“The same thing goes for souls—the dead kind. But they’re really not dead. They’re an energy form, just like us, only without the body. Even though you can’t see them, they’re around all the time. You can’t kill energy. Energy doesn’t go away.”
Goosebumps took over my entire body. I would have sworn there were a hundred pairs of eyes on me. Even with my arms hugging my body, I couldn’t stop the chill. Alyx noticed that, too. Was there anything she didn’t notice?
“These souls can attach themselves to us because of the energy we’re putting forth. We attract them with our vibes, and unless we’ve protected ourselves, they’ll make themselves right at home in our bodies. It happens all the time,” she said knowingly.
I just stared. What could I have said to that?
“Most of the time a person won’t even realize they have an attachment,” Alyx continued “Picture this. If someone is a mean drunk or a woman is PMSing, they could attract a soul with a lower vibration. These entities are everywhere around us, but at a party or a bar, those things are a dime a dozen.”
“But what do these souls have to gain by attaching themselves?” I lowered my voice, in case “they” could hear.
“When they attach, they get to feel our emotions. It’s like an extension of them. If the soul died an addict, for example, then it would find a living addict, or someone who is on the edge of becoming an addict, who is weak and vulnerable, to feed from. If someone feels completely worthless and depressed—”
“Then a depressed soul attaches,” I finished her sentence. “So,” I said, doing my best to process this. “You’re telling me that Seth has this soul attachment thing?”
“I’m pretty sure he does.” Alyx frowned. “Most of the time, the attachments move on when the person gets enough sleep or sobers up or gets happy because there is nothing for them to leech off of anymore. It’s usually not a big deal because there isn’t enough time for the attachment to tie itself to the body.
“But I’ve heard stories of souls who refuse to leave. They like what they’ve found and aren’t willing to give it up. Sometimes the host soul actually likes having the attachment because it validates what they’re thinking. Just like having a private chat room. I’ve even heard of the host dying with the attachment’s hooks still in their soul and the attachment taking them both into another body.” She shook her head hard. “Freakin’ unbelievable.”
Alyx took a few more steps and then stopped walking, her eyes vacant—not looking at me, not looking at anything, really. Or maybe she did. At this point I wouldn’t put anything past her.
“If the attachment gets out of control, though,” she said almost as if reciting the words, “there’s battle that goes on inside the host. Sometimes it’s too much and the host will just go nuts. These are the people doctors tend to lock up because everyone thinks they’re over-the-top schizo, especially when they say they’re hearing voices, but they actually have these souls that are talking to them—the ‘voices in their heads.’”
I hated to admit how much sense it made in Seth’s case, but I still wasn’t ready to buy into it. “This sounds flat-out crazy, you know.”
Alyx rolled her eyes, shaking her head. “I knew you weren’t ready for the truth.”
“I’m wasting my time,” I snapped. “I should have my head examined.”
Alyx turned and headed back to the building. “Yeah, you go ahead and do that.”
I watched her walk off, thoughts whirling around in my head so fast it made me dizzy. Soul attachment. Yeah, right. A totally ludicrous idea.
On the other hand, something major had changed in Seth lately. I couldn’t explain his mood swings. And his eyes. A shiver ran up my spine and exploded in my body. I’d seen something in his eyes that I’m pretty sure had nothing to do with drugs.
“Alyx! Wait!” I jogged to catch up with her. “I’m sorry. I really need to know more about this. Please. Help me.”
She didn’t slow her pace.
“You never answered my question,” I said, taking hold of her arm. She stopped, and I pushed a little on Alyx’s arm to make her face me. “Why doesn’t Seth want me talking to you?”
The tiny hairs on the back of my neck stood up under Alyx’s steady gaze. The blue of her irises seemed darker, grayer, as if reflecting the color of the sky above us. I couldn’t look away even if I wanted to.
“We’re dealing with something big here, and your boyfriend knows that I know about it. And so does the soul that’s attached to him.”
