Glass Frost

by Liz Dejesus

  Glass Frost

  by Liz DeJesus

  Copyright © Liz DeJesus, 2013

  All Rights Reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without prior written permission of the publisher.

  This e-book is a work of fiction. While references may be made to actual places or events, the names, characters, incidents, and locations within are from the author’s imagination and are not a resemblance to actual living or dead persons, businesses, or events. Any similarity is coincidental.

  Musa Publishing

  633 Edgewood Ave

  Lancaster, OH 43130

  www.MusaPublishing.com

  Issued by Musa Publishing, July 2013

  This e-book is licensed to the original purchaser only. Duplication or distribution via any means is illegal and a violation of International Copyright Law, subject to criminal prosecution and upon conviction, fines and/or imprisonment. No part of this e-book can be reproduced or sold by any person or business without the express permission of the publisher.

  ISBN: 978-1-61937-624-3

  Head Editor: Jeanne De Vita

  Editor: Susan Sipal

  Artist: Kelly Shorten

  Line Editor: Jenny Rarden

  Interior Book Design: Cera Smith

  Dedication

  To my mother, who was the first one to believe in me. To my father, who taught me to never give up. And my Abuelo Rafael, who is still deeply and greatly missed. I love you all so much.

  One

  Terrance was here.

  Bianca took a deep breath, and as she exhaled, her lips trembled. She felt like the last leaf on a bare tree. The breeze could’ve knocked her off her feet. She blinked, wondering if she was hallucinating somehow. She wouldn’t be surprised, especially after everything she had been through in the past few weeks. But no matter how many times she blinked, Terrance was still in front of her.

  Her heart skipped a beat. Love. The agony and ecstasy of it all coursing through her veins.

  “Terrance?” she whispered.

  He smiled as he stepped through the portal. Bianca’s heart skipped a beat. He was as handsome as she remembered him. She gazed into his dark brown eyes, unable to move from her spot. His brown hair grazed his shoulders with a halo of greens and browns as part of the Everafter Forest wove in and out of view behind him.

  A flash of electric blue light blinded her momentarily as the portal closed itself shut. Terrance’s feet touched the bright green grass of her backyard, then in a final flash, the portal vanished behind him.

  Her heightened sense made her aware of everything including the way the grass raised itself back up after he crushed each blade beneath his black shoes. The sky above them was a little overcast, but there was plenty of sunshine breaking through the clouds. The white hydrangeas gently swayed side to side in the warm summer breeze.

  Before she could utter a single syllable, Terrance approached her, closing the gap between them, and he claimed her lips with his. Her heart leapt to her throat. She gasped in surprise, but quickly relaxed and let herself fall into the moment. She stood on the tips of her toes and caressed his cheek as she deepened their kiss. The softness of his lips made her gasp, then cling to him for more as their kiss deepened. She wanted to remember every moment. His tongue lightly brushing against her own. The way he pressed her tightly against him as though never wanting to let her go. How he ran his fingers through her hair. Everything.

  Bianca pulled herself away from him, gasping for breath as her vision swam. She needed a few seconds to compose herself. She half expected to wake up and discover that this was nothing but a cruel dream, a figment of her overactive imagination.

  “Hello,” he said and then gave her a peck on the lips.

  Bianca lifted her head and rested her chin on his chest. “If this is how you say hello in Everafter, then we need to say hello more often.”

  Terrance grinned. “I missed you.”

  “Me too, but…what are you doing here?” As soon as the question left her lips, she regretted it. It wasn’t what she wanted to ask.

  He frowned. “Are you not happy to see me?”

  “I’m sorry. I’m just surprised, that’s all. I never thought I’d see you again.” She sighed and held him tighter. “How is this possible? How did you find me?” She searched Terrance’s face for an answer, for any clues that he might be an enemy in disguise or something she might have accidentally conjured with her magic.

