Awakening (The Way Chronicles Book 1) Read online

  Her hair was brushed out and the red streaks had been re–dyed so they shone. She had on a red midriff shirt that bared one shoulder, a pair of tight black jeans and a pair of beat up black leather combat boots. Her spiral earrings bounced as she turned her head to smile at me.

  "Way!" She seemed extremely excited to see me.

  Try not to screw this up. “I won’t if you shut up.” I muttered before she came into earshot.

  "Hey, Raven," I smiled at her. "Have you ordered yet?"

  "No, I was waiting on you," she grabbed me by the wrist and pulled me to the counter. "I just got here a minute ago anyways."

  "Well, how about you let me buy you dinner." I offered. Wow! You're trying to actually make this a date? Dude she's way outta your league.

  I agreed with him but I felt it was worth a shot.

  She looked at me for a moment and I felt a weird tingling feeling behind my right eye. I blinked hard and it was gone as soon as it had appeared.

  "Are you trying to make this a date?" She asked squinting cutely at me.

  The words left my mouth before I thought them through, "Depends, is it working?"

  She gave me a smirk and pushed me towards the cashier, "We'll see."

  Holy… The voice swore. Did that just happen? I ignored it and my shock long enough to order our meals.

  We found a table next to a window and sat across from each other. I sat quietly for a few moments as she glanced out the window.

  Thud!

  "Ow!" I gasped in surprise, grabbing my shin. "What was that for?"

  Raven replied pouting jokingly: "Cause you're not making this date much fun." She stuck her tongue out at me and I couldn't help but burst into laughter.

  "I'm sorry would the back of my car be more entertaining?" I winked at her and quickly snatched my leg to the side as she tried to kick me again. A few other restaurant patrons cut their eyes at us but I didn't care. I was enjoying myself for once.

  We finally caught our breath for long enough to realize our order was being called. I jumped up and got the food before hurrying back to the table.

  Raven glanced down at her phone to check the time and jumped up without a warning.

  "Grab your crap, we gotta go!" She exclaimed running to the door.

  "Bu ahm eahing!" I called with my mouth full.

  I grabbed my last taco and my drink before running after her. I unlocked my Yukon and she jumped into the passenger seat before I could even open my door.

  "Hurry up," she spoke extremely slowly, dragging out her words and poking me in the arm. "You're so slow."

  I cranked my car and poked her back, "I will take just as long as I dang well please"

  "Fine, I'll walk!" She opened the door but I reached across her and snatched it shut.

  "As confident as I am you'd be picked up the minute you hit the freeway," she feigned offense and tried to backhand me. "I'm not so confident you'd make it to the party." I laughed as she scowled.

  "I'd make it for sure," she jokingly lowered her head. "People aren't crazy that's just a myth."

  "Oh yeah," I agreed as I backed the car out. "It'd be fine. Just fine."

  I stuck my tongue out at her.

  We kept joking and laughing the whole way to the graveyard. When I finally parked the car I could already hear electronic music coming from center of the graveyard.

  “Creepy girls, you’re just my style. Blood red lipstick, you don’t smile. Falling victim to your fantasy. Damn, I love it that, you’re so creepy." I sang along to “You’re So Creepy” by Ghost Town.

  "Good music choice." I commented as we walked under the wrought iron archway bearing the sign reading Old Grove Cemetery.

  "Yeah, Ghost Town is so perfect for Halloween parties." She smiled and started singing along softly.

  The music got louder and louder as we walked down the gravel path in between gray tombstones silhouetted by the dying red light. The light glanced off Raven's red streaks making them glow. The effect was intimidating and somehow sensual at the same time.

  I caught myself staring at her and turned my gaze to the tombstones. As we walked, the music grew louder and louder until we came out on a clearing in the middle of the graveyard.

  I looked around and was floored by the elaborateness of what I saw. Jack–o–lanterns were scattered everywhere, casting dancing shadows around the clearing. The sun was all but gone, leaving the only light to come from the pumpkin creatures and the other scattered candles. Folding tables with black and orange cloths on them were scattered around the clearing, piled with plates of burgers, hotdogs, and, most importantly, box after box of pizza.

