by Ireland Gill
His words brought a smile to my face and stole a beat of my heart. I couldn't have expected him to say anything better than that. I was jovial.
“Thank you, Angel-man. You're looking sharp, yourself,” I commented, “but I thought you had a costume.”
He smirked, grabbing my hand as I stepped onto the floor, then he picked something up from the foyer table. It was a white mask. He slid it over his head, placing it over his face correctly, and I finally realized what it was.
“Phantom of the Opera!” I exclaimed. God, he looked beautiful as a mysterious phantom.
“I went for simple,” he shrugged.
I laughed, still admiring his attire. “My art teacher always used to tell me, 'less is more.' Now I get it. You look perfect, Hayden.” And he did.
He grinned and blushed a bit in the open skin of his left cheek. That was enough 'thanks' for me. “And if I didn't know any better, I'd mistake you for one of my kind,” he said somberly, extending his arm for me to hold as we left the house.
I blushed. Again.
We took the Mustang to the restaurant. I let him drive. Bon Appetit was a place that I'd been dying to try and I was extremely excited when Hayden told me they were throwing a Halloween social. He'd made reservations for us a while back, and those came with tickets to get into the event down the street, which was a huge warehouse they fixed up into a dance club. They only opened it up for special events where production companies would rent it out for holidays like Halloween, Christmas, Mardi Gras, etcetera.
When we got to the restaurant, there was not one person without a costume. I felt relieved as it had struck me as odd that a restaurant as nice as theirs would throw an event, but Hayden assured me that wearing our costumes was expected.
We were directed to a table next to a window overlooking the main street. It was dusk, and I knew soon it would be dark. My heart sank. I hadn't really left the house at night at all since we'd moved, and the fact that it was Halloween made me question as to why Hayden was so relaxed, other than the fact that the Drones seemed to have been leaving us alone lately.
“Hayden,” I inquired, “is tonight going to be....dangerous at all? I mean, I know that we haven't seen the Drones lately, but what about the Seekers? Are they going to be following me everywhere tonight after dark?”
“Oh,” Hayden smiled wryly, “I sort of forgot to mention that Halloween is the one night of the year that any creatures or residents from the dark realm are unable to appear. You won't see any of them, even if you tried. The doorway to our world is impermeable.”
“Uh....okay,” I wasn't quite sure what to say. It was another small curtain, hiding another tiny secret. “Isn't that a little backwards?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, usually everyone makes Halloween out to be some sort of evil day, a portal for the dead to walk the earth and for evil to lurk.”
Hayden laughed heartily. “You have definitely watched too many movies, you know that?”
I shrugged. “Just ironic, that's all.”
A young, male waiter with a Zorro mask came up to our table in a crisp, white shirt and black pants and apron, holding two glasses and a pitcher of ice water. “Good evening, guests.” He smiled as he poured, “and Happy Halloween. Our specials tonight are...” and then he rattled off things I wasn't interested in until I heard lasagna. “May I start you off with something to drink tonight?”
I took one breath, ready to say I'd stick with the ice water, but Hayden immediately responded before I could utter a noise.
“May we each have a glass of your finest Riesling, please?” he inquired.
The waiter nodded once with a bright smile. “Right away, sir.” And he was off with the pitcher in hand.
I looked at Hayden incredulously. He took a sip of his water as he tried hiding the cutest smirk. “What?” he finally acknowledged my stare.
I plastered a devious, little grin on my face. “Hayden Crow, did you just order us alcohol...willingly?”
“I believe I did,” he answered casually.
The most girlie giggle left my throat and, yet again, I was blushing. Tonight is going to be a good night, I thought. I knew it. I felt it. Hayden not fussing over my having a drink was a great sign, considering the habit was something he wanted me to break.
Dinner was absolutely divine. Everything was perfect; from the first sip of Riesling down to the last bite of our delectable dishes. Our conversation was non-stop, as if we could never run out of things to talk about. It was a much-needed night between Hayden and me, and I savored every minute of it, anticipating the rest of the evening.
