Amber Frost (21 page)

“Donald Jenson speaking,” he announced in his soft, mild-mannered voice. “Yes, that’s correct… No, we’re quite happy to have her. We have lots of room here and she’s no trouble at all,” Mr. Jenson assured my father, his eyes uncertainly flickering my way. “In our guest room. No, no, of course not,” he hurriedly agreed, his eyes darting to Sebastian and I once more. “Yes… yes… oh, I see… No, that shan’t be a problem at all. We’d be happy to help out and see that she’s settled… You are most welcome, Gordon… Yes, would you like to speak with her?” I assumed my father answered yes, as suddenly Mr. Jenson was handing me the phone. I stared at the proffered phone anxiously. Sebastian gave me an encouraging smile as I hesitantly lifted the phone to my ear.

“Hello?”

“Hello, Grace. Merry Christmas,” my father said gruffly.

“Merry Christmas,” I answered automatically. There was an awkward pause. I thought I might have heard a woman’s voice murmuring quietly in the background.

“I just had a conversation with Mr. Jenson,” he began. “I wanted to thank him for allowing you to stay there, and to make certain that your accommodations are… appropriate.” I winced, immediately understanding what he was getting at. He wanted to make sure Sebastian and I weren’t being permitted to ‘room’ together, that we were being properly supervised.

“I’m surprised,” I admitted. “I thought you’d be angry at the Jensons for taking me in.”

“I was,” he conceded, “but then… I realized that perhaps it might be a good thing for you to be out of the house for a while, especially since I am no longer living there. Grace, your mother and I have decided to get a divorce,” he unexpectedly announced. My jaw dropped; I couldn’t think of how to respond.

“There has been increasing tension between your mother and I for years now. We had planned to stay together until you had moved on to university but with the recent turn of events… Anyway, the house will be put on the market immediately; your mother has expressed her desire to divide up our assets as quickly as possible, including the sale of our current home. I’ve made arrangements for you to board at Craigflower for the remainder of the school year. I’ll also have your belongings and your car sent over to the Jensons’ place as soon as possible. Mr. Jenson has kindly agreed to extend your stay there until school is back in session, at which time he has offered to help move you into the school dormitories,” he concluded.

“Oh… that’s very generous,” I answered, dazed. I didn’t know what else to say, I wasn’t sure how to react to this stunning news. How had events turned around so smoothly? Suddenly, my father seemed almost
grateful
that I was staying with the Jensons and the story had changed so that I hadn’t been kicked out of my parents’ house but had been a guest of the Jensons to be spared the stress of my parents’ divorce. And now I was going to be boarding at Craigflower? But what did that mean? Did Sebastian not want me to live with him anymore? My head spun.

“Very good then,” my father’s voice was brusque, pulling me back to the present.

“Will I be seeing you soon then?” I asked, suddenly hopeful. Perhaps he had forgiven me after all. Maybe we could even have Christmas dinner together without my mother which would honestly be preferable and possibly even pleasant.

“No. I shall be very busy with the divorce arrangements. I don’t expect I will see you before the start of the school year.” I was silent as my hopes came crashing down around me. Sebastian noticed the sudden change in my expression, sitting up on his knees and quickly taking my hand. He stroked the back of it soothingly, the rhythm and warmth of his touch an instant comfort.

“I won’t see you over Christmas?” I asked quietly though I already knew the answer.

“No. You shall spend Christmas with the Jensons. You chose to involve yourself with
him
, despite my wishes. Now you must live with the consequences of those decisions.” Though his words were harsh, there was a surprising soft edge to his voice. “I will try to check in on you in the New Year, Grace. Please express my gratitude to the Jensons. Goodbye.”

“Bye,” I whispered, but the line was already dead. I let the phone slide limply from my hand and fall into my lap. Sebastian’s eyes were on my face, his expression full of concern.

“I heard most of that,” he confessed. I wasn’t surprised; my father always spoke too loudly into the phone. “Are you alright?” I nodded, glancing about the room. It was then that I noticed the Jensons had silently left, discreetly giving us some privacy.

