by K. K. Allen
Following Alec’s lead, I pull my mask up to my face and tighten it around the back of my head. “Ready.”
Alec admires me in full, sweeping the length of my body with his eyes. His smile blooms in appreciation. I fight the urge to blush once more as he takes my hand and leads me through the entrance of the Arctic Winter Masquerade Ball.
I exhale, overwhelmed by the fairytale setting that surrounds us. An iced over Florida in the winter. Who would have thought?
A frosted platform spreads across the majority of the room, tracing the edges of the dance floor like an arctic ice shelf. Circular tables dressed in white decor dot the entire right side of the room, each adorned with a block of ice and white floating tea candles. And now I get it; our winter wonderland setting rests upon, what looks like, an ever-moving glacier.
Even the stage is decorated to look like the tip of an iceberg. On the dance floor below the stage, blue lights outline the ice formations as if they are floating in a vast sea.
The excitement in the room is infectious, and the music attracts dancers to the main floor while other students buzz around the room.
“Kat!” squeals Trisha. “Do you love it?”
I hug her tightly. “I more than love it! This is incredible.” My eyes travel up to the ceiling, where white nets draped at different heights cradle glowing balls of light. “How do you come up with ideas like this?”
She shrugs. “That do-it-yourself website had some ideas, and then I improvised from there.”
My eyes widen in shock. “You’re telling me you did all of this without using your magic?” Trisha has a weakness for using her magic at inappropriate times, so I’m finding this hard to believe.
She giggles her infectious giggle. “Of course I used magic, silly. I just used that website for some ideas. Then I elaborated. We only had two days to create the set. Without magic, it would have been impossible.”
Meanwhile, Kaleb and Alec are going on about the Italian place we went to for dinner tonight. It’s just outside the city, and according to the guys, “worth every penny.”
“We should go again,” Kaleb insists. “It’s nice to venture out now and then. When our parents moved us here, I didn’t realize how small a town we were actually moving to.”
“You’re telling me …”
I tune them out and turn my attention to Khloe, who is drooling over my boyfriend. Oddly enough, instead of anger, I feel another pang of remorse.
“Did you help with the decorations?” I ask Khloe, dragging her greedy eyes from Alec to mine. Her blush matches the crimson color of her mask. That’s right. I caught you.
She shrugs. “It was nothing. Trisha did most of the work. I just draped a few trees with snow and hung some lights. It does look great though.”
Her light blue eyes are magnificent against her shimmering red and gold mask. Khloe’s bold makeup emphasizes her exotic skin tone, and her eyelids are a glittery gold like the edges of her mask. In a red chiffon babydoll dress that hugs the curves of her body provocatively, she’s a rare beauty.
If I’m not mistaken, Alec takes an appreciative glance her way as well. I think she sees this because she straightens up and sends a sultry smile in his direction.
I can’t watch this.
A tug of my hand forces me to look up into Arabella’s eyes. “We’re going to take photos. Get your guy and let’s go!”
Her demanding tone makes me giggle, but I tug Alec along, happy to move through the crowd and check out more of the scenery. Arabella leads us to where Brent holds our spot in line. I admire the photography backdrop. A sheet of cracked, sparkling ice—or what looks like ice—covers the back wall, and strings of brilliant blue lights drip down to the floor.
It’s our turn. My friends and I pile in front of the backdrop, and Alec’s arm snakes around my waist as he nuzzles my cheek. A grin spreads across my face just in time for the photographer to begin snapping away.
A flicker of darkness from the rafters above causes my eyes to drift, but I’m blinded by the overhead lights. I tear my eyes away and focus on the photographer who ushers the guys out of the shot. They move behind the camera, whistling and cheering as the girls take a group photo.
Arabella and I are smashed in between Trisha and Khloe, and we can’t help laughing uncontrollably through most of the session. We torture the guys with air kisses and sultry poses before finally taking a serious shot.
