Touched by Darkness (Young Creator Trilogy) (4 page)

I
won’t lie to myself,I’m hurt. Not by Porsche, because I know this is right up her alley.
I’m hurt by Keagan, because regardless of remembering our time or not, I just can’t believe that
he would rub this into my face. I guess that I have to realize Keagan isn’t the guy I used to know.
The creepy thing about the whole situation is that the entire time Keagan is sticking his tongue
down Porsche’s throat, she is staring at me, eyes wide open. I have so many names to describe
her right now, but instead I decide to take a few deep breaths and remove myself from the
situation.

“I see that you’re
busy right now, Keagan, but we should probably get together later
tonight before the meeting to figure out a plan. Why don’t you come find me, when you’re not
occupied?” With those words, I spin around on my heels and walk away. I have to say that I’m
really proud of myself; what I really wanted to do was scratch that witch’s eyes out and tell her
to get off of my man. Unfortunately, I can’t do that because Keagan doesn’t remember that he is
mine. I head back into camp, deciding that I would love to spend some time with Chelsey before
tonight’s adventure begins. I need my best friend right now. I know that she will let me cry on
her shoulder and not judge me.

I find her sitting cross-legged, leaning against a tree. She is dressed rather casual in a pair
of jeans and a brown tank top. I miss seeing Chelsey in her style, which describes exactly who
she is. She usually is all about cute summer dresses, and some cowboy boots. Next to her sits
Sam; his long legs are extended in front of him, bent at an angle, and he’s resting his elbow on
his knee, which is supporting his head. He is watching Chelsey, listening intently to whatever she
is saying. I wonder what they are talking about.I’m too far away to hear their words, but just by
observing their gestures and facial expressions I can tell that it’s serious. Sam notices me first
and nudges Chelsey, who breaks out into a huge smile when she sees me. “Hey, girl, where have
you been? What you been up to?”

“You know
, the usual. Dealing with stubborn people and planning to save the world.
Standardmorning for me.” Standing in front of them, I return her smile. “You guys busy? Mind
if I join you?”

Chelsey glances over at Sam, which must mean that it was something personal and
intimate. Sam, without even looking at Chelsey,smiles at me and tells me to join them. “We
were just talking about everything that has happened… to both of us. About how Chelsey was
treated by both the Guardians and Allecto’s people, and how Kia and I had a similar experience.”
I glance at Chelsey, wondering if she blames any of this on me. I hope not. However, I know
she’s been through so much and the logical thing to do is blame someone, and that person must
be me. “How are you guys dealingwith everything?” I know that it’s the right thing to ask, but I
dread hearing their answer.

Chelsey gets a thoughtful look on her face. “Honestly
, I think I’m okay. Don’t get me
wrong, you know that I have seen alot and dealt with things I don’t want to remember. But I
have decided to move on and get over it. Y’all get what I’m saying, right?” Her words make me
realize that Chelsey has lost some of her carefree nature, which I understand, and has really
grown up in the last few weeks. I know how she feels because I feel the exact same way; like
there is so much weight on my shoulders, so much responsibility. Just a few days ago I was
wondering why me and not someone else. After everything that happened, I now accept who I
am and know the responsibility I carry. So I really do understand her.