  There were about thirty people milling about as ‘You’re So Creepy’ ended. Someone grabbed a microphone hooked into the speakers set up near the far edge of the clearing and started talking. I began stuffing my face with four meat pizza as he talked.

  "Well, it's about time to really get this party started!" He called and the crowd cheered. I followed her down the table as the man on the mic went on. "Happy Halloween!"

  The next song started right on cue, "ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR!!!! How can you sleep at night? When the sound of the clock is...."

  "Could he have picked a better song?" Raven asked pulling a couple of cans out of a cooler. "I mean ‘Party the Graveyard’? That's just perfect!"

  I grabbed my can and some more pizza before following Raven to the edge of the clearing to meet some of her friends.

  "Raven!" One of the boys exclaimed. He was about an inch shorter than me but a little broader. His hair was dyed black and had bleached strips in it at random intervals. In his ears were 0g Batman plugs and he was decked out in all black from his V neck to his combat boots. "Where have you been, girl?"

  "Busy," she replied punching him on the shoulder with her free hand and sticking her tongue out. "And that's all you need to know"

  "Well, you certainly haven't changed in three months," he muttered rubbing his shoulder. "I'm Emmet by the way," he said to me. "Most people just call me Em."

  "Way." I replied inclining my head to him. Oh you're cool. "Shut up. Now is not a good time for you to run your mouth." I replied silently. Whatever, you know I'm right. "I said, shut up."

  I was so distracted by my internal conversation, that I missed the other names and one of them asking me a question.

  "Well?" A girl asked.

  "I'm sorry," my head was starting to hurt and I realized I'd been so busy making sure I didn't look stupid I'd forgotten my medicine. "Just got a pretty bad headache coming on."

  "Too loud?" Em gestured at the speakers.

  "Nah, it's just a thing that happens sometimes." I faked a laugh and waved my hand. "I'm gonna take a walk, get away from the noise for a few minutes."

  "I'll come with you," Raven started to follow me towards one of the small trails through the trees but I stopped her.

  "No! I just need a second; I'll be right back!" I forced a smile and strode quickly into the woods.

  You're gonna ruin your night. It was laughing at me. Little Way can't handle a headache without a handful of pills down his pipe. "Shut up," I growled aloud. "You're ruining my night, not me." Oh, am I? According to the doctors I AM you. "No, you're not!"

  I was getting way too loud; I just hoped the music would keep any of the other partiers from hearing me.

  Maybe. Maybe not. He laughed. But, I'm definitely in here and as much as you hate it, I'm here to stay. "Just shut up!" I yelled, grabbing my head as pain pierced my head like an ice pick had been stabbed in my ear.

  Idiot, why didn't you take your medicine? This hurts me, too, ya know.

  "LEAVE! ME! ALONE!" I shouted falling to my knees. A horrible, ripping pain started in the crown of my head and slowly traveled down through my body. It hit my forehead and paused, building tension, then shot down to my throat, then my heart, then my solar plexus, then my navel. As it reached the very pit of my trunk the pain exploded through my whole body, pulsing like my heartbeat.

 
And then it was gone, just like that.

  And I felt completely alone for the first time in my life.

  I sat up slowly, scared and confused. I looked down at myself and saw I had scraped my elbow on the gravel when I fell, but I was otherwise okay.

  "Way!" Raven called, running up to me.

  I looked up at her from the ground. "What just happened to me?"

  "Are you ok?" She dropped to her knees on the gravel next to me. "Way?"

  I looked at her and saw fear in her eyes. Fear for me. I was stunned by it. Someone was worried about me, just me. Not worried about the burden I was going to be, or that I was going to cause problems. This girl, that I had just met, was genuinely worried about me.

  "Way?" She touched my face gently and my senses went haywire. I reached up and took her hand in mine.

  "Yeah," I nodded slowly. "I…I feel great." I stood up slowly and pulled her up with me. "I honestly don't think I've ever felt this good."

  "What happened?" She demanded grabbing my face and looking in my eyes. I felt that warm tingle again.