The guys are up next. As they stand against the backdrop, posing with cool expressions, hands in their pockets, I can’t get over how gorgeous they are. Seriously, they are a good looking bunch.
Then come the couples’ photos. When it’s Matt and Khloe’s turn, the two stand against the backdrop, Khloe posing uncomfortably. Can’t she at least try to have fun? Her smile fails to reach her eyes, her stance bleeds boredom, and her hold on Matt is dripping complete dissatisfaction. My attention wanders to the dance floor, unable to watch the heart wrenching beauty that is Khloe Simone.
I’m sure my eyes are playing tricks on me, but I swear I see another strange, shadowy movement. This time it’s quick, like a figure darting through the crowd, bending down and standing up as if it’s placing something on the floor. The crowd seems to part for the figure, without paying it much attention. Since I’m the only one who seems to find it strange, I attempt to push my paranoid thoughts away.
Oblivious to my diverted attention, Alec pulls me onto the dance floor and begins to move. I have a hard time keeping up with the beat because I can’t stop scanning the crowd for signs of something unusual. The pounding beat of music fills my veins, begging me to just let go and have a good time. Not every event brings danger, I remind myself. In fact, since the horrific carnival two summers ago, crime rates in Apollo Beach have gone down. The town is safe, neighborly, and flourishing.
But suddenly, as if on cue, a shadowed figure moves slowly, deliberately behind the backcloth of the stage. I freeze. The figure is definitely a he, and a tall one at that. He seems to be looking for something—or someone. Adrenaline whooshes through my blood, putting my entire body on high alert.
I’m not seeing things. My senses don’t scream at me unless there’s danger lurking nearby. And here we are, on the day of the winter solstice, an Enchanter celebration. It would make complete sense for Erebus to finally make his appearance. I scan my surroundings for anything out of place, but I see nothing unusual. My body throbs in fear, unable to settle my fluttering heart. It could have been anything or anyone. Heck, there are dozens of people that helped set this event up. There are surely people working behind the scenes.
Is he here?
Alec leans into me, worry evident on his face. “Are you okay?”
I squeeze my eyes shut, trying to calm my racing heart. I shake my head, unable to speak. Unable to move. I need to get ahold of myself. In a desperate search for my necklace, I swipe my hand over the spot it usually rests. And then I remember … I left it at home in my vanity drawer, for completely superficial reasons, not wanting the green amethyst to clash with my outfit.
Flashbacks from a year and a half ago replay in my mind like a flip book. Images I’ll never forget, images that have haunted me all this time, return in bright bursts of crystal clear warnings. I’m tuning into a threat now just as I did then. I have to trust my instincts.
With every ounce of certainty, I know something about tonight is off. I shiver with fear, questioning if Erebus is here to claim my body.
“Kat, you’re freaking me out. What’s going on?” Alec looks around, then turns my head gently to face him, meeting my eyes as the music pulses around us.
I shake my head. “I don’t know. It could be nothing. I left my necklace at home so my senses are going crazy. I can’t help but feeling like there’s someone, or something, here that doesn’t belong.”
His mouth twists as if trying to understand what my words really mean, and then his face relaxes. “Stay here, okay? I’ll just look around, and then I’ll be back.”
“I can come with you,” I offer.
“Stay. Here,” he says again, this time more forcefully. I can’t read his expression but he seems to be worried too.
“Okay,” I agree, not wanting to waste any time arguing.
Alec ducks through the crowd until he finds Kaleb. Their friendship is something I have yet to figure out. It seems they bonded over magic and their love for sports. Still, I find it interesting that Kaleb’s the first person Alec goes to in a crisis. I watch them closely. Kaleb’s eyebrows shoot up and he nods energetically, following Alec through the crowd and toward the back entrance of the stage.
It’s in this moment, for the first time since I last faced Erebus, that I’m alone and terrified of what’s to come. Suddenly, the energy in the room changes. The music transitions into a moderate guitar beat, bodies adjust, and voices seem to quiet as they wait for the beat to pick up.
