Elemental Reality (4 page)

6

Comfortably Confused

Goosebumps trailed in his finger’s wake. “Is this the key to your heart?” he breathed.

No
. I nodded.

“Has anyone earned it yet?” he asked softly.

“No,” I whispered.

He let go of my arm reluctantly and straightened, a thoughtful expression on his face.

“So how does one earn that key?” he asked.

“It’s top secret.” I grinned. “There is tedious training one must tackle and sometimes even those who have succeeded, fail. They just weren’t cut out to own that key.”

“Those poor blokes,” he said with a snort. “I bet you broke their hearts into a million pieces.”

I couldn’t believe how comfortable I was talking to Oli. It scared me. I loved and hated it at the same time. Our conversation just flowed easily as if we were old friends catching up on the years past.

“So, have you met Crazy Cat Lady yet? I think she’s still across the street from you.”

“I don’t believe I’ve had the pleasure of meeting that sheila yet. Tell me about her?”

“Hah! Okay. This is important: we used to have a big tree in our front yard when we were younger. My dad built this awesome tree house for Lola and me. Remember that because it’s vital.

“Well, Crazy Cat Lady lives in the house across from yours—at least I think she still does. She must have had about eleven cats, and she used to take them for walks on their little leashes all the time. So this was about two years ago. Lola and I pulled into the driveway when we saw this brown and white cat walking around the bottom of the tree. We thought nothing of it because her cats always escaped. When we parked the car and got out, we heard this insane cackle coming from the tree house and cats meowing. We were freaked out until we realized it was Crazy Cat Lady and her mob of felines. Lola decided to climb up the ladder and examine the situation.

“So here’s Lola climbing up the ladder,”—I impersonated Lola’s movements—“she reaches the top and peers in through the doorway and immediately slides back down the ladder and falls to the ground in a fit of laughter. When she’s finally able to breathe and talk, she tells me that Crazy Cat Lady is decked out in old-time tea party gear with a huge bonnet on her head. Each of her cats has bows around their necks. Apparently, she managed to climb up there with all her cats and have a ‘tea party’ with them. It was one of the most memorable and funniest experiences I’ve had living here. We had to call 911 to get her and the cats down. We felt bad for her, but at the time it was hilarious.”

He simply stared at me. Just when I thought I had offended him, he burst into a fit of laughter, the sound ringing around the kitchen. I couldn’t help but join him. As our laughter dwindled, I noticed some of his hair had fallen into his eyes. My fingers twitched to brush the hair out of his eyes. Everything happened so naturally. I reached up and brushed his hair away. I slid my hand down to his cheek and left it there, our eyes never breaking away. My breath hitched in my throat and, as if on cue, we moved closer to one another. His breath tickled my lips, and his nose grazed mine. My heart beat out a frantic rhythm, and I was mentally freaking out. But my body refused to listen. Why couldn’t I stop?

His lips were so close to mine it was torturous. I wanted so much to move my hand to the back of his neck and pull his mouth to mine. I closed my eyes and started to act out my thoughts when the harsh slam of the door broke whatever connection flowed between us. As my blissful moment withered, it occurred to me that our noses were touching. I opened my eyes and gazed into a pair of emerald green ones. I took in how close we were and shifted myself away from him so fast I almost fell backwards off my stool. He grabbed my arms and pulled me forward to prevent me from falling back. Instead, I fell into him and was in the same predicament as before. Being that close to him riled up the urge to kiss him for real, but Lola’s piercing scream killed the craving before it could overcome me.

“Callie, you better get your ass out of bed. It’s already—” she paused. “—twelve-fifteen. Do not sleep your— Oh, you’re awake.” Her eyes landed on Oli. “Who is this delicious piece of man-meat? Is he my birthday present? You shouldn’t have, Calico.” She ran over and hopped onto Oli’s lap, flinging her arms around his neck. “Hello, hot stuff. Do I get to keep you, or are you a rental?”