“The other day at the bleachers, before Seth showed up,” I remembered. “You said something about possession. Is that the same thing?”
“Yes and no.” Glancing at her watch, Alyx said, “My parents told me that it’s possible for a person to invite a soul to jump in. Inviting a soul makes the bond much stronger. But it has to be a mutual agreement or else it won’t stick. If it is mutual, and the host is weaker than the attachment, that’s when it can turn into possession.”
The speed of her words picked up. “People don’t understand it’s not a game. A soul is another entity. You invite one in, and it’s an energy with a life force all its own.”
“But why would Seth do that? He was happy!”
Alyx cut me a sidelong glance, raising the ring pierced through her brow. “Really.”
“Yeah. Really.” I snapped back.
Alyx shrugged. “Maybe he wasn’t as happy as you think. Maybe he needed a quick fix.”
“Oh, this is stupid.” I spat out the last word. “He doesn’t even know stuff like this exists.”
“It makes sense, though, doesn’t it?”
“No. No, it doesn’t.” Tears stung my eyes. “Maybe it’s me—maybe he doesn’t want to go out with me anymore.”
Alyx pursed her lips, thinking. “Or it could be that this guest crawling around inside him doesn’t like you.”
“The soul doesn’t like me?” I brushed away the tears. “I don’t have any enemies, alive or dead.”
I was so glad when the bell rang, keeping me from having to hear Alyx’s explanation anymore.
She followed me to my locker and leaned her shoulder against the locker next to mine. At least she stopped talking about the whole attachment thing.
I yanked down on the lock and opened my locker, grabbing my biology book then slammed the door shut. Leaning against my locker, I watched the parade of students walking by.
Alyx nudged me with her elbow, jerking her chin toward a group a little way down the hall.
“Oh.” The book slipped a little from my grip. “Really, Seth?” I whispered, hoping what was left of my heart wouldn’t hear.
“Hey, Danika.” Dirk winked at me as he sauntered by. “Looks like Seth found someone else already.”
Seth had done more than found someone else. He had her backed against the wall, caging her in with his arms. The girl said something to him. My guess? Hey, your old girlfriend is watching us, or something like that, because he didn’t bother uncaging her when he looked at me over his shoulder. Stone freakin’ cold was the kind of look he gave me, and with the smug little smirk that she added to my humiliation, it was just too much.
One step was all I was able to take before Alyx grabbed my arm and yanked me back.
“It won’t do you any good, Dani. That’s not Seth doing that.”
“Then what am I supposed to do?”
“For starters, stop the dumped girlfriend act,” Alyx said. “Get tough.”
“But did you see the way he looked at me?” Turning my back on him was the only way I was going to keep it together. “I don’t know which is worse, Alyx—Seth treating me this way, or some whacked-out soul jumping on his back.”
“Oh, there’s no question which would be worse,” she said quietly. “None at all.”
Grabbing a pen out of her pocket, then grabbing my wrist, she shoved my sleeve up to my elbow and scribbled a phone number onto my skin. “Call me when you’re serious about helping him.”
~ ~ ~
<
br /> Strange that she had not noticed it before. The vines draping the garden wall hung limply, as if bereft, the leaves drooping down to the dirt below. The vibrant hues of the flowers she’d so carefully tended to only weeks ago had faded. The birds were singing a song so sad, she would swear they wanted to die. Even the breeze that brushed against her skin was cooler than it should have been in the midst of summer.
There was no point to life now, not if Maksim turned his back on her. Love’s death had robbed her of all joy. Love had brought her senses alive, had inspired her to see beauty in her existence. Now only dreary grays and blacks remained for her.
The cold... it burrowed its icy fingers into her soul and wouldn’t let go.
She would be left a bitter woman with nothing to live… or die for.
“I will have his love,” she murmured, “or I will die trying.”