It’s as if I’m watching the scene unfold in slow motion.
First, it’s a few faces near me that express bewilderment when their eyes catch something above them. Then, gasps begin to sound around the room. It’s a domino effect as my peers recognize something is happening and begin to shuffle around. I’m too afraid to look up and confront whatever they’re seeing. It’s been almost a year and a half since I’ve faced him—Erebus. And although I knew he would come back eventually, I’m not ready for eventually to be now. Instead, I continue watching the reactions of everyone around me.
Fingers point in the air as other bodies halt, their faces illuminated by the blue and white lights around the room. Panic rips through me as the first shriek ignites.
Forcing my eyes up in the direction of their attention, I see it. All I want is to cave into myself, horrified.
This cannot be happening.
Chapter Three
What I thought were just balls of lights hanging from the gymnasium ceiling are actually layers of shimmering white balloons of various sizes. Layer by layer they’re unleashed like snow, falling slowly, tauntingly, down toward the dance floor.
Giggles and shrieks fill the air as balloons cascade down, and I notice that every single one is attached to the ceiling by string. Some balloons on long strings have fallen to the floor while those with shorter strings remain suspended above our heads. Then it all clicks, and I realize there’s nothing dangerous about any of this.
It’s just a prank.
A bubble of laughter escapes my throat as I take in the scene. The balloons cover the entire dance floor like a thick shroud of fast-falling snowfall, except everything hangs in midair. And some of the balloons are half my size! If this isn’t a winter wonderland, then I don’t know what is.
The grin that pulls on my cheeks could shatter my bones. Suddenly I’m fully aware of my own body and the fact that I must be the only stationary person on this dance floor. I start to move to the techno beat, feeling as light as the latex pockets of air around me. My body reacts to the music and I turn, still unable to completely shake the fear that occupied me just moments ago.
I squeeze my eyes shut as a familiar cloud of darkness hovers over me. Panic forces my every sense to buzz to life as I realize someone is, in fact, occupying my space. My eyes open to find him staring back at me, behind a full black mask. Heat rips through me. As alert and alive as I feel in this moment, I’m unable to control the simple pace of my breaths as I’m locked under his spell.
I remember this feeling.
I squeeze my eyes tightly again as if to shake away the feeling that has suddenly taken over every fiber of my being. I feel myself drowning beneath my racing blood and pounding pulse. Without thinking, my hands search for something to steady myself, and land on a hard, sculpted chest. My hands burn and sizzle at the touch, but I can’t pull them away. It’s like they’re glued to the blistering surface.
I open my eyes again, but refuse to look up at him. I don’t need to look up to know who has such an intense hold over me. It doesn’t help that the owner of the chest I’m grabbing makes no attempt to move; he just stands there, still as a board … until he’s not.
He makes a move to touch me, and my mind screams. Why am I being so stupid? I should run. Why can’t I run?
It’s his smell; its magic is paralyzing, like citrus on a hot summer’s day. His gravitational pull has me, the same as the first day he laid his broody eyes on mine. I can’t bring myself to look up into the face of the man I’ve literally, and fervently, fallen into.
Am I dreaming?
If I’m completely honest with myself, I don’t want to open my eyes or look up into that icicle gaze. If I do, that means it’s real, and if it’s real, that means all these feelings will turn into guilt the moment I lay eyes on him.
He wraps his arms around my waist, pulling me in. I make no move to resist as my forehead grazes his chest, sending wild flutters directly to my core. I’m not sure I can handle the emotions running through me—like rapids at their ultimate velocity. If I look up and meet those piercing blue eyes …
I’m not sure how long I can hold onto him before the anger and guilt seep from me. I need to face him, but I’m scared.
We sway slowly, uncaring that the beat of the music is fast. Everyone around us is jumping and thrashing around wildly, hitting balloons with excitement.