“How much of that was your doing?” I massaged my temples with my fingers as I tried to refocus my thoughts.

“I can’t be sure exactly,” he admitted. He fiddled with one of his rings as he spoke. “I knew you missed your possessions, especially your car – you’ve complained about it enough,” he teased. I didn’t smile. “And I knew you wanted your father in your life still, which couldn’t have happened if you stayed here. But
I want
you in my life still, which wouldn’t have happened if you’d gone home. All I wanted was for us both to be happy… I made things worse again, didn’t I?” he asked miserably. He let his hands fall to his sides and rested his chin on my knees, looking up at my face in such an innocent, childish gesture, it seemed impossible that he was really 450 years old. I paused a moment before answering, taking a moment to admire him.

“No, actually you didn’t,” I told him. He looked back at me doubtfully. “I think my parents will both be happier once they’re divorced. And I’m actually sort of excited not to have to move back home but to get to be with you still – it’s a good compromise.”

“But all I had to give up was my selfish desire to have you by my side all the time. You had to give up your relationship with your parents,” Sebastian reminded me, glumly.

“I don’t know about that. I never had much of a relationship with my mother anyway. And I think my father may come around, especially if you want him to.” I tried to sound optimistic. Sebastian smiled weakly. I wasn’t sure when I had become the one comforting and reassuring
him
but as soon as I spoke the words, I realized it was true. It really wasn’t that bad; I still had the rest of Winter Break to spend with Sebastian and the Jensons, and moving into the school dormitories might even be fun. It couldn’t be any worse than living at home had been. And at least I would still have Sebastian. I’d bet he could find a way to sneak into my dormitory rooms without getting caught too, if he wanted to. And from the look in his eye, I knew that wouldn’t be a problem.

Christmas was a quiet and low-key event at the Jensons’ house. I didn’t have much money to spend on gifts so I made a small oil painting for the Jensons of a beautiful lavender-filled clearing I’d been dreaming of recently. The Jensons seemed to understand that I didn’t want expensive gifts from them either and Mrs. Jenson gave me a beautiful scarf that she had hand-woven herself and Mr. Jenson put bows on the bedside table and writing desk in the guest room, telling me that my gift was to keep the furniture I’d been using so that I could decorate my new dormitory room. The belongings my father had sent over did not include any of the furniture I’d had in my bedroom at home.

Sebastian and I had agreed not to get each other any gifts, so I was surprised when we woke on Christmas morning and he slipped a simple yet beautiful necklace out from under his pillow. He silently held it up for me to admire in the low morning light. The pendant was a piece of dark, golden amber cut in the shape of a teardrop, smooth and nearly perfect except for a small piece at the top that had chipped off. It hung from a tightly braided, black, leather cord with no fastener – it would have to be tied on.

“It’s beautiful,” I murmured softly as I watched the light sparkle and reflect off the small bubbles trapped within the amber’s surface. It captured the light in a magical, spell-binding way.

“It’s yours,” Sebastian pronounced, holding the necklace out towards me. I had to fight the sudden, nearly over-powering urge to possessively grab the necklace from his hand. I felt a strange connection to it – it called to me, beckoned with a strange power that was reminiscent of Sebastian’s own pull. I stubbornly shook my head as I sat up, tightly twining my fingers together as they itched towards the amber.

“We agreed – no presents.”

“I didn’t buy it,” Sebastian protested. “I’ve had it for as long as I can remember. I’ve never been able to get rid of it or give it away; just to think of it used to overwhelm me with guilt… I don’t know why. But I’ve been thinking about it a lot since I met you… and I think it should be yours. This feels right. It
is
yours.” He offered it to me again, the pendant swinging enticingly, back and forth, back and forth. “I want you to have it, Gracelynn.”