  “My father saw how restless I was since we last saw each other. I refused to tell him what was wrong, but after several days, he refused to give up. Eventually, I had no choice but to tell him about you and what happened. He offered to help me find you.”

  “How?”

  “A certain witch owed him a favor. It took him a long time to find her; otherwise, I would’ve been here much sooner.”

  “This is insane. I can’t believe you went through all that trouble just for me.”

  He’s really here.

  She closed her eyes and took in the smell of him. Earth. Ozone. A hint of sweat. Terrance. Her Terrance. The last time they had been together, it had been to say goodbye, neither of them knowing if they would ever see each other again.

  “Come with me,” he whispered into her ear.

  Terrance’s warm breath against Bianca’s skin sent a tingle of delight through her. She opened her eyes and gazed into his dark-brown ones. He meant every word he spoke. His intentions were crystal clear. He was never one to mince words; it was one of the things she liked about him.

  Her throat went dry. She opened her mouth to speak, but all she could do was open and close her lips like a fish out of water.

  He took a deep breath and let out a shaky chuckle. “I know, I know. It’s bloody insane and impulsive, but I can’t stop thinking about you. It’s quite maddening.”

  Bianca nodded. She felt the exact same way. She found it difficult to concentrate on simple tasks when all she could see was his face everywhere she went. She took a deep breath to compose herself. “I just, I need a moment to think.”

  He extended his hand out to her and then pulled it away. Terrance seemed almost afraid of what he was going to say next.

  “What? What’s wrong?” she asked.

  He sighed and said, “There is another reason I’ve come to fetch you. Queen Felicia, Ferdinand’s mother, wishes to speak to you about a very delicate situation. She’s heard of your powers and hopes you will be able to help.”

  Bianca hesitated for a moment before giving him an answer. She studied him and then asked, “Help with what?”

  He watched her intently, earnestly, before he answered in a hesitant tone, “I cannot say. I truly do not know.”

  Oh my God. Oh my God. What do I do? Definitely can’t tell my parents about what Terrance just said. There’s no way they’d let me go to Everafter if they knew I was going to dive head first into danger…again.

  She tried to clear her thoughts, but no matter what she did, all she saw was Terrance’s handsome face. Bianca sighed. It was hopeless. She was in love. Whatever it was, it was worth any danger simply to be with him. She turned and gave him a single nod.

  He beamed. She didn’t know how he did it, but he smiled with his whole body. His chest was broader, his posture perfectly erect, and even his clothes seemed to glow.

  “I have to tell my parents, obviously. And I have to pack a few things,” she explained.

  “Yes, yes, of course,” he said, nodding rapidly.

  I can’t believe I’m actually going to do this. What if they say no? What do I do? Go anyway? Can I do it? Oh God, what do I do?

&nbs
p; Bianca held his hand and guided him inside her home. He looked as though he had just stepped out of a history book, dressed as he was from the Victorian Era. He wore a black velvet tailcoat and matching pants paired perfectly with a crisp white shirt, a black double-breasted vest, and a silk jacquard tie. He walked carefully, as though the floor itself were made of glass.

  “Are you all right?” she asked and reached for his hand.

  Terrance studied his surroundings and replied, “I expected things to be different here, but not this.” He picked up the toaster and peered into it as though it contained all of the secrets of the universe within its reflective surface. He set it down and followed Bianca into the living room.

  “Bad different?”

  “No, not bad at all. Simply…strange,” he admitted.

  Bianca understood all too well. She’d felt the same way when she was in Everafter a few weeks ago. Except that it was the simplicity that surprised her. Especially their lack of toilets. That was something she could never ever get used to.

  “Mom? Dad?” she called out from the bottom of the stairs.

  “Yeah?” her mother said from their bedroom upstairs.

  “Can you come downstairs, please?”

  Bianca turned to Terrance and asked, “Where’s Prince Ferdinand?”

  Terrance was the prince’s best friend and servant.

