Authors: Cheryl McIntyre
“It was my father. He wanted to wish me a happy birthday,” she says sarcastically. “
He said…well he didn’t exactly say he killed you, but he made me think t
hat he ha
d.
I was so scared. And h
e said I was given my accolades
.
It hurt so
badly
. I thought it was never going to end.”
He touches her face again reassuringly. Keely leans in to his touch and closes her eyes.
“You were struck by ligh
tning and y
our entire body was glowing. You were having seizures. I don’t think I’ve ever been so freaked out in my life.”
“I was so scared
, Nick. I don’t wan
t to lose you.”
“You will not lose me, Keely.” He touches his lips to hers softly. A whisper of
a kiss, but Keely is in need of
more. Having believed, even if only for a moment, that she had lost Nick
,
makes her want to savor every second she now has with him. She presses her mouth firmly against his and kisses him as if it is the last kiss they will share. For all she knows, it may very well be.
Her fingers absorb
the sensation of his skin, hot and smooth. Her senses are on overload. He feels better than eve
r before. He tastes incredible
and the way he smells right now—she can actually
distinguish the scent of his
excitement
. Keely can even hear his heart pound in his chest. With every heavy breath he inhales, she pushes
herself closer to him.
Nick breaks the kiss and slides his mouth down her neck. Gently presses his lips to her scar. Keely kisses the scar by his eyebrow
,
then the one by his lip before their mouths find each other again. His arms tighten around her, afraid to let her go. He has never cared for someone like this. Not in this way. Not this much.
Keely moves her focus to the side of his neck, allowing her tongue to taste the sensitive skin there. Nick moans loudly and pulls her mouth back to his. There is a second, or maybe two, where the world dissolves. Everything ceases to exist except for Nick and Keely. It is in this moment Keely understands, truly comprehends what Nick feels for her. She pulls away so she can look in
to
his eyes
. She
feels foolish for not noticing it sooner. She can see it so clearly now as he looks back at her.
He hugs her to him. Brushes his hand down her hair. “Oh, God. I love you so much,” he sighs before he realizes what he’s saying.
Fifteen
:
The morning sun fills the small apartment with light and warmth
. Nick’s nose skims Keely’s neck, breathing her in. She
laughs as goose bump
s r
ise across
her arms and legs.
“Good morning,” Nick
says,
his voice raspy from sleep.
Keely turns her head smiling. “It’s a wonderful morning.” She kisses his cheek. “I am going to take a shower, then I’m making you breakfast.”
Nick’s arms tighten around her. He doesn’t want to stop touching her. He doesn’t want to break this h
appy little bubble they have hidden
themselves in. If she gets up, if she leaves him, he will be left to think about what they have ignored all night.
Tonight.
Tonight everything may go very wrong for them. T
his, right now, may be his last moments with the girl he loves. Anger boils in his chest. It isn’t fair. He should have more time with her. He should have a lifetime with her. The realization hits him with an uppercut to the brain. He wants forever with Keely. This is the first time he has ever felt this way in his
life. So
of c
ourse
it is getting
taken away from him.
A
s if sensing his struggle
, Keely touches his face, makes him look at her. She is smiling, but he sees it in her eyes. She feels it too. She kno
ws this could be it. She knows
and she is still choosing to do it.
Nick closes his eyes
for a long moment
. Takes a deep breath. He pulls out of her reach.
“We could run away.”
He s
tares at the ceiling as he says the words. Waits for the response he knows is comin
g.
It isn’t the first time he has suggested this. It is the first time Keely considers it. How easy it would be. Just get into Nick’s car with him and drive. Push it all from
her mind
. Pretend everything is just fine. Pretend none of the bad exists. Just her. Just Nick. Together. Forever. The thought is so enticing. She is only human after all. Or at least half so. Could she outrun her life?
The answer is of course no. She feels ashamed for even playing with the idea. Yet the images of her sitting on the worn leather seats next to Nick with the windows down, her hair blowing in the
wind
,
play
repeatedly in her mind.
Always moving forward, never looking back.
No. The guilt alone would bring her down. It would strap itself to her back, weighing on her every minute of every day. She could not live her life wondering, never knowing exactly what became of her parents. Knowing whatever fate they met was because of her. Because she could prevent it but chose the easiest path.
“You know I can’t, Nick. I would if it weren’t for my parents.
But
I can’t just leave them. Besides, we would never be safe. We could never stop running.”
“I would run
until
the end of time for
you
, Keely
.
I would run till my fe
et couldn’t carry me any longer
and then I would cra
wl.
”
“I need you to be there for me tonight. That’s what I need you to do for me.”
“Except that. I need you to let me do my job and keep you safe. I need you to choose me.”
There’s nothing Keely can say.
It’s not about choosing between him and her mom and dad. It’s about choosing between good and evil. It isn’t even a choice really. It just is.