We stood to leave after paying the bill when a little girl, no older than two or three years, ran astray from her father from the other side of the room. Her head was full of light brown ringlets, and she was wearing a light pink tutu with a set of mesh butterfly wings on her back. Her little feet, wrapped in cloth ballerina shoes, pattered over to our table and came to a halt. Her curious, hazel eyes looked up at Hayden as she smiled brightly.
Hayden removed his mask and crouched down in front of her on the floor.
The toddler smiled even brighter. “Wins!” she exclaimed with her little voice.
I watched Hayden smile widely at her. “Well, hello there, Chelsea,” he said to her quietly. Her tiny hands rose to each side of his face and held it for a moment as her happy expression beamed.
Amazement. That's what I felt when I watched them. It was a moment in time that was so beautiful that it hurt, a moment that no artist would have wanted to have missed and I witnessed it. It was the exchange between a beautiful child and a handsome angel.
“Wins,” she repeated to Hayden with a giggle.
The serene moment was broken by a frantic voice. “Chelsea!” A man in a pirate costume came running over to us. He removed the patch from his right eye. “I'm so sorry. I knew wearing this patch was a bad idea. Can't see a darn thing.” He laughed as he picked her up and held her securely in his arms. Her eyes were still locked on Hayden.
Hayden stood once again. “No need to apologize. She's just a curious child.” He kept his eyes on her, smiling and adjusting part of her little wing that got caught in her dress. “They all are.”
“Daddy! Wins!” she clapped, then pointed to Hayden.
“Yes, sweet pea, you have wings on today, just like this young lady over here,” the man acknowledged me standing next to Hayden. “Can you say angel?”
She giggled in her father's arms, still beaming at Hayden. “Wins.”
The man chuckled and tapped her nose. “We'll work on that one. Time to trick or treat.” He turned to us again. “Thank you for understanding,” he said graciously as he started back to his table. “Have a great evening.”
“Not a problem. Happy Halloween,” Hayden said sincerely.
The curly-haired toddler turned in her father's arms to look over his shoulder as he took her away and kept her eyes on my angel. It brought me the biggest sense of warmth as she muttered a faint “bye” from her lips and waved her tiny hand at us. Both Hayden and I watched the two of them leave the restaurant. Hayden just smiled after her while I stood in awe.
Hayden turned to me and grinned, taking in my moment of silence. “Ready?”
“Ready? You mean we're not going to talk about what just happened there?” I asked.
He chuckled. “You mean you have questions?” he said facetiously.
I nudged him playfully. “Hayden, she was pointing to you. She knew what you are. And you knew her name.”
“Yes.” He nodded. “Children are the purest of beings; innocent lives that have no fear, no filter and no mask, no guard to keep up. I already knew her name because she is still so young. I can sense her purity and simplicity, just as she can sense what I am. It's completely natural for us both,” he explained. “But she'll have no recollection of this moment due to her youth. That is why it is not unsafe to reveal ourselves to children as young as she is,” he paused to grab hi
s mask, “regardless of whether or not we're in constant flesh form.”
I stared at him, not moving a muscle. I'm quite sure I looked ridiculous.
“What?” he laughed lightly.
I searched his eyes for a moment, catching this hint of glee in them. “Did I ever see you when I was that young?”
He grinned and shrugged. “Maybe.”
“Maybe,” I repeated with a nod, crossing my arms.
“A few times,” he added.
“Care to enlighten me?”
He looked back at the door where the man and little girl exited. “Aside from her curly hair, she reminds me of you when you were that age.” He paused for a moment. “Jack and Nora would sometimes have trouble getting you to sleep at night, so I used to hold you and walk you around in your room while we listened to Coltrane. You'd lay your head on my shoulder and always put your hand on my cheek. It would get you right to sleep.”
I beckoned the forming tears to retreat. “You're kidding me,” I said to him in disbelief.