  “Home. Working on his studies. His parents weren’t very pleased when he ran off the way he did without telling anyone.”

  “Awww. Poor guy.”

  At the sound of footsteps thudding down the stairs, Bianca turned to face her parents. Her mother’s gaze traveled to Terrance and her eyebrows shot up. David frowned, but said nothing. Based on the sour expression on her father’s face, Bianca could only guess at what he was thinking.

  I’m dead. I’m dead. This is never ever going to work. Ever…ever…I’m dead.

  “Well, hello,” Rose said.

  “Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Frost,” Terrance said with a polite nod and a short bow to each parent.

  “Hello.” David extended his hand and gave him a handshake.

  “Mom, Dad.” Bianca nervously wrung her fingers. “Terrance has invited me to go to Everafter. Apparently, the queen wants to meet me.”

  “Really?” Rose’s voice took on a slightly higher pitch than normal. It was the voice that she used when someone was making an outrageous request. Her eyebrows shot up so high that Bianca feared they would become a permanent part of her hairline. Rose blinked furiously and gave Bianca the biggest fake smile she had ever seen.

  Bianca could almost see the “no” forming on her mom’s lips. She preferred to have her parents’ permission, but would run away with Terrance if she had to. And there was no way that she would bring up the “delicate situation” Queen Felicia wished to discuss with her.

  Oh God, please let it be something I can handle.

  “Yes,” Terrance replied.

  “I don’t know. You’re not exactly in the same area code,” David said.

  “Terrance, do you mean to take our only daughter back to Everafter?” Rose asked.

  “I do, Mrs. Frost. She will be with me in Prince Ferdinand’s castle. She will be safe, that I can guarantee,” Terrance promised.

  His Adam’s apple moved up and down as he swallowed. She tried not to grin too much, but it was cute to see him actually nervous for once. In their short time together in Everafter, he’d always seemed so sure of himself. Terrance seemed more afraid of her mother…probably because he’d watched her set Lenore’s castle on fire. That would be enough to give anyone pause.

  “Are we invited?” Rose asked.

  “I’m sure you are more than welcome to accompany Bianca,” Terrance replied.

  David cleared his throat. People always said she was a girl version of her father. They both had the same jet black hair, ice blue eyes, and stubborn chin. The only thing Bianca inherited from her mother was the pale alabaster skin and sense of humor. “I hate to interrupt this very strange conversation, but I’m in no hurry to return to Everafter,” he said. “The last time I was there…I was a bear. And I didn’t mean for that to rhyme. Anyway, ten years of Everafter is enough for me.”

  Rose sighed and patted David on the shoulder. Bianca knew her mother well enough that she wasn’t going to do anything to make her father uncomfortable.

  “Mom…I hate to bring it up…” Bianca started to say.

  “Don’t even…” Rose shook her head.

  “But I went to Everafter and rescued you and found Dad. I mean, really? You can’t trust me enough to go somewhere for a couple of weeks and then come back home in one piece?”

  “Not fair. You can’t say things like that and expect me to make a rational decision when what I really want to say is hell no.”

  “Please, please, please,” Bianca begged.

  Rose took several deep breaths and looked at her husband for an answer. He shrugged. She massaged her temples and stared off into space.

  “You decide,” she finally said to David.

  He raised his hands up in mock surrender. “Rose, I don’t know how to raise a teenager. If she were seven and asked me for a pony, I’d know exactly what to say and do. I’d go to Walmart and buy a My Little Pony and call it a day. But this?” He pointed to Bianca and Terrance. “I’m still trying to get used to sleeping on a bed.”

  “Damn it,” Rose hissed. She pinched the bridge of her nose, as if that would somehow help.

  “Mom…please,” Bianca begged.

  “Gah!” she shouted as she pulled on the roots of her red hair. “Fine,” she spat.

  Which lead Bianca to believe that maybe it wasn’t fine.

