Lyla
At the end of the day, I stuffed all my crap into my locker and hurried back down the stairs, and out the front doors. Ethan reminded me he was picking me up at eight when I saw him in my last class of the day. He gave me his phone number.
I hurriedly typed it into my phone. I still didn’t know how to fully work it. Rylan gave it to me before school this morning, and it was still a bit mystifying. It was called an iPhone 6 or something like that.
I walked into the parking lot and waved when I saw Rylan standing by the side of his SUV. The wind was blowing his black hair around and he looked completely dashing.
“How did the first day go?” he asked as I climbed into the passenger side, clicking my seatbelt into place.
“It was okay.” I said nonchalantly.
“You didn’t run into any trouble, did you?”
Oh God, at least I can’t tell him about the whole burning hair incident.
“No, it was all good, Rylan.”
He nodded and took off driving. He had a small smirk on his face.
About ten minutes later, we pulled in front of the mall, and I quickly climbed out of the car. The mall was huge. I wasn’t used to seeing this big of a building up close.
“What am I supposed to get?” I asked. I was a bit shy when he insisted on spending money on me. It was just weird. I guess it’s because no one has ever done so before.
“Get some clothes here, and I’ll swing you by Meijer after to get you some soap and girly things.”
Girly things? What did he mean, period supplies? Yeah, I really had to get some tampons or something. My period was due any day now.
***
About an hour later, I had about ten bags full of stuff. The bags had shirts, pants, dresses, panties, bras, shoes and a big gray purse that I absolutely fell in love with the second I saw it.
Rylan opened the trunk so I could stash my items away until we reached the house.
When we got to Meijer, I grabbed a cart, and started off toward the soaps and shampoos. I loaded up on tampons, lotions, make-up and everything else that would make a girl smile. I just couldn’t believe Rylan insisted on buying me all this stuff. I didn’t even want to know how much money I racked up on the little thing he called a “credit card.” He said the cost didn’t matter, but it mattered to me. I didn’t want to break the guy’s bank.
“Why are you being so nice to me?” I asked. “Why are you buying me stuff?”
He ignored what I said. “Wait until you see your room. And just think of my home as a hotel… don’t worry about it, I… I have a reason why I do what I do… maybe one day I’ll tell you.”
He never had an answer for me. I didn’t know what I was going to do, but I knew I couldn’t stay here forever. I got the impression that he wanted me to.
After I got back to the house and went up to my room, I saw what he meant. The walls had some type of flowers painted all over it. The bed was covered in silky pink sheets and blankets, and had a mountain of pillows on top. The curtains were pink gingham; there was a big pink chair in the corner, and a large rug that was shaped like a flower. It was purple.
I looked to my left, and saw a bunch of prints all over the walls. They were pictures of some kind. I looked up and saw a big chandelier, and little crystal angels hanging from the ceiling. There was also a potted tree in the corner that I didn’t have a name for. The leaves sort of looked like a fan.
By the window, there was a window seat, and it looked really comfortable. Next to it, there was a shelf with a bunch of books. I went over and pulled out two. They were called Fire Walker and Earthbound.
All of it was beautiful.
After everything was put away, I began getting dressed for when Ethan showed up. It was a bit chilly tonight so I decided on jeans and a sweatshirt. I brushed my hair, and ran my fingers under my eyes to make sure the eyeliner wasn’t smudged, and then headed downstairs.
When I reached the bottom of the steps, I found Rylan curled up on the couch reading.
When he heard me, he glanced up and raised his eyebrows. “What are you doing, Miss Lyla?”
Shit, I didn’t tell him I was hanging out with a friend tonight. “Um, I’m hanging out with someone, is that alright?”
He shrugged, and then smiled. “Yeah, and by the way, you look good.”
“Thanks.” I said. “And thanks for buying me my things today. Also, thanks for decorating my room, I love it.”
“You’re welcome, and be safe.”
I saluted him. “Alright, Comrade!”
He chuckled.
I walked out the front door to wait for Ethan. The time was five minutes to eight, and he should be here any minute. I pulled my sleeves over my hands to keep them warm when I heard an engine coming down the road. Since I didn’t know what he drove, I didn’t know what to look for. I knew I should have asked him before school let out.
A red, shiny truck slowed down, and then pulled in the driveway. My heart skipped a beat when Ethan jumped out of the truck, grinning at me like he just won a million dollars.
“Hey.” I said, walking toward him. I glanced back at the house to make sure Rylan wasn’t peeking out… he could have been there, but I didn’t see him.
He gave me a smile that just about melted me from the inside. “Ready?”
I nodded, and made my way around to the side of his truck and got in.
Ethan climbed in and started backing out immediately.
I was nervous, so my hands were clenched tightly in my lap so I wouldn’t fiddle with them. I noticed that he also had glasses on that he didn’t at school.
“You wear glasses?” I asked, pointing.
He glanced over at me, and pushed them up his nose. They had black frames, and looked good on him.
“Yes I do, I only wear them for driving, though. If I don’t, I’ll get a ticket if I ever get pulled over.”
