Atlantis (3 page)

I slipped the ring onto the middle finger of my left hand. It fit perfectly.

My eyes caught sight of some bats flying overhead. An owl hooted into the night. The break in the silence startled me. The sound seemed to be a warning to pay attention. I skimmed my eyes around the meadow. There in the shadows of the path stood Elliott.

The dark jacket Elliott wore almost completely hid him from sight. His face looked torn. It was the gleaming white teeth that shone from beneath his smile that gave away his location. Having realized I saw him, Elliott strode into the clearing, unnaturally confident as usual. I wondered,
how long he had been watching me?

Elliott seemed to glide across the meadow. In no time, he was standing right beside me. His hazel green eyes burnt into mine. I could see a secret hidden within those eyes. Something he wanted to tell me. Elliott’s flawless lips parted as he started to speak.

All of a sudden, I couldn’t breath. I seriously couldn’t breath! My arms flailed through the darkness. My eyes opened to the grey fuzz of my cat, laying on my face.

“
Theory!” I spit out fur as I pushed her off the bed.

Geehz! Ruin a perfectly good dream
, I thought. Just then I realized, I
had
dreamed. Not a nightmare. Not by far. I had just enjoyed an honest to goodness dream.
Yes! Actual sleep.

I glanced at the clock, 2 AM.
Damn!
Well it was too much to hope that I had slept an entire night. I wasn’t that lucky. Eh, at least it was sleep.

I laid there wondering what Elliott was about to say to me in my dream. Come to think of it, had he actually been in my room? Or was that part of the dream too? I couldn’t be sure. I rubbed the grogginess out of my eyes. Already knowing my chances of reentering REM were futile, I decided to go on a walk.

I combed my fingers through my hair as I realized that I had fallen asleep in my clothes. I slipped on my flip-flops and grabbed my hoodie; I lifted the glass and crawled out my window. Every time I scooted down the part of our roof that was conveniently located a foot beneath my windowsill, I would catch myself saying a silent thanks for my good fortune of getting that particular room in the house. My mother would probably notice if I left out the front door. I made only a light thud as my feet hit the soft dirt.

It was a perfect summer night. The light breeze in the air created an electric current in the atmosphere that was almost tangible. The light rustling of the maple leaves overhead beckoned me forward as I walked through the darkness. Without thinking, I knew where I was headed. My dream, still fresh in my mind was drawing me onward.

I was headed to my park.

Tonight appeared to be no different than the hundred other times I made my way, through the darkness, down the familiar abandoned path. I had no reason to be afraid. But I was.

The usual peaceful quiet cradled me, but the butterflies in my stomach wouldn’t hold still. I could hear the field mice scurrying out of my way. I broke from the trees and entered the clearing. I looked up. The crescent moon glowed bright overhead. The starry sky glittered. Then something else glittery caught my eye. I turned to see what it was.

I froze.

Across the meadow, my eyes focused on a small object that was illuminated in the moonlight from atop one of the familiar timeworn tombstones. I gasped. Tonight was not similar to my dream. This was
exactly
like my dream. Being cautious, I inched forward to the ring that I knew was there.

My body seemed to move in slow motion. I had experienced little clips of deja vu before, but never a full episode. A cool breeze sent a shiver up my spine as I approached the seemingly innocent sparkling piece of metal.
Just
like the dream. Automatically, my hand traced the edge of the headstone, feeling my way to the ring. The frosty temperature of the trinket shouldn’t have surprised me, but it did. The opal’s vast array of colors were far more magnificent than in my dream. I couldn’t believe it. This was by far the most beautiful ring I had ever seen. All of the colors trapped within the opal were far more attractive than any diamond could ever be. As I slipped the ring onto my middle finger, I suddenly remembered that Elliott was in my dream, too. I twisted around to see if he was going to participate in this deja vu episode.

My eyes almost burst from their sockets as I spied Elliott in the shadows.

An unhealthy excitement filled me, and I scolded myself for it. We had barely met. I shouldn’t be this excited to see him, but I was. I could see Elliott smile from across the meadow as he left the shadows and walked towards me. I realized why I hadn’t noticed him there before. Elliott had on the same dark jeans as before, but a dark long sleeved shirt in place of his white sweater. As he got closer to me, the muscles hidden beneath his clothes became clear. The invisible magnetism that pulsed from Elliott pulled me closer to him, as I closed the ever diminishing gap between us. Elliott’s eyes glistened as he nonchalantly combed his fingers through his chocolate hair. His lips parted as he started to speak.