“I completely understand where you are coming from
. Your words actually made me
realize that I have done the same. How about you, Sam, how are you holding up?”
Looking up at me through his thick lashes, Samgives me a sad smile. “I miss Kia. I know
that in her final moments she turned against us, but you have to understand … I spent sixteen
years with a sweet, innocent girl. A sister that I would have done anything for, I absolutely
adored her.”
I don’t know what to say; death makes me so uncomfortable. It seems like I never know
the right thing to say or write when someone passes away. I mean, how can you truly express
your remorse at the loss of someone who they loved and cared about? Or maybe not, maybe they
were the bane of their existence and now they are happy not to have to deal with them anymore. I
know that’s harsh,but it’s the truth. I remember going to Mr. Hirsch’s funeral. We had never
been very close to our elderly, gray-haired next door neighbor. However, we figured since he
was our neighbor we should pay our respect. So Mom and I pulled out some black clothes and
went to his funeral. It was a rainy, cloudy day in September and I thought that the weather was
befitting for a funeral. We arrived at the massive church and took our seats in the back row of the
pews; wanting to show our support, but not interrupting the family’s grieving. The pastor said a
few words and a prayer, and then we all lined up to say our good-byes to Mr. Hirsch. I looked
into the casket and felt sadness overwhelm me at seeing him with his eyes closed. He would
never be able to scowl at me again when I said good morning to him, when I went for my
morning runs. To my surprise, there were only about twenty people and the good-byes went
rather quick.
Afterwards, we were invited to attend the reception, which my mom told me would be
rude to turn down. You never would have thought that these people were sad about the loss of a
loved one; we entered the banquet room to loud music and the clinking of champagne glasses
being raised in toast. Where everyone had worn black in the church, now everyone was in bright
colors. Mom and I looked around in confusion. When Mr. Hirsch’s oldest son came over to hand
us glasses to toast, my mom questioned the party. She asked if it was something that Mr. Hirsch
had wanted. I will never forget when Tony, Mr. Hirsch’s oldest, let out a bellow of a laugh and
told us that they were celebrating the death of the one true scrooge. That Mr. Hirsch had made it
his life’s mission to make everyone miserable. So, yeah,I’m extremely uncomfortable with death
because I just don’t understand how people feel about the person they have lost, and what the
right response is.
Thankfully, Chelseydoesn’t have the same problem. Leaning over to Sam, she puts her
arms around him, giving him a tight hug. It is quite amazing… I’ve gotten to know Sam and
shared many moments with him, even a few kisses when Keagan and I had issues, but Chelsey is
the one that knows what to do. It seems that it was the right thing to do because when Sam, after
several moments, pulls out of Chelsey’s embrace, he has a smile on his face. The look that they
share makes me sad;it’s how I used to look at Keagan and it makes me miss being close to him.
The sun is starting to go down, and just as I’m about to get up I notice Keagan
approaching us; he has hot-pink lipstick smeared across his lips. Chelsey notices and glances at
me with raised eyebrows. “It appears that he and Porsche are umm … together.” Chelsey stares
at me, mouth gaping open, while Sam looks back and forth with confusion. However, when he
notices Keagan and understanding dawns, he shakes his head in disbelief.
“You’ve gotta be kidding me, seriously? The guy that threw a huge fit when he thought
that you were interested in me,” Sam states.
I turn away from their probing eyes, not wanting them to see the hurt in mine. “It seems
that when I brought him back, all memories of us had been wiped away. Chelsey, he is so
different.” I think she is about to say something, but changes her mind when Keagan arrives in
front of us. He stands there, looking down his nose at us.
“You wanted me to meet up with you before tonight, so here I am. What now?”
Ugh,he’s so rude! My teeth clench together to keep the words that are about to burst
forth at bay, but Sam speaks his mind.
“Dude,seriously, that’s how you speak to the girl that saved your life? You’re an ass!”
Sam turns from Keagan and grabs a hold of Chelsey, jumping up and pulling her up along with
him.“Come on, Chels,let’s get out of here.I don’t feel like being around idiots that can’t see
what’s right in front of them.” I’m speechless and have no idea what to say. “I’ll see you later,
Trish. Come find us when you’re done with the idiot.” He turns and walks away, pulling Chelsey
along with him. She quickly glances over her shoulder, mouthing,‘Sorry’.
I’m nervous, anddon’t know what to say after everything Sam just did. I start playing
with my new strand of black hair to give myself something to do. Keagan just watches me, a
look on his face that Ican’t quite decipher
“So what are your thoughts?” I ask.
“Don’t worry about my thoughts,” Keagan replies arrogantly.
“You seriously make me want to pull my hair out.” I emphasize this by grasping my hair
and pulling it straight up. I notice that his eyes focus on the black strand.
“That’s a weird fashion statement. I don’t like it.” He crosses his arms in front of his
chest, and looks me up and down, focusing again on my hands in my hair.
How can his memory of me have changed so much in one day? If this had been the
Keagan I had met,I don’t believe I would have ever even considered dating this annoying ass. I
don’t believe that any single person, not even Porsche, has ever been able to irritate me as much
