Avery walked up and started to open her locker. She stopped and looked at her best friend.
“We’re gonna go see a movie tonight. You should come.” She knew Aira probably wouldn’t.
Aira took a breath, closed her locker and looked at Avery. “I kind of just want to sleep.”
Avery nodded her head. “Okay… If you change your mind, we’re not going til eight.”
Aira let out a small smile. “Thanks…I’ll talk to you later, okay?” She paused for a second and then walked away.
Avery watched her as Joshua walked up to her.
“You ready?” he asked.
Avery took a breath and gave him a smile. “Ya.” She closed her locker and they left school.
Jaidas watched Aira get into her truck and drive away. He sat there tapping his thumb on the steering wheel thinking, then turned on his car and pulled out of the parking lot.
Aira drove home. On the way, her thoughts were quiet. All those years of being with Jaidas perhaps made her used to boy trouble, maybe she just felt numb. Expectant.
She reached home. As she walked inside, the raven sat in a tree and watched her. When Aira closed the door, the raven flew away.
Aira laid on her bed playing with her hair and starring up at the ceiling. It felt like he was never real. His presence was so far away. Like days after having a dream, the feeling slowly faded away. She sat up. She didn’t want to fall asleep. She felt empty and uncomfortable.
She got out of her bed and went downstairs.
Maddy was making a salad. “Hey honey, I hope you’re hungry. I’m making your favorite. Lasagna.”
Aira sat down at the table. “I don’t really like lasagna right now.” She leaned back into the chair. You could tell she was feeling uncomfortable in herself.
Maddy looked at Aira stunned. “You don’t like lasagna, right now?”
Aira didn’t say anything, she just looked at her mom.
The front door opened. Barry was home from work. He walked into the kitchen and put his keys and lunch bag onto the counter. “Smells good, babe.” He walked over to Maddy and gave her a kiss.
“How was work?” Maddy asked.
“Another day,” he answered as he looked over at Aira. The room was quiet. He looked back at Maddy and she gave him a smile, then looked at her daughter.
“Hey kiddo,” he spoke to Aira.
“Hey,” Aira looked up.
“You okay?” he asked, concerned.
“Ya, I’m fine.”
“You sure? I kind of know that look.”
Aira shook her head. “There’s no look.”
Barry smiled. “Okay… Well, I’m gonna go have a quick shower.” Barry gave Maddy one more glance then walked out.
Aira pulled at her hair a bit. “Hey Mom,” she looked up, “how much longer?” She seemed ansy.
Maddy stopped what she was doing and looked at the clock. “Actually, it’s ready to come out.” Maddy grabbed some oven mitts and pulled the lasagna out.
Aira couldn’t sit there anymore. She stood up and walked over to her mom. “Do you mind if I just eat upstairs?”
“I thought you didn’t like lasagna.” Maddy said, being playful.
“I don’t, I’m just hungry,” Aira replied, giving her mother a weak smile.
Maddy grabbed a plate out of the cupboard, and handed it to Aira.
“Thanks,” Aira said quietly. She helped herself to some food as her mother stared at her, trying to figure out what was going on.
Aira held the plate of food. “Um…” she spoke, wanting to say something but instead turned around and walked upstairs.
Maddy leaned against the counter. She took a breath and started to make a plate for David.
Israel was out at his sanctuary, sitting on his knees in the dark. The fire wasn’t lit, but the moonlight emanated onto everything around him. He seemed disoriented, gently rocking himself. Slowly, he moved his hands off of his knees and put them onto the ground. Nature was the closest thing to his actual being, and he wanted to feel it. But he felt nothing. There was no relief from the discomfort that was in him. With quieted frustration, Israel stood up, grabbed his kettle, and sat back down pouring the water onto the dirt. He then dug his hands into the dirt making mud, gripping it as if he was trying to get a grip of himself. He pulled off his shirt and started to smear mud all over himself. Then, with the palms of his hands, he covered his eyes and rubbed his hair.
Mary came out from the forest behind Israel’s spot. She walked over and stood above him. He didn’t even realize she was there.
She squatted down, moving her head slightly to the side and watched him. As black as the night can be, it couldn’t stand close in comparison to how black her being was. She had no conscience, no emotion, no empathy. She was remorseless.
Israel lifted his head and looked at her. She knew how encompassed he was by the Darkness, and it thrilled her.
She let out a sly and twisted smile, she knew she held the validity of his heart.
Israel moved his hand onto her chest, then moved his hand down slowly, smearing the mud over her heart and down her low-cut, white tank top. Somehow, unconsciously, he knew her heart was unclean.
Mary sat herself onto her knees, leaned in, and kissed his mouth. Then she stood up, took his hand to pull him up and they walked into the forest together.
Aira had fallen asleep. Nothing of her supper was touched. She was having a nightmare. Sweating, it was almost as if she was trying to get herself out of it. She was frightened.
Then, in the corner of the room, stood the Dragon, the Dark One. His face was still covered by the hood of his long, black trench coat.
He moved his head, looking around for a moment, then made his way over to her. As he began squatting down by her bedside, he pulled off his hood. He was pasty white, but he was beautiful. His eyes were a steel greyish blue. His presence heavy, matured and very intelligent.
