by Tricia Barr
My mental alarm was saying, Turn back! Run! Retake the course next semester, just get away! I almost listened. I looked over my shoulder to the door, but the professor had just entered and closed the door behind him. It was too late.
I took a deep breath and continued forward to take my seat beside Mr. Tall, Dark and Mysterious.
“Good morning,” he greeted.
“Morning,” I said curtly with a half smile, trying to avoid his gaze as I took my notebook out of my backpack.
I could feel him looking at me. I needed to get a good look at him, but I couldn’t do it with him looking at me. I had to rule out the possibility that he was just an extremely powerful ghost masquerading as a living person.
“How’s your first week of classes going?” Killian asked, pushing past the cold shoulder I was giving him.
I sighed and allowed myself to meet his eyes. Oh wow, he was handsome. Gorgeous. Hot. Smoldering! And every other word for a guy that is, by all accounts, physically perfect. Why did he have to be so ominous? If I hadn’t dreamt about him, and he didn’t give off such a dangerous vibe, I could so easily crush on him. A face like his is a face you fall for, hard.
“Good,” I answered. I didn’t know what else to say. Small talk wasn’t my area of expertise. Not only did I have a severe lack of social skills, but I was also struggling not to drool over him.
It apparently wasn’t working, because I had now been staring at him for too long in a silence that was quickly becoming uncomfortable. I had to say something else.
“Uh, how’s yours?” I asked.
“So far, really interesting,” he said, regarding me as if my staring hadn’t weirded him out at all. “I’ve been away for a long time, and it’s really nice to reconnect with people.”
“Oh? Where have you been?” I asked, genuinely interested.
“I was away on duty,” he answered vaguely.
“On duty? Oh, so you were in the military,” I guessed. Of course, he was a military guy. You don’t get those biceps from flipping burgers. My dreams had the occupation right, just the wrong century. “How long did you serve?”
“I’ve lost count,” he said with a small laugh. “But it felt like centuries.”
I wanted to ask more, but the class started, and I lost my chance.
I still wasn’t ready to rule out completely that Killian was a ghost. I needed to touch him to really make sure. I needed to feel that he was as solid as he looked. Skin and warmth are things that you can’t fake, no matter how powerful you are. But how was I going to manage touching him without coming off like a freak? What if I pretend to trip when class is over and grab his shoulder to catch myself? That would be normal enough. Then I would only look like a klutz rather than some kind of pervert. Eh, knowing my luck, I would trip and land flat on my face.
Like the universe had heard my internal quandary, Killian dropped his pen, and it rolled onto the floor between us. I saw Killian reach for it and took my chance.
“Oh, let me help you,” I said, bending over to reach for it.
Our hands reached the fallen pen at the same time, our knuckles brushing up against each other. Yep, he was solid alright. And warm. So wonderfully warm.
We looked at each other as our hands touched, our faces only inches away. I could feel his hot breath on my face, could smell the sweet spice of his scent. Gosh, is that cologne or just him? His gray eyes were locked on mine, and for a moment, I glimpsed a deep sadness there. That sorrow was so compelling that it squeezed my heart.
Killian broke our eye contact and physical contact, picked up the pen and sat back in his chair, continuing taking notes like nothing happened. Like we didn’t just have a moment. A moment that really left me feeling confused. A moment that left me wanting more.
***
The class was over before I knew it. Our homework assignment was to label a diagram of the major internal organs of the human body and write out the functions of each organ on the back. While it looked like something out of a somewhat disturbing children’s coloring book, there were already some organs whose functions I didn’t know. And if the professor had gone over them in class, I missed it. My attention was…elsewhere.
“Are you meeting your friend today?” Killian asked, standing by the table as the room emptied. “We could work on the assignment together if you’re free.”
I didn’t answer right away. Trixie had texted me before class to let me know she would be an hour late to meet for lunch. So technically, I had nothing to do for the next hour. While I had scratched one of my theories off the list, I wasn’t ready to place my trust in Killian just yet. And yet, it was just homework, in the middle of the day. What was the harm in that?
I shrugged. “Okay, sure. My friend is going to be late, so I can spare some time.”
“Cool,” he said, smiling.
We walked to the union and found a quiet table outside the food court. For Seattle, it was a beautiful day to be outside. Mostly sunny and not terribly cold. Pretty much any day that wasn’t wet was terrific in my opinion.
This might be good. Getting to know Killian out in the open, with lots of witnesses, might help solve the mystery that he was to me. With so many people around, I felt more comfortable. And now that we weren’t in class, I could ask him more questions without getting interrupted by lectures.
Killian took out his homework, and I followed his lead. We looked at the diagram together, naming off each organ. Identifying them was the easy part. Remembering what each of them did was the tricky part.
“Does the spleen even do anything?” I asked, scratching my head as I looked down at the little peanut-shaped organ in the chest of the sketched man on the paper. “Or is it like the appendix, where it had a function at one point, but no one has a clue what that was anymore?”
Killian laughed. “Actually, it has a very important function. It helps to filter your blood. Old blood cells get recycled there, and white blood cells and platelets are stored there.”
