“Lexi, what you
need is a day without a premonition.”
“Tell me about
it,” I mumbled, ripping open the envelope from my mom. Something green fell
into my lap as I pulled out the letter. I read it aloud to Ally and shook my
head at the postscript. “P.S. I’ve enclosed $150 spending money. Please give
$50 to Ally, and keep the rest for yourself. Spend it on something fun. Please
don’t tell your dad as we had some kind of silly agreement. It will be our
little secret.”
“Your parents
crack me up.” Ally laughed. “Didn’t you say your dad transferred money into
your checking account today, and that’s how you paid for our dinner?”
“Yes.” I sighed.
“Two hundred dollars and he made me promise not to tell mom because they had
some kind of
agreement
. Secrets,” I muttered. “Here’s your fifty bucks;
spend it wisely.” I tossed it in her lap.
“I’m going to
write a nice thank you letter to your mom. Snail mail, of course. Do you think
she’ll ever convert to e-mail or texting?” Ally asked.
“Not in this
lifetime.” Looking at my hundred dollar bill, I shook my head. “But I love her
anyways.” I leaned over and hugged Ally. “You too. Thanks for adapting to the
last minute plans. And thanks for covering when I ran into the apartment
building.”
“No problem, I
knew you were on a premonition mission.” She giggled at her rhyme. “But I’m
still curious about all this Essence stuff. Sure would have come in handy
tonight. I’ll be expecting you to get a full report and find out what exactly
an Amethyst can do. What
you
can do.” She leaned against my shoulder.
Suddenly solemn,
I rose from the couch and said, “I’ll talk with Jessica soon. Promise. But
right now, all I want is that hot shower and a bottle of Excedrin.”
“Can’t wait…Ms.
Amethyst,” she shouted after me.
I shook my head
warily and kept on walking. Once I was in the shower, scalding water washed the
soot from my body and the smoke from my hair. I only wished it would wash away
my frustration and anger as well. Here I’d accepted my fate, an invitation to
end it all, granted it was via mountain lions – not the best way to go, but
now, unexpectedly, an invitation to fight against my fate had arrived, via
Jessica. Only this one came with another gift – the extraordinary ability to
heal.
Even though I
didn’t want to consider it, I couldn’t seem to stop myself. If I accepted her
belief, that I too, could become an Amethyst, was there a chance I could
survive the mountain lion attack by utilizing my Essence? If I did, I’d have to
come to terms with the life I’d been trying so desperately to escape – a life
that would always be dominated by premonitions and the ability to heal people.
At least I
wouldn’t be completely alone, because I’d have Jessica. And she’d said there
was a network of others like us. Maybe my Mr. Right was an Amethyst, and my
premonitions wouldn’t scare him away. At that thought, aqua-marine eyes popped
into my mind, and I felt a tug on my heart. Unwanted complications.
Feeling
disconcerted and more confused than ever, I turned off the water and huddled
inside my towel. I had a lot to think about. I collapsed into bed and, for
once, fell right asleep.
“What ya up to?”
Ally asked, poking her head into the bathroom.
I grabbed a
wide-tooth comb off the counter. “Attempting to do something with my hair,” I
replied. “Four days in a row at work where I have to wear my hair pulled back,
and I’m wondering if that has contributed to my headaches. So I thought I’d
wear it down today.”After spending a couple days at home with my parents in
Tacoma, I’d spent the rest of the week at the store.
“Want some
Advil?”
“Already took
something.” Turning to inspect her outfit, I waved the comb in the air. “Fancy
dress. You must be heading off to work?” I asked.
She held her
head high. “Yes, I am. And for your information, there is a direct correlation
between wearing dresses and higher sales.”
“No way,” I
said, picking up the flat iron.
“Really.
Besides,” she said, smoothing out non-existent wrinkles, “a man is more
attracted to a woman in a dress.” I snorted, and she added, “Not that I’m on
the market anymore. But you still are. Hint. Hint.”
“I’m tuning out
now.”
“Fine. But hey,
serious for a minute. What’s going on with you? It’s been almost a week since
Jessica told you about Amethysts, and it’s like you’re avoiding her. What’s up
with that?”
