Coma (Paranormal Romance) (16 page)

Walking side-by-side, holding hands, I
wondered what it looked like to passers-by. Probably as if I held
my hand strangely, but not enough to raise suspicion. When there
was no-one around us, I asked, “Where were you? I thought I’d lost
you—”

“I'm so sorry, Ly. On my way over, I ran into
Sophie. She told me what she did,” his forehead creased, “And I had
to do some damage control.”

“What damage control?” I nudged his hand.

“I made her take me to see her doctor,” he
smiled.

“What did you do?” I asked, suspiciously.

“I made sure you would be safe in all of
this,” he chuckled.

“How exactly?” I narrowed my gaze.

“That—I'm taking to my grave,” he smiled,
mischievously.

“But you said you tell me everything,” I
complained.

“Past tense. Now I keep my...How did you put
it? Alpha bull? I keep my alpha bull to myself,” a devilish grin
spread on his face. I chuckled. One thing hasn't changed since the
beginning—he clung to my every word.

I was about to sit on a bench, but he
wouldn't let go of my hand, stopping me in my intent. He pulled me
back, and placed a hand in the small of my back, then clashed my
body into his. His firm grip, and greedy stare made my insides hum
with desire. Our lips collided with urgency and despair, cutting us
short of breath. He scooped me up, not breaking the kiss, and
carried me over to the bench. He sat down, placing me onto his lap,
deepening the kiss. I groaned, and he pressed me tighter against
him.

For hours, we said nothing. Instead of
talking, we enjoyed exploring each other, exchanging caresses, and
tenderness. Neither of us could get enough. Nothing existed but us,
and our mutual feelings.

At dusk, Zack was the first to break silence,
“You know, this is quite an odd park,” he chuckled. “Aren't people
supposed to come here, and walk their dogs, jog, or something?
No-one comes through here.”

“Of course not,” I chuckled as well. “Why
would they when they have the beach?”

“Not everyone likes the beach,” he said.

“We've been lucky so far. Don't jinx it,” I
threatened with my finger, but he snatched it so fast that I didn't
have time to react, and bit me gently on the knuckle. I moved in,
replacing my finger with my lips, and the whole new round of
kissing commenced as if we’ve never kissed before.

“It's late,” I said after a while. “I have to
go home.”

“Are your parents working,” he arched a
brow.

“No, they're home. Why?” I blinked.

“I don't think I can stay away from you that
long,” he said, making me blush.

“What do you suggest?” I asked, secretly
hoping he would pop up in my room. Zack grinned mischievously.

“Nothing today, but one of these days, I'll
surprise you,” he placed a tender kiss on my knuckles.

~*~

The bus ride home seemed as a perfect time to
ask him about his hotel. If anything should happen, at least I
would know where to look for him. It would be no comfort, but at
least I would get some confirmation he was really gone.

“Zack?” I said.

“Yes,” he turned his head to face me, smiling
wide.

“Where's your hotel?”

He chuckled. “On the other side of the town.”
He motioned with his hand behind us.

“Come again?” Dumbfounded, I was sure it had
to be some hotel on my side of the town since he was always with me
on the bus.

He smiled. “You know that big compound by the
beach?” I nodded. “That's the one. Top floor, first room by the
elevator.”

“But that's in a completely opposite
direction,” my mouth fell open. Zack nodded, smiling. “Where do you
go after I get out of the bus?”

“I get off on the next one, and catch the bus
to my hotel,” he suppressed a grin.

“But...you've been riding with me all this
time. I thought—”

“You thought wrong,” he chuckled. “I come
along just to be with you.” He took my hand in his, and placed a
kiss. I couldn't hide my surprise what seemed to amuse him even
more.

~*~

Sophie's doctor had arranged a meeting for us
with her physicist friend. Zack, Sophie and I had agreed to meet
after my shift, and go there together instead of meeting downtown.
I was nervous about it the entire morning. So far, nothing implied
that her doctor had bad intentions, but I couldn't relax, I
couldn't trust her. Moreover, I couldn't trust the third person in
play—her physicist friend. I wasn't a nail biter, but by the end of
my shift, I picked up that habit involuntarily.

