by Elle Wolcott
It’s still here.
I guess I was hoping I’d somehow force the fog to dissipate, but no. It was still there, still closing in.
“Fine,” I grunted. Apparently, the fog had a mind of its own and I was okay with that. I had seen stranger things before. “Come on, then. Just come at me.”
I waved my arms around, and to my complete surprise, the fog moved! I just stood there, staring at the air and the thickness of the mist as it came back toward me.
And then I laughed. At myself mostly, but only because it was too similar to magic to really be happening.
I reached out and waved my hands around, and initially nothing happened. But then I caught sight of the fog in the distance and how it would bend as I waved.
“Oh holy magic,” I mumbled, moving my hands around with broader motions. “I can’t believe this.”
“Can’t believe what?” a man’s voice coming from behind scared me. I jumped so far forward I almost rolled my ankle on the landing.
“Oh my god, Mr. Siebert, I didn’t see you,” I gasped. I had my hand on my heart, steadying my breath as I faced him.
“Car trouble?” the older man asked.
“No, I just couldn’t see the road,” I said, turning around to point to the fading fog. “It was…”
It was gone.
Just like that, the fog had filtered away and faded into the night. I found Mr. Siebert staring at me with inquiring eyes.
“I’m just heading home,” I said.
“Alright,” he nodded. He stepped up to the grass and went toward his house, but he looked back a couple of times curiously.
I got into my car and turned on the engine. The fact that the fog left so quickly bothered me a little, but that was magic. There was no denying that the night air had presented itself to me, just like the elements are supposed to—when you’re magical. This meant I too was magical. The air came to me and revealed my power. And it felt fantastic.
Chapter Three
“You must come,” Lydia begged me the next day at the bistro across the street from the bookstore. I wasn’t paying that much attention right then. I just couldn’t wait to tell everyone about the magic, but I had to talk to my aunt first. She was still sleeping when I got back home this morning. And after I had the chance to nap before getting up for work, I found the house empty.
“Irene?” Lydia nudged me.
“Sorry,” I smiled. “I don’t really think I want to see him.” I picked at the crust on my panini.
“We’ve been waiting for him to come home all summer, and now you can’t be there? I don’t understand, I thought you loved him,” she blurted.
Love? Love is a strong word.
I made a face and she shook her head.
“Oh, come on,” she said.
I put down my drink. “Lydia, I totally have a crush on him,” I admitted. I knew it, everyone knew it. “But love… that’s a little much.”
“Okay,” she trailed with that grin that said she didn’t quite believe me. “Still, you have to be there.”
I sighed.
“He… might have asked you to come,” she mumbled.
“He what?”
“Okay, so he called last night to tell us about the flight. My dad’s in town, and my mom’s got a cake ready.”
“Lydia,” I leaned over the table. “Why didn’t you tell me this first?”
“I wanted you to want to come,” she said.
I took a deep breath, then grabbed my drink for a long sip. Lydia started to talk about the dress she had picked out, but my eyes slid away from her and to the floor. I had always liked the faux-stone flooring of the Bistro, but then, as my emotions started to surface, I realized the pattern was only irritating my eyes.
And even though I could feel Lydia’s pressing glare, the one where she’d raise her brows and turn her lips inward, my concentration to the floor broke only as the server shrieked in surprise. The faucet behind the counter where the baristas rinsed the canisters had burst and water was spraying everywhere. Other workers rushed to help and before long the water was under control.
“Irene,” Lydia must have repeated my name at least three times. I could hear her voice echoing in my mind, along with the sounds of water and panic. “I’ll be here at six. You’re coming, right?”
My eyes flickered to hers, but everything felt so distant and slow.
“Irene?” she shook my arm and it pulled me right out of my head and back into the moment. “You okay?”
“Yeah, I think,” I said rubbing my head. “I didn’t sleep well.”
She got up and tugged her bag over her shoulder. She was in the middle of a semester at the art school downtown. Her plan was to teach at our old high school someday, and I’m pretty sure she already had the whole thing planned out.
“See you later?”
“Sure,” I smiled. It made her smile, and that was something I hadn’t seen much of all summer. His return would be good for her, but not me. I can’t say I was in love with Cole, but there was something about him I just couldn’t let go of. Not for one day while he was gone.
After Lydia left, I went back to the bookstore and worked for a little while. The place got a bit busy and it kept me from my thoughts. So much so, that when my aunt came rushing in to grab some oils and herbs, it took me a second before remembering my big news.
“Oh my gosh,” I grabbed her wrist and pulled her to the back.
“Irene? I can’t stay. I have a… a thing today. Remember?”
“No. What thing?”
She squared up her shoulders. “A date.”
“Oh,” I raised my brow. I had completely forgotten about it. “I’m sorry I blanked.”
“It’s fine,” she smiled. “Do you need something before I go?”
I suddenly couldn’t stop smiling. I wanted to share the news with her so badly before telling anyone—even my best friend. Lydia knew about the magic, too, but she had seen less of it than me. Some of the things my family could do were just done in private. We we’re only open to certain, trusted people. Nevertheless, I couldn’t wait to exhibit my powers.