“Nothing. Just
busy,” I lied. I’d been evading Jessica all right. I’d decided I didn’t want
anything to do with becoming an Amethyst – didn’t want the added
responsibility. Jessica was making me nervous, too. In passing she kept
alluding to how she was going to
need
me. I didn’t even want to know where she was going with that.
“Lexi, are you
sure it’s not something else? It’s not like you to be so…so apathetic?”
I snapped to
attention and mustered a smile. “Honestly, I just needed a breather. It seems
like the premonitions have been non-stop lately, and on top of that, I’ve had
this never-ending migraine. That’s it, really. I’ll be fine,” I assured her,
dropping the straight iron on the counter. “There hasn’t been time to meet with
Jessica. We’ve been working opposite shifts, and she volunteers at the hospital
all the time. She is trying to set something up for this Friday, though. So,
we’ll see. I’m just feeling overwhelmed,” I admitted.
“Oh Lex.” She
hugged me. “If you need help with anything, let me know, but I don’t think you
have anything to worry about.” As we parted, she grabbed the straight iron and
started in on the back side of my head. “Besides, being an Amethyst would be a
good thing for you. And I think this Essence stuff is exciting – even more so
than your premonitional abilities.”
“Premonitional?”
“You use fancy
words all the time. Why can’t I?”
“I use real
words,” I said, rolling my eyes.
“Oh bother.
Anyways, Jessica’s got me believing anything is possible.” A couple minutes
later she stopped fussing with my hair. “Looks great. You’re so lucky you can
change it up from curly to straight. A little advice though, scrap the Chap
Stick, and go with my red velvet lipstick.” She glanced at her watch. “Gotta
head out, cuz there is a big two for one deal at work today, and I plan on
makin’ the highest sales. You just gonna hang here today, or what?”
“Since I’m tired
of waiting for you,” I teased, “I’m heading to the bookstore all by my
lonesome.”
“Good for you.”
She put her hands on her hips. “Hope you find something good. And by that, I
mean a hottie with a naughty body.” She winked. “Maybe then you’ll be smiling
again.”
I paid no heed
to her comment. “By the way, thanks for organizing my closet. I can’t promise
it’ll stay that way. You’re the only person I know who puts jeans on hangers.”
“You’re welcome.
That was my return favor for you putting my desk together. But do you realize,”
she said sharply, “you currently have 26 pairs of jeans hanging in that closet?
23 of which are designer denim. So the next time you complain about my binge
shopping, I’m going to remind you about your obsessive compulsive jeans
disorder.” Sizing me up, she shook her head disgustedly. “Tennis shoes and a
sweatshirt. Scary! I hate to imagine what kind of guy you’d attract today.
Please feel free to raid
my
closet.”
“Ha, ha. Thanks
a lot. And binge shopping? Are you kidding?” I laughed. “You suffer from full
blown shopaholicism.”
She threw her
hands in the air. “What. Ever. I’m outta here. Have fun at the book store, and
remember, bring home nothing unless he’s tall, dark, and handsome.”
After she left,
I sighed at my reflection. Hanging halfway down my back, my hair looked nice
for once. The summer sun had lightened it, and it was now a shiny golden color.
My face was still pale, but that was normal since I never tanned very well. At
least my long eyelashes helped distract from the circles under my eyes. The
small mole under my right eye caught my attention, probably because I’d always
been self-conscious about it. I glanced at my rather Bohemian attire and
wondered if it really mattered?
The girl in the
mirror stared back at me, looking tired and…haunted. “Crap,” I said aloud. “I’m
not dead yet.” Acting on Ally’s advice, I slapped on lipstick and a bit of
blush. Then I rummaged through her closet and found a stylish, purple blouse
that still had the REI tag in it. Ha! That will teach her. After sliding my
cell phone, debit card, and some cash into my pocket, I headed out the door.
Once inside
Village Books, I sighed with relief at having arrived without any
premonitional
diversions this time. Vaulted ceilings offered a good view of the upper floor
balcony, and a spectacular piece of red, twisting blown-glass artwork hung
suspended from the ceiling. Closing my eyes, I inhaled the scent of old books,
new books, and a tinge of espresso drifting down from the upstairs coffee bar.
