Divine Mortals

by Allison, J

  “That’s what I’m afraid of.” he grimaced, and he did look truly worried, was he scared I would expose him or reject him, was he scared for me? I began to wish that I could read minds.

  “Okay,” I breathed, finally feeling my composure come back, I played my fingers gently along the edge of the hammock, pulling on the loose fibers that were poking out here and there. I didn’t want to make eye contact with him, my next question sounded stupid even in my own head, I was sure it wouldn’t sound any better out loud.

  “So what are you?” my fingers dug into my knees as I asked, the sound of my breathing the only noise in the night around us.

  “Well.” His smile was strained, “Would you believe it if I said I was Superman.” His eyes flashed with mirth, although his mouth and the lines of his face were tight.

  “Almost.” I forced a smile. “But no. I don’t believe you’re Clark Kent.”

  He let out a long breath, his eyes burrowing into mine, as he decided whether he could trust me. Swiping his fingers through his hair, making the blond lengths stand on end, he took another breath and wiped his hands down his pants before seemingly turning into a statue.

  “We are guardians.” His voice was little more than a whisper.

  “Ok,” I let my answer hang,

  “We protect the human race from the unseen.”

  “Unseen?” I echoed, “We?”

  “We.” He repeated. “I honestly don’t know how many of us there are, we grow up amongst humans, our first 21 years spent just like you would and then we enter training for 3 years before returning to take up our posts as guardians.”

  “I don’t understand what you guard against.” I breathed. “And where do you go, is it like ‘Hello Vegas I’m twenty one’ and the next day on board the train to Hogwarts.”

  This finally earned me another of his smiles.

  “Something like that.”

  “And what do you mean you protect humans, so… you’re not human?”

  “I’m human enough, but we are something extra. We have other talents and gifts.” His expression hardened, “If that’s what you choose to call them.”

  “Doesn’t Superman have supersonic hearing or something, he hears the damsels in distress call when villains are harassing them?”

  “I’m not Superman and besides I wouldn’t say my hearings that good. But I can hear people from quite a distance,”

  “What sort of distance?” I pressed, I had only been joking about his hearing.

  A look of guilt flashed across his face, he quickly replaced it with a lopsided smile.

  “About three miles.”

  “What!” I was shocked and tried quickly to think of everything I had said lately that he may have heard.

  “Don’t worry,” he laughed out loud, seeing the look on my face. “I don’t hear you all the time, normally I kind of ‘tune out’ like when you are trying to read with the television on, you can ignore the sound of the TV until it’s like you are in the room alone.”

  “But you can ‘Tune In’? Have you heard me? You only live a couple of miles from here, you could listen in all the time.”

  I didn’t know why I was so upset by this, shouldn’t the fact that I was sharing a hammock with a… well a super human, inhuman, Guardian, whatever he was, be a little more important, and besides I didn’t think I’d said anything too embarrassing.

  He looked down at me carefully, perhaps trying to judge whether telling me had been the right thing to do, he started again, a little more cautious this time.

  “I have heard you a couple of times,” he admitted, looking like the kid who had been caught stealing candy.

  I frowned waiting for him to continue.

  “But only over the last few days,” he hurried on, “I never paid much attention to you before that, I thought you were some snobby rich girl from the city, here to play farmer for a few months.”

  “Well thanks Superman, you tell me you listen to my conversations and then you insult me.” I spoke brusquely, Robert cringed at the word Superman, but he let it slide.

  “What I’m trying to say is I haven’t heard you very much, trust me most the time it’s better not to know what someone is saying.”

  I could imagine it was, I was thanking any gods that may be listening for the small mercy that meant he couldn’t read my mind.

  Roberts eyes continued to search mine, their dark brown depths troubled,

  “Thank God I can’t hear what you’re thinking,” he muttered, I paused and narrowed my eyes at him, maybe he could read minds?

  “That guy yesterday,” I asked, “The one in the top paddock that you fought with, was he Superma……, was he a Guardian too?”

  “Yes.” Robert shrugged, I could see this was still going to be a hard topic to broach.

  “What did he want?”

  “I won’t tell you about that Ava, I can’t.”

  “What do you mean you can’t, who was he?” I demanded,

  “Ava,” My name sounded so nice when he spoke it,

  “It might not be safe for you to know,” he spoke gently, his dark eyes pleading with me, he needed me to understand, to accept it and leave it alone, I decided quickly that I would, for now.

  “I can’t put you in any more danger then you’re probably already in just by knowing about me.” He added.

  I paused, could I be in danger? I hadn’t considered that, not seriously.

  “Okay,” I conceded deciding on another angle.

  “How did you know where I was yesterday, after I fell off Beaut? I was so quiet.”

  His smug smile returned once more, the corner of his mouth pulling up, I was happy to see that the seriousness of his last words were not going to taint the rest of our conversation.

  “Damsel in distress right? Isn’t that what you said?”

  A thrill went through me at his words, I was really going to have to pull myself together instead of being left breathless by his smiles.

  “Seriously Robert,”

  “Okay, I heard you,” he admitted, “you said, and I quote,” His smile grew further, “‘Oh Crap’ right before you passed out, I was next to you by the time you hit the deck, I sat you up against the tree,” He gave me a mocking look.

