Four hours later found us sprawled about my living room, sitting in the dark; surrounded
by enough junk food to put us into a sugar coma.
Aden ducked as the cushion flew over his head and smacked me in the face. Scratch, who
had been sitting in my lap, hissed in irritation. Tamika threw up her hands triumphantly
while I glared at her. I half-heartedly threw some popcorn in her direction, crossed my
arms and sulked. No one was really watching the movie.
"I'm afraid you asked for that one," said Aden, not in the least bit consolatory. "You did say
she threw like a girl."
"She is a girl!"
"So are you," Tamika shot back.
"That doesn't even make sense!"
Aden laughed as he reached for the popcorn bowl.
"I'll go get us a refill."
We were having a surprisingly good time. I had not been sure how Aden would react to our
monthly movie night. The focus was more on spending quality time together; gossiping and
picking on each other, instead of the actual movies. But he did not seem to mind. In fact, he
gave just as good as he got. Tamika slid into the spot he vacated on the couch, the light from
the television reflecting off her hair in the darkened room.
"So, lover boy's - "
"Mika - "
" - pretty cool," she continued, as if I had not spoken. "He has my approval, just so you
know."
I rolled my eyes.
"Oh, I know," I muttered.
Tamika grinned cheekily. It was all the warning I needed.
"I'm going to see if Aden needs help," I blurted, as I scrambled up from my seat, dislodging
Scratch from my lap. He hissed again and took a swipe at my ankles. Tamika's laughter
followed me all the way down the hall.
It was not as if the nickname and Tamika's teasing were completely unwarranted. Despite
my numerous claims to the contrary, she had known me long enough to know that I liked
Aden. He was fun to have around and his boyish good looks usually had girls turning their
heads to get a second look.
Now, I would be the first to admit that I could be pretty clueless where guys were
concerned. It was one of the downsides of having been home schooled; I did not have a lot
of opportunities to interact with other people my age; much less other boys my age. I had
never even been on a date before and would not know what to do if a guy ever told me he
liked me. But that was not the problem.
The fact of the matter was - Aden was normal. I already had enough trouble convincing my
dad that being friends with Tamika would not lead to the end of the world. I was sure that if
I were to even bring up the possibility of dating someone normal, he would lock me up in
my room for the rest of my life.
"Aden?"
I called out again but there was no reply. Walking into the kitchen, I found it empty with the
exception of a steaming bowl of popcorn sitting on the island. The stove was clean, the sink
empty and the lights were turned off. I frowned.
Our microwave had not been working for several days, which meant that Aden would have
had to pop the popcorn in a pan on the stovetop. Surely he had not been gone long enough
to do that and clean up as well, had he? I shook off the feeling of unease that gnawed at me.
It was a sure sign that I needed to spend time with people other than my dad - his paranoia
was starting to rub off on me.
"Blair?" called Tamika from the living room, laughter still evident in her voice.
"What are you two doing in there?"
"Shut up!" I yelled back, reaching out to pick up the popcorn bowl.
I hissed, promptly dropping the glass bowl as it burned my fingers. Natural instinct kicked
in, stopping the bowl in mid-air, barely inches from the floor. I exhaled sharply, blowing on
my palms. The glass had been scorching hot, as if it had just come out of a furnace. I looked
at the bowl accusingly. Why had it been so hot?
"That's a pretty neat trick."
I whipped around to find Aden standing at the entrance to the kitchen. I could not read the
expression on his face, but he did not seem surprised to see a levitating bowl of popcorn.
Warning bells went off inside my head.
"Aden?"
I hated how small and uncertain my voice sounded.
Aden smiled. But where his smiles had seemed friendly before, this one was positively
predatory. I took an unconscious step backwards. The popcorn bowl fell the rest of the way,
rattling loudly against the kitchen tile.
"Yes, Blair?"
I glared at the mocking tone in his voice, making a mental note to tell Tamika that Aden was
definitely not boyfriend material. And then it hit me, like a punch in the gut - Tamika. Was
she all right? She had to be. I just talked to her. But who knew what Aden could have done
between now and then? Was his name even Aden? I was almost positive he had to have
psychokinetic abilities, or else he would not have been so calm at my display of telekinesis.
But what could he do? Then it hit me again - the popcorn - heat.
"You're a pyro."
The smile turned into a smirk.
"Gold star for Blair!"
I scowled.
"Who are you and what do you want?"
He tilted his head, ever so slightly, to the side, and I had the distinct impression that he was
studying me. I folded my arms across my chest, realising belatedly that it was a defensive
manoeuvre that only served to highlight my discomfort. His smirk grew.
"Your father never told you, did he?" It was obviously a rhetorical question, as he did not
wait for a reply. "Of course he wouldn't. He probably wanted to keep his little princess out
of it. Can't have her knowing just what daddy gets up to when he goes away on his
'sourcing' trips."
"What are you talking about?" I snapped.
He chuckled, shaking his head pityingly.
"Nine years ago, when your mother died, weren't you in the least bit suspicious?"
I was not even aware of having moved, but I was suddenly standing in front of him. I would
have probably cut a more intimidating figure had I been taller. As it was, I barely reached
his chin. But that did not stop me from snarling at him.
"What do you know about my mother?"
He shook his finger at me, as if I were a misbehaving two year old.
"You want to know what I know," he taunted, "you'll have to come with me."
I blinked. The boy was crazy. I toyed with the idea of throwing him out of the house, but
that kind of telekinetic display would no doubt grab Tamika's attention. And I was sure he
would retaliate if I were to do something like that. As if to confirm my thoughts, he smirked
again, reaching out to flick my nose.
"And don't you get any funny ideas. Now, you go back in there and tell Tamika that you and
I need to go out and run an errand. I'd really like to keep her out of this. And I know you
wouldn't want anything to happen to her, would you?"
He had me cornered and he knew it. The last thing I wanted was for Tamika to get involved
and I knew that, if I did not do what he wanted, there was a very high chance that she
would get hurt. I needed to ensure her safety.
"What errand?" I bit out.
He smiled, taking my question as acquiescence.
"You're a smart girl. Make something up."
He took a step back, giving me just enough room to edge past him and into the hallway.
I found Tamika exactly where I had left her; with Scratch perched next to her, tearing up a
cushion. She shot us a mischievous grin and waggled her eyebrows.
"What took you two so long?"
I forced a smile, hoping it looked natural.
"We ran out of popcorn. Aden and I are just heading out to get more. You want anything?"
Tamika gave me a shrewd look, her grin threatening to split her face in half.
"Nah, I'm good," she drawled. "You two go ahead. No need to hurry back or anything."
And, with that, she returned her attention to the movie still playing on the television. She
did not even question why it would take the both of us to simply go out and buy popcorn.
Aden held the front door open for me, smiling amiably, as I pulled on my coat. He sketched
an exaggerated bow.
"After you."