Chapter 5
Chapter Five
That night, I dreamed of Nana and the Obelisk again.
It felt like the dream picked up right where it had left off days ago.
But instead of Nana melting away in the fire, she glowed.
Her long, gray hair was tucked into a woven braid that hung over her left shoulder.
Her left hand remained on the burning Obelisk, but her eyes remained steadfast on me; her features stern and serious, as if what she was about to do or say was of extraordinary importance.
Her head tilted as her soft gray eyes took me in.
I knew I was dreaming, that this was nothing more than a figment of my imagination, but I swear I could smell Nana as if she were really right in front of me.
Her rich, citrusy perfume, which I would get her every year for her birthday, clung to the air.
Tears welled in my eyes as I looked at her, no longer scared, but homesick.
“I miss you.” I croaked, my voice cracking on the last syllable. Nana’s chin lifted in recognition, the corner of her mouth twitching up slightly.
“I miss you too, baby.” Her sweet southern drawl sounded like music.
I took a step toward her, wanting to reach out, not caring that she was literally on fire. But before I could get close enough to touch, she shook her head.
“No, baby. You can’t come near me. Not yet.”
“What do you mean ‘not yet’? Nana, what’s going on?”
Nana sighed patiently, her lips forming a firm line. It felt as though there were things she wanted to say but couldn’t.
“Keep my amulet with you. Always.”
My hand naturally gravitated towards my neck, where I was still wearing the amulet Tiffany had given me days earlier. I kept it on while I slept, hoping that the amulet would actually protect me from nightmares. Now, it felt more like a connector, a way for me to feel closer to Nana.
“I will,” I replied, tears streaming down my face. The amulet seemed to hum and warm at my touch.
“I don’t have much more strength to keep them back.” Nana’s voice began to sound strained, her brow furrowing as her grip on the statue tightened. “You need to go to him. Learn about your birthright.”
“Go to who? Nana, what are you talking about?” The dream started to fade at the edges; the vision of my Nana starting to blur and fade.
“Seek the one who walked where you now stand, the one who rises out of death’s shadows.”
Before I could reply or ask anything else, the fire surrounding Nana and the statue intensified, and suddenly everything went dark. I woke up with a start, tears still streaming down my face, the amulet at my neck hot, as if it had been on fire.
I sat in my regular seat for chemistry, notes open, but my hand clasped around the amulet.
It still felt warm to the touch, comforting.
Like Nana was sitting right next to me. I tried to focus on reviewing my notes for the quiz we were going to have, but my mind kept replaying the dream I had the night before.
Nana’s words kept replaying in my head, over and over, but the more I thought about them, the more confused I became.
Seek the one who walked where you now stand, the one who rises out of death’s shadows.
What the hell was that supposed to mean? And who is this person she was referring to?
To make matters worse, my head had begun its usual deep throbbing, starting at the back of my neck and snaking as if a tight band was wrapped around my head. I had forgotten to bring some extra headache medication with me, so there was nothing I could do to dull the pain.
I was so lost in thought that I didn’t notice when Alaric slid into the seat next to me, his presence jolting me for a moment.
The amulet at my neck felt like it was humming, sending small vibrations against my chest. It had been doing that off and on since I woke up from my dream early this morning.
Almost like an alarm clock that kept getting snoozed but never turned off.
I glanced Alaric’s way, noting the loose bun at the base of his neck and how his ringed fingers tightened around his pen as he seemingly reviewed his own notes.
“Hey,” I said without thinking, the feeling to speak to him taking over.
His dark green eyes slid my way hesitantly, but he said nothing.
I sighed. “I just wanted to say thanks again for the notes. They’ve really come in handy.”
He nodded, his mouth set in a firm frown, before turning back to the front of the room, waiting for the teacher to begin the quiz.
I turned to look at my notes again, but the urge to ask him what was wrong took over.
“Did I do something to offend you?” I turned completely in my seat so I could face him, force him to look at me fully and answer me.
He raised his eyebrows in surprise, cocking his head to take in my harsh tone.
“Excuse me?” His deep voice reverberated, sending chills up my spine. He wasn’t threatening me, but I got the feeling that if he wanted to hurt me, he could.
