LS: The Beginning (23 page)

I headed towards the front door, planning on doing a quick search for Lisa. As
I pulled the door handle open, a beautiful white skinned, black haired girl stood
behind the door. Her fingers
were outstretched, indicating her action to knock on the door.

“Hey, Lee,” I said.

“Surprise!” She stretched her arms forward.

Believing she wanted
a hug, I moved closer and wrapped her firmly under my broad shoulders. Once again the feeling was exhilarating. I'd hugged Sharon a couple of times, but I never felt the same way when Lisa and I touched. There was an indescribable chemical reaction when our bodies came in contact.

“Yeah, what a surprise,” I muttered, releasing her from the hug. “Please,
come in and take a seat.” I showed her to the living room.

The last time she’d visited we went straight to my room, but that was
because my cousin was absent. I didn’t want to give Stacey a wrong impression
of Lisa, although she already disliked her.

“Stacey’s home isn’t she?” she asked.

“Yes. Is that a problem?”

“Yeah, I guess. She doesn’t like me, and I don’t want to make her feel uncomfortable.”

My expression turned to a scowl. I was very clear about the fact
Stacey disliked her, but that she would feel uncomfortable made no sense
at all. She could go back to her parents if she disliked Lisa being in my
house.

“Firstly, this is my house, not hers. Secondly, I don’t think she dislikes
you. She's just being overprotective. I’ll go bring her down and you'll see she doesn't hate you.”

“But …”

“No buts. I’ll be right back.”

Stacey was still in bed when I got to her room. She had eaten and was probably having a rest
.

“Lisa is downstairs. Please could you say hi to her?” I requested.

She frowned. “Do I really have to?”

“I want to prove to her you don’t dislike her, so please will you
come?” I pleaded.

She stared at me for a long minute. “Oh okay, I’ll be down in a minute.”

“Thanks a lot," I replied.

I returned to the living room with Stacey by my side. She folded her arms and was ready to put up pretense. I formally introduced the two ladies.

“Stacey,
meet a very good friend of mine, Lisa. Lisa, this is my cousin, Stacey.”

“It’s nice meeting you,” Lisa said, stretching her arm forward.

Stacey hesitantly shook her hand after I'd nudged her shoulder. “The
pleasure is mine,” she said. Her glowering look indicated she meant the opposite, but the worst part of it all was that Lisa could read her mind.

“I have to check on something upstairs. Could you please show Lisa
round the house
?” I asked Stacey. She nodded.

I made it seem like it was Lisa's first time visiting me,
hoping the two ladies would get along. It really pained me to see the
animosity Stacey had for the girl I loved. My only hope was that they would become
friends, because if I was made to choose between them, it would be Lisa.

I spent a long time in my room, allowing a good
conversation to arise between them. My earphones were placed in my ears so I could block my hearing. I preferred to remain in suspense. However, I couldn’t help myself when I heard the front door slam.
Quickly, I ran downstairs to find out what happened, praying it wasn’t
what I was thinking. As I reached the living room, my eyes pinpointed a girl dressed in her
pajamas.

“What in God’s name did you tell her?” I could feel
the anger steering up inside me.

“The truth,” Stacey foolishly answered.

“And what would that be?” I asked.

“You’re living her life. You don’t seem to have time for anything or anyone else,” she said.

“What makes you say that?”

Before she could move her lips, the loud sound of a car slamming on its brakes penetrated through the walls of my house and into my eardrums. That wasn't all: my heart began throbbing faster. I turned to look at the front door.

"Oh, no," I cried.

I left my grounds to see what happened. As I reached the scene of the incident, I saw a lady lying down on the road. Her legs were bent, and blood covered most of her body. At that instance, it felt as though a huge part of me was drifting away. I could hardly breathe as I raced to the side of my love, dropping to my knees next to her lifeless body.

“Oh my God!” a familiar voice screamed with guilt. Stacey ran out of the grounds to see the unpleasant sight. The few people on the street began to approach Lisa and so I quickly went to meet her. Her eyes were shut and the crimson color of her skin had vanished.

“Lee, everything’s going to be fine. Please, stay with me,” I pleaded as
tears trickled down my cheeks. It was the first time I can ever recall crying.

“Steph, I’m so sorry. I’m going to call 911,” Stacey suggested.

The beast within me wouldn’t allow me answer her. I looked at her with disgust as she broke down crying. She knew what she had done.