Oli snorted a laugh and turned his green eyes on me. “Calico?” He raised an eyebrow in question. “And this must be your sister Lola?”

“Yeah.” I chuckled. “She only calls me Calico when she wants to embarrass me. Lola, meet Oli. Oli, meet my sister Lola who clearly doesn’t know how to respect people’s personal space.” I slapped her arm playfully. She stuck out her tongue.

“G’day, Lola,” he said with a crooked smile then diverted his emerald eyes back to me. “So, Calico, are you as playful as a kitten? You do have the cute part down. And I bet you’re a feisty one too.”

I blushed. Oh my God, why did he have to be so drop-dead sexy? Before I could answer Lola cut in.

“Hello, cute birthday girl sitting on your lap. All eyes on her right now.” Lola was definitely an attention whore. “So Mister Australian? This is the best birthday present ever,” she rejoiced. She looked back at Oli. “So your name is Oli? Is that short for anything?”

“Oliver,” he said.

I was jealous and worried. Lola shouldn’t be near Oli or even be attracted to him. Not because I was totally into him, but because I was unsure of his intentions. But if he did have any intentions, they should be focused on me. And they better be sexy intentions.

“Well then, I’m just going to have to call you Oliver because Oli makes me think of oil, and I don’t think you want me calling you oil, do you?”

“That’s ace, mate. Oliver is fine with me.”

“Fantastic. Oooh, muffins.” She jumped off Oli’s lap and snatched my muffin from my plate. She chowed down then stole my cup of tea, completely ignoring us. She went all cavewoman with a one-tracked mind. If she added some grunting we could throw her back into the prehistoric times. She’d be the most popular girl in the cave.

“So,” he said nervously, “would you like to get some sweets later?”

“She’d love to,” Lola blurted out.

I scowled in her direction and turned back at Oli. “Yeah, that’d be fun.”
If I go all Elizabeth Smart, Lola’s going to pay.

“Ace. What time should I pick you up?”

Dammit. Maybe I should lie and tell him I needed to wash my hair tonight. Of course Lola took the decision out of my hands by saying, “Seven-thirty sharp. Not a minute before or after.”

“Zip it, Lola,” I whispered. “Sorry, she’s pushy. Seven-thirty is fine.”

“Ace. I should get going.” He smiled. “I have to run to the store for my mum anyway.”

“I’ll walk you to the door.”

“It was great meeting you, Lola,” he said with a tiny wave.

“You too, hotstuff—I mean, Oliver!”

I shook my head at her as we walked toward the front door. The small trek was filled with smiles and friendly shoulder bumps. Had thirty minutes of flirtation turned me into Sassy Susan?

“I had a good time,” he said. “I’ll see you later?”

He was giving me an out, but I didn’t take it. “I had a good time too. And yes, I’ll see you later.” What was I doing? What about Cayden? Jeez, I was playing the field like a British soccer player in the rain. Dirty and wet. And I liked it.

“Bonza!” he exclaimed.

I raised my eyebrows in question.

He chuckled. “Okay.”

“Bonza it is,” I said.

“Cheers, Kitten.”

My heart thudded at the nickname. “See you later Oli.” What had I gotten myself into? An Aussie, you idiot.

He breathed out a laugh and headed off the porch and down the driveway. I sighed as I watched him walk away, then shut the door. I returned to the kitchen where Lola grinned like a dork.

“What?” My tone was defensive.

“You got asked out on a date,” she said in a singsong voice.

“But you agreed for me. What the hell was that about?” I tried to scowl, but I was too giddy to pull it off convincingly. I disliked this giddiness, it made my brain not function.

“Um, he’s only uber-delish. I’m just looking out for you and trying to get you laid.”

“We just met,” I argued.

“You need a stress reliever,” she insisted. “Get some.”

I shook my head and sat on the stool. “So what are you doing home? I thought you had class all day?”