I was still as a statue. This was the part of my dream Theory had ruined. This was the part of my dream that I’d missed. I stared, curious to what Elliott was about to say.

“
I knew it was you. You’re earlier than I thought you’d be.” He smiled.

“
Early?” I couldn’t hide the confusion that colored my face.

“
I hadn’t expected things to come together for at least a few weeks.”

“
Sorry,” I said as I looked at the shiny stone on my hand. “Is it yours?”

“
Nope. Its yours Lilly. Always has been.”

I started to fidget in place. I was consumed with a cloudy awareness that was eluding me. Elliott was creating more questions than answers. “Always?”

“
How about we sit down? You look like you might faint, again.”

I automatically followed him to the carpet of wildflowers we had laid on yesterday. The smell of the lavender was strong tonight, but it didn’t calm me. The butterflies were still dancing in my stomach. I sat cross-legged facing him. “Always?” I repeated.

“
That ring,” Elliott motioned to the opal with his eyes, “is yours.”

“
Then how come I have never seen it before?” I challenged. I would have remembered
this
ring.

“
You have. You just don’t remember, yet.” His hazel green eyes were waiting for something.

“
Yet?” Boy, he was not being helpful. “Wait a minute,” I paused. “You said early.”

Resting back on his elbows, Elliott looked up at the vast collage of stars overhead. Weighing his words carefully, he said, “It’s so beautiful, isn’t it?” Obviously trying to distract me from my questions. Trying to buy some time.

“
Sure, I guess.” I shrugged.

“
You’re not even looking.” His perfect face had turned towards mine, a smirk of a smile on his face. I didn’t look up. His forehead furrowed in frustration, waiting. I gave in. A shooting star flew clearly across the starry sky, drawing a temporary line through the darkness.

“
Wow,” was all I could say. I had never seen a shooting star so big, or that had lasted so long before. It was amazing. Momentarily, I lost my train of thought. I turned towards him, “did you know that was going to happen?” My eyes wide with wonder. Elliott was obviously hiding something.

He laughed, a quiet laugh to himself. I waited for an answer. He sighed, contemplating. Elliott was still trying to decide how much he was going to tell me. I could tell he was waiting for something, but what?

“
So,” he began, “do you want to tell me what happened here yesterday?”

Not fair
, I thought. Now it was my turn to be evasive. My eyes turned back towards the sky. I had hoped that Elliott had forgotten about my temporary trance. I bit my lip, trying to think up a response. Unaware that I was even playing with the ring, I only realized it when Elliott’s hand softly touched mine. There was energy in his touch.

“
Please,” he whispered. His voice tempted me like chocolate.

There was a strange familiarity about Elliott. A voice in my head told me that I had known him for a long time. Could we have met before? Could I have somehow forgotten his flawless face?

“
Hey! I asked first,” I said as I stumbled out of my reverie.

“
Yes, you did.” He smiled, his subtle accent coloring his words.

I could see a ‘but’ coming. I don’t know how, but I could read him.

“
But...” he replied. “I think my story will make a lot more sense after I hear your story.”

“
You don’t even know what my story is about.” I suddenly questioned if he did know, somehow.

“
Let’s just say that I have a feeling they’re connected.” He winked and shot me a mischievous grin.

“
I’d rather not.” I couldn’t stop fidgeting. “You’re going to think I’m crazy.” My fingers wouldn’t stop twisting into pretzels. It was embarrassing.

Elliott’s face became serious and he shook his head. “No I won’t. Promise.” His eyes dove deep into mine. He was cheating. Looking at me in ways that ought to be illegal.

I could tell that I was loosing the battle. If I wanted any answers from him, I was going to have to admit lunacy. I shuddered at the thought. Surely, Elliott would leave after I explained my epiphany. Repulsed by my very presence. I frowned.

“
Lilly, please trust me,” he begged. Elliott’s eyes on the verge of spilling
his
secret.

I paused, hoping he would cave. He didn’t. So I began, “well..” I hesitated, choosing my words carefully.

“
Go on,” he urged.