“Wow, you really know your stuff,” I said, scribbling down every single word.
“Not me, Google,” he said, revealing his smart phone in his lap.
I laughed. “Ah, you almost had me fooled.”
“But I do know some things,” he said. “Did you know the ancient Egyptians believed that the heart was the home of your soul? That it was responsible for all your thoughts and feelings. After all, your heart races when you’re scared, or thuds when you’re excited. It even warms your blood when you’re attracted to someone.” Our eyes met when he said that last sentence and held there for a moment. Could he see the blush in my cheeks right now? Was it that obvious, the effect he had on me?
I looked away, ignoring the sound of my own heart galloping in my chest. “If they thought the soul was in the heart, what did they think of the brain?”
“They thought it was useless,” he said. “They put the heart in its own jar, like the other organs they believed had value, and threw the brain away.”
I snickered. “For a society that was able to build massive pyramids, they weren’t too smart, were they?”
“I don’t know,” he said. “Maybe they were on to something. I always let my heart make my decisions for me.”
Is this guy for real?
“Yeah, and how has that worked out for you?” I asked, pretending I wasn’t swooning on the inside.
“I’m not sure yet,” he said. “I’ll let you know.”
We shared another long look. What are you doing here, Killian? What do you want with me? Or are you just oblivious to all this? Would you think I was crazy if I asked the question I really wanted to ask?
“Have we…met somewhere before?” I asked. “You just seem so familiar to me.”
He looked at me, biting his sexy lower lip, like he was debating how to respond. I was literally on the edge of my seat, hanging on a breath for what he might say.
“Lorelei, there you are.” Trixie came skipping up to our table, her cute short hair bo
uncing.
The moment was gone. Whatever Killian had been about to say, he’d decided against, and he was now stuffing his homework into his backpack.
“Oh, who’s your friend?” Trixie asked, smiling at Killian.
“Hi, Trix,” I said, stifling my disappointment at the interruption. “This is Killian. He’s in my Biology class.” I turned to him. “You don’t have to go.”
“No, I, uh…I have some things to take care of,” he said, for the first time looking flustered. “Enjoy your afternoon, ladies.” And he got up and left.
As if he wasn’t enough of a mystery.
Over the weekend, I tried to forget about Killian. The more I thought about the whole thing, the more it pissed me off that he was even in my life at all. Sure, the chemistry we had was off the charts! But I had run away from all that other crap. The whole point of me running away was so I could start over, to leave behind the girl who could feel people’s souls and see ghosts. I wanted nothing to do with that old me. And Killian was just a sexy, confusing reminder of all that.
What I should be doing is studying. Killian had been a huge distraction in Biology, and I was already falling behind in just the first week. I couldn’t afford to lose focus, especially in that class. So, I really stuck my nose into my books and not only finished the organ diagram, but also memorized every organ and its function, even ones that weren’t on the diagram. Call it penance for falling for Killian’s charms.
Aside from getting all my homework done and then some, I spent a good deal of the weekend just being a teenager with Trixie. She decided we needed a girl’s movie marathon, so we spent all day Sunday sprawled across her couch watching m0vies. We chose from the classics: Pretty in Pink, Sixteen Candles, She’s All That, and the entire Twilight series—if that’s not classified as classic chick flick, then I don’t know what is.
By Monday, I was feeling refreshed and ready to tackle another week. And I had made a decision about Killian. Whatever vibes I was getting from him, and whatever chemistry we had, it wasn’t important. School was important. So, I wasn’t going to buy into his mystery any further. He was my lab partner and that was it. If we had to see each other outside of class to work on assignments, so be it, but I didn’t need to go out of my way to spend time with him. It was time to move on.
Nothing made that clearer than when my Econ professor assigned a killer essay on Monday. Due at the end of the week! I didn’t have time to think—or daydream—about Killian. I went straight to the library after my last class and stayed there for hours, finding books to use as sources and organizing my citations. It was amazing what I could accomplish with a clear head.
I had my whole paper outlined by the time the librarian kicked me out; apparently, 8 o’clock was closing time.
Mentally exhausted, I gathered all my notes and scratch paper, then put them along with my laptop in my backpack. Slinging my bag over my shoulders, I picked up my books and headed toward the shelves from where I took them.
“Don’t worry about it, dear,” the librarian said, opening her arms toward the books in mine. “I’ll put them away for you.”
“Oh, thank you,” I said, handing her the tall stack.
“Have a good night, and be careful, stick to the lighted areas of campus,” she called back to me as she disappeared into the forest of shelves.
I smiled after her and then headed out the door. It was sweet of her to worry about my safety. There had been a slew of muggings on campus lately, and reports of girls being attacked in bathrooms after dark. But I wasn’t afraid of any of that. It was those types of people that should be afraid of me.
I stepped out onto the pavement under the orange glow of a lantern. I had never seen the campus at night, and in the light of these gothic style lanterns that lined the sidewalks, the place looked like a Medieval village, darkly romantic and almost haunting.