“Nah. Mr. Tiege has some kind of meeting to go to so he cut class in half. I called Dad to let him know I’d be home tonight for dinner. I told him to bring sushi.”

“Awesome. Happy birthday, by the way. Your present should be here later today.”

She sat up straighter and smiled wide. “Is Oliver bringing it back, or is it actually going to be him?”

I snorted. “Neither. This present is from Dad and me. We think—no, we know you’ll enjoy it.”

“Tell me now,” she demanded. Lola couldn’t stand surprises. She would unwrap and rewrap Christmas presents if they were left under the tree. We learned long ago to hide all gifts until we wanted her to open them.

“And ruin it? Yeah right.”

She pouted, and I ignored her.

“So what are your plans for tonight?”

“Going back to Philly—which you already know—getting my Monroe pierced, playing a little pong, and then”—she rolled her eyes—“going to Club Cherry.”

I laughed. “And Dad knows you’re getting your Monroe pierced?” I said in shock. Thank you Marilyn Monroe for having an attractive mole above your lip that girls want to copy by getting it pierced.

“Nah, but I figured he wouldn’t yell at me that much considering you have your lip pierced and got a quarter-sleeve when you turned eighteen. I’ll be fine,” she said with a shrug to her shoulders. “All right—” she clapped her hands “—let’s pick out something for your hot date tonight.”

I groaned. She jumped off her stool, ran around the island, and pulled me toward the stairway.

“Lola, it’s not a hot date. We’re just going for some sweets.” I huffed. Hopefully he wouldn’t kidnap me and hold me down with his strong arms. Or hopefully he would. The whole argument was futile.

“Cal, in my mind ‘sweets’ equals sex because sex is sa-weet,” she replied with way too much enthusiasm. She had a Red Bull; I could tell.

“And you would know this how?”

“Less worrying about me and more worrying about you getting some tonight.” She rotated her hips suggestively.

I was terrified of two things: Oli and the outfit Lola was going to pick out for my “hot date.” Knowing her, it would be something totally sexy that would increase my chances of “getting some.” It was pointless to fight her on this, so I followed her command.

7

Power Surge

I sat on my bed as Lola and Ady rummaged through my closet and drawers. Lola somehow managed to call Ady during our short journey from the kitchen to my bedroom. Ady most likely violated every traffic law in our development to get here as fast as she could. She barreled up the stairs and into my room. Diving onto my bed, she didn’t even let me say hello before she made me tell her everything from beginning to end. She even called Emery and had him on speakerphone so he could be part of it. Was my dating life so parched it warranted a full-scale assault from my friends just to squeeze the tiniest bit of information from me? I knew it was bad, but not that bad.

After telling the entire story—minus the almost-kiss, of course—Ady and Lola went into fashionista mode. Their veins must have been filled with adrenaline because they ran around my room like headless poultry. After the whirlwind they unleashed, they finally narrowed it down to one outfit each. Lola picked out a heather grey sweater dress from her closet while Ady picked my grey, off-the-shoulder shirt and silver ankle leggings.

“Guys, don’t I get a say?”

They glanced at each other, nodding their heads once, then turned back at me. “No,” they said in unison.

“Why not?” I whined. “You know I’d be more comfortable in my skinnies, tee, and Chucks.”

“We know,” Lola said.

“Dress sexy on the first date because it’ll make heads turn,” Ady chimed in. “And if he really likes you he’ll make sure everyone knows you’re his.”

“Right,” Lola continued. “Then on the second date you can dress more comfy. Or go without clothes if you want.”

Ady playfully slapped an unrepentant Lola on the arm.

“Fine,” I grumbled, rolling my eyes. Sometimes one had to admit defeat. I choose Ady’s outfit because I didn’t want Lola to complain when I stretched out the chest in her sweater. Ady squealed and clapped her hands, way too excited over a simple choice of clothing. They shoved me towards the shower, patting themselves on the back.

