Frost

by Elise Faber

  I didn’t realize I had stopped to stare at the picture window of a shop selling modern electronics until Michele nudged me with a smile. “Men and their toys… I will never understand it,” she chuckled. “When was the last time you were out?”

  Absently, I shook my head in reply and carried on walking, with Michele following beside me. “Never. This is my first time being out in a hundred years.”

  “Nev – You’re kidding me! You’ve never given people wishes before?” she asked in a disbelieving voice.

  “I have been released and given wishes before, but this is the first time I’ve set foot outside that room.” I clarified. “None of my visitors asked me to.”

  Her expressive eyes clouded over and tears threatened to fall. “That must have been so awful.”

  I shrugged trying to make light of it. I didn’t want or need pity. I’ve done enough of that by myself for so long it almost broke me. I never wanted to visit that dark place again. “I got used to it.”

  By then, we were in front of the hotel. Looking up, I could see the window to the room. With a mixture of resignation, despair, and futility, I moved forward to walk back to my doom.

  “I know what I want to wish for.”

  Stopping, I looked at her expectantly. There was a curious expression on her youthful face.

  “I wish for you to be my companion every time I leave the hotel until I complete all my wishes.”

  Power surged through me, clamoring to grant the bidding uttered but instead of expelling outwards, it drove straight back into my body as the wish was granted. I stared at her in shock, unable to believe what just happened.

  “Why did you do that? You just wasted your first wish on me?”

  A dimple came out. “I don’t consider that wasted. I get a superhero every time I go out. My very own bodyguard!” She joked then added in a more serious tone. “I saw the longing in your eyes when you were looking around and thought your need was greater than mine.”

  Something I thought I would never feel again started blossoming in my chest. Hope. For so long I waited for somebody like her. Repeatedly, I had been disappointed until finally I accepted my fate… that I would be doomed under the curse forever. Either that or go completely insane.

  Now that hope was staring back at me, with the most beautiful pair of brown eyes I have ever seen, I responded to it in haste, lashed out without thinking… something I knew I would regret later but too shocked to ponder right now.

  “Don’t do me favors.“ I snapped making those eyes widen. “I don’t need your pity.”

  I turned away before I could see the tears that spilled down her pale cheeks.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Remorse had a bitter taste, which didn’t go away even after rinsing your mouth repeatedly with mouthwash.

  Like a child, I stayed behind the mirror sulking and telling myself that I had the right to be upset and feel insulted by her first wish. She basically forced me against my will to accompany her, and be at her beck and call until she’s completed her three wishes. Didn’t she realize it was almost like breaking rule number 4? I would have come with her willingly if she asked me to but now I’d feel like I’m being ordered to go with her every time she wanted to go out.

  Who told her I needed her help anyway? Didn’t she know who she was talking to? Didn’t she know how powerful I was? Over the years I had granted the most impossible of wishes, made the most incredible dreams come true, created anything my visitors asked me to do. And some girl had the gall to ask me to be her companion every time she went out for a walk? Didn’t she think about how insulting that was?

  But that isn’t why you’re so angry right now, is it?

  Repeatedly I smashed my fists against the glass separating us, causing it to crack and hurting my knuckles in the process. I watched numbly as the break started to seal up until it looked brand new. A frustrated breath left my lips as I gazed out to Michele’s sleeping form. She had cried herself to sleep. I knew that for a fact because I’ve been watching her all night.

  Like a meek lamb, she had followed me back to our room after my outburst. Floriza was sneering at me in the lobby when I stormed past her, but I ignored the witch and went straight into my holding cell. Michele closed herself in the bathroom and stayed there for more than an hour. When she came out she looked exhausted and fell into bed with her back turned away from me.

  In my bitter state, I had imagined her making herself physically sick to purge all the food she consumed tonight. Why else would she look that spent if she hadn’t done that? Besides, why should I care anyway? The fact that she looked nice and was fragile and managed to surprise me several times since meeting her didn’t mean she’s special… To me.