“Yeah, you don’t need to deal with any more cops today, huh?”
“God, I almost got pulled over after school. If some stupid guy wouldn’t have sped around me…”
He got into a whole discussion about it.
A couple minutes later, silence fell over us.
“So, how was shopping?” he asked, breaking the silence.
“Good, I think I seriously bought the whole place out.” I said with a small smirk.
“That’s good. That’s what girls do; they shop ‘till they drop. Huh?”
“Maybe, but I’m not much of a shopper though.” I replied.
He arched his eyebrow. “That isn’t what you just told me.”
“I said no such thing. I had to buy the whole store out because I really needed new things.”
He smiled. A few more minutes passed, and I was curious to where he was taking me. “Where are we going?”
“Hungry?”
“Yes.” I was starving; I haven’t eaten anything since lunch at school.
Ethan turned into a place that was called Olive Garden, and immediately began unbuckling his seat belt. I did the same, and climbed out of the truck. I was assuming this was some kind of restaurant.
Wait, I didn’t have any money. “Ethan?” I asked hesitantly. “Yeah?”
I really didn’t know how to say this, and I was thoroughly embarrassed. “I don’t have any money.”
He gave me a low hearty chuckle, and a funny look.
“Usually when a guy invites a girl out to dinner, it means he’s paying… well, that’s how my standards are anyway.”
He shrugged, and held out his hand for me to take. I did just that.
With his large hand folded around my small one, we walked hand in hand to the doors.
The waitress took us to a seat in the back of the place, and I liked it. It was private, and away from prying eyes. I sat across from him, and grabbed up the menu to look at. There were some things that were foreign to me, and other things I knew exactly what they were. I decided on getting something I knew I liked.
When the lady came back a minute later with a basket of breadsticks, we placed our orders.
I bit my lower lip and looked across the table. I picked up a stick and tore off a small piece, and daintily popped it into my mouth. Ethan was busy sucking down whatever green liquid was inside of his glass.
“You like sucking, huh?” I asked, resting my chin on my fist.
His eyes went wide, and whatever he was drinking flew out of his mouth. He started laughing hard, and I couldn’t help but to join in.
“Sucking?”
“Yeah, you’re sucking hard on that thing in the drink.” I said, pointing at his empty glass.
He looked at me like I was crazy. I didn’t know what he was using to suck on the drink, and he knew it. He knew there was something wrong with me…
“It’s called a straw, and to use it you have to suck. Anyway, no, I don’t like to suck, I like doing other things.” “What kind of things?” I asked, thoroughly confused.
He cocked his head, and grabbed a breadstick out of the basket, taking a hearty bite. “Wouldn’t you like to know?” he said with a suggestive wink.
Oh God.
Oh double holy shit.
Oh sweet baby Jesus. I just realized what I said.
Sucking? Holy mother of balls, I can’t believe I just said that. Of course he would take it the wrong way, he was a guy! I felt my face heat up about a zillion degrees, and I had to look down to avoid his all-seeing eyes. At least James had the courtesy to tell me about these things, because I wouldn’t even know what was wrong if he didn’t.
“Sorry… I um, didn’t mean it that way.” I stammered. Man, this was getting really awkward, really fast. I was so nervous that I felt myself sweating. I couldn’t believe I was giving myself away like this. I really needed to tone it down a tad.
“Yeah, I know you didn’t. I just like giving you a hard time.”
By the time I looked up at him his face was passive and hard to read. I gave him a small shy smile, and I felt his leg rub on mine from under the table. Electricity shot across my belly, and then down lower. I looked at him from under my lashes, and he immediately moved away. He was sporting a blush of his own, and I found that really cute.
“Sorry.” he said.
I shook my head. “No, I liked—”
I was cut off when the waitress brought out our food. When she set the plate in front of me, parmesan cheese and basil wafted to my nose, making my mouth water heavily. She picked up Ethan’s empty glass, and I was assuming she was going to go refill it.
“Enjoy.” she said with a smile.
I picked up my fork and dug into my noodles. Around a mouth full a food, Ethan asked the question I was hoping he would have forgotten about. “So, are you going to tell me what happened to your arm? I mean, I like the whole hot-pink-cast thing, but I’m sure your arm looks a lot better without it.”
I debated on what to tell him. I picked up my glass and took a long drink before I spoke. (These straws really come in handy!) I decided to go with the truth. “My step-dad beat me a few days ago. He stepped on it and it broke.
It was rather painful.”
The waitress brought back Ethan’s glass, and it was full again.
I watched his face go from white, to red. His jaw clenched, and I could see the fury clear as the blue sky written in his eyes. He dropped his fork with a loud clang.
“Are you fucking kidding me?”
I shook my head. “I wouldn’t lie about something like that.”
“How long has he been doing this shit to you? I’m not taking you home tonight, you can stay at my place, I can’t have you go back to get killed by that bastard!”
“I don’t live at home anymore, I ran away.” I said truthfully.
“Who are you staying with? Hopefully it’s with someone who has morels and isn’t doing these things to you.”
Shit, I had to come up with something, and fast.