He watched her for a moment, curious about her. He slowly pulled himself up and got extremely close to her face, taking his fingers and running them down her hair.
Aira opened her eyes. It was morning. She heard David calling her from outside her door.
“Ya, David… come in.” Aira slowly sat up.
David opened the door. “Mom and Barry went hunting. Would you take me out to get a few things?’ he asked hopeful.
Aira rubbed her eyes. Lack of sleep was starting to give her a headache. “Ya sure... Just give me a few minutes, okay?”
David smiled excited and closed her door.
Aira took a few minutes to pull herself out of bed. There were many thoughts running through her head. She sat with her hand by her mouth, looking over to her window that was open. She started to play with her hair for a moment, then pulled it towards her nose and smelt her hair. She had a strange look on her face. It smelt of very strong sulfur. She got out of bed and walked to her door and opened it. “David?” she hollered to him.
“Ya?” He hollered back.
“I’m gonna have a quick shower first, okay?”
“Okay!”
Aira closed her door and walked over to her bathroom smelling her hair again. She walked in and closed the door.
She had a shower, she must have washed her hair at least six times. When she was done, she got out, wrapped the towel around her, walked out to her room, pulled some clothes out of her dresser and walked back into her bathroom. She got dressed, then brushed her hair slowly looking at herself in the mirror. She looked around, seeming somewhat weary. Aira took a breath, lightly shaking her head, feeling that someone was watching her. It was a lingering feeling after her dream, or what she thought was a dream.
After a few minutes she could hear David calling her from downstairs. Aira grabbed an elastic, pulled her hair together, and she walked out of her room.
<
br /> David watched as she walked down the stairs.
“Aira? Are you okay?” he asked a little worried.
“Ya, David, I’m fine. I must have caught a bug or something.” Aira grabbed her keys off the counter, “Let’s go,” she smiled at David.
They walked out, got into Aira’s truck and drove into town. There was silence the whole way. As they got into town David looked out the window. “Hey, isn’t that Israel’s car?” he asked.
Aira quickly looked as she was driving. She decided to pull around, and as she did, she saw Israel walk out of a store with another girl. The girl grabbed onto Israel’s arm.
She was laughing about something. Aira’s heart fell into her stomach.
“Who’s that?” asked David. Aira didn’t say anything, she just pulled the truck around and drove the other way.
Aira?” David said quietly.
“I don’t know,” Aira answered confused.
Israel and Mary got into his car.
“I want to take you somewhere.” Israel looked at her. Mary smiled.
“Okay? Where are we going?”
“It’s a surprise,” he answered simply. He turned on his car, pulled out of the parking lot and drove to Aira’s spot.
Mary stared at all the scenery like she really enjoyed it, but she didn’t care about it.
He eventually pulled over to the side of the road, parked his car, got out, and went and opened the door for her. He reached out his hand to help her out, grabbed his bag, held onto her hand, and walked her down the trail. They walked down to the mountain-fed water. Mary bit her lip looking at him, smiling, looking completely delighted.
Mary let go of his hand and walked over to the water. She bent down and swirled her fingers in the water looking across to the trees on the other side.
Israel watched her, the look in his eyes that of longing.
She rose to her feet unbuttoning her jeans, and took them off. Leaving her long, low-cut shirt on, she turned around, walked over to the boulders and crawled onto them. She laid her head back and spoke softly. “I want you to draw me,” she said.
Israel didn’t hesitate. He reached into his bag and pulled out his book and a pencil. He walked over to her, sat on the ground, and began to draw. He drew one picture after another. Hours went by. He concentrated, drawing, deeply wanting. He wanted to please her.
Mary stood up, jumped off the rocks and walked towards him. She took his hand and put it over her heart. “I could love you, Israel,” she paused. “Could you love me?” she asked staring into his eyes, knowing she had complete control over him.
“Yes,” Israel answered. He looked at her mouth and leaned in to kiss her. The surge running through his body was intense. She pulled away.
“It’s getting late, we should go,” she uttered, and she started to walk to his car. Israel followed her, leaving the drawings all over the ground. She waited for him to open the car door for her, and as he went to open it, she grabbed his hand. Israel looked at her and she stared into him, becoming a mirror of himself in her eyes. The real him that was locked in by Darkness.
“Do you think I’m beautiful?” she asked.
“You have me,” he answered, taken by what he saw.
Mary ran her finger down his nose and down to his mouth. “But not all of you.” She opened the car door. “I want all of you.” She smiled, then got into the car.
Aira was back at home. She had spent the day taking David around town and even to the forest to find things he needed. She was now curled up in her blanket, her thoughts unable to escape what she had seen. She didn’t want to believe it.
David spent the next day and a half building in his room. There were branches everywhere.
In that time, Aira hadn’t seemed to have moved. She slept and cried, getting up only every once in a while.
Maddy walked into the kitchen where Barry was making a salad. They had returned from a fun weekend away, but instantly realized Aira was still not herself.
“I don’t know what to do,” Maddy said, feeling exhausted.