  Just because she gave away the leftover food to all those people didn’t make her commendable. And using her first wish on me didn’t mean I owed her anything. It was her wish to waste, not mine.

  Yet every sniffle she tried to smother bothered me. Every hiccup she tried to stop pinged on my conscience. And all the tossing and turning of restless sleep made me feel like a worthless fool.

  But you are a fool, I admitted to myself in the end. The first person to show you kindness and you treated her like dirt. I guess old habits die hard, eh? Nobody had ever done anything for you… and that’s why you’re so angry. Compassion was something you didn’t think you deserve, especially from someone like her. And you let her go to sleep without apologizing. Who’s the dirt now? No, wait, you are lower than dirt.

  Hating myself, I promised to make amends as soon as she woke up. For now, I lounged behind the glass like a trapped ghost and waited for her to get up. Now that the first wish had been spoken, I had to wait for my visitor to demand my presence again.

  If Michele ever spoke to me again.

  Just like the day before, she didn’t get up until it was nearly dark. Twice she’d woken up to sleepily visit the bathroom for a few minutes then slumped back down into her bed and fell asleep. She’d pointedly ignored me both times, just like she was ignoring me now even though I was standing right in front of the mirror looking at her.

  Quietly, she spoke into the telephone. A few minutes later someone delivered a bag of food that had a familiar logo on it. If she was uncomfortable with me watching her eat, she didn’t indicate. If it was possible, she looked even gaunter than the night before, with those unattractive circles under her eyes. For somebody who slept the day away, she didn’t appear to have rested.

  Whose fault was that?

  The visit to the bathroom lasted longer this time, and I had images of her making herself sick in the toilet before her shower. When she came out she was dressed and make-up had covered all evidence of any troubles she ever had. Her skin was bare the night before, which made her look extremely young. Yet now, fully camouflaged, I started thinking maybe she was older than she looked.

  A different hat covered her head. A high turtle-necked shirt with long-sleeves, paired with a jumpsuit and strappy shoes hid her away. The only flesh I could see was hands and her tiny face. Without a backward glance at me, Michele headed out the door.

  As soon as she crossed the door frame, I felt the magic inside of me pulling me to follow her. During my early years as a Jinn, I’d tried resisting the power of the wishes and found that no matter how hard I tried, there was no fighting the compulsion. Today, I fought it once more, thinking Michele wouldn’t want someone like me following her around. The invisible shackles gripped my limbs and tugged. I dug my heels and held on struggling against the magic that held me captive.

  It was almost like I caught the magic by surprise for a minute; it allowed me to win, and there was hardly any force against me. Then it geared up on me with a force of a Mack truck and pulled me out of my cage, causing me to fall over and crash on the floor. Grabbing at anything I could get my hands on, I fought the unseen demon that was intent on having his way. Sweat broke out on my brows, and my muscles strained under my clothes, yet no matter how I tried, I found mys
elf being dragged feet first across the floor. I knocked over a chair in my path and dragged off the cover from Michele’s bed, revealing its thick, metal legs.

  Desperately, I grabbed the metal and hung on for dear life, knowing that it was drilled down into the floor. The metal cut into my fingers and dug into my flesh, making me hiss in pain. But I had bigger problems to worry about when I felt my legs lift up in the air, followed by my torso until I was completely off the floor as if I was in a poltergeist film. Under my grip I felt the metal leg of the bed start to bend and the wooden floor groaned under the strain. The door to the hallway banged open like the mouth of a monster waiting to swallow me whole.

  Belatedly, it occurred to me that I had powers and I could fight back. But how do you fight something or someone you can’t see? It was like the very air was siphoning me towards the door. My arms started shaking from the strain. I couldn’t stop my fingers from uncurling around the metal, one by one as my strength seeped from me, leaving me no choice but to give up and be sucked away by the magic pulling at me.

  Only to find myself falling hard on the floor, halfway to the door.