as Keagan is today. Even though when I first noticed the black streak in my hair I was not too
fond of it, I have come to accept it as a part of me now. It reminds me of that special moment
when I believed that Keagan was dead, and then I met his very alive eyes.
“You’re a condescending ass, you know that?” I now have my arms crossed in front of
me, too, and am tapping my foot with impatience.
“Feisty little thing, aren’t you?” He takes a step in my direction.
“What are you doing?” I ask while stepping back. The smirk that I’m now becoming
accustomed to returns to his face. Then, as if he has come to some sort of realization, his whole
composure changes. Gone is the arrogance and macho attitude, and in its place is pure
determination.
“Let’s stop with the games. We don’t have time for them. You said something earlier that
caught my attention, so hereI’m at your request to come up with a plan. I might not like the
situation I find myself in, but I intendto do my duty.”
“Okay, so do you remember anything at all about us?”
“There is no us!”
I let out an exasperated sigh and tell myself to be patient. “Not that you remember
anyway. I don’t understand how or why it happened, but since I’ve brought you back, it’s as if
I’ve been erased from your memory.”
“What are you talking about? Brought me back?” Keagan is looking at me with
confusion, and at that moment I realize he has no clue that he died and I brought him back to life.
I don’t know what to say to him, so I try to change the subject.
“You and Porsche, cute couple,” I say sarcastically.
Keagan is silent for a moment, but to my immense relief he goes along with my change in
topic. “It just kinda happened.It’s actually pretty weird. I have never been a big fan of Porsche
and never felt any draw in her direction, but that completely changed yesterday. I remember the
first thing I wanted after blacking out was to be near Porsche.I missed her.” He shrugs as if it’s
just natural for him to want Porsche.
Hearing all of this chips away a piece of my heart, and I try really hard not to let the hurt
show on my face. “Well, I hope that you get what your heart desires. But back on topic, I think
that you must have hit your head when you
blacked out
.” When I emphasize blacked out with
finger quotes, I receive raised eyebrows, so I decide to focus on the one thing that I know will
get to Keagan. “You, Eddie, Chelsey, and I were all friends back at Dalton Academy. Eddie
figured out that I was a Young Creator, so you did your duty to humanity and brought me to
Haven. When we left Haven and met up with Aunt Tisi, she discovered that you and I have a
weird bond while training me. Instead of me controlling my protective shield, you do. So in a
fight, such as we might be engaging in tonight,we have to have each other’s backs.” Keagan is
staring at me with eyes wide open,but I decide to just forge ahead. “So what I think we should
do is something we did before, and it worked.” I manifest a yellow, round sponge and hand it to
Keagan, who is looking at me likeI’m straight up crazy. “All right, Keagan, what I want you to
do is throw the spongeat my head.” Without hesitation, he throws the sponge and hits me right
in the face. He starts laughing, which Iignore. “All right, this time thinkthat you don’t want
anything to happen to me.” He throws it again and it hits me once more, right in the face.
“You are a strange girl.” He laughs some more, and picking up the sponge he throws it to
me. I catch it and toss it at him. Before it can even come close to hitting him, the force field that I
have created makes it bounce off harmlessly. “That’s a pretty neat trick.”
“Right, and you should be able to make the same thing happen when it comes to me.”
“Look,I’m a Guardian, not your little magical play thing. If that is all you want from me,
then I’m going now.” I don’t know what to do. I need this to work,but don’t understand why it’s
not. I need Aunt Tisi. I have never done this before, but decide to give it a try. I picture her
standing next to me, telling me the answers to all of my problems. Nothing happens.
Keagan turns and starts walking away from me, toward the rebel camp. I have to make
this happen now. So instead of thinking of what she is going to be doing, I shut my eyes and
imagineAunt Tisi’s journey from where she is now, to when she stands beside me. I see her
turning into billions of particles right before my eyes, traveling at the speed of light and
reassembling right next to me in the form of Tisi. I slowly open my eyes. She is standing right
next to me seeming disoriented and confused as to what just happened. I smile, and when she
notices she shakes her head with a look of wonder.
I glance at Keagan’s retreating back and yell,“Hey, Keagan, wait up! Aunt Tisi is here to
help us with our plan.” Keagan immediately turns on his heels, and with an awestruck look on
his face, returns to stand next to us. I really don’t understand what his deal is. He has no issues
with a full fledge Fury whose nature it was to destroy and who has done some unthinkable
things, but he literally hates me… who has done nothing except try to save humanity. That boy
doesn’t make sense.
“So what’s going on?” Aunt Tisi inquires.
“Force field is not working, and I don’t really know why,” I tell her. I guess she doesn’t
believe me, because the next thing I know an apple hits me in the shoulder. I roll my eyes at her;
I’m really getting tired of getting hit with random things.
“Hmm. So, Keagan, how did it make you feel when Trish got hit with the fruit?”
“It was kinda funny,especially seeing the look on her face.” Then he chuckles, which
makes me glare at him, and the chuckle turns into a full-blown laugh. I seriously want to kick
him in the shin. Suddenly, a dagger is flying at my face. There are no thoughts in my head and I
can’t move. I simply close my eyes, anticipating the pain.