  "I was arguing with," I gestured to my head. "And I forgot my medicine, so the migraine was coming on pretty bad." I shortly explained what had happened and she listened closely.

  "Is it still there?" She asked curiously.

  "I," I paused a moment. "No. No. I can't hear him." I smiled ear to ear. "I'm finally alone up here."

  She smiled back and hugged me. I froze for a moment as her arms wrapped around me. Her hair brushed against my nose and the warmth of her body leaked into mine. I wrapped my arms around her in return.

  After a moment, she stepped back and grabbed my wrist. "Since you're ok now," she winked at me. "Do you wanna get back to the fun?"

  Chapter Six

  Okay. So, maybe, I had a bit too much fun.

  But, can you really blame me? I mean, for the first time that I could remember I wasn't sharing my head with another voice. And then, of course, there was Raven. Hot didn't begin to cover it and she was acting like she was into me. So, yeah, I let my hair down.

  After a few hours passed, Raven punched my shoulder. "Tag, you're it!" She giggled and ran off into the tombstones.

  I chased her through the stones, barely able to see in the pale light of a crescent moon. As we ran, the light and the music faded into the distance. She was fast and when I finally caught up, I barely managed to run my palm into her shoulder blade.

  My reach left me over extended and off balance. I tumbled head first towards the corner of a shattered grave stone. Panicked thoughts ran through my head but most clearly. "Oh–shit–tombstone."

  Of course. I should've realized it sooner. A girl showing interest in me? Obviously, a sign of my impending doom.

  I felt that, now familiar, warm tingle and suddenly my body was thrown sideways. My hair brushed the bone colored marble as I missed the grave by less than an inch. I hit the ground hard and rolled over onto my back.

  I laid stunned for a moment unable to comprehend what had just happened. I turned my head and saw Raven kneeling where I had accidentally knocked her down. She had her arm outstretched towards me with her palm flat like she was pushing. She snatched her hand down quickly when she saw me looking but it was too late.

  "Raven?" I pushed myself to my knees. "How... what did you just do?"

  "I–" She sputtered. "I um–"

  "You moved me without touching me," I forced myself to accept it. It was Denver all over again. "So I'm not crazy after all."

  I forced myself to my feet and walked over to her. I held out my hand.

  "Wha…what?" She gaped at me.

  "I met a girl like you before," I explained relieved that everything I'd been told was my imagination was actually real. "Only difference is, her powers made me feel cold. Like all the life was getting sucked out of me. Yours make me feel warm. That's why I didn't pick up on them at first."

  She took my hand and stared at me as I pulled her to her feet.

  "You..." She was wide eyed and could still barely talk. "What?"

  "Back before I moved here," I replied sliding my hand up her jaw tilting her eyes to mine. "I met a girl who could do things like you can. Move stuff. Freeze things. Magic…god that’s weird to say seriously. I thought I was crazy." I laughed. "I guess I, technically, still am but at least I know I'm not that crazy."

  "So you're not freaking out?" She asked staring wide eyed.

  "Well, a little bit," I smiled at her. "But I'm the kid who is pumped to be the only one in my head for the first time ever so my tolerance for weird shit is pretty high. In a way, I'm kinda relieved." I shook my head at the irony of that. "I should also probably thank you for saving my life."

  "Well, in that case," she raised her hand and, without touching me, pinned me on my butt with my back against a retaining wall. "I think I have the perfect way for you to thank me."

  She got down next to me and leaned close to my face.

  "Thank you." I said softly.

  Our lips paused barely brushing. "Ya know," I chuckled. "This would be more fun for you if I could move."

  She laughed softly and my arms un–stiffened. I cupped her chin with my hand. Our lips met softly and moved against each other, her mouth meshing with mine. She tasted like mango and nothing else registered. It was like her hair formed a red streaked wall around us. For a moment, I felt like I had escaped the world. We broke apart and my senses came rushing back.

  She smiled at me, "You wanted to do that from the moment we met."