Once in the shower, I let my mind wander. There was something about Oli that had put me in a disquieting ease. Our conversation flowed without effort, which surprised me because I was a socially awkward person at heart. And then there was the whole Cayden thing. There really was no comparing the two; they were both so different, and I was attracted to both. Cayden had a cocky confidence around him while Oli was more laid back. And the way I melted like chocolate when Oli held my arm was unlike anything I’d ever felt before. He had ignited something inside me and brought it to life. But Cayden? He’d snatched me up and twirled me into a twisted emotional mess—and I liked it. I was so screwed.

Lola banged on the door as soon as I turned the water off. “You’ve been in there for thirty-five minutes.
Ándale
,” Lola shouted.

I rolled my eyes at her impatience. “No need to go all Spanish on me. Jeez, get your panties out of a bunch.”

When I opened the door, Lola pounced and drug me to their impromptu manicure and pedicure station. They could buff, polish, and dress me if it made them happy, but I refused to let them touch my hair or makeup. Last time they made me look like an eighties popstar. My hair was so big birds could have nested, and I would have had no idea. And the eye shadow. Don’t even get me started on that. They used electric blue, and it covered from my lid to my eyebrows. Then there was the glitter. I was surprised no one had mistaken me for Boy George.

“I should probably be the one getting pampered right now,” Lola mock-groaned.

“You’re the one who set up this whole date,” I reminded her.

“Shush. Not important. Just enjoy the special treatment on
my
day.”

Ady went into a myriad of questions about Oli as she rubbed soothing oil on my cuticles. It had been awhile since I’d been on a date. My last boyfriend was during my third year of college. We didn’t click so I ended it after five months. The guys I went on dates with after that could be counted on one hand. No one ever satisfied me. Ady and Emery thought I was afraid of commitment, but it just didn’t feel right with any of them.

“I remember when Emery took me on our first date . . .” Ady prattled on.

I couldn’t concentrate on what she was saying as thoughts of Oli danced in my head. His eyes were emerald pools of sexiness that I wanted to get lost in. His simple, innocent touch on my arm had ignited a firestorm inside of me. But the way he glared at me in the club still haunted my mind.

“Our first kiss was perfect too.” Ady’s voice broke through my thoughts. “He took me to the Pirate Ship mini golf. We were on the last hole. I got a hole-in-one, and he reached into the cup to retrieve my ball for me. I held out my hand, waiting for him to hand it to me. Instead he pulled me toward him. His lips were so soft . . .”

I wondered if Oli’s lips were soft. They looked soft. I closed my eyes and thought about our almost-kiss and what it would have been like—felt like—if we weren’t interrupted. Instead of me being the one to touch his face, he would have cupped my face in his strong hands, leaned in close, and placed the most gentle kiss on my mouth before deepening it. Letting me taste him and feel his lips mingling with mine. My fingers tingled, and my body heated up at the thought. Why was I so drawn to someone I was wary of the night before? Maybe he spiked my tea. A chilled heat rolled through my body.

“Ow!”

“Ouch!”

Ady and Lola yelped at the same time. I opened my eyes and was greeted with startled expressions.

“What?” I glanced around.

“Your skin was on fire,” Lola said, shaking her hand.

“And you shocked me,” Ady exclaimed.

“Um, what?” I tried hard not to let them see how freaked out I was. These strange occurrences kept happening and growing more intense. Now I was hurting people I loved. I felt sick.

“I’m okay. You just shocked me.” Ady giggled nervously as she took my hand cautiously.

Lola examined her palm and narrowed her eyes, questioning me with her gaze. I had no response and no answers.

“Are
you
okay?” Lola asked. “Feeling hot at all? I swear your body temperature spiked enough to blister my hand.”

“That’s not possible.” I reached for Lola’s hand, but she jerked back.

“Let me see,” Ady demanded.

Lola let her examine the injury, and Ady’s face paled.

My heart skipped a beat, panicked. “Here.” I held out my hand. “I’m not hot. I’m normal.” The last wasn’t convincing.

