't cool, Jada.

  Using all my strength, I force my eyes to look at Hawk. It's safer to look at Hawk. There's no risk of getting lost in his eyes.

  “So, how long have you two known each other?” I ask Hawk, even though my body stays stubbornly rooted toward Tobias.

  Hawk sits up in his seat and grins. I return the biggest fake smile I can muster.

  “Since birth,” Hawk says, wiggling his eyebrows at me.

  I frown at his blatant exaggeration.

  “No, seriously.” He crosses his finger over his chest. “Tobs... sorry, Tobias and I were actually born on the same day in the same hospital. Pretty cool, huh?”

  “Wow. That's… weird.”

  Hawk's eyes twinkle as he leans into me, clearly getting ready to tell a bigger story. “Weird, but cool, right? It’s like we were destined to be friends.”

  Tobias groans. “It doesn't hurt that we happen to live right next door to each other either.” His eyes are focused on his glass of water, yet not really seeing it at all.

  Every time he speaks, his voice vibrates through my skin and into my soul. I ache to hear more of it.

  “You don't believe in destiny?” Hawk asks Tobias. “You honestly think it's a coincidence that your mom adopted you and then bought the house right next to mine?”

  Tobias looks up at me, catching me off guard. His eyes, like a shot of espresso, shoot through me like an arrow. Eyes that see every piece of me but don’t flinch at the ugliness I know is there.

  “There's no such thing as destiny.” Tobias says, looking straight at me. He lowers his eyes, and it leaves me cold. “And Hawk shouldn't believe in it either,” he adds with a certain edge to his voice. “Because if it was real, Hawk would have found her by now.”

  Hawk almost growls as he sits up in his seat. Fists clenched. He's pissed.

  “Found who?” I say, trying to calm down the beast that just awoke inside Hawk.

  The two of them continue to glare at each other. A battle of the eyes. Even though Hawk is the physically stronger of the two, it's clear that Tobias' glare will win this fight. A moment later Hawk sighs and lowers his eyes in defeat.

  “The one," Tobias says, not taking his eyes off his friend.

  “I don't follow.”

  Hawk rakes his hand through his hair before he speaks. “Tobs here is referring to the girl that was born the same night we were.” There is no correction of Tobias' name this time. “He doesn't believe she's the one I'm destined to be with.”

  I have to stifle a laugh. Was he for real? “Um, it's not that uncommon for three babies to be born on the same night... ” His eyes pinch together as though I have hurt him and I instantly regret saying anything.

  “Well, maybe where you're from, but here in Webster, multiple births don't happen that often.”

  The way he said, 'where you're from' – like I'm sort of a second class citizen, gets under my skin. “Where I'm from?” I question, batting my eyelashes. “I happen to be from Webster myself.” Asshole.

  “I thought you said you just moved here,” Tobias asks.

  “I just moved back.” I say, smiling at Hawk. “I was born here. We didn't stay long.” My voice drops off at the sudden pain that memory brings.

  Hawk shares a glance with Tobias. “When were you born?” He asks, softly.

  “October 14th.”

  “What year?” Tobias speaks this time. His skin has grown a bit pale. It makes me uneasy.

  “2011. Why?”

  Hawk cocks his head looking at me. Disbelief seeps into his face. “Tell me your name.”

  There is something unnerving about the way he asks, so I tell him. “It's Jada."

  “Jada Jeanne Williams?” Hawk asks, slowly. Carefully.

  My skin turns pale.

  “How did you... I've never told anyone m
y middle name before.” It was her name. A name I’ve forced myself to forget. “How did you know my name?” I push away from him in the booth until my back is touching the wall.

  Hawk turns to look at me. “It's you.” The reverence with which he says that makes me shiver.

  “It's me what?” I ask, afraid to know the answer.

  Tobias pushes out of the booth and glares at me. “You're the girl. The one he's destined to be with.”

  I blink at him, stung by his sudden hostility.

  Before I can form a thought, Tobias is halfway out of the restaurant.

  I yearn to follow him, ache to, but Hawk is blocking my way, inching closer to me. His face is filled with wonder.

  “I can't believe I found you.” He brushes the back of his hand against my cheek. His touch sends a deep chill down my spine.

  Chapter 4

  Tobias

  Damn it! Just... damn it! My fists fly through the air in frustration. Why? Why does Hawk get everything he ever wants? It just isn't fair!

  I've never asked for anything. Never even complained about being born with a lung that is going to kill me. Never wished my birth parents didn't abandon me. I've never held a grudge with God. Until now. Right now, I'm pissed; pissed that He would do this to me. Why did He have to show me that someone like her exists, if He was just going to give her to Hawk?

  It was just downright cruel.

  I start pacing in front of the restaurant. The morning air is trying its best to cool my temper down. I'm so angry that all I want to do is go back there and claim what's rightfully mine.

  Gah, listen to me! 'Claim what's rightfully mine?' What is wrong with me? I'm acting like a complete Neanderthal around her.

  This isn't like me. I need to calm down. Get away from her. My eyes dart around me to find a place to go. The first place I see is the woods up ahead. That will be perfect.