Hayden raised his right hand. “Angel's honor, I swear.” He looked away for just a moment as he recalled something and smiled at the thought. “You used to call me Hush-bug.” He chuckled. “It was something your mother came up with, and the nickname just stuck.”
I gazed into his eyes solemnly and smiled. God, I wanted to embrace him right then. My heart was ready to burst for him, and I just didn't know how to tell him anything when it came to my feelings. I didn't even know if I should have even had them in the first place. I just knew that I loved him, so much that it was getting more and more difficult to hide it anymore.
How simple it was, for a child to just know something and share how they feel, having no remorse or idea of consequence. They just know what they feel and feel it, know what they want and try to grab it. No fear, just like Hayden said. I wanted to be just like that again, fearless. That was the trait that I envied in children, what I envied about Chelsea.
“Why haven't you ever told me this before?” I asked him, still staring in adoration.
Shrugging seemed to be his favorite body movement that night, because he shrugged again. “I guess it's just something I kept for myself.” He paused and looked at me so radiantly. “Moments like those were what made me proud to be yours.”
Right then, that first tear disobeyed and trickled down my cheek. I felt it roll from the corner of my eye and tickle my face.
“Tonight is not a night for tears, Evika,” Hayden said softly as he lifted his thumb to my cheek, wiping gently. “Come on,” he grabbed my hand, “we've got a party to go to.”
Hayden escorted me to the passenger side of the pony and shut the door like a gentleman. It took less than five minutes to get to the warehouse. The brick building was at a busy intersection of the street and, after taking in its size, I'd realized why it was such a fabulous place to throw a huge fiesta.
“Why don't you get out here. I'm going to find a place to park Aurora.” He rolled his eyes with a smirk.
I giggled and grabbed my phone, I.D. and bank card from my purse, the bare essentials I needed for the club. “Don't take too long, phantom.” I winked and closed the door.
Hayden drove down the street, searching for a parking spot while I wandered about three feet toward the building when my cell rang. The grin on my face grew when I saw it was Joel.
“Happy Halloween, Jo Jo!”
“Ev-bear! Did I catch you at a bad time? I wasn't sure.”
“Of course not. I'm just waiting for Hayden to park the car before we head into this huge Halloween party in downtown Savannah.”
“No kidding? Us too! Evan and I are walking to one right now, but I just wanted to give you a quick call before things got loud.”
“Really?” I was shocked, thinking of the time. “Isn't it like two in the morning there?”
“Gotcha. Well, we got a late start and nothing ever closes around here.” He forced a laugh.
“Huh. Okay, just be sure to take lots of pics and send them to me later, okay?”
“I will, Ev-bear. Miss you mucho. Behave tonight!”
I laughed. “You too, Jo Jo Coleman. Love you lots, all the way from Georgia.”
“Love you, too Evi, all the way from....behind you.”
“Bye Jo---,” I paused. “Wait. Jo Jo, what do you mean 'behind you?' You're messin' up our lines.” I laughed.
He giggled his girliest of giggles, then I heard the click that ended the call. “Joel?” I fiddled with my phone, trying to call him back.
“You silly, imaginative girl,” I heard a well-known voice carry across the light traffic behind me. “Hasn't anyone ever told you angels have white wings?” A familiar laugh followed.
I turned and gasped, practically dropping my phone when I saw him. Swaggering across the street with his hands on his hips, wearing a David Bowie costume - identical to the Goblin King in Labyrinth - was my best friend in the whole world.
“OMIGOD!” I exclaimed as I leapt across the curb. “JOEL! OMIGOD! OMIGOD!” I jumped up onto his skinny frame in the middle of the street, squeezing him, making him squeal like a girl and causing angry car horns to blow. I shut my eyes tight as I clung to him, hoping that what I felt was real, that it was my Jo Jo.
“Wow! If only you'd have been this lively the last time I visited.” He chortled as he managed to drag me back onto the sidewalk to safety, hugging me all the while.
I jumped off of Joel and took a step back to look at him more closely. “Joel, I can't believe you're here! I can't believe it!”
