In the end, I spent an hour talking to them. When I turned towards the direction of the cemetery’s entrance, about to start my walk home, I felt a distinct presence around me. I don’t know why I felt this way, but strangely enough, I wasn’t even a bit alarmed by it. I somehow felt comforted and secured by the aura. I was now carefully contemplating the idea of my parents being here with me, literally watching me. I turned around to glance at their headstone and smiled. Once again, I started trekking the walk home. I still felt that unusual presence until I was a short distance away from the cemetery’s vicinity.
I arrived home approximately twenty minutes later. I still had time to relax a bit so I headed to the kitchen where I knew Nana would be. We spent time talking about my plans this evening. I invited her to come with us for the nth time. I’m sure my friends wouldn’t mind since they all loved her, but she dismissed me with a flick of her hand, ordering me to have fun.
Time was ticking slowly so I decided to take a long bath before getting ready for dinner. I was happy with what I chose for tonight. I wore a dark blue, short-sleeved tunic with white, miniature tribal prints scattered at the hem and neckline. It was fitted around the bust area and hung loosely all the way down to my derriere, covering my butt. I sported black leggings under it and have my four-inch, light brown ankle boots on. I decided to curl my hair a little and let it drop to my back. I debated whether to put make-up on and decided to apply dark-colored eye shadow and red lipstick.
Nick picked me up a few minutes later, and we headed to La Bella’s restaurant together. It was a small Italian restaurant in Rattford Cliffs, famous for its warm and welcoming ambience. By the time we arrived, Anne, Jessica, and Sandra were already waiting for us. A small banner with the words “Happy 18th, Skylar Matthews!” written in black ink was taped to the wall behind our table. I smiled at the sweet gesture and hugged everyone at the table, saying my thanks as I gave each one of them a peck on the cheek.
Like Anne, Sandra Anderson, a petite girl with shoulder length blonde hair, was a straight-A student. However, she was a timid girl, not at all like Anne, who was animated almost all the time. Jessica Carter, on the otherhand, was like Nick in some way. She was one of the cheerleaders in our school and was popular with the guys. She had that long blonde hair and sapphire eyes that boys would die for. Again, the sight of us five, sitting and enjoying each other’s company in a single table was unusual.
The entire evening was pleasant. We were already deciding on what to order for dessert when I suddenly felt that odd presence again. This time, though, it was growing stronger as if it was slowly coming towards me. Just then the door of the restaurant opened. I couldn’t help turning my head to that direction. In came two people. A tall and lean guy with long, dark-brown hair entered, followed by a slightly shorter, blonde-haired girl. The guy looked like he was about my age, and I don’t know why, but he looks really familiar. He seemed to scan the room like he was looking for something.
Then, as he was slowly moving his gaze in my direction, I felt my heart start beating fast. Silver-grey eyes locked on blue-green… and I immediately felt weightless. I just stared back at him and was about to smile when I suddenly saw anger in his eyes. The shock of it made me recall something. Silver-grey eyes. Long, dark-brown hair. He was in that dream. My dream. But it couldn’t be. That boy from my dream looked at me with caring and concerned eyes. This one, on the other hand, was trying to shoot bolts of fury towards me, and for no apparent reason, too. I felt my spirits sink, making me miserable for no explainable reason as cold, dark grey orbs continued on darting shots of obvious rage at me.
Chapter 2 - Disturbing Presence
That uneasiness continued on throughout the rest of the evening, even if they were sat on the farthest side from our table. I couldn’t get his dark stare off my head or the lonely unexplainable feeling that engulfed me because of it. I feigned interest on the series of conversation at our table, but I couldn’t fully concentrate on anything but him…and his show of resentment. I tried to think of reasons for it.
Maybe I was just being paranoid, thinking that it was directed at me. Perhaps it was for the person behind me. I shrugged. Maybe that was it. Then all that’s left is the reason for my mysterious unhappiness. I was still bothered by it when the time came for everyone to say their goodbyes. I didn’t see the boy and his companion on our way out of the restaurant. Yes, I was totally convinced that he wasn’t channeling his anger at me. He couldn’t have. We don’t even know each other.
The next day at school was uneventful. Or so I thought. Nick, Anne, and I all went on with our normal routines. Nick headed to Anne’s first before picking me up, and we all drove to school together. We were happily chatting beside our lockers when that same disturbing and strong presence bothered me again. I turned to the direction where I felt the aura from. That was when a sudden wave of murmurs flooded the hallway, interrupting the conversation between Nick and Anne. They both turned to the direction where I, and everyone else, was already looking at. The most unexpected person I anticipated to see on Masonville High was here.
He was casually walking through the school corridor with confident strides, unmindful of the hushed whispers that surrounded him. He was magnificent. The dark leather jacket, the teal-colored shirt he had under that, the washed-out pants he sported, and the black Chuck Taylors completely suited his badass aura. But the clothes he wore—and how great they look on him—were no match for the exquisiteness of his face. He was blessed with straight, dark-brown hair that reached the length of his chin, high arched brow, deep-set silver-grey eyes, celestial nose, and lips to die for.