His hand leaves a blaze of fire on my skin as he gently grasps my chin and tilts my head up. If my eyes weren’t pressed so tightly together, I’d be looking into his right now. Just the feel of his breath on my face makes my inhalation skip through the air like rocks to a pond. Never in my life have I feared to want something so much.
“I want to see you,” he whispers.
I’m drowning in heartache, and it’s like he’s just given me a pocket of air to breathe.
I want to see you too.
My eyelids flutter open, and his desirous gaze surfs straight to my core.
He’s okay. He’s here.
“Johnny, I—” My words are choked by emotion, unsure of what I will say to him after all this time. Do I even know this person anymore? Does it matter? I’m with Alec now.
With a single beat, the band switches from the last chord of a techno tune to the first slow song I’ve heard all night. Of course. I should be dancing with Alec, yet here I am in Johnny’s arms. All guilt aside, this is exactly where I want to be.
Our bodies react to one another, synchronizing without any effort, as we move to the impassioned vocals of Angie Miller. The words of the song resonate deeply within me as I listen, trying to drown out the negative thoughts and relishing this moment. But I know—this can’t possibly end well.
Johnny slides his thumb up my cheek, catching my breath on its rise, and brings his face in closer to mine. I know what he’s doing. The number of times I’ve relived our first kiss, and our second, and …
“Stop,” I say painfully. This has gone too far. “I can’t, Johnny.” I break apart from his hold although it tortures me to do so. As much as I’ve hoped and prayed for this, we can’t share a moment like this. “Things have changed,” I murmur, my voice barely a whisper.
His eyes dim, but he nods. “I understand.”
That’s it? No, you don’t! I want to scream.
And just like that, Johnny Pierce is once again under my skin. “You have no clue,” I say with a glare.
I don’t want to risk him leaving again, but what does he expect? He’s been gone for so long. Besides, there’s Alec. I need to be honest with him about my relationship with Alec. Not that he’ll care. He’s the one who left and told me not to wait for him. I waited for him for over a year.
“Why are you here?” I finally ask.
I can’t tell if my words hurt him, but his silence makes me assume that they do. It’s a blow to my own heart. His eyes move back and forth, as if he’s debating what to tell me.
“Just tell me, Johnny. Why are you here?” I can’t keep the hurt out of my voice. If anything, this should tell him that I still care because I can’t possibly say the words
.
“What the hell is going on?” An angry Alec comes storming through a sheet of balloons, punching the last one in his fury to reach us. Kaleb comes up behind him and stands to his left, his eyes darting among the three of us, confusion evident on his face.
My heart continues to race, even after breaking my hold on Johnny. Now it races for a completely different reason. Alec is furious.
It’s a staredown between Alec and Johnny. I imagine Alec is expecting an answer while Johnny contemplates giving him one.
“I’m talking to you, Pierce!” Alec shouts. “What are you doing here?”
Johnny fumes but doesn’t say a word. Instead, his chest expands and contracts in an obvious effort to calm himself down. He glances at me and then back at Alec to phrase his answer. “One year ago,” he says, “I found Erebus. I’ve been hunting him ever since.”
A chill sweeps through the air as Johnny mentions his name. “Are you saying Erebus is here?” I’m unable to keep the shrill tone from my voice.
Alec wraps his arms around me, comforting me and rubbing the chills from my arm. With gut-wrenching observance, I notice Johnny’s face transform from anger to sadness, and then to something else I can’t quite gauge. He looks between us and is silent for another moment before adopting a somber expression.
“He’s in Apollo Beach, yes.” I’m distracted by his serious tone. Does he not care that Alec is rubbing my arm right now? It doesn’t matter, Kat.
“He parked his car at the strip mall down Main Street, but he was gone by the time I got there. I’ve been driving around all day searching for him. I didn’t find him, but after I saw the marquee outside the High School, I knew he’d come here. Erebus loves crowds.”
That he does.
“What is he doing back here?” Alec fumes, and for a second I think he’s talking about Johnny. We all know why Erebus is here.