Barry stopped, walked over to her, and he hugged her with a look of disappointment.
“It’s going to be okay,” he said.
David came out of his room mid Sunday with a backpack on and walked into the kitchen. He just stood there as Maddy and Barry looked at him.
“Hey, honey, what are you doing?” Maddy asked.
David looked at Barry and Barry smiled. “You want to go somewhere?” Barry asked.
David felt happy. “Ya, I want to go and try something out.”
Barry hugged and kissed Maddy, grabbed his keys and said happily, “Well, let’s go.”
Maddy stood there, in shock. She couldn’t believe what had just happened. She smiled with disbelief as they walked out the door. Maddy walked out of the kitchen and upstairs. She made her way to Aira’s room and gently knocked on the door.
“Aira?” she said, softly opening the door, “are you hungry?”
Aira threw the blankets off her face and sat up. Her bed was covered in tissue, her hair had not been brushed in days, and her eyes were red from crying.
Maddy smiled lovingly at her daughter, then walked over and sat down beside her.
“How does this always happen? First Dad, then Jaidas, now him.” Aira paused for a second. “Jerks,” she continued. “I thought he was different, I don’t understand.”
“David told me,” Maddy said. Aira crawled over to her mom and laid her head in her lap.
Maddy moved the hair out of Aira’s face, and looked down at her.
“It took me a long time to realize what your father did had nothing to do with me. Sometimes the way we see things isn’t actually how they are. There’s nothing wrong with you, Aira, and I can guarantee no matter what happens, you will end up exactly where you’re meant to, no matter how confused or lost you may feel sometimes. You are love, Aira, it’s what your entire being is made of. Nothing can change that. And in a world like this, there is nothing greater than love.”
Aira slowly sat up. “I love you, Mom.”
“I love you,” Maddy smiled. “Now let’s do something with this hair of yours and go and get some ice cream.” Maddy walked into Aira’s bathroom, grabbed her brush and an elastic, walked over to Aira and did her hair.
“Okay, there you are. Now put these on and let’s go.” Maddy smiled, threw a pair of jeans and a sweater at her and walked out of Aira’s room.
Aira got off of her bed and got dressed. She took a deep breath and walked downstairs.
“Ready?” Maddy smiled.
“Ya,” she replied, feeling a bit silly. Maddy grabbed her keys.
“Where’s David?”
“He’s out somewhere with Barry.” Maddy smiled.
“Are you serious?”
“I know, I can’t believe it.” They walked out together and closed the door.
Israel was sleeping. There was a knock on his door and his father looked in.
“It’s a beautiful day, you should come help your old man finish the deck.” Israel opened his eyes and looked over at his father.
“Alright… sure, just give me a minute,” Israel replied half asleep.
His father tapped his hand on the door frame. “Okay,” and he walked away.
Israel slowly sat up and put his feet on the floor. He sat at the edge of his bed, rubbed his eyes and got up. He walked over to his chair, grabbed his hoodie and walked out to the back deck. His father was hammering.
“Your mother’s been on my case to get this finished.” Nehemiah handed Israel a hammer. Israel grabbed a piece of wood and started to hammer it in place.
“We haven’t seen much of you lately. I know it hasn’t been that long, but it feels like forever.”
Israel grabbed another nail. Nehemiah watched him and then c
ontinued, “How’s Aira?”
“Aira’s a mess, it would’ve never worked.” Nehemiah was completely taken caught off guard. “Really?” He didn’t know what to say.
Israel was somewhat distracted. “Dad, actually I have somewhere I need to be, can we do this later?”
“Ya, sure son.” Nehemiah stood and watched Israel walk away.
He sat down for a few minutes, then got up and walked into the house. He walked into their bedroom where Abby was. She was sitting on their bed fixing one of his shirts.
“They have him.”
“You worry too much.” Nehemiah shook his head.
“I need you to have another barbecue.”
“We just had a barbecue.”
“Okay, then we need to have a feast.”
“A feast?” Abby smiled at him like he was being ridiculous.
“Abby, something is going on with our son.”
Abby looked at him tentatively, feeling how unsettled he was. “Okay, I feel like cooking anyways.”
The day passed. David had spent the entire day out with Barry.
Aira spent the day with her mom shopping and having a girl’s day.
Israel spent the day with Mary. They had climbed Hope Mountain, and laid at the top together. It was one of those days where everything seemed really, really still.
Night time came and Aira was sitting in the kitchen with her mother when the front door opened. Barry and David walked in to join them.
David was really excited. “Mom! You wouldn’t believe it, I made my own slingshot and Barry taught me how to use it, and it worked perfectly!” David was so proud.
“You made your own slingshot?” Maddy smiled.
“Yes, and he’s quite the story teller too.” Barry rubbed David’s head.
“Are you hungry?” Maddy asked them.
“No way! Barry bought pizza and we had a huge chocolate milkshake!” David replied. And Barry put his head down.
“Traitor,” he mumbled, then smiled.
“Oh really?” Maddy smiled at Barry. “And what happened to our diet?”
Forbidden: Book One of Wild Sky Saga Page 11