I just gawked at him, thinking he would just pass me and my friends. When he stopped a few feet in front of us, Nick and Anne stiffened on either side of me. My mouth dropped open when he turned his eyes on me, amusement clear on his eyes before he shifted back to that fuming stare. I wasn’t sure if I just imagined the amused expression I saw there, but I was now certain that he was targeting those blazing silver gawps at me. Nick and Anne must have noticed him glaring at me, because their heads both turned back and forth between the two of us. It was like a staring contest to which he lost. He turned back to his confident walking, heading towards the direction of the Principal’s office.
Nick was the first to recover. “What the hell, Sky? Who was that dude?” He said, his voice filled with contempt. He didn’t bother looking at me while he said that and was busy staring at the strange boy’s retreating back, probably trying to bore a hole on it. Nick was like that. He was extremely protective of Anne and I, always ready to pounce on anyone who would want to hurt us in any way. This was my first time seeing him react like this, though, since I was particularly civil with everyone at school.
“Skylar?” Anne called, slightly nudging my right shoulder. “Are you okay?” She asked in a concerned voice. It took my brain a minute to register what she was asking.
“What? Oh,” I said, blinking. “Yes, Anne. I’m perfectly fine,” I muttered while I shifted my bag on my shoulder.
“Who was that anyway? He acted like he knows you,” She asked, a trace of concern still ringing in her voice.
“Uhm… I really don’t know,” I managed to say, quickly searching my brain for the right answers. “I’ve never seen him before,” I lied. Anne just looked at me skeptically, probably deciding if she was going to believe what I just said. Damn, this girl really knows me. The bell suddenly rang, saving me from more questions. She just shrugged and grabbed my hand, leading me to our first class of the day—Physics. I turned to wave at Nick. The three of us don’t always share the same classes. Anne and I have the same Physics and Calculus class while Nick shared Gym and Social Studies classes with me.
The Physics room was already fully occupied except for three front row seats. Mr. Burns, our Physics teacher, wasn’t there yet. So Anne and I hurried to two of the seats. I was barely able to settle on my seat when that annoying aura appeared again.
When Mr. Burns
appeared, he wasn’t alone. Behind him was that badass guy with the dark stares. Mr. Burns settled the book he was carrying on his table before turning to the class.
“Okay. Settle down, children,” He said, scanning the room through his eyeglasses. “We have a transferee student joining us today.” He turned to the guy and cocked his head to the side, signaling him to introduce himself.
“Name’s Adrien. Adrien Fields. Nice to meet you all,” He said in his deep velvety voice, smiling to the class. I heard the girl’s squirm in their seats, probably talking about the gorgeous guy in front of the class. Again, he didn’t seem to mind them talking about him. He just let his gaze slide the room, clearly looking for an empty seat. When he drew his gaze to me, he didn’t bother hiding the anger that seemed to automatically plant itself there whenever he looked at me. What is it with this guy? Seriously.
But despite the annoyance that was now bubbling up inside me, I still felt my heart beat at a rapid pace at that look. He did something different this time, though. He tried to hide his anger and settled with a flat, non-caring expression and sauntered over to my side to where the only vacant seat in the room was.
“Now that that’s settled,” Mr. Burns started. “Let’s go about the discussion on static electricity.” He started walking to the back of his desk, pulling out a small box from the drawer. “Go on. Pass this around and partner up with the person sitting to your left.” When he said that, I groaned. Great! Now comes the fun part. When the box was passed to me, I slipped my hand inside and picked out a pink balloon with a string wrapped around it. I was still looking at it when it was suddenly snatched from my hand. I turned to glare at him and was about to say something when he started blowing on the balloon. I just blinked. Mr. Burns hasn’t even given out any instructions yet, and he was already fooling around.
When he felt me blankly staring at him, he turned his eyes to look at me. Wow. His eyes were a deeper shade of silver than grey. They were truly amazing and annoying at the same time. Because just that simple, harmless stare set my heart, which was already beating way too fast, into a galloping speed.
“Static electricity. I’ve done this before.” He stated in a matter-of-fact tone as he removed the balloon and tied it with the string. He held it out for me to hold, and I eagerly and stupidly held on to it like a child. I gazed back at him and caught him staring at me, too, an amused expression in his eyes before he immediately masked it with a vacant one. I must be imagining again.
“Ms. Matthews, since you already seem to know how this small activity’s going to work, please let Mr. Fields hold the balloon.” He looked at me fondly, a teasing tone clear in his voice. I blushed. “Play nice now,” He winked at me and turned back to check how everyone else was doing. I instantly gave my ‘partner’ a death glare to which he only returned with a muffled laugh, turning it into a cough instead. He turned away from me then, pulling the balloon’s string at the same time. Before he turned, I was so certain of the entertained expression I saw on his face this time. Why you little…
“Excuse me.” He said suddenly as he placed the balloon on the side of my head. I immediately pushed it away, thinking he was up to something again.
“What are you doing?” I whispered, not wanting to catch Mr. Burns’ attention once again. I couldn’t hide the annoyance from my voice anymore.