I lifted my hand into the air and got ready to wave it around and move the particles, but then I wondered how she’d even see it. Better yet, how I’d actually manipulate the air right that second. Things were different that morning; the air had come to me.
“What’s the matter?” she asked. I must have been frowning as I stared over my hands.
“Um,” I stammered as the bell at the register rang. I swished my hands around quickly in a panic to demonstrate, but nothing happened. I wasn’t connecting with the air anymore. “It’s not working,” I mumbled, and the bell rang again.
“Hello?” a woman called from the register.
“We’ll be right there,” my aunt yelled back. “Whatever’s going on, don’t you worry. It’ll work out soon enough.” My aunt gave my shoulders a little squeeze and then passed by me to go toward the register.
“But I moved the fog,” I whispered, still staring over my hands.
“You what?” my aunt spoke softly, stopping just behind me.
I faced her shaking my head. “This morning, I went for a drive. The road was covered in fog; it got so thick I could barely see in front of me.”
My aunt began to smile. “It came to you.”
“But now there’s nothing.”
“Irene,” she grabbed my hands and held tight to comfort me. “Fog isn’t air, it’s made of water.”
Chapter Four
Just as she said, Lydia was knocking on the door exactly at six. I had closed early, and so I ran up and unlocked the door and let her in.
“I have to grab my things,” I said, heading to the back hall to get my shoulder bag. I checked my teeth in the mirror on the wall and then messed with my shirt for a second.
“Irene, you look fine, let’s go!”
I sighed with a smile. I might not have been madly in love with him, but I certainly wanted to look
good for him.
“My parents are picking him up now,” she said as we went out. I locked the door with the oversized key, then followed her to her car.
“You know, I could have just met you there,” I said to her, thinking about my car in the back lot. I stopped on the sidewalk and thought about going back there and just driving myself. “Now you’ll have to give me a ride back.”
“Yeah,” she rolled her eyes. “And just trust that you would have come on your own? I know you’re nervous to see him,” she came and tugged me to the car. “And I know you’d rather just go home.”
I hated when she was right.
“Alright, you drive. But I can’t promise I won’t be mad at him when I see him,” I said as we got in her car.
“What do you mean?”
“Lydia, he could have called me before leaving. I mean, I thought we were friends at least.”
“Yeah, well, I’m his sister and he only just called me last night.”
She pulled away from the side of the road and went toward the stop light. The sky was a mess of dark blue clouds and gray bits that floated around aimlessly. I thought about what my aunt had said earlier and wondered if then was the right time to tell Lydia. But then she’d probably say something to Cole, and then we’d have to have that conversation. And I just wasn’t in the mood.
I turned and looked out the window at the city as it grew smaller and smaller under the night sky. A drizzle had persisted most of the day, now leaving a blanket of fog over the breadth of Willoughby Bay. That fog never seemed to bother me until then. Whatever reason it had for coming near, I had yet to understand. All I knew was that it clung to me, following us over the bridge and into the hills in a subtle, rolling motion. Lydia flipped on the headlights at the base of the hills and went up slowly.
“I wish it were spring,” she said, leaning forward and wiping the moisture from inside the windshield.
“I like the fall,” I said.
“You just like Halloween,” she laughed.
“That too,” I laughed with her. “Do you think they’re back?”
Lydia nodded. “His flight was around four. They were on their way home when I came into the city.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah, I knew you were working, so I didn’t want to pull you away too early.”
“Yeah, my aunt has a date tonight.”
“Really? It’s about time,” she laughed.
“I know. I thought for sure she’d start dating when Charlotte did.”
“Yeah, but your sister’s been with Caleb for at least a year.”
Lydia turned off the ever-winding road and into her driveway. Up ahead sat her parents’ BMW.
“At least,” I replied, my eyes fixed on the car, then the lights in the kitchen window, then the silhouettes that passed through.
“Come on,” she urged, putting the car in park.
I took a deep breath, then got out.
And then I faced the road and thought about running away. I didn’t want to admit that I had missed him all summer, and that him being around meant a lot to me, but it was true. Standing in that driveway with goosebumps waving up my arms and down my neck, my fingers and toes twitching anxiously, I realized just how important he was to me. And in that moment, that space of time where it felt like nothing in the world existed but the memories I held onto, I almost couldn’t move.
Lydia, my best friend for over ten years, had always had her brother to save her from forgotten homework and dropped ice cream cones. He would share his cotton candy when we were younger; chase away the rude boys down the road on his scratched up Huffy.
For me, though, he was so much more. When my mother died, it was Cole who kept me from losing my mind. I was only sixteen, but I knew then that I never wanted to spend a moment of my life without him. As a friend, or maybe something more, it didn’t matter. He helped me deal with something I tried to run from. Just like I wanted to run right then.
Lydia faced me at the door. “You coming?”