Joel sighed, taking me in from head to toe and shaking his head, smirking, his blond Bowie wig all disheveled. “Jeez, girl, you look beautiful tonight.” I could see the tears forming in his eyes. “Ugh. But please, no more running into the middle of busy streets,” he scolded with a laugh.
“I'm thinking the phone call probably should have waited until we were inside the building,” I heard Luka joke. I looked past Joel's shoulder to see the angel in all white, his ivory wings laying closely against his back and his head topped with a wire halo that lay crooked across that new mohawk I adored. He grinned at me.
“Luka!” I jumped. I was so overwhelmed with joy that I almost neglected to notice a tall figure at Joel's left flank. He was wearing a Superman costume, his dark hair slicked back with the exception of a perfectly plastered curl on his forehead. He smiled at me radiantly, confidently. I sucked air. “You must be Evan?”
His smile widened as he held out his hand. “Pleased to finally meet you, Evika,” he said.
I shook his hand and grinned. His dark brown eyes were as sincere as his smile, and I knew instantly that I would like him. “It's great to finally meet you, Evan. I've heard so many great things about you.”
“Oh, come here.” He tugged me toward him and bear-hugged me against his chest.
I laughed. “Approved, Jo Jo,” I said as Evan released me from his deadly hold.
“Well, he better be, Miss Stormer. We've been going strong for seven months now,” Joel reminded me.
Everyone laughed.
I thought about the agony I'd put Joel through for most of those months and looked at Evan solemnly. “You're a great person for sticking with my Jo Jo through all that mess, Evan. I'm truly glad that Joel had you around when I wasn't.” Evan and Joel smiled at each other, giving each other loving glances.
“He's my Superman,” Joel joked, then looked at me seriously. “You've got some great, new friends, too, Evika. It's the only way this would have worked out.”
I looked at Joel, then at Luka, who nodded toward someone behind me. I made the connection and smiled, and turned to see my angel leaning against the wall, smirking with his mask still in place. It was difficult to keep my lovestruck, beating heart at bay. It wanted to scream Hayden's name, even more so after having a hunch that he was the master-mind behind Joel's visit. He finally walked over to us, removing his mask, showing off that bright and cocky smile.
“I told you that you'
d thank me later, didn't I?” he said to me smugly. I shook my head and laughed as I remembered when he spoke to Joel for the first time over the phone and had shut me out into the hallway during their entire conversation. I was, of course, livid.
“This is the roommate?” Joel's jaw dropped. A semi-jealous Evan smacked him playfully in the arm.
I giggled. “What, you haven't met yet after orchestrating this whole scheme behind my back?”
“Well, no. Not...physically,” Joel guffawed. Evan smacked him in the arm again, but a little harder this time. “Uh, I mean, you know, in person.”
“Pleased to officially meet you, Joel, Evan.” Hayden shook both of their hands. “I trust that Luka was on time at the airport and got you to the house okay?” he asked.
Both Joel and Evan nodded with smiles. I could see they were both a bit smitten.
“With plenty of time to spare, I might add.” Luka declared proudly.
“The house is absolutely gorgeous, you guys!” Evan said.
“It is,” Joel nudged me with a grin. “My little Ev-bear is living large now,” he joked, but still had a curious look in his eyes. I could tell it bothered him that I wasn't able to tell him much of anything about, well, anything.
“So, how long are you guys here for?” I asked excitedly.
“We could only do three days, Ev,” Joel answered with his famous pouting lip. “I'm already in a lot of trouble from my last little hiatus.” He laughed nervously. “But, you know, since your actual birthday was royally sucky, Hayden and I thought it would be a cool thing to plan a visit for your half-birthday. So, here we are!”
I laughed loudly, looking between Joel and Hayden. “My half-birthday,” I repeated the phrase. “Well, this is the best half-birthday present I've ever received in my life, you guys.” I clung to Joel's neck and felt a squeeze in return.
He struck a dramatic pose. I knew instantly what would be next. “You remind me of the babe!”
Not missing a beat, I said my line, “What babe?”