11. Silas #2
In an effort to relax, I looked up to the open sky. Watching the clouds hover, I laughed once, sharp and humorless. I was supposed to be the storm, the one who controlled things— and yet here I was, a shadow circling its fire.
A slight movement in the corner of my eye grabbed my attention, turning just as a group of people in robes walked out from behind the building.
They stood there for a few moments until a woman stepped out from around them.
Moving quickly, she positioned them one by one, just like she had with the members from my club.
“Okay, on three!” she shouted, voice bright. “One, two, THREE!”
The line of graduates threw their caps into the air as tassels flickered in the sunlight.
Click-click-click.
Moving around, she captured them from different angles all while pushing her wild hair from her face.
Grabbing another lens from the pack on her back, her fingers moved automatically as she changed settings and shifted between different rays of light.
Just as she finished and capped the lens, a man walked up behind her.
I was getting real sick of seeing that happen.
He moved close, greeting her with a wide smile. The motion was smooth, like they had an established connection. My body stiffened at the contact. How dare he touch her skin. I felt my hand tighten on the steering wheel as the leather creaked, and I imagined snapping his fingers off one by one.
I guess we're starting another count, Ember. Apparently the first nine weren’t enough for you.
The thought of making her repent was enough to calm me as I watched them.
I knew that while he was talking to her, she was thinking about me and what I did to her last night.
With each passing second, he became more animated with her.
Ember's reaction stayed the same though, only nodding her head in response to what he’d said.
Her body was stiff, and it was clear she was just trying to be polite.
There was distance in her eyes, and her body closed off as she angled herself away from him, searching for a way to end the conversation.
My fingers twitched in response, knowing that was the opposite of how she was for me.
That’s my girl.
Watching her, I realized how much her energy could expand.
She had the ability to easily influence those around her, to feed into their emotions.
Earlier, she helped the students be comfortable and encouraged them to relax.
They fed off that positivity and listened.
Even now, I knew this guy could feel it, the way she had shut down.
My eyes narrowed as she laughed once out of courtesy, hugging him again before excusing herself to head across the street. He watched her the whole way, just until she entered a coffee shop. Then he ushered the students back to where they’d come from.
I didn’t like the feeling of not seeing Ember, and as the moments passed, I told myself to stay put.
I knew I needed to stay in the car. I knew that.
So, I made sure to apologize to myself as I opened the car door and walked into the street.
As I crossed over the sidewalk, I realized it didn’t matter anyway because she didn’t know my face.
Within a few seconds, I'm filed in line a couple people behind her. I quickly realized that I was not only close enough to see she was on the phone but also lucky enough to hear the conversation.
“No,” she said firmly. “I don’t want to go out, regardless of what type of bar it is.” There was a slight pause, before her voice turned brighter, teasing. “Because I’m tired, okay? And I can take care of those things myself.”
I almost smiled at the conversation. With that tone, I could only imagine what “things” she was talking about, probably the very things I took care of for her last night.
She shifted, stepping back to take out money. As she moves again, she bumps into the man in front of her.
“Oh! I’m so sorry!” she said quickly, her apology genuine.
The man in front of her turned, and I could tell he was instantly interested in what he saw. I watched it happen in real time—the way he looked her up and down before deciding to make a move. He smiled, saying something I couldn’t hear, gesturing to the menu.
Ember glanced up at the board pulling the phone from her ear. “The chai,” she said, like it was no big secret. “And the croissants. They’re stupid good.” She gave him a simple nod and turned back to her phone, completely unaware of his interest.
He watched her for another second before smiling, then turned back around. When it was his turn, he did exactly what I expected, ordering his drink, along with her chai and croissant.
It took everything in me to not intervene. The lack of sleep was feeding the voices in my head, making them harder to ignore. Half of me wanted to remove her from the situation like I had last night. It would be easy to throw her over my shoulder and make her leave with me.
When Ember finally registered what he’d done, she protested of course, but it lacked her normal ferocity.
If it had been me, she would have simply walked away or hit me, but for some reason, he was able to wave her off.
I continued watching until Ember caved, but that wasn’t all because then she actually smiled at him before ending her phone call.
They talked until their drinks were ready, handing hers over like it was some type of offering.
When she went to leave, he had the balls to ask for her number.
For half a second, I stifled a laugh, but it faded quickly when she took out her phone.
She couldn’t be serious.
I forced myself to turn away before I did something irreversible.
I left the shop without looking back, mostly because I didn’t want to see what happened next.
No matter what the reasoning was, she had made the wrong choice, one that I would apparently need to watch for.
The faster Knox was at his job, the better it would be for her overall.
She would soon learn that I was all she needed.
From the sidewalk, I glanced back at her once through the glass. She looked content, sipping her drink as she took a bite from her croissant.
I had no control over myself, and I knew it was because of her. Taking out my phone, I sent her a text.
One word. All caps.
TWO.