The Eden Series: The Complete Collection

by Stalder, Janelle

  “Hey,” he smiled. Her open friendliness momentarily stunned him, but he quickly regained his composure. It took him a second to remember Bentley wasn’t around anymore After Aiden’s suspension the year before – for punching Bentley – Melissa had approached him to apologize for the whole incident. Aiden was almost certain she realized his weak attempt at chivalry. Ever since then she had been discreetly friendly to him, greeting him in the halls and talking to him during class. He hadn’t seen her throughout the summer, but she was still just as pretty as she had been the year before.

  “I didn’t see you yesterday,” she said breathlessly, stopping just in front of him. “What class do you have now?”

  “History with Basios,” he sighed. Her face reflected his gloom.

  “Bummer,” she sympathized. “Well, how was your summer? You look great,” she smiled, scanning him from head to toe. He fidgeted uncomfortably under her gaze.

  “Uh, thanks,” he stammered, he cheeks flushing with heat.

  “Well I guess I’ll see you around. Wouldn’t want to make you late!” Her eyes widened in mock horror at the thought. Aiden couldn’t help but laugh.

  “Yeah, Basios would probably chop my head off with one of those falling axes.”

  “It’s called a guillotine, you idiot, and I have one at my house if you want to come by and test it out,” a deep voice said behind him. Aiden turned to see Mr. Basios looking down at him. “Get inside.” He turned and walked into the classroom.

  “You don’t think he’s serious, do you?” Melissa whispered. Aiden shrugged, said goodbye and headed towards his desk.

  Mr. Basios spent the class creating a personal hell for Aiden. Every time he asked a question, Aiden was picked to answer even though his hand remained firmly planted on the desk.

  When the bell rang, he let out a sigh of relief. “Tough break, dude,” the boy next to him said as they packed up their bags. He muttered a lame thanks before hurrying out of the class. When he walked out, he caught a glimpse of Ethan and Melissa walking together further ahead. He was too far away to hear them, but he could see her laughing, and watched in amazement as she reached out and squeezed his arm. Ethan’s face turned to look down at her, a huge smile plastered there. What the –?

  “Aiden!” a deep voice called out. He tore his eyes off the two of them, and looked across the hall at Wes, one of the running backs for the football team. Wes stood by his open locker wearing the team jersey that most of the guys wore throughout the day. Aiden had opted out of it, wanting nothing more but to blend in rather than announce his new team affinity.

  “Hey,” he smiled back. Wes was much taller than Aiden and had a good fifty pounds on him. His hair was short and wavy, and a light shade of blonde with the dark blue eyes. Aiden walked over, standing somewhat awkwardly in front of him.

  “You going to that fair the school council is throwing?” Wes asked, his eyes following a couple of girls as they walked by. They both smiled at them over their shoulders, making Aiden’s face feel suddenly hot.

  “No,” he answered immediately, turning back to him.

  “Well I hate to break it to you bro, but some of the other guys are saying it’s mandatory for the team to go.” Aiden’s mouth dropped open in shock.

  “Why?” Aiden groaned, more than slightly horrified.

  Wes laughed. “To show school spirit, I guess? Who knows, maybe it’s just another way for the coach to torture us. Either way, I was wondering if you need a ride? A bunch of us were planning on going together, so if you want me to come get you I can.”

  His mouth dropped open further. He wasn’t used to the older guys being nice to him. There was a moment of stunned, awkward silence as they stood in the hall. The students around them slowly thinned out.

  “I guess so,” Aiden finally replied.

  “Cool,” Wes responded, slamming the door to his locker shut. “I’ll see you later at practice then.”

  They parted ways, and Aiden entered his next class, moving instantly to the back row. The fair. The thought loomed in his mind throughout the entire lesson. It was odd how he had no problem taking on an army of supernatural creatures, but a simple night out with his fellow students made him feel sick.

  At lunch he found Ethan sitting at their normal table, chewing on a large bite of hamburger.