  “Fine, fine, fine.” Rose waved her arms around, as though trying to clear the room of a horde of buzzing flies. When her arms stopped moving, she pointed her index finger at Bianca’s chest.

  For a moment, Bianca thought Rose was going to shoot fire out of her finger. She could already imagine her charred remains as a neat little pile of blackened ashes on the floor. Thankfully, that didn’t happen.

  “But listen to me and listen to me carefully,” Rose whispered.

  Bianca locked her gaze with her mother’s fiery emerald green eyes. She always worried that one of these days, her mother would be angry enough to swallow her soul. So she tried very hard to stay on her good side.

  “You can go, but on one condition,” Rose said.

  “Okay…”

  “Ming has to go with you.”

  Bianca and Ming had been best friends since kindergarten. It was instantaneous. They’d smiled at each other through matching gaps in their missing front teeth and had been attached to the hip ever since.

  “Seriously?”

  “Do I look not serious to you?” Rose asked as she crossed her arms over her chest. “I trust her not to get carried away and retain a bit of sanity.”

  “Okay. I’ll call Ming and ask her.”

  Bianca pulled her cell phone out of her back pocket and dialed.

  “Hello?” Ming’s cheerful voice answered on the first ring.

  “Ming, it’s me.”

  “B! What’s up?”

  “I’m spending the rest of my summer with Terrance, and I’m also going to meet the queen of Everafter,” Bianca explained.

  “What?” Ming shrieked.

  “Yeah.”

  Ming groaned. Bianca heard her flop on her bed and imagined Ming in her every-shade-of-pink-imaginable room. “What am I supposed to do for the next two weeks?”

  Bianca went into the kitchen for some privacy. She could tell that her friend was having a minor panic attack, probably twirling her thick black hair around her fingers.

  “Actually, I was hoping you could help me out. Mom says I can go but only if you come, too.”

  Silence.

  “Hello?” Bianca said.

  “I’m sorry; I was lost in thought there for a moment. You mean to tell me that you need me to be the third wheel and on top of that
go to a place that is the exact opposite of Disney World? May I remind you that we almost died the last time we went to Crazy Cuckoo Land?”

  “Please,” Bianca begged. “Come on. It’ll give you a chance to see the prince again.” Bianca dangled that imaginary carrot in front of Ming. The last time they were in Everafter, Prince Ferdinand and Ming had hit it off, but there hadn’t been enough time for them to see if their feelings for each other were in fact real.

  “I don’t know, B. It’s just so complicated right now. I don’t know if it would even work between us. I mean…I’m hesitant about the whole thing because we live in two completely different worlds…literally,” Ming said.

  “You never know until you give it a try.” In case that didn’t work, she added, “I have three hundred dollars in my checking account. I will buy you anything you want at the mall.”

  Ming sighed.

  “Hello?” Bianca whispered in a small voice. This was probably the lowest point, paying her friend to tag along to a place with no zip code.

  “All right. I’ll go, but only for a few days. I don’t want my mom to be alone the rest of the summer. I’ll see you in half an hour. You’re lucky that part of me wants to see the prince again.”

  “Yes! Thank you, Ming! I love you always and forever.” Bianca did a quick happy dance, unable to keep her joy bottled inside. She smiled so hard her cheeks hurt. She couldn’t remember the last time she had been that happy.

  “If I get turned into a frog or something while we’re over there, I’m gonna kill you.”

  “Fine.”

  “Just as long as we understand each other.”

  “Loud and clear.”

  “The things I do for you, B.”

  “I know.”

  “See you soon,” Ming said.

  Bianca returned to the living room. Her mom arched an eyebrow and waited.

  “She said yes.” Bianca did her best to hide her grin.

  Rose sighed and said, “The moment…the second that there is trouble, you come home. Don’t get involved. Understand?”

  Bianca nodded so fast, she thought her head was going to pop off her shoulders. “I understand.”

  Rose turned her attention to Terrance, who immediately straightened and waited for her to speak.