  “Not very lady like I have to say, most damsels normally hold the back of their hand to their forehead and drop slowly, you dropped like a rock, covered in lumps and bruises.”

  “Well elegance has never really been my thing.” I laughed, I couldn’t believe that I was accepting this all so easily, perhaps I hadn’t accepted it, maybe it would hit me like a steam train later.

  Robert must have been thinking the same thing, he was watching me like a hawk, as though waiting for me to go into shock at any moment.

  “Aren’t you scared?”

  “Should I be?” I asked, serious now, I felt my skin prickle from more than just the cool air.

  “I don’t know?” he answered truthfully, “no-one has ever known about me before, it feels kind of nice to tell someone.” he admitted, then he chuckled, “we have definitely seen a lot more of each other tonight than we expected.”

  I felt myself blush all over again and hit his knee playfully,

  “For all your apparent speed you didn’t leave very quickly when you saw me.”

  He laughed,

  “I may be a little different from the other guys around here Ava but I’m still a guy.” he laughed again, the sound of it was amazing, deep and bell like. I blushed so hard I thought my face would catch alight, but I was glowing inside, did he actually just say that he found me attractive?

  “Why do you act so arrogant to everyone else our age?” My question hit him right out of left field, I watched him ponder it for a moment, then he looked at me, his eyes glowing softly.

  “For this reason,” he said simply, gesturing to him and I swinging together on the hammock.

  “I can’t have people know about me and the closer people are to me the more opportunity for me to
make a mistake and expose myself for what I am. I just want to fit in, be as normal as I can, and if that means not having people be close to me then that’s how it has to be.”

  “Aren’t you lonely?”

  “You get used to it,” he grinned, “I have the animals here, they don’t judge me when I move to quickly from one side of their field to the other and I get along great with older people, the sort of people that aren’t gonna ask me around to watch the game, or go to the movies.”

  “No,” I laughed at him, thinking of my grandparents, “They’ll just ask you around for a game of Bingo and a glass of sherry.” Robert laughed with me and it felt so natural for us to be joking and laughing together, I felt so comfortable with him, he made me feel unaccountably safe and happier than I had been in a long time.

  “Are you angry?” I asked, serious once more, I needed to ask this question.

  “Why would I be?” he looked confused,

  “Because you’ve told me. Because I know and you’re not anonymous anymore.”

  “Not at all,” he lent forward and brushed my hair back, tracing his hand gently along the side of my face. His fingers lingered against my cheek, burning a trail of heat into my skin wherever he touched, I had to force myself not to lean into his hand.

  “If I hadn’t then you would have had more than that lump on your head.”

  A horse whinnied suddenly and I jumped, startled out of the intensity of Roberts gaze I cast my eyes towards the stables.

  “What happened to your parents?” his voice bought me back again.

  It was my turn to decide what I would share. I hadn’t told this story out loud yet. Everyone back in Chicago had known what happened without my having to tell it. I swallowed the lump in my throat and stared off into the darkness, unable to meet his gaze.

  “The police told me that they felt no pain,” My voice shook and I swallowed loudly.

  I wasn’t sure I believed this, what the police said, I couldn’t help but think it was probably the standard line meant to comfort the ones left behind.

  “They had been on their way to pick me up from prom when they were killed.” I bit my lip and finally managed to look at Robert, his dark eyes seemed to glow gold as he watched me.

  “A trucker who had worked nineteen hours straight fell asleep at the wheel, he ran straight over top of their car at an intersection near my school. The truck driver walked away, completely unscathed, my parents…”

  I swallowed hard at the memory. Police arriving at prom to find me, the whispering behind hands as they lead me away to break the news.

  I blinked, trying to focus, suddenly my hands were enveloped in a warmth so extreme as to nearly be uncomfortable.

  Robert grasped my hands in his own, his eyes taking in my struggle to finish.

  “And how are you now?” His question surprised me, no ‘I’m Sorry,’ or the million extensions there seemed to be to go with those two words.

  “I’m fine.” I stuttered, forcing a smile, “Well as fine as anyone could be I guess.”

  Suddenly his hands were gone, as though he had just realized what he was doing, the movement so swift it made me jump and before I knew it he was out of the hammock and standing beside me, his hands holding the side to steady it after his sudden departure.

  “Wait,” his abrupt exit from the hammock had shocked my memory into work once more, “you said you protect us from the unseen, what do you mean?”

  He looked like he was struggling with something, closing his eyes briefly,

  “I can’t tell you that.” His voice was firm, his gaze steady.

  “Why not.” I challenged,

  “Because it may put you in danger Ava, more than just knowing about me may have already done.”

  “I, ahhhh. Okay.” I didn’t know whether to stay put or run terrified into the house in search of Pops gun, I could see from his posture that he would not be moved on this now.

  “It’s cold out here, I should take you back inside.” he announced, forcing a smile and holding out his hand to help me from the hammock. I eased myself out slowly until I was standing next to him.

  “Your hands are freezing,” he frowned, “I’m not being a very responsible baby sitter.”