  "So did you" I replied and smashed my lips into hers. Our mouths moved quickly, our tongues swiped against each other. Her fingers tangled in my hair and I rolled her underneath me.

  Chapter Seven

  I got her home around two in the morning. I followed her up to the porch and then waited for her to put her key the knob. She turned to me and smiled while attempting to fix her hair.

  "So, you have fun?" I asked with a smirk.

  "No," she turned her head away pretending to be aghast. "It was awful. I have the worst taste in my mouth." She winked at me and stuck her tongue out.

  I shoved her gently and laughed. "You know you had fun."

  "Yeah," she smiled and slid her hand to the back of my head tangling her fingers in my hair. "I did."

  She pulled my head down and pressed her lips to mine gently.

  "Pretty awesome first date," she said pulling back. "Hope you can top it later."

  She winked at me and went inside. I stood stunned for a few moments, before feet carried me unaware to my car. I sat in my seat motionless for a minute and then forced myself to drive.

  In all honesty, what I really wanted to do was follow her inside. I got to my house in a daze and didn't manage to shake myself out of it until I got inside.

  I looked around my foyer and stifled a yawn. Maybe I wasn't out of it anymore, but I sure was tired. I closed the door behind me and set the alarm before silently making my way to my room.

  "Years of training finally paying off," I thought to myself and couldn't help but chuckle. All that hard work, just to be able to get into my house without waking up my parents.

  I laid down on my bed, only bothering to pull off my shirt, and immediately fell asleep.

  I woke up and rolled onto my side. Light was peeking around my curtains but they were doing their job well and keeping my room comfortably dark. I turned my head slowly to the side and looked at my clock.

  11:04 a.m.

  "Ugh," I rolled over on my back. "Time to get up." I forced myself to sit up and stopped.

  "Eeeeeeehhhhhhhhh," I whined and twisted at the hips to pop my back. I reached to the back of my head and rubbed hard, yawning. "Spent too much time on the ground last night."

  I slid my legs off of the side of my bed and tried to stand up but laziness took over and I flopped to the floor. "I don't wannaaaaaa!" I laid there for about half an hour just too lazy to move. Finally, the feeling of the carpet scratching at my bare skin forced me to my feet.
r />   I stood in front of the mirror and saw a complete and utter wreck staring back at me. My long dirty–blonde hair was sticking up and out at about a million different angles and my eyes were about half open. I forced them the rest of the way and took a look at my collar bone and neck.

  "Crap," I drew out the word and tilted my head back. I reached up and ran my hand down the red and purple marks and realized they were low enough I could probably hide them without too much trouble. "Thank god my parents didn't think to check on me before they left."

  I pulled back the curtain and took another thirty minutes in the shower. I didn't actually spend that long washing I just didn't want to get out of the warmth. Once I was dressed, I found myself staring into the refrigerator wondering if there was anything to eat.

  "Dang it!" I whined (I did a lot of it that morning yeesh). We had nothing to eat that wouldn't take long to cook. I went upstairs and grabbed my wallet, shoving it in my back pocket and fastening the chain to my belt.

  I drove to a nearby McDonalds I'd seen the night before, took one look at the drive through line, and decided it'd be better to go inside.

  "Welcome to McDonalds, Mr. I'm looking to die before winter break." Trevor laughed at me from behind the counter. "May I take your order?"

  "Yeah, I'd like one order of 'not scared of posers' with a side of 'ready when he is' and a large can of 'whup–ass' to be opened later." We both laughed hard and only calmed down long enough for me to place my order.

  "So we have a day off from school," I said. "And you decided to work?"

  "What can I say?" He shrugged handing me my bag. "I like money."

  "Yeah, but when do you use it?" I looked around. "Today would be a perfect opportunity. And I didn't see you at the party last night."

  "Yeah," he glanced away. "I don't really do parties ya know? Prefer to chill by myself."

  "Funny," I looked into the distance not really focusing on anything. It was a bad habit of mine whenever I got thoughtful. "If you'd asked me a week ago if I liked parties, I would have told you the same thing." I shook it off and looked at him.

  "You should try it sometime. I certainly enjoyed it."