As if I wasn't having a nervous breakdown
already, on my way out of Mario's, the manager called me in for a
word in his office. I couldn't think of a reason why he would ask
for it, so that added to my anxiety. Lately, I wasn't the employee
of the month, but I did my job well. Reluctantly, I knocked on the
office door, and came in when I heard him answer.

“You asked for me,” I said, coming in.

“Yes, Lyra. Sit,” he extended his hand toward
the chair, then cleared his throat. “This is a bit awkward,” he
said, and I cringed mentally. Not the opening statement I wanted to
hear. “You see, I'm quite a tolerant person,” he raised his
eyebrows expectantly, as if was supposed to know what he was
talking about. I nodded, confirming his tolerant nature. “I think
we can both agree that I treated you right from the start,” his
glance demanded my nod once again, and so I did. No idea where he
was going with it, but I had no choice but to hear him out. “And I
expect you to do right by me, as well.”

He stood up, crossed his arms behind his
back, and went to stare out the window.

“Did I do something wrong?” I asked,
confused.

He sighed, painfully. “I have four children,
and I've been a part of their lives from conception to college,” he
turned around to face me.
Oh dear Lord, what was this about?
My mind was racing. “With that being said, I can say that I know
certain...things pretty well when I see them.”

My mouth dropped. He was either insane or I
was in deep shit. I had to interject. “Excuse me, sir. I don't know
what you're talking about. Can you, please, tell me what is it that
I did, because I don't understand?”

He inhaled deeply, and bowed his glance.
“Lyra, if you're pregnant, I can help you, but you need to tell
me.”

Did someone just drop a bomb? “What?!” I
shrieked. “NO!” I shook my head. “Why would you think such a
thing?”

“Well,” he giggled nervously, a bead of sweat
formed on his forehead, “This morning, you went to the toilet more
than a dozen times, you're pale, and look like you're gonna puke at
any moment. Classic pregnancy symptoms.”

I started laughing, relieved. “Unless it's
immaculate conception, I assure you, I'm not.”

He let out a sigh of his own relief. “Huh,
good. Because, frankly, you're too young, and it would be a shame
to waste a life like that. There's time for everything in
life.”

”Don't worry, sir. I'm just nervous about a
meeting today, that's all,” I smiled, but he frowned.

“Job interview?” His eyes narrowed in on
me.

“No,” I said, his face relaxed. “I'm helping
a friend with an assignment. We have a meeting with a theoretical
physicist.”

“Oh,” his expression seemed confused, “You
didn't strike me as physics type.”

“I'm not. Hence the
pregnancy
symptoms,” I winked, and we both chuckled. He patted me on the
shoulder, and escorted me out of the office. In the hall, all by
myself, I chuckled. What a weird situation that was!

Across the street, Zack and Sophie were
waiting for me. Sophie waved, propping herself on her toes to make
the wave higher. Zack tucked his hands deeper in his pockets, and
silently smiled behind her. My pulse quickened, making my upset
stomach worse. As I was nearing them, Zack's smile widened, and
Sophie started squirming in place.

“You won't believe what just happened,” I
said as soon as I was in their hearing range.

“What?” They both replied, eyes wide with
expectancy. There were other people on the bus station, so I waited
till I got closer.

“I'm nervous all morning, and my manager
thought I was pregnant! He confronted me with it!” Zack chuckled,
and Sophie let out a sound of disgust. “Eww, awkward as hell,” I
grimaced.

“I'd give anything to see his face when he
confronted you,” Sophie chuckled.

“Oh, it was priceless,” I grinned. Zack edged
closer, wrapped his arm around my shoulders, and kissed the top of
my head. Sophie smiled, sighing out loudly, pretending to melt.

“Drop it, Soph,” Zack warned her,
grinning.

Sophie glanced around the station at other
people, then turned to us “Can you believe it?” She whispered.
“They're clueless. I wonder how they see us.”

I shrugged, “Two girls talking?”

“Probably,” Zack said, chuckling, tugging me
closer to him.

“Amazing,” Sophie added.

~*~

Upon exiting the bus downtown, Sophie pulled
out a piece of paper with the address. It didn't take us long to
find it. I expected some high tech building, but instead, it was an
old one, with the facade nearly falling off. That didn't comfort me
at all. This guy was either nuts, or didn't know jack, thus lacking
necessary funds.