  “Ow!” Pain shot up on my left arm when I fell on it. Groaning, I twisted my body and sat up, trying to figure out what happened. Voices floated towards me, coming from the open doorway, and before I could stand up, Michele was rushed into the room by a very worried-looking Floriza. Something red stained the front of Michele’s clothes and she was holding a hand up to her nose that was covered in… blood?

  Alarmed, I jumped to my feet and moved forward only to be stopped by a sharp look from the resident witch. Michele on the other hand completely ignored me and rushed straight into the bathroom. Once again, Floriza threw me a look, warning me to stay put.

  Worriedly, I paced in front of the closed bathroom door, dragging a hand through my hair as I listened to snippets of conversation coming from the room beyond it. What happened to her? Had I caused that by fighting the compulsion of the wish? Or was I over-thinking it, and she actually just hurt herself going to the elevator?

  “Are you sure you’re alright, cher?” I heard Floriza asking Michele.

  I had to walk up to the door and strain my hearing just to catch her reply. “– happens to me a lot. Please don’t worry.”

  “Had somebody been botherin’ you, cher?

  “No, no, seriously this is nothing. It will stop in a minute.”

  Floriza made a clucking sound like a mother hen. “You just tell me if someone is, and I will put a gris-gris on ‘em!”

  The hairs on the nape of my neck stood up hearing those words coming from her. Michele’s voice was filled with confusion when she asked, “Gris gris?”

  “Yah know, a curse… a spell… voodoo!”

  Cold sweat broke out on my skin while Michele giggled in reply. “Thank you, Miss, but that isn’t necessary. See? It’s stopped now.”

  More clucking. “Well, if you do, just give me a holler!”

  Hearing movement, I moved out of the way when I met the fiery eyes of Floriza, who was walking ahead of Michele. The warning behind them couldn’t be clearer. Holding my hands up in front of me, I backed away even more, choosing to remain silent.

  “Oh my, what happened here? Did you have a burglar?” Floriza exclaimed surveying the room with the up-turned chair, bedcover on the floor, and the contents of Michele’s enormous shoulder bag spilt everywhere.

  With one of her hands still pinching her nose, Michele looked around the mess I had created then back to me before rushing to grab her stuff, shoving it back into the bag. I felt guilty for not helping since it was my mess, but Floriza’s gaze held me on the spot.

  Michele’s reply surprised both of us. “Oh I’m so sorry! I must have knocked them over when I was hurrying to get out of the room earlier…” Then with an embarrassed laugh, she continued, “… and left the door open in my haste! I wanted to catch the late service at St. Louis Cathedral.”

  “Was that what happened?” Floriza wanted to know.

  Michele looked up from where she was kneeling on the floor and alternated her glance between me and the older woman. Confusion marred her brows. “Can you –?

  Floriza was now standing by the bed seemingly unaware of the elephant in the room. Me. “Can I what, cher?”

  Michele glanced my way once more then shook her head with a smile. “Yes,” she replied, joining in the charade. “That’s what happened.”

  Clucking again as she corrected the chair and pushed it under the table, Floriza gave her a sly look and glanced around us. Michele and I helplessly did the same. “You do know we would like you to look after the hotel property during your stay.”

  “Yes, I’m sorry, Miss.” Michele hurriedly apologized.

  “That’s quite all right.” The other woman said, helping her up to her feet. “Are you happy with your room? Would you like to swap?”

  What was the witch playing at? She must know a wish had been said? I held my breath, suddenly feeling nervous. Michele didn’t even spare me a glance and continued smiling at Floriza.

  “That’s very kind of you to offer, but I’m happy here. Thank you.”

  Quietly, I released the breath I was holding and watched Floriza fuss over Michele.

  “Well, if you change your mind, I’m always in the lobby.” Michele nodded her thanks with a smile. “And remember, gris-gris.”

  I had a feeling that last one was for my ears.