  “I think I’ve seen pigs eat neater than you,” Aiden commented dryly as he sat down across from him. Ethan looked up defensively.

  “Like you’ve seen pigs eat,” he scoffed. Aiden chuckled.

  “So guess what I found out today?”

  “That the whole football team is required to attend this year’s opening school fair?” Aiden nodded. “I know, I heard some guys talking about it in the hall. Sucks to be you, dude.”

  “That’s an understatement,” replied Aiden. “So are you going to go then?”

  “To the fair? Hell no!” he answered loudly. A few other people around them looked up in surprise. Aiden rolled his eyes. “Sorry,” Ethan shot out, sarcastically. Everyone quickly looked away.

  “Aren’t you going with your other steroid infested jock friends anyway?” Ethan asked.

  “Yeah I am.”

  “Then why would I go?”

  Aiden shrugged. “I was just asking.” He got the impression Ethan was slightly bitter about the whole thing, which made him feel guilty. He knew how hard it was for Ethan to accept that Aiden had physically and socially changed over the summer. They had always been on even ground together. Both were the same social standing in school, and were just as equally ignored by the majority of the student body. This year Aiden was moving up, and he wondered if Ethan felt like he was being left behind. “You can always come with us?” Aiden offered hopefully.

  “No thanks.” The answer was flat and concrete, so Aiden dropped it.

  He thought about asking him what was going on with Melissa, but decided against it. How did he even feel about it? Aiden thought about the idea of Ethan liking Melissa, and surprisingly it didn’t really upset him as much as he thought it might. Was it possible he had gotten over his crush? Maybe, he thought truthfully. It was possible, since he had been interested in Elisa, but now that wasn’t an option anymore. Elisa was betrothed to Wolf. There was nothing he could do about it, never mind the minor fact that he didn’t even live in the same world as her. Would he ever see her again? He was getting depressed, and focused back on Ethan and Melissa. No, he definitely didn’t care. Maybe he should encourage him? How would Ethan react?

  Aiden watched Ethan as he ate, trying to decide how to handle the situation. The truth was, Ethan was never very forthcoming about his feelings, so Aiden had no idea how to approach him. He’d think of something, he decided, opting to talk about World of Warcraft instead. Ethan sat up straighter, answering Aiden’s questions with his usual good humour.

  When he walked out onto the field after school, the sky was full of ominous grey clouds, and the air was moist with a hint of autumn chill. Aiden shivered as the wind rushed over him. Hopefully practice would be cancelled if it started to rain, Aiden thought optimistically. No luck. The rain came halfway through their drills. By the end of practice they were all soaking wet and miserable. As the team dressed in the locker room, the coach announced that they were indeed obligated to attend the fair. A unanimous groan rippled through the locker room.

  “Go cry to your mommies,” Coach Morris barked. “I expect to see you all there – with smiles on your faces!” he added, turning to enter his office, slamming the door shut behind him.

  * * * * *

  “It could be worse,” his mom said, as she stirred a pot of pasta. “They could have forced you guys to actually participate in the fair activities. At least this way you can just roam around for the night.” Aiden sighed. His mother laughed in response. “I swear I don’t know whose child you are. When I was in high school I loved going to events like this. Where is your school spirit?”

  He looked up tiresomely. “I’m already on the footbal
l team…Doesn’t that count for something?”

  “For you, yes. I’m still shocked,” she smiled. “One night out for a school event won’t kill you,” she pointed out judiciously. He had to admit, he had been through worse things in his life. Eddie grabbed at his pants, tugging on them with her small little hands. She held a book up. Smiling, he picked her up, sitting her down on his lap. He knew the words to all her books by memory now, and that she wouldn’t be satisfied with just one. As he finished the third book, he could tell she had fallen asleep. Her head felt heavy on his chest, and her breathing was even.

  “I’ll take her,” his mom whispered. She smiled down at Eddie, pure love in her eyes. “Sometimes I’m still in awe that we were blessed with her.” Her face looked suddenly sad for a moment, before she turned abruptly to walk upstairs. What was that about? He wondered.