“Don’t you ever get tired of always getting what you want?” I half-grumbled. I reached for the necklace eagerly though, unable to resist it any longer. Sebastian carefully lowered the pendant into my hand. The amber immediately felt warm to my touch, almost as if it were alive with its own magic. The strangest thing was that I wasn’t even surprised; I had almost expected it would feel that way. Sebastian gently pressed the necklace into my palm and for the split-second that both our hands were touching the amber pendant, it suddenly flared red hot, the fire and energy inside of it exploding outwards in a searing rush of heat.

“What the–” Sebastian exclaimed, quickly pulling his hand away from mine. The instant he removed his touch, the pendant returned to a comfortable warmth. I was too stunned to even react; I just sat there, staring at the beautiful, obviously magical, talisman.

“What just happened?” I asked as I carefully placed the necklace on the sheets between us. Even then it was a struggle to let it go.

“I don’t know – it’s never done that before. It’s always felt stone-cold – even when I tried to warm it in my hands.” Sebastian’s dark eyes were wider than usual, a slightly perplexed expression on his face. “Are you alright?”

“Yes, it just scared me a little.” I automatically reached for the necklace again as we spoke of it. Before I was really aware of what I was doing, I started tying the cord around my neck.

“Gracelynn, maybe you shouldn’t wear it...”

“I want to,” I answered truthfully. I wondered why I didn’t feel more afraid. “Why did it do that though? Why does it feel so warm even now?”

“It does?” Sebastian’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. “I don’t know why. It could be dangerous…”

“No,” I immediately and firmly objected. “You don’t want any harm to come to me, and it won’t.” My voice rang with a quiet power that surprised even me. Sebastian studied me curiously, his ancient eyes looking deeply into mine.

“It
is
yours,” he pronounced, and then he lightened the solemn mood with his heart-stopping, dimpled grin. “And it looks absolutely enchanting on you.” I couldn’t help but smile back.

“Thank you.”

I wore the amber necklace everyday after that, never taking it off for even a moment. I wore it with pride, always aware of its gentle weight resting against my chest. The feel of the pendant against my skin was comforting and strangely familiar. I often found my hand creeping up to squeeze the pendant tightly in my palm, drawing strength from its warm, smooth shape. And though it always felt warm to my touch, it never felt red-hot again, though Sebastian was always wary not to touch it after our strange experience.

It ended up being a perfect Christmas Day – quiet, simple and quaint. There was none of the usual fanfare of Christmas that I was used to. There were no extravagant gifts, no fancy parties, no rounds of visitors. It was perfect. And even though it was my first holiday without my parents and outside of my own home, it was still, without a doubt, the happiest I’d ever had.

The rest of Winter Break flew by in a blur. Sebastian and I spent every minute of each day together. Sebastian always had something up his sleeve; he was full of ideas and enthusiasm for life. He made me go for a walk in the rain without a coat on, he dragged me out onto the lawn at midnight to dance barefoot under the stars, he took me to sit in silence beside the ocean for an hour, just to listen to the sound of the changing tide. His stories made me laugh, his theories made me think, his heart and soul made me dream. And if all that weren’t enough, there was still the fact that just being in his presence meant witnessing miracles and impossibilities every day. I saw lightning strike on a clear and cloudless day, I saw two city blocks simultaneously and unexpectedly black out, I saw shooting stars, and rainbows, and a sunset of a hundred different colors in one night. Sebastian’s world was truly a wonderful and magical place.

Before I knew it, there was only one day left before school started and Mr. Jenson and Sebastian were helping me move into my new room in Craigflower’s girls’ dormitory building. The dormitory itself wasn’t that bad. I had my own bedroom that wasn’t much smaller than the guest room at the Jensons’ house, and I also had my own small bathroom. There was no bathtub but the stand-up shower was fairly sized. With the bedroom furniture the Jensons had given me arranged about the room and a few of my own possessions unpacked, it was starting to feel welcoming and familiar.

Once Mr. Jenson helped unload the last box he quickly left, allowing Sebastian and I some time alone together while I continued unpacking my things. Sebastian made my bed for me then stretched out across it, watching me silently as I bustled about. He’d been unusually quiet today. I could guess he was having a hard time remembering why he’d wanted me to move out.