“You ditched me last week for our study session and have been doing a superb job at ignoring me and acting like I don’t exist. I’m just trying to figure out what exactly I did to offend you so much. Did you get back with your girlfriend? Does she not like you talking to other girls?”
The words came out in a rush, my cheeks heating as I realized just how much his indifference toward me had hurt my feelings. How pathetic.
He took a deep breath, his eyes creasing in thought, about to respond when Mr. Phillips began passing out the quiz, shushing students as they put away their notes.
I cringed, suddenly embarrassed by my outburst, and quickly turned in my seat, shoving my things away as I waited for the quiz to land on my desk.
I rubbed my eyes roughly, trying to will the angry, frustrated tears that pricked the back of my eyes to disappear.
Maybe I should have stayed home sick today.
As soon as the quiz landed in front of me, I threw all of my attention at it, trying to focus on remembering the things I had stayed up late studying.
About two questions in, a folded-up piece of paper slid my way, finding a safe spot underneath my quiz.
I glanced over to Alaric, whose eyes remained glued to his quiz, no one the wiser that he had just passed me a note.
Any focus I had fizzled as I worked to finish the quiz quickly so I could turn the quiz in and read Alaric’s note. I gently shoved the note into my jacket pocket when Mr. Phillips wasn’t looking.
When I turned my quiz in, I excused myself to the bathroom to read the note and gather myself. My head was still pounding, and a splash of cold water sounded really good.
I walked quickly to the nearest bathroom, barricading myself in the first stall before pulling out the note that felt like it was burning a hole in my pocket.
No, I’m not back with my ex. And you haven’t done anything to deserve this. But if I told you why I’m keeping my distance, you wouldn’t sleep tonight.
I sat back on the toilet, headache forgotten for the moment, as I took in his words.
If he told me the truth, I wouldn’t sleep tonight?
What did that mean? I sat there, rereading the note several times before stuffing it back into my pocket and leaving the stall.
I stood at the sink, washing my hands before splashing cold water on my face and neck as the words ricocheted in my brain like a ping-pong ball.
I slowly made my way back to class and slid into my seat noiselessly.
Alaric was sitting at his laptop, reading the next chapter in the textbook, his eyes never wavering to mine.
I quietly took out a piece of paper and scribbled a response before sliding and tucking it underneath the corner of his MacBook.
What the hell does that mean? Don’t speak in riddles. Just tell me what’s up.
As soon as Alaric grabbed the note and read it quickly, a new thought occurred to me.
I gripped the amulet that still hung around my neck, the heat and pressure of it against my palm calming.
What if the person Nana was telling me to go to was Alaric?
What if he was or knew whoever this person was who walked where I now stand?
I waited the rest of the period for Alaric to respond, to slip me another piece of paper, but to no avail.
Alaric had read my note, quickly stuffing it into his jacket pocket without even looking at me.
He ignored me the rest of class, and when the bell rang, he was out of the door before I could even blink.
“What an odd one,” Sara-Kate replied after I told her about my sort of confrontation with Alaric at our regular spot in the library after school.
This had been our first chance to really talk since Sara-Kate spent her lunch period with the other drama students who were still reeling from Ashe’s death.
“Yeah, what do you think the note means?” I pushed the note he had given me closer for her to inspect.
She shrugged, glancing at the note, before dismissing it. “Sounds like he’s trying to play the broody, mysterious type. It’s kind of hot.”
I scoffed in disbelief. “No, it’s annoying is what it is. He acts like he hates me, but then claims it’s really to protect me.”
“The boy is complicated,” Sara-Kate responded, her tone dismissive as if that were a reasonable explanation. “You know these teenage boys and their hormones. Makes them crazy.”
I shook my head, pocketing the note once again.
I don’t know why I didn’t just throw it away, but I didn’t.
I liked knowing it was there, crumbled in the corner of my pocket.
We eventually settled into a comfortable silence as we both began looking over our pre-calc notes and started on the homework.
A few minutes passed before Sara-Kate looked up, slamming her pencil down on the table.
“I’m bored and snacky. Want to sneak into the teacher’s lounge and grab something?”
I looked up, surprised. “The teacher’s lounge? Isn’t that off-limits to students?”