~ ~ ~
I look at her through his eyes. I taste her with his lips. He wants to tell her, but how can one explain something such as me? He hopes to save her. She hopes to save him. Fools.
She speaks of forever. She has no idea what forever truly is.
~ Maksim
Chapter 24
The next week passed in a blur. I buried myself in my schoolwork, staying as far from Seth as I could. I had no idea how to handle this. I’d given up on the idea that he didn’t want me anymore, because I’d seen him watch me in the halls, at lunch, and in class… and most of the time, he looked miserable.
But I was also having a hard time accepting Alyx’s explanation about a “simple” soul attachment, let alone this possibly being something bigger. And what exactly did she mean by “bigger”? Did souls come in different sizes? And what had Seth been feeling that could have attracted it?
I just wasn’t sure about anything anymore.
Today, when Seth walked into our lit class, I slouched down. I didn’t want to talk to him. I didn’t want to see what was in his eyes. But at the same time, I missed him so much. I clamped my hand to my chest, pressing down on the void beneath it. It hurt every day, and it was getting worse.
“Hey, I need to talk to you.” Seth’s voice was low and controlled as he slid into the seat next to mine.
I turned my head a little to look at him. His eyes were desperate and his body tense. I wanted to reach out and smooth away the tightness of his jaw and the veins that bulged in his neck, and hold his hand that so tightly gripped the edge of his desk. I wanted to, but I didn’t.
“Will you meet me after school?” he whispered.
When I didn’t answer right away, his knuckles turned white.
“Dani, please? I really need to talk to you. I love you.”
What could he possibly say that would help us get past this? Did he even know what was going on, if that was what was happening? I peered into his bloodshot eyes and sniffed the air—just enough to see if there was any odor of pot or beer on his breath. Nothing. But his eyes were a dead giveaway and what I saw in them planted me firmly in Camp Alyx.
“You can’t have him,” I whispered. “He’s mine.”
Seth eyes clouded and his brows pulled together. “What?”
“You heard me. I’ll meet you out front after school.”
He leaned back and settled into his chair, sliding down a little in his seat, flashing me a small grin.
Despite his slouch and the easy sprawl of his legs, his tension was still there. Whatever part the soul was attached to, right now it didn’t matter because part of him was still my Seth.
# # #
Seth made me wait a long time after school. So long that I thought he had bailed out on me.
Damn this weather. I shivered. Will it ever be warm again? I doubted I would ever shake the chill, not until Seth was better.
I turned around when I heard footsteps behind me. Seth steps were quick, his head down, and his shoulders hunched over.
I met him halfway. Every inch of me missed him, missed his touch. My body craved his arms around me, but I knew that wasn’t going to happen, at least not now. But I wanted to at least touch him and somehow connect, to let him know I was here for him, but when I reached for his arm, he pulled back.
“Listen to me Dani. I need to explain. It’s all so complicated. I don’t even think I can explain.” He looked up at the sky, his eyes searching for something. “I love you. More than you’ll ever know. And I miss you so much. Every day that goes by, this separation,” he gestured between us, “it feels worse and worse. But I can’t be with you. Not now. I’m just not myself.”
“Then when can we be together?”
“I don’t know.” He slowly shook his head. “It’s bad, Dani. There’s a side of me that wants to hurt you—”
My sharp intake of breath made him wince as if I had slapped him.
“And it’s getting harder to control. Being around you is the best thing for me, but at the same time you’re not safe. I’m trying my best to protect you, but I’m totally screwed.”
Hurt me? Part of him wanted to hurt me? His look of utter hopelessness started to undo me, and his next words finished me off.
“I wasn’t messing around when I told you that you have to forget about us. It’s the only way. Please stay away from me. No matter how I might beg you to come back, you need to stay away from me. I am not who you think I am.” Then he whispered, “Not anymore.”