  “You’re not my babysitter.” I mumbled, walking awkwardly towards the back door, my feet had fallen asleep while we had been out here and now prickled with pins and needles.

  I could hear Roberts foot falls on the porch behind me, following me into the house. I was suddenly nervous, the memory of his hand glowing as he fixed the pickup wasn’t so wondrous, more like a scene from ET.

  Walking down the hallway and into the kitchen, I glanced at the clock above the sink, it was almost midnight, we had been outside for a while.

  Robert noticed the time as well, I was beginning to wonder if anything escaped his notice.

  “Now that I’ve escorted you indoors young lady,” he was trying to sound at ease, and failing, “I think I should go, Norma and Fred said they would be home around midnight and I don’t think they wanted you kept up all night.”

  “You were listening to our conversation!” they had said that at dinner.

  “Sorry,” he murmured, “I needed to know if you were going to tell anyone what you saw.”

  I let it go, sighing loudly, there was no point getting mad with him now.

  “You know I still have questions.”

  “I know,” he groaned, “Can we talk about them another time?”

  “Sure,” I smiled carefully, “I’m going to be on the ranch for a while and I know where you live.” I added the last part in an effort to lighten the mood, trying on purpose to sound like a deranged stalker.

  Robert laughed, although it was still strained,

  “I may have to move.” He joked, then paused, looking thoughtful, his head cocked gently to one side.

  “Fred and Norma are nearly home, it seems they now want to visit Europe.”

  I gaped at him, probably looking like a fish, I could feel my mouth hanging open and quickly snapped it shut.

  Robert chuckled, apparently enjoying my shock, I guess he had been waiting for my cool acceptance of everything to crumble.

  “Good Night Ava,” his grin made my heart leap, “I guess I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  I followed him in silence back down the hallway towards the door, my eyes fixed where his shirt pulled tight across the broad muscles of his shoulders. Letting him out I watched as he walked towards the edge of the porch.

  “Good Night,” I finally echoed, he smiled back at me already halfway down the stairs, I turned, walking back into the house. The sound of his voice made me turn back, he was standing behind me, his face only inches from my own, I gasped at his sudden closeness, I hadn’t even heard him move.

  “Oh and Ava,” he leaned towards me, his voice soft, his dark brown eyes incredibly deep, “If you ever need me just say my name, I’ll hear it.”

  I opened my mouth to answer but he was already gone, so quickly it was as if he hadn’t been there at all. I shook my head to clear it and rushed back into the house swinging the door shut behind me, I didn’t want to be up when my grandparents got home, I wasn’t in the mood to discuss my babysitter with Nan, she would be dying to see how her plan played out. Rushing my shower I leapt into bed, closed my eyes and fell instantly to sleep.

  I think I was falling for a Guardian.

  10.

  The next few days flew by in a whir of nothing special, much to my disappointment Robert had left on a muster. Appearing the morning after our evening rendezvous he told me of his imminent departure, and before I could ask anything he had gone, leaving me bursting with questions that for now had to go unanswered.

  Trying to fill my time I threw myself into other activities, spending my days swimming, sunbathing and catching up with Sally for lunches in Huntington.

  On one of these trips we were busy devouring a bowl of fries while Sally told me about her dress for the Ranchers Ball, the diner doo
rbell rang signaling more customers,

  “Hey Sal,” she turned towards the voice mid-sentence, a smile instantly on her face.

  Two guys were making their way quickly to our table, one of them, the one who had spoken, was tall and lanky with wavy blonde hair and dark blue eyes, he was quite attractive, although didn’t hold a torch to Robert. The other had short wavy brown hair and a more athletic build then the blonde, he was definitely attractive, but what struck me were his eyes, an amazing emerald green that seemed to glow.

  Sally introduced me to them quickly the blonde was James, he would be in my year at school and Sally had known him forever. The green eyed guy, Will, had only just arrived in town last week and had meet James at the local swimming hole. He would be the ‘other’ new kid when we went back to school.

  They ordered some fries at the counter and came back to our table.

  “So,” James struck up conversation first, his smile friendly and I noticed, as he spoke, that he had a pierced tongue, something I didn’t expect from a born and breed Huntington boy.

  “How are you settling in to life in the big smoke?” he grinned mockingly, “You know once in a while we get more than three cars on the main street and Dads called out to ease the congestion.”

  I laughed, guessing his father to be the local sheriff.

  “It’s not too bad,” I shrugged, I was always a little shy around new people, apparently James didn’t suffer from the same social inhibitor.

  “No Chicago though huh?” he continued,

  “Oh I don’t know,” I decided to make a joke of it as well, “We didn’t have fishing line for sale in the supermarket back home so that’s a bonus, you know something extra I now have when I’m at the grocery store.”

  Both guys laughed, Will was watching me intently, his head tilted slightly to one side, his green eyes shining like emeralds, reflecting my face in their bright green depths. I had the odd feeling he could read my soul, it wasn’t a feeling I relished.

  The laughter died and James said something I didn’t catch, Will was still staring and I was starting to get a little unnerved.

  “So,” I asked, groping for a question, “You’ll be starting Huntington High in the fall as well?”