“My uncle,”
He nodded, and took a drink. “At least you don’t have to be abused anymore. Did you file a police report?”
“Yeah,” I lied, glancing down at my plate.
“Good, I hope that bastard goes to jail. No, actually prison. He can rot there.”
It looked like something else was bothering him, but I didn’t press for the details. If he wanted to tell me, he would.
For the rest of dinner we chatted about school, and all the normal stuff that teenagers talk about. He even hinted about seeing me again tomorrow after school. I was perfectly fine with that. I really liked Ethan. And when I say like, I mean I like him.
Is it asking too much to say that I wanted him to kiss me? Aren’t boys supposed to kiss the girl after a date?
Hell, I didn’t know.
On the drive back home I curled up into his truck’s seat. My eyelids were getting really heavy, and before I knew it, I had fallen asleep.
“Lyla, you’re home,” Ethan said in a soft, tender voice, startling me.
I yawned, and blinked at him. “Mm-hm. Sorry! I can’t believe I fell asleep on you, I was just really tired.” I stretched. “Don’t worry, you didn’t bore me!” I added hastily, hoping he wasn’t mad.
“I don’t think I could ever bore anyone.”
We both climbed out of the vehicle, and walked to the front door.
He bent down and pressed soft, warm lips to my cheek, causing heat to deliciously spread through my belly.
“See you tomorrow.”
***
Ethan
After I pressed my lips to her warm skin, electricity shot through my body. I almost let out a groan as I was walking back to my truck. Certain parts of my body were aching, and it was a bit annoying. At least I was turned around so she couldn’t see.
Did being a guy ever give me a break?
I drove home in silence, not even bothering to turn my music on. I pulled in front of the house, and started thinking about how hot Lyla looked tonight. I shook my head, and went inside. I almost jumped for joy when I found my mom went to bed. At least I could avoid questions tonight.
I made my way back to my room, and as soon as my bed came into view, I pictured Lyla laying there, looking as beautiful as ever. Her hair was splayed across my pillow, and she was tucked into my blankets.
I lay on my bed and replayed our conversation from the restaurant. There’s something different about her. It’s like she’s full of magic or something. That’s impossible, right? She’s just a normal teenage girl…
Right?
My thoughts wandered back to when she said her step-dad beat her. I couldn’t even fathom it. I felt the anger rise up in me again. Who could beat anyone as precious and sweet as Lyla? She’s so innocent and nice. She couldn’t do any harm to anyone.
Tears threatened to fall the more I thought about it. I didn’t want to picture her afraid and in pain. It hurt me too much. It hurt so bad that my chest started to ache... I’m just glad she got away from him. He could have killed her.
She’s so small; it probably wouldn’t take much to hurt her insides from a strong blow to the stomach or back.
A stray tear fell from my eye, and I brushed it away. I reached over and shut the light off, and I stayed awake for hours, thinking about the one girl who I couldn’t get out of my mind.
***
Lyla
After I took my nightly bath, I drug my heavy book bag over to the bed and dumped its contents out. I straightened up my homework that was shoved inside earlier in the day. I let out a sharp gasp as the book I “borrowed” came into view. I cautiously picked it and held it to my chest. I seriously had to read this. Screw my homework; I could do that when I was finished with the book.
I opened the book to the first chapter and started reading:
What are the Fire Bringers?
The Fire Bringers are magical beings that are the makings of a demon. The Fire Bringers are without souls, since their souls were taken down to hell when they were conceived in their mother’s womb.
They possess the ability to use fire, the Devil’s own personal element. They were originally created to wreak havoc in the human world. They live side by side with the humans and nothing is ever suspected of being out of place. Their job is to collect the souls of the living and bring them back to their maker in Hell.
It’s also said that the person born of both Fire and Ice will be the one to help destroy the world… the two that would create this being are never supposed to meet, because they are destined—
The page had a huge smudge on it, and I growled in annoyance. It was just getting good! I didn’t know if it was some type of folklore or what the hell it meant, but I really wanted to read and find out.
I moved onto the next page.
The Fire Bringers Powers:
There is a certain level of power hidden in each individual Fire Bringer. The levels are from one to five, with one being the weakest, and five being the most rare, and powerful. A level one FB can light stuff on fire with a thought, a level two can do more destruction, and so forth. A level five is very rare. They only come once every three centuries, and there is only ever one of them at a time. A level five usually has wings of fire, and can turn into a deadly dragon. The dragon is said to bring the end of the world when they come to power, which is usually the age of eighteen.
The level five is usually hidden away with a powerful necklace made of silver, and a charm made of quartz in the shape of a poppy. If the wearer ever takes this said necklace off, he or she’s power will spiral out of control, and there will be no stopping them. Whoever is killed by said person, their soul will automatically be cast into the pits of Hell, never to return.
It is said that if this person ever meets Ice, everything will—
Holy crap, I had to stop reading. I tossed the book and scrambled off the bed, running into the bathroom. I patted across the floor, and stood in the front of the mirror.
I glanced in the mirror, and hanging above my breasts was a silver necklace with a quartz poppy flower on it.