There is no appropriate response. Instead of trying, she gets up. Goes quietly to the bathroom to take her shower. Refuses to
think about all the things that could happen. The good or the bad. Both make her sad. If she thinks this will end happily, the good guys win, and then they don’t… She wouldn’t be able to stand that. If she considers all the things that could and probably
will
go wrong, she begins to lose her nerve.
So she
focuses on the steam of the shower. The hot water spraying down on her. It feels amazing. She stares
at the bubbles on her loofah
. The way they catch the light, burst with color. Everything seems more vivid. Brighter somehow. It’s like her senses are on st
eroids. As she rinses her hair
she decides it is definitely due to the chang
e she went through. The accolades
forced upon her. She looks the same. She thinks the
same. She cannot suddenly fly
or leap tall buildings. She isn’t stronger or faster. She’s fairly certain she still sucks at math. The only differenc
e is the over
sensitivity to her physical senses. At least she thinks so, anyway.
She wishes she knew all the answers. That somehow, now she could solve everything. Save her parents, get rid of her seriously scary father, find her missing best and only friend, maybe even banish her brothers as well, all the while making Nick happy. But if she makes Nick happy, then that means tur
ning her back on the people
she loves.
Who
love
her back. Who
need her to set
things right. And if she can
turn her back on
those in need, then she isn’t really
worthy of Nick’s
love.
With a steady hand she turns the shower off. The air shifts in the small bathroom and she smells Nick beneath the fruity scent of her shampoo. Feels his presence though he hasn’t spoken.
“Sometimes the right decision isn’t always the easiest one,”
she says as she pulls the towel from the shower curtain rod, wraps it around herself and secures it.
“Sometimes what’s right isn’t so easy to see,” he responds. His voice is quiet, sad. Keely pulls the curtain to the side. Nick is leaning against the wall staring at the ceiling.
“I agree.”
“I don’
t want to lose you. I also know you have to do this.
I would do it if roles were reversed.” He looks at her, meeting her gaze. “I wasn’t thinking for a minute there, but I’m good now. I will be there by your side, doing everyt
hing in my power to help you.”
“Like a true Guardian,” she says with a smile.
“Like a guy that truly loves you. As your Guardian
,
I think I’m making a huge mistake by standing by and allowing you to take such a tremendous risk. I realized, however, that if I fail in my Guardianship duties, it isn’t the Guardian in me that will suffer
your loss.” Nick moves so he is facing her. Touches his chest with the palm of his hand. “
It will be me. Just me. W
ho I am before Guardian. Who I am when I’m with you.”
Keely steps out of the bathtub and into his arms. “Thank you, Nick.”
He kisses the top of her wet head. “I should probably warn you
though,
my Guardian instincts will most likely be taking over tonight when it all starts hitting the fan
.”
“That’s perfectly fine with me. Just get us out of there. All of us.”
**
*
“I don’t like going without him.”
Nick places his hands on Keely’s upper arms. “I am more than willing to stay home.”
“You know what I mean.” She buries her head in his chest. “I didn’t get to tell him…I didn’t say goodbye.”
“You’ll tell him whatever you want to later.”
Keely appreciates Nick’s words. She knows he only says them for her benefit. Knows Nick believes Bryon is a traitor. Is fairly certain he believes nobody is making it back to tell anyone anything later. Yet he pretends for her.
“It’s time guys,” Lila announces.
“You can still change your mind,” Nick whispers as he takes both of her hands into his.
With a sigh
,
Keely squeezes his fingers gently. “Let’s go.” As they head to the car, she is so nervous, so incredibly petrified she can’t even remember
the walk
. She slides in
and Nick closes the door. She’
s left alone only for the amount of time it takes him to walk around to the driver’s side, but it feels terribly long and lonely.
They drive in silence. Keely wishes she had done more with the day. Instead of making plans and revising plans, she should have been listening to Nick talk about his life. She should have been kissing his lips and holding him. This thought scares her back into the present. She has right now
. She needs
to take
full advantage. Her fingers slip in between his and she pulls them to her mouth. Memorizes the way his skin feels as she kisses each finger. Pain flashes in Nick’s eyes as he glances at her.
“It will be all right,” he says almost convincingly.
“You have done a really good job of not lying to me thus far. Don’t start now.”
He chuckles. “
O.k.
I have no idea what the night holds. I’m scared shitless, but I don’t want you to be. Is that better?”
Keely smiles. “Yes, actually it is.” Her eyes move to the side
mirror to verify that the bright green
Gremlin is still behind them. For some reason
, it
makes her think of a giant box of lime Jell-O.
“Dusty really has one ugly car.”
Nick spits out a laugh. “That was random.”
“Sorry. Nervous.”
Nick gives her hand a reassuring squeeze.
He knows how she feels. He’
s nervous too. More than that actually. He has never been so terrified. He has never lacked confidence. He was top of his class. He was trained by the best at school and home. He is following in the footsteps of great men
that happen to be his ancestors.
Nick has always
t
rusted in himself to succeed, but he can’t find that confidence now.
His happiness, her life
,
depends on him tonight.