A huge amount of blood was gushing from the cuts on Lisa’s body. She could barely
speak. I was very confused and didn’t know the next move to make; carrying
her to the hospital wasn’t an option. The people around us were quiet, staring at Lisa and me. I looked at the gate of my house, and then back to Lisa.

Just then a voice cried out in my head, saying, “
Take me home
.”

I took a glimpse around and noticed there weren’t many people looking at us, so I was a bit lucky. I carried her pale body and walked to the nearest corner to get out of sight. As soon as that was achieved, I dashed to her house cradling her to my chest.

By the time we arrived at her house, my clean shirt had turned to a
clothed canvas splattered with my blood.
What a waste!!!

“Please, take me to my room,” she cried.

Without asking why, I carried her directly to where she’d requested.
What can she possibly want from her room? Is it to die peacefully?
My heart ached
at the thought of that.

I placed her on her queen sized bed. Her skin was warming, which was definitely a bad sign. According to her, her temperature had never reduced since the day we touched.

I knew where the first aid kit was in the house and
also
how to use one. I gathered it and began cleaning her wounds.

“That won’t help,” her dying voice said.

“We just have to keep trying. Hold still.” I continued mopping the cuts on her
skin.

“Stephen,” she called my full name.
This must be bad,
I thought. “Go to the frames on the wall besides my closet. Remove the one with Calvin and I, and you’ll see something like a keypad. Enter your name. When it
opens, bring whatever you find inside.”

For a moment there, I was lost. She was in a precarious state and maybe
she didn’t know what she was saying. However, it would be foolish to ignore the words of a dying person.

“Trust me,” she said.

"Okay."

I rushed to the picture frame described. Slowly removing it, I found
what seemed to be a vault. Then I keyed in my name and the red light
turned green, permitting me to pull the handle.
Why is my
name Lisa’s password?
But after glimpsing her shaky body,
the thought erased.

Inside the vault, a red beaming light shone. As I stretched my hand
forward, the heat began piercing through my skin. I withdrew my hand from the vault.

Lisa giggled while shaking.

“Save your strength for something else,” I suggested.

I had always wondered
how it felt when one's body is met with hot searing metal, and now Lisa’s request showed me. Again, I placed my hand inside the vault.
The pain was unbearable, but my love for Lisa helped suppress it. I carried the necklace to her, clenching my teeth. Without asking what she needed the necklace for, I placed it in her
right palm.

“Place it over my head,” she commanded.

I remained quiet and placed the
scorching necklace over her head, enduring the blisters and sores it gave
my icy hands.

I stood back and watched her eyes turn red, allowing
all her wounds heal themselves. My eyes were staring in shock.
How
could a piece of jewelry heal?
I wondered, but then it wasn’t normal jewelry. It was
a burning hot sliver chain with a beaming ruby pendant. Soon, Lisa was whole
again: her skin seemed spotless and scintillating. She got up from her
bed, heading straight to her closet.

“Wow, I wasn’t sure this still worked,” she said, coming out of the closet.

“You scared me for a moment there. I thought I was going to lose
you,” I said.

She glimpsed at my wounded hand. “Would you like to put it on?” she
asked.

“No, thank you. The last time I checked we had opposite abilities, so if
the necklace could heal you, there’s a possibility it can kill me.”

“Yeah, that's a good point,” she said, nodding.

"I'll be downstairs," I said, heading to the door. I left the room so she could change into something clean and sat down
i
n the living room, pretending to watch TV.

“How’s your hand?” Lisa asked as she joined me, having changed into a more comfortable outfit.

“It’s getting better, I think.”

"Oh, cool."

I had so many questions to ask her. Starting with the easiest seemed to
be the right thing to do.
Besides, we had the whole day to ourselves.

“What’s with the necklace?” I pointed at the ruby pendant still on
her neck.

She moved and sat down beside me, caressing the therapeutic necklace with her
finger, an action I wouldn’t dare take.

“To be honest, I really don’t know. My father gave it to me when I was a
little girl. He said I should wear it if anything bad happened to me in school.
He called it my lucky necklace. Then there was a time I mistakenly cut
myself at home. What an irony!" She laughed. "Anyways, I ran to my dad, who then told me to
put on the necklace and I would be fine. I did as he instructed, and the cut healed in seconds. That was the last time I wore it. I’ve been very careful
until today.”