“Yeah,” I nodded. I went up the walkway and waited for her to open the door. I expected to see him right away, but when Lydia went inside, the living room and hall were empty. I looked to the kitchen and could see Lydia’s dad standing at the counter laughing. I stepped further into the house and eyed the full extent of the kitchen, but he wasn’t there.
“Irene,” Lydia’s mother smiled to me with a glass of wine in her hand. “We’re so glad you’re here.”
“Thanks,” I said.
“Where is he?” Lydia asked them.
“Changing upstairs,” her dad answered. “It was quite a trip, he was just telling us.”
“Oh, just wait until you see the pictures,” Audrey boasted as she made her way toward the living room.
“Wait for him to come down, Audrey,” Christian suggested.
“Alright,” she waved him off. “I’m just so happy.”
Audrey passed by me and Lydia just as Lydia turned and let out a gleeful shriek. I turned toward the stairs to find Cole rushing down and scooping up his sister.
There he stood, so similar, yet somehow different. I could feel it in the air as he put her down and eyed me. He was dressed in all black, like someone had died. Slacks, a button-down shirt, belt, slick shoes—it was his style, but he wore it better than before he left. Most everything about him was much more… defined, I guess. His skin looked warmer, more vibrant, almost as though he had spent the summer in the Caribbean. Which, maybe he did. His postcards—few and inconsistent—were short and impersonal at best. Still, here he was, strutting with reserve and an inviting nature that called to me in so many ways. He embodied confidence in its every shade.
I stood there with my mouth wide open and my mind in a blank mess—I’m sure of it. He, as I tried not to choke on air, slid his hand through his loose locks and then laughed with his sister. His voice called to me, kept me on my toes. His laughter was untouchable. A few more words to Lydia, and she joined her parents in the kitchen.
And then we were alone.
It felt like we were completely alone. Like no one else existed.
My heart hit a wall, but luckily my feet remembered to stay firm. His eyes traced over me until finally landing on mine. Strange enough, the longer I stared back, the more relaxed I felt. In that moment, with his deep brown eyes locked onto mine, I felt weak and powerful, satisfied and empty—all at once. It started to make me feel dizzy and I reached out for the sofa but it wasn’t as close as I thought. I couldn’t take my eyes off of him, though. And so I swayed and my legs weakened, and just like the clumsy person I was, I fell.
But, of course, I fell into his arms.
“Are you alright?” he asked, and a wave of his cologne came over me and I could have fallen all the way to the carpet.
“Irene?” Audrey rushed into the room.
“What happened?” I could hear Lydia ask from behind me.
I shook off the dizziness and got to my feet. Cole didn’t let me go just yet, though. He guided me to the sofa and sat me down.
“Dad, some water,” he directed.
“I’m fine,” I shrugged it off.
“You look pale,” Audrey said.
“I’ve got this,” Cole told her. “Let’s just give her a minute.”
“Of course,” Audrey agreed and went out of sight. Cole took the water from his dad and handed it to me.
“Really, I’m okay. I just didn’t sleep well.”
He sat at my side and the air tightened around us. I took a long drink and tried not to look him in the eye again.
“Are you?” he said, pulling my long bangs from my eyes and over to my shoulder. His fingers ran the length of the strands and I found his eyes trailing along.
“Am I what?”
Cole licked his lips in a breath and then let go of my hair. “Are you okay?”
I was.
“I just need some rest. Maybe I should go.”
“You can’t leave yet. We’re having cake,
” Lydia came in the room licking frosting from her fingers. “It’s chocolate,” she teased.
“Save me a piece,” I suggested.
“I’ll take you home,” Cole said. He got up and went across the room, grabbing the keys at the table near the door.
“No,” I said as fast as I could think it. The last thing I needed was to spend time alone with him. Especially in that car of his. God, I loved his car. “I mean, Lydia brought me here. I don’t want to trouble you.”
“She doesn’t mind,” he said.
I looked at Lydia and she had a big grin on her face. She shook her head, as if to say she definitely didn’t mind, and I had no choice. I mean, I could have walked back home from there. We lived close enough for that. But it was dark, and I, for some reason that didn’t seem too natural, was dizzy and weak all of a sudden.
“Okay,” I nodded.
“Save me a piece too,” Cole said to his sister.
Lydia arched her brow, still grinning and still trying to eat her cake.
Outside, the air had gotten very cool. There was a dewiness to the grass, and it gleamed in the lights from the house. The dizziness was completely gone, and so I went right out on my own.
“This way,” Cole said as he walked up behind me. He led me to the side garage, the one that sat facing the side yard, and once inside, he clicked the button on his keychain to unlock the car doors.
I got in and closed the door, and my eyes wandered around the interior. It was black as night and smooth as silk. Red lights illuminated the recesses of each door and the gaps overhead. I remembered riding with him to school when I was a sophomore. He couldn’t wait to graduate that year. Even back then he was fascinated by Europe, but he never made plans to go. At least, I didn’t think he had.
“It’s beautiful on you,” he spoke as his eyes glanced to my neck.