“Seth.” Despite my fear, I started to reach for him, but pulled back. “I think I know what’s going on. I don’t understand it, and I didn’t want to believe it, because it all sounds so crazy to me, but if it is true, we can fight it. Together.”
Seth’s face contorted as if shocked with pain. Then darkness spread like black ink across his eyes. His body tensed, and he straightened up to his full height, his face unreadable granite, chiseled lines cornering his mouth.
And just like that, Seth—my Seth—was gone. I searched his face for any sign of him, but saw nothing. His eyes went dark, as if the light in his eyes had been snuffed out.
“Seth? Seth!” I grabbed his arms. “Talk to me! What is it?”
But he was gone.
No! That soul had no right to take him! I launched my fists against his chest. “Say something, Seth!”
All of my pent-up frustration now released the tears I’d promised myself I wouldn’t cry. My fists pummeled against his chest for a few seconds before his iron grip held them away.
Within his eyes, copper swirled against black. I winced, not at the force of his grip, but at the coldness of his stare and the hate that lined his eyes. The air thickened and wrapped around me, pulsating, leeching me of my strength. I fought against it, and for long, drawn-out seconds, we stared at each other, neither backing down.
Being this close felt like being next to a highly-charged transformer. Something stood between us. Something real… and evil. I focused on his face.
“I know you’re in there, Seth,” I whispered. “I love you so much! Let me help you.”
His grip tightened.
“Mr. Thompson? Miss Parsons? Is there a problem here?”
Ms. Cambridge, our principal, stood a few feet away.
Seth quickly let go of my wrists and threw his hands up in surrender, backing up a few steps. But he didn’t take his eyes off me.
Then I saw it—a momentary flash of fear and pleading. A flash that glowed through the blackness. Seth.
“Seth, I think you need to go home,” the principal suggested.
He responded by turning his back to her and walking away.
“Dani, are you all right? Do you need to talk?” I turned towards her.
“Um, no. It’s okay.” I pulled my cell phone out of my back pocket and pulled up my sleeve. I glanced across the parking lot, watching as Seth climbed into his truck and drove away. I went in the opposite direction, dialing Alyx’s number as I walked. I needed her help. Desperately.
I marvel at this boy’s determination. He refuses to step aside, purposefully blocking my path, but his fear i
s palpable. Time will tell if his fear will strengthen or weaken him. Time that he does not have.
~Maksim
Chapter 25
How could Alyx even think I wasn’t serious about helping Seth? Of course I was. The only problem was that I didn’t really know what she was talking about. I’d never, ever heard of all this stuff about energies and dead people hanging onto living people and I was pretty sure none of my friends had either. I mean, how do the souls even get in? Do they just stand around? Where do they fit? And what did Alyx mean by protection? How do you protect yourself from something you can’t even see?
I wanted to help Seth, but I also needed to learn for myself what this was all about. I wanted to make sure that Alyx knew what she was talking about. This was serious—if Seth did have an “attachment”—and I didn’t want to make any mistakes. Alyx probably thought I was being a dork about this, so I’d gone to the library to do my own research, and what I found about soul attachments led me to the gem store in town.
I’d never been inside Zero Point. I’d driven past the store almost every day and I’d look through the front window out of pure curiosity, but I thought the pretty stones and crystals on display were nothing more than something to hang on my rear-view mirror. But even then, I was never motivated to see them closer—until now.
The moment I stepped inside the shop, I realized that there was more to stone energy than I’d thought. It was a completely different world! For there to be a store this big, with so many different types and sizes of stones, it was obvious people put a lot of faith in them. The front of the shop held mostly jewelry, necklaces, earrings, and rings—not the fashion kind with gold and diamonds sparkling under lights created only for the bling effect. With these, each piece had a definite… purpose. That was the only word to describe what I felt when I dragged my fingers across the necklaces that hung against one of the walls. Even though the stones were crowded together, each one definitely held its own place, almost as if creating a space around itself. They were absolutely beautiful. Perfectly imperfect.
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