Walking slowly,
I enjoyed the creaking of the wooden floor boards while gazing at several
featured books. The first few tables displayed new arrivals and novels by local
authors. I flipped through a
Whatcom County Best Hikes Guidebook
for a
few minutes. Finally, I wandered up the squeaky staircase to the fantasy
section. I didn’t think much about the guy standing with his back to me, until
I noticed he was thumbing through a Robert Jordan book I’d already read.
Impulsively, I
reached out and touched his shoulder. “That’s a great series,” I said. “But I
have to tell you, the author died before writing the final book in the series.
Luckily, his wife is collaborating with…” I broke off, because a curious heat
rushed through my hand. Immediately the warmth was saturated my arm and began
spreading throughout my entire body. I was so caught up in the sensations; it
took a moment before I realized I was holding the guy’s shoulder rather
forcefully. An odd sense of familiarity flickered down my spine, and my eyes
darted from the book to his face.
I’m not sure if
my jaw hit the floor before, or after, my eyebrows brushed the ceiling, but my
heart lurched and lodged itself somewhere in my throat. Our eyes locked, and
neither one of us moved for several heartbeats. Gazing into those aquamarine
eyes, I lost all cognitive and motor skills.
For the second
time in my life,
he
rocked my world!
If I hadn’t been
holding onto him, I might have toppled over. Somehow this mystery guy, who was
the source of my internal earthquake, was also the solid ground keeping me from
tumbling over the edge. My first thought was expected: thank God I found you
again – alive and well! My second thought was ridiculous: mental note to thank
Ally for fashion advice.
He glanced at my
hand, closed his eyes, and inhaled deeply, but when his eyes popped open his
look was severe. Instantly, I dropped my hand and opened my mouth to say
something. Anything. But nothing came out. Well nothing coherent; I think I
made some kind of gurgling sound.
Angling himself
until he was standing squarely in front of me, he spoke first and saved me from
further embarrassing myself. His voice was deep. “So…the fates must be at
work.” Light reflected off a thin silver chain which hung around his neck.
“Looks like they’re giving me the opportunity to thank you – the
Good
Samaritan
who wasn’t afraid to step in and perform CPR on a complete stranger.” His brows
arched as his eyes dropped to my lips.
For a second
time, I could feel the heat spreading over my body, but this time the flames
licked across my face. Still, all I could do was stare.
Standing several
inches taller than me, he said, “So, thank you.” He sounded upset, like he
blamed me for something. A white t-shirt with the words
Hit the Trails
accentuated his incredible biceps. His blonde hair was short, even slightly
shorter on the sides then it was on the top where it was a bit messier. The
style reminded me of a David Beckham short faux hawk haircut, only it was way
sexier on this guy.
“Umm…you’re
welcome,” I said, assuming I’d misread his chilly tone. “I’m glad to see you’re
alive.” Could I sound like any more of an idiot?
His lips curled
into an amused smile. “No worries, I’m tough. My injuries were pretty minor. I
was lucky the corner of the truck kind of picked me up and threw me off to the
side.” He shook his head at the memory. A couple faint scratches were visible
underneath a few days worth of stubble – stubble which made him even more
rugged; although, the snug-fitting, faded Levi’s were an even bigger
distraction.
“That…” I took a
deep breath and calmed my nerves. “That was incredibly brave of you to run out
and help that lady and her kids. I was so grateful.”
His brows
furrowed. “Why would you be grateful? It wasn’t your fault they were out in the
middle of the road.”
My eyes widened
as I was once again tongue-twisted. I could feel a second wildfire raging
across my cheeks – flames of shame burning brightly. Oh, I was more than
responsible, and it had almost cost all of them their lives. But I couldn’t let
him know any of that.
But wait just a
minute, here. He’d played a part in detaining me when he’d so rudely rammed
into me. Feeling defensive, I decided to throw it back at him. It wasn’t
exactly fair to smack the ball of blame onto his side of the court. But what
else could I to do? Admit my guilt when I couldn’t even explain why I was
guilty?
“What was your
deal, running down the sidewalk like a maniac knocking into people? Care to
explain your…your boorish behavior?” I said and shifted my stance as I eyed him
skeptically. Whenever my nerves were shot, I spoke before my brain had a chance
to catch up – usually resulting in the use of strange vocabulary words. Drove
Ben and Ally crazy.