  * * * * *

  The floor was littered with dirty clothes. Aiden swore as he searched frantically for a clean sweater. It was still early in the fall, but nights were already getting cold. Wes would be at his house in ten minutes to go to the fair and he wasn’t ready. There was a soft knock on his bedroom door.

  “May I come in?” his mother asked, poking her head around the corner.

  “Sure,” he answered quickly, keeping his focus on the task at hand.

  “What are you looking for?”

  “A sweater.”

  “You know, if you cleaned up this place once in a while, you might actually find things in here,” his mother lectured, stepping wearily over the heaps of fabric. “Your friend is waiting outside. I asked if he’d like to come in, but he said he’d wait in the car.” Aiden swore again. He settled on a green hoodie that looked and smelled cleaner than the rest of the sweaters he had picked up.

  “This will have to do,” he said, turning to go. His mother stepped hesitantly in front of him before he could make it to the door.

  “I want to say something to you before you go,” she said, her voice sounding unsure. That was unusual for her. Something was up.

  “What’s going on?” he asked, disinclined to actually hear the answer.

  “Well, it’s just –” she faltered. “Well, this is the first time you’re going out with your new friends from the team, and I just want to make sure that you’re going to be safe.”

  “Safe?”

  “What I mean is – don’t do drugs,” she blurted.

  Aiden rolled his eyes. “Is this what you really wanted to talk to me about? A don’t-do-drugs lecture?” He walked around her, rushing to the stairs leading down to the second floor. His mother was close on his heels. “We’ve already talked about this before, Mom. Don’t worry about me.”

  “I know it can be hard though, especially when it comes to peer pressure,” she explained. They were both descending the stairs to the first floor now. Aiden turned to face her when he reached the front door.

  “I’m not one to succumb to peer pressure,” he replied, reassuringly. “I’m also not one to do something as stupid as drugs, so can you please stop all this?” She looked unconvinced, but nodded her head.

  “I told you not to bother him!” his dad’s voice bellowed from the family room.

  Aiden leaned in and kissed her on the cheek. “I’ll see you later tonight.”

  “Have fun,” she replied, softly. “And be safe!” Her voice faded as he shut the door behind him.

  “Wow, I’m impressed,” Wes said, in a slightly awed voice. “This thing actually looks pretty cool.” The grounds were set up exactly like any real Fairground would be. There were games and rides, food stands with popcorn and cotton candy, and ticket booths with long line-ups. The lights from the rides lit up the dark sky. Aiden looked around and couldn’t help but wish Ethan had decided to come after all. He scanned the faces of those who walked by, but didn’t see him anywhere.

  The other guys had started toward the games. Aiden followed close behind, enjoying the feeling of actually being out with a large group. They all decided on a shooting game and lined up in front of the booth. Aiden laughed along with the rest, his smile widening as he effectively beat them all. They nicknamed him Sharpshooter from that point on.

  They walked deeper into the thick of things, the sounds from the crowd, games and rides making it almost impossible to hear the each other. Aiden was shocked at how many people had actually shown up. If he guessed, he would have said almost the entire school was there. The merry-go-round was near the middle; he could see the colours and lights of the ride from where they stood. Melissa stood leaning against the fence that wrapped around the perimeter of the ride. She wore a green scarf around her neck with a dark black jacket. She was looking around like she was waiting for someone.

  “I have to go,” Aiden said, suddenly, walking away from the group. Confused looks followed him, but no one called for him to stop. She spotted him as he made his way closer, a wide smile stretching across her face.

  “Hey stranger,” she said, as he reached her.

  “Waiting for some hot date?” he asked, smiling down at her.

  She laughed. “No, I lost some of my friends. I was just looking to see if I could spot them anywhere. You here with Ethan?” Her voice pitched on Ethan’s name, but Aiden was nice enough to ignore it. A small smile tugged at the corners of his lips.

  “No, I’m here with some of the guys from the team,” he explained. Melissa looked over his shoulder. He turned to see the guys all looking over at them. Wes smiled and waved.