We entered the building, our noses hit by a
stale, musky air. Zack started toward the mailboxes to see which
floor we needed. Dim light barely made the inscriptions readable.
Sophie and I joined the search from the opposite end.

“Found him!” Sophie announced.

Chipped of card was glued to a broken mailbox
that said:

“
George McLuhan, PhD

Theoretical Physics

II floor.
”

Besides being nauseous, narrow spiral stairs
that led upstairs were making me dizzy, as well. As we climbed
higher, the stench got heavier. There were no windows as far as I
could see. Finally, we reached the door that said exactly the same
thing as the mailbox downstairs. Sophie rang a bell, but it didn't
seem to be operational. I knocked. We heard a set of clicking
sounds, several scraping ones, something rolling, and then a
metallic clang. Thick wooden door swung open with a screech. A
woman in her forties smiled, neatly dressed, hair rolled in a bun,
and a set of red-framed glasses.

“Come in,” she stepped aside to make way for
us. “Glad you could make it. I'm Alexandra Moore,” she extended her
hand toward me.

“Lyra Hudson,” I shook her hand. She had a
firm grip, something I liked about people.

“George is straight down the hall,” Alexandra
pointed out, and led the way.

One by one, we followed her. Good that none
of us were claustrophobic, because that narrow passage she referred
to as a hall would have given us a panic attack for sure. Zack had
to tilt his body to keep shoulders from scraping all the way. Like
the building, the hall was also poorly illuminated.

“George,” Alexandra said, entering what
looked like an office. “These are Sophie and Lyra.”

A gray haired gentleman glanced our way above
his glasses, his palms supporting his weight against a big wooden
desk full of papers and books. He had one of those round faces that
could pass for Santa Claus if dressed in red, and warm eyes that
spelled out
you can trust me
. Not that I did. He smiled,
pleasantly, his teeth definitely one of those early dentures that
screamed fake from far away.

“Welcome,” the man said, pushing up his
glasses. “Make yourselves comfortable,” he motioned toward several
chairs clearly put there for this visit. Sophie and I sat down,
Zack went behind me, and put his hands on my shoulders.

“I told George what I know,” Alexandra said,
leaning against the wall, her arms folded in front, “So I'll stand
aside, and let you exchange knowledge.”

“Yes, yes,” George cut in. “I'm very
interested to hear your experiences.” His glasses drifted down his
nose, and he pushed them back up.

“Sophie said,” I interjected, “That you might
be able to help us out.”

George smiled nervously, “I'm not sure if
what I know will be helpful to you, but I'll do my best to share
what I know so far.”

“Not very reassuring,” Sophie replied,
tipping her mouth to the side.

“Ah, you have to understand,” George
continued, “This hasn't been done before, and I'm not the kind to
make vague promises.”

“So, how do we do this?” I cut to the
chase.

“How much do you know about quantum physics?”
George arched a brow.

“Not much,” I replied, and Sophie agreed.

“I think I do,” Zack said behind my back.
Sophie and I darted our glances toward him.

“What? Is he here?” George's eyes widened,
his voice elated.

“Yes,” I said, “And he says he does know
something about quantum physics.”

“Marvelous,” George clasped his palms,
grinning wide. “Let's start at that. I'll tell you what I know, and
then you can fill in some of the blanks that will help me with my
research.” The three of us nodded. George walked behind his desk
and reclined in a chair. For a few long moments, he stared at the
ceiling, and then commenced his story. “Based on my research thus
far, I'm sure that we live in a certain frequency band. It has long
been hypothesized that multiverses exist, but what I've discovered
changes that theory completely.” George paused. “Does that make any
sense to you?”

I looked at Zack, and he nodded. “It does to
Zack,” I chuckled.

“Good,” George smiled, “Space-time is a
curved structure. Are you familiar with coordinate system?” All of
us nodded. “Space-time consists of coordinates of length, width,
height, and time. Independent coordinates present different
dimensions. In any given space-time, events are what we call unique
positions in a unique time. But...” George got up, and crossed his
hands behind his back, then started walking up and down the office.
“What has been neglected so far is a component of frequencies. But,
I'll get to that later.” He took a gulp of water. “Ask your friend
what he knows about time dilation.”