“Hell no. No way am I touching you again.” Lola was truly terrified, and a part of me didn’t blame her. “You’ll burn me.”

My stomach clenched at the fear in their eyes. “Will not,” I said defensively. “Just touch me.” I moved quicker than she could back away, palming her cheek. Lola screamed. Scared, I ripped my hand away with unhuman speed, horrified.

Lola’s screams were abruptly cut off. “Yeah, you’re right,” she said. “You feel normal to me.”

I could have punched her. “Dude, you suck.”

“Payback’s a bitch.” Lola shrugged. “I don’t know what you did, but it freaking burns.” She left to run cold water on her palm.

Ady watched me curiously. “Seriously, what the hell was that?”

“I-I don’t know.” I certainly wasn’t about to confess this wasn’t the first time something strange had happened to me. First my senses and now my body was acting weird. Might as well take me to the nearest lab and start the experiments.

Ady sighed, dropping the subject.

After Ady left to pick up Emery for dinner, Lola became quiet. Pensive. When she finally broke the silence she asked, “Are you okay? Is there anything you need to tell me?”

“No,” I said a little too quickly.

“Your skin was so hot it burned me, Callie,” she said seriously. “I was expecting flames to shoot out of you. And I swear I heard a crackly, electrical sound when you shocked Ady. You know you can tell me anything, right?”

“I’m fine, Lola.” It was bad enough weird things were happening to me, but for Lola and Ady to feel something from me was even freakier. Maybe I should tell her. When she didn’t back down I said, “Really.”

She shrugged, still looking concerned. “Okay then. You know you can talk to me if you need to. About
anything
.”

I nodded, and she walked to the door. I mentally cursed myself, knowing I’d hurt her feelings.

“Okay,” I shouted after her.

She peeked her head back into the room, expectant.

I exhaled a shaky breath. “There is something I need to tell you.”
Please don’t let her think I’m insane
. “There’s no easy way to say this, and you’ll probably think I’m insane, but I need to tell someone.”

Her eyebrows rose.

“Um, well, I can kind of smell nature and rain before it’s anywhere near us,” I admitted reluctantly. The next part I said as quickly as I could. “I can feel the wind blow before it shows up, and I can feel fire from yards away.” I chuckled nervously. “I get zapped more times during a day than I can count. I don’t know why it’s happening. It started at the beginning of the month and has only intensified since then. It scares me, but at the same time it’s sort of neat.” I looked at her expectantly, hoping she’d take me seriously and not start making jokes about locking me up in a padded room. Though I wouldn’t blame her if she did.

Her eyebrows shot up even farther. “That really happens to you? For real?” I heard a hint of sarcasm in her voice.

“Yeah, it does.” I winced, knowing I’d never live this down, but admitting it out loud made it feel more real.

“Wow. I don’t think you’re insane, Cal. You’re completely off your rocker, of course, but that’s one step better than insane. But seriously, stop kidding around. That’s not your job it’s mine.” She smiled brightly.

“I wish I were kidding,” I said sincerely.

Her face grew serious. “Did something happen to you earlier this month—something that might have brought about this change in you? Did you get shocked by your hair dryer?” she asked. “Or hit your head?” she tacked on as an afterthought.

“No, nothing like that. The only thing that happened before all this started was a reoccurring dream since the first of the month.”

“What was the dream about?”

I opened my mouth to say something but heard the front door shut. “Girls? I’m home. Callie, your friends are here,” Dad called out.

“Coming,” Lola called back. She turned to me. “I’ll tell them you’re getting dressed. We’ll talk about this later, okay?”

I nodded. With that, she waltzed out of my room and closed the door behind her. I stared at it for several seconds, regretting what I’d just shared with my sister. She wouldn’t say anything, but I didn’t want her to think I was making up stories. I needed her to believe me. I brushed it off and dressed. I gave myself a once over in my full-length mirror, grabbed my leather jacket, and casually strolled toward the stairs.