  When we were finally alone, and the door safely closed, separating me from the witch who started it all, Michele turned around and faced me. She had washed the blood from her face as well as the lipstick on her lips, but they were still stained pink, making them look soft and dewy. Kissably soft.

  Ambroise, You. Are. An. Ass.

  Whatever lecherous thoughts I had fled when I looked down and saw the blood stain on her jumpsuit. Remorse and concern filled me, somehow feeling responsible.

  “Are you OK?” I asked.

  “Yeah,” she breathed out.

  “What happened?” we both asked at the same time making her laugh and me smile. We’re friends again so it seemed, the thought warmed my heart.

  “You first.” I said.

  Walking over to the bed, she picked up the fallen cover from the floor and moved to replace it back on the mattress. I rushed forward to help. “Well, I was just walking out of the elevator when I felt this pressure in my chest. I thought I was having a heart attack! Luckily, the receptionist was there, and she rushed to help. Then my nose started to bleed. There was so much blood that I thought the receptionist was going to call an ambulance. Thankfully, the pain in my chest had stopped by then so I told her it was OK. Then, when we started to walk back up here the blood started to subside. I haven’t had that much of a nosebleed for years!”

  It must have been the wish. Silently, I cursed myself.

  “I’m so sorry, Michele. It’s entirely my fault. I was supposed to go with you because of your wish, but I resisted, thinking stupidly that you’d be better off without me. It must have back-fired on you.”

  Calmly accepting my explanation, she just gave a nod and glanced around the room, noticing the chaos from her normally tidy set up. “Was that what happened here?” she asked mimicking Floriza’s words earlier.

  “Yeah,” I replied feeling like a naughty boy.

  Another nod. Somehow she couldn’t quite meet my eyes. “So, you have to go with me if I leave the room.”

  “That’s correct.” I said watching her face. We were almost toe-to-toe after we smoothed the cover on the bed.

  “So… do you want me to retract my wish?” she asked quietly.

  “Do you?” I countered back, stepping closer to her and willing her to look up at me. When she did, I found myself drowning in her brown eyes and thought it wasn’t a bad way to die.

  “No,” she answered softly.

  Unable to help myself, I cupped her face in my hands. “I’m sorry.” I whispered earnestly. Her eyelashes fluttered down to h
er cheeks, and I felt her tiny hands on the back of mine, but they held me there instead of removing them from her face. Feeling braver, I carried on. “Nobody has ever been nice to me. I didn’t know how to deal with it.”

  How could she have such long, thick lashes and not have hair? Her eyes were moist when they lifted up and met mine. “It’s ok. I understand.”

  “Friends?” I asked with a smile.

  She gave a nod in the cup of my hands, showing her adorable dimples. “Friends.”

  Giving in to my basic desire, I dipped my head down and kissed her softly on the lips. I was correct. They were soft and dewy.

  The kiss didn’t last long. Just long enough for me to savor her taste and lick my lips to seal it in. But I wanted it to last longer. So much longer… and do so much more. Those maddening brown eyes were full of wonder when they opened again.

  “I thought you said friends?”

  An ache blossomed in the middle of my chest, and I covered it with a laugh, “I’m French, haven’t you guessed? I always kiss my friends. It’s practically tradition!”

  Suddenly feeling unsure of myself, something that never happened to me around women… ever, I stepped away from her. “So, where are we going?”

  I watched her blink a few times as if to regain her focus, making me happy inside. Then she glanced at her clothes. “Well, I was going to the cathedral. But the service is probably finished by now. So, maybe just for a walk?”

  “A walk it is then.” I agreed cheerfully.

  She gave me a funny look for a few seconds before she said, “Let me just change my clothes. I won’t be long.”

  A thought occurred to me as I watched her walk to the bathroom, “Michele, how old are you?” I called after her.

  Her laughter was the only answer I got.

  CHAPTER SIX

  We ended up at a church, or better yet cathedral as Michele corrected. The service had long since ended, but there was a wedding about to finish.