  “Sharpshooter!” a couple of them hollered suggestively. Aiden rolled his eyes and turned back to face her.

  “Sharpshooter?” she asked, raising her eyebrows in question.

  “They get hit a lot in the head,” he smiled apologetically. “You want to go on a ride?”

  “Sure!” she replied, excitedly. Melissa looked around, her eyes landing on the large Ferris-wheel located at the edge of the fair. She nodded her head in its direction. Aiden started to walk towards it, chanting in his head that the ride was safe. It would not suddenly collapse and kill them all. When they reached the line-up, Melissa produced six tickets for the two of them. The man controlling the large wheel hit a red button and an empty seat made its way to the questionable platform. He let her go first and then sat down hesitantly beside her, the seat rocking back and forth under his weight.

  Melissa let out a small laugh. “You look absolutely terrified!”

  “I hate rides,” he admitted, watching as the ground slowly shrunk beneath him. She continued to laugh at him. He couldn’t help but smile when his eyes met hers. “Shut up, it’s not funny.” They both chuckled as they went around, coming to a stop right at the top of the ride. The air was colder now, a strong breeze whipping through their hair. Despite his fears, Aiden had to admit that it was nice where they sat. The lights from below were far away now, giving way to the darkness of the night. You could see the stars prominently against the sky and everything seemed quieter.

  “What a nice night,” Melissa commented. He nodded his head in agreement. The ride started up again, moving them around in a slow circle for two minutes before the man below started letting people on and off again. They were stuck on the outside, swinging slightly in the night breeze. People laughed and yelled at each other from above, shaking the chairs dangerously for fun. Aiden was glad he wasn’t sitting with those people. “Look at that!” Melissa exclaimed, pointing out into the trees surrounding the grounds.

  “Look at what?” he asked, squinting to find what she was looking at.

  “Don’t you see it? Right there, in the trees,” she urged, pointing into the distance. “There’s a bright light over there, almost like a star. Can’t you see it? It’s shimmering!” Aiden tried to follow where she was pointing. At first he couldn’t make it out, thinking that she was probably mistaking the lights of a car passing by for something else. Then he noticed it. She was right, there was a bright light amongst the trees, shimmering in the dark. Something about it made the hair on the back of his
neck stand up. It was oddly familiar.

  “It can’t be,” he whispered, the blood draining from his face. Just when he had put everything in the past and was moving on with reality, there it was again. He didn’t know how he knew, but something in his gut was telling him exactly what this was.

  “Aiden?” Melissa’s voice shook him out of his trance, it was filled with concern. He looked over slowly at her. “Are you ok? What’s wrong?” Looking back out, Aiden tried to decide what to do.

  Part of him ached to go and see who was waiting for him, to go back and see his friends and the land he had missed for so long. The large forests, snow covered mountains that sat in the far north, the high walls of Capital City with its beautiful stone buildings. Hadn’t he wished for this since he came back? On the other hand, a part of him was happy now in his life. He was finally accepted into a group in his school, and seemed to actually attract the opposite sex. Melissa was still calling out to him, but he couldn’t seem to focus on what she was saying. Time would stop if he went, it would seem like he had only been gone for a couple of minutes before he came back, but now he knew the danger involved in leaving. Someone had figured out a way to kill him in Eden, and that meant there was a possibility he wouldn’t return this time. If Diana hadn’t been there at the field he would have died. What if she couldn’t be around to save him again? There were just too many uncertainties, and yet he felt like time was ticking. He had to make a choice, or his chance to return would be lost.

  “I have to go,” he spoke before he even realized he was doing it.

  “Go? Go where?” she asked frantically. Aiden stood up in the chair, rocking it violently back and forth. “Aiden! What are you doing?”

  “That’s it, Aiden!” someone called out from below. He ignored them both, climbing over the bar that held them in, teetering dangerously on the edge of the chair. It tipped forward, causing Melissa to slide forward against the bar.