The parking garage where I left my car was on the other side of campus. Though my stomach was urging me to fill it soon, I wanted to enjoy a leisurely stroll in the night air. The orange glow lighting the path ahead was so cozy, and the scent of freshly watered lawn wafted through the brisk air that chilled my arms.
Just as I was admiring the light of the nearest lantern, it went out, darkness radiating around it.
Hmm, must be a burnt out light bulb.
But as I kept walking, the next light went out, and then the next. I stopped and looked around. All the lanterns ahead and behind, and even across the lawn, were blinking out, deserting me in darkness.
And then I felt it, the tingle up my spine that meant something otherworldly was slithering in the shadows. Why hadn’t I felt it before? It was such a subtle sensation. Were it not for my fear-heightened senses, I might not have noticed it at all.
Suddenly, the lantern closest to me exploded, shards of glass bursting toward me. I screamed and instinctively put my arms up to shield my face. The next one up ahead shattered, and my legs took on a mind of their own, sprinting in the direction of the garage.
As I ran, the ghostly presence grew stronger, more tangible behind me. I could almost feel it reaching out to grab me, could almost feel it breathing down the back of my neck. It only urged me to run faster.
My blood was roaring so loud in my ears that I could hardly hear the sound of my feet slapping the pavement, echoing off the buildings around me. And yet when my phantom pursuer whispered my name, I heard it as clear as if it was spoken right into my ear.
“Lorelei… Lorelei…” it whispered in an eerie sing-song way, then a deep laugh rumbled out from behind me, vibrating through my bones.
I turned the corner at the Psychology Building, then chanced a look over my shoulder. I was terrified to see something on my tail, but I had to look, had to know if it was close, or if it had any physical form at all.
BAM!
My forward-moving, backward-looking body ran smack into something hard and bounced back, falling hard onto the sidewalk. My reflexes worked just fast enough to send my hands behind me to catch my fall, my palms skidding painfully across the rough cement.
“Whoa, I’m sorry, are you alright?” came the courteous voice that belonged to the large male body I crashed into.
“Yea, no, I’m fine,” I said, grunting at the pain in my palms. “It was my mistake, I’m the one who should be apologizing.”
“Here, let me help you up,” the guy said, offering me a large hand.
“Thanks,” I said, accepting the hand. With my eyes, I followed his hand up his arm and to his face to see who my helpful crash buddy was.
My heart hitched, and I instinctively yanked my hand away, the motion rubbing on the scathed skin of my palm. As I didn’t yet have my footing balanced, this sent me stumbling backwards and almost landing on my butt once more. Luckily, I was able to steady myself before that happened.
“What’s wrong?” Killian asked, his gray eyes twinkling pale blue in the soft night around us.
Hugging my hand against my chest, I inspected him with suspicious narrowed eyes. What were the chances that, of all places and times, he would be here now, when I’m being chased down by some new powerful presence?
“What are you doing here?” I accused.
He laughed softly at my outburst, but the smile didn’t reach his eyes. Something was hiding in his gaze, something knowing.
“I could ask you the same thing,” he replied. “It’s too late for a pretty girl to be wandering around campus by herself.”
“I was studying at the library,” I responded snappily, ignoring the compliment in his stupid chivalrous comment. “What’s your excuse?”
“My dorm is just around the corner,” he said, raising one eyebrow at me with the same amusement with which he usually regarded my untrusting attitude. He pointed over his shoulder innocently enough.
“Oh,” I said. But I didn’t believe him. This was too much of a coincidence. He was playing dumb, but I could tell that he at least sensed something was off around here. He knew what was goi
ng on. Maybe he was even the cause of it. Either way, I didn’t trust him. Gorgeous face be damned.
“Please, let me walk you to wherever it is you’re going,” he said. “It’s not safe out here.” His expression was gallant and earnest, but there was still that secretive spark in his eyes, and a hardness to his jaw.
No, it’s not safe out here. And certainly not with you.
“No thanks,” I said, not bothering to hide my cantankerousness. “I can take care of myself.” I wasn’t sure if that was true at this point, but there was no way I was going anywhere with him. It was dark, and there was no one else around, no one to witness. He could do anything he wanted to me, and…I wasn’t sure if I could kill him if I needed to.
“I’m sure you can,” he said, “but what kind of lab partner would I be if I let you walk around in the dark by yourself, when there have been reports of unscrupulous characters snooping about?”
The only unscrupulous character around here is you.
“Look, clearly something had you spooked if you were running franticly enough to run into me,” he said. “We don’t even have to walk together. If it will make you feel any better, I can walk several feet behind you. I just want to make sure you get wherever you’re going safely.”
I narrowed my eyes at him even more. What kind of game was he playing? Why scare the crap out of me and then insist he needed to protect me? Was he just messing with my head? Well, he had definitely succeeded with that. And if he wasn’t the one responsible for tormenting me, he damn sure knew who or what was, and he insisted on keeping his mouth shut about it, feigning ignorance. It was all very dubious, and I didn’t want to play his game.
I rolled my eyes. “Whatever. Walk behind me if you really want to.”
He smiled graciously, like he didn’t care that I was being a grade A bitch to him. I walked past him and continued on toward the parking garage.