He just shrugged and said, “Physics,” as if that explained everything. Without warning, he placed the balloon on the side of my head again and slightly rubbed it against my hair. I immediately grabbed hold of his hand to stop him.
All of a sudden, a little current ran through my hand from where I touched him. I instantly withdrew my hand as if it was seared. But I did a stupid thing again by risking looking up at him. The expression he wore mirrored my own. His dark silver eyes appeared puzzled. Then, just as swift as that bewildering look surfaced, it also vanished right away, only to be replaced with a hardened expression. He dropped the hand which was holding the balloon to my head and turned to face the front of the room, probably intent on ignoring me.
I was really irritated this time. I didn’t even know him! When I turned to face the front of the room, mimicking his action, the string of the balloon hit the side of my face. That’s when I realized that the pink balloon was now sticking, on its own, to the side of my head. I couldn’t help myself. I laughed, immediately covering my mouth before Mr. Burns calls on me again. I sneaked a glance in his direction and saw a smile threatening to escape his lips. He was still staring at nothing at the front of the room.
Before I could stop myself, I grabbed the balloon and directly started rubbing it on his hair. I hurriedly turned back to face the front of the room after doing that. I heard him snickering silently, but I didn’t look at him right after that again.
By the time the bell rang, I already had all my things in my bag. I was waiting for Anne to finish fixing her things when I noticed someone standing in front of me. I looked up to see him staring down at me. I raised my eyebrows at him, ignoring the fast beating of my heart.
“Adrien Fields,” He sighed and stretched out his hand to me. I stared at how his jaw was clenched and how his eyes seemed to be uncertain. What a weird guy.
“Skylar Matthews,” I replied, shaking his hand very briefly before instantly dropping it because of the current I felt at that small friendly action. He just nodded and turned to leave the room, and I ended up staring at his back, completely bemused. He was such a bizarre dude.
After that odd incident in Physics class, I concluded that my luck was finally running out. Apparently, Dagger Eyes was in every one of my classes, and we spent each of them in a closed room together, except in gym class because Mr. York, our Gym teacher, decided to divide the class into two groups. He was out in the field handling all the guys while the girls were left with Ms. Thomas, the assistant gym teacher.
By the time I arrived home, my head was hurting so bad that I was worried about developing a migraine. I immediately went to my room, dropped my things on the study table, kicked my boots off, and dove for the bed, not bothering with a change of clothes. Before I know it, I was already fast asleep.
She was laughing so hard. It was the first time I heard her laugh like that for a very long time. He must have said something hilarious, because only he had the ability to make her laugh like that. I gazed at the two perfectly loved up couple in front of me. He was feeding her grapes, and she flicked his nose, an affectionate gesture she only did to the two of us.
We were out picnicking on a field somewhere. It was bright and sunny today. Celine turned to look at me and gave me her sweetest smile. She lifted her hand to me and cupped my face with it.
“I love you, my Angel. Stay strong.” She said, her eyes growing misty with tears building up inside them. She bent her head down and kissed my forehead. I just stared at her, confused.
Nicholas ruffled my hair, so I turned to him. He smiled as he looked into my eyes, his own dark blue showing all the affection he held for me.
Then I saw something blue moving above us. I bent my head skywards to see what it was. It was a beautiful tree that looked like marble, blue and green was scattered everywhere on it. Even the leaves had the same color. The entire tree sparkled as the wind hurtled past it.
Just then, I felt my eyelids grow heavy, and I yawned out loud. My dad just laughed and placed both his hands under my arms, lifting me to him like I weighed nothing. I must have weighed nothing because I felt small in his arms. I felt him kiss the top of my head before I finally succumbed to unconsciousness.
I woke up with tears streaming down my face. I lifted my hand to wipe them and curled myself to a fetal position afterwards. God, I miss them so much. I now remember why the masterpiece hanging on the wall behind me was extremely special. It reminded me of my parents. It was the first time I had that dream since I was 14 years old, exactly on the night when my parents died on that car accident. Somehow, the words my mom said stuck to me. I knew it was a coincidence when she sa
id them a few years back, but now I wasn’t really sure.
I kept on hugging my bed covers tightly, calming the sobs that still kept on coming. Then I felt a soothing presence surround me. It had the same aura as the previous ones, like it was right there with me, actually touching and enveloping me, trying to appease me. I instantly felt at peace and was drifting back to sleep much faster than I expected.
When I opened my eyes again, the sun was beating through the windows. I turned to my side and grabbed hold of my clock. It was almost noon. I stretched out before climbing out of bed. I went straight to the bathroom, fully planning on taking a long and relaxing bath. When I was about to undress, I realized that I still had my clothes on from yesterday. I sighed. I really need to stop sleeping with my school clothes on. I continued undressing as I waited for the bath tub to fill up with water. I picked up my hair stick from the side of the sink and thoroughly concentrated on twisting my long hair into a bun, pinning the stick in place. When I was done with that little chore, I slowly stepped into the tub and rested my head on the side of the now warm fiber glass surface. I took my time soaking there and wasn’t really planning on leaving yet when Nana knocked on the bathroom door, calling out my name.
Rebirth: The Awakening Of A Witch Page 2