Prey (11 page)

Curious as to what’s on his mind, Jade inquires, “You okay?”

“Yeah, I’m good.” Alex breaks his concentration on the door, turning to Jade, grinning. “You remember the story behind this cabinet door?”

“Of course I do.” Jade smiles as she remembers the history behind the cabinet. “We had been talking for a while and we had finally gotten the okay from our parents to do our homework together. We were sitting at the kitchen table—only it wasn’t where it is right now—it was over there by the back door. We got hungry while working on our Calculus homework and decided to make something to eat.” She walks directly up to the cabinet that Alex is standing in front of and stares at it. “I suggested we make some popcorn, cheese-flavored of course, and you happily agreed. I walked over to this cabinet to grab a bag and—”

Alex picks up Jade’s sentence, “The box of popcorn was on the top shelf, out of your reach. You asked me if I could hand it to you. I got up from the table, walked over here and stood right beside you, just like how I’m doing right now. I reached up, and as I think back now, I can only remember thinking of three things at that time.”

“And those three things happened to be what?” she curiously asked.

“Well, the first thing I remember thinking was that I hoped I’d be tall enough to reach the popcorn myself.” Alex and Jade share a brief laugh. He goes on to recount, “Second thing I remember was me thinking about how the scent of your perfume or body spray was driving me wild.”

“Body spray,” Jade confirmed.

Alex’s lips curl into a smile. “After I got the box down, I remember being nervous, but then our eyes locked for a brief second. I wanted to kiss you right then and there with every fiber of my being,” Alex confessed.

“And you almost did. At least until the family cat jumped onto the counter and knocked over a glass cup. We both were scared to death because we thought it was one of my parents.”

Laughing as they reflect, Alex adds, “Yeah. I tried to put as much distance between us as I could, but I turned the wrong way and walked face first into this cabinet door.”

“You walked into it so hard I thought it was going to break free from its hinges. Your head recoiled back like somebody jabbed you in the face,” Jade teasingly added. “You turned around to look at me and the first thing I saw was this huge, red bruise on your forehead. You looked dazed and confused. I remember feeling really bad for you.”

Alex takes a step towards Jade, leaving an inch of space between them. He gazes deep into her eyes and says, “And then without hesitating, you put your hands on both sides of my face, pulled my face towards yours and gave me the sweetest, softest kiss right on the spot where the cabinet hit me. I didn’t want that moment to ever end. I’m almost certain it was at that exact moment I fell in love with you.”

“That was our very first kiss. And it was also when I fell in love with you, too.”

Alex asserts in good grace, “Yeah. That was our first kiss…but it definitely wasn’t our last.”

A silent pause forms between the two, which creates a perfect opening for them to rekindle a long-lost flame. With their passions burning high, they bring their lips into range of one another’s, their eyes lowering as they draw near. They’re close to doing what it is they’ve been longing for every day and night for the last two years—the feel of each other’s touch. Their lips are a fraction of a centimeter away from meeting when Jade’s cell phone rings. The unexpected disruption causes the two to tentatively draw back from one another. Jade digs into her jacket pocket and answers the incoming call.

“Hello, mom,” she said in a frustrated manner as runs her fingers through her hair.

Alex leans his shoulder into the section of wall underneath the memorable cabinet, patiently waiting for Jade’s conversation to end.

“Yeah, mom, I back home…I know I said I planned on staying in Terre Haute…No, nothing’s wrong, mom. How did you know I was home, again? Oh, one of the next door neighbors…Figures.” Alex gives a silent chortle. Jade takes the phone away from her ear and looks at the caller ID screen when her line beeps. “Mom, can I call you right back? I have another call coming through.”

Jade clicks over to the other call. She looks at Alex with an uncomfortable eye as she addresses the person on the other end. “Hey, Drake. What’s up?”

At first Alex is unaware of who Drake is and what his relationship to Jade consists of, but after overhearing their conversation, he slowly begins to get gist of their situation. Once he realizes this, his demeanor changes slightly. His bright smile disappears and a meager look of resentment develops. Not wanting to intrude on Jade’s conversation any further, he walks out of the kitchen and into the living room.

Jade wanted to stop Alex from walking away, but over the course of time that she’s been with Drake, she’s developed feelings for him that can’t be ignored. With that in mind, she reluctantly lets Alex go and stays on the phone with Drake.

Trying to pass time until Jade gets off of the phone, Alex picks up the remote control and turns on the TV. The sixty-inch television comes to life and fills the room with its acoustics. Alex flips through a number of channels, eventually stopping on ESPN. A few minutes go by, before Jade enters the living room.

Alex sets the remote on the coffee table and turns to Jade. “I almost forgot how much I missed watching this stuff.”

“You are still a man, Alex. Just because you’re an angel doesn’t mean you’re immune to the allure of sports. Hey, about that call—”

“You don’t have to explain a thing,” Alex interrupted. “It’s been two years since we’d last seen each other. That’s a long time for anyone to wait. Besides, you had no idea I’d ever come back.”

“You’re right about that one. I want you to know that if I had known I’d ever see you again I would’ve never dated anybody else. It’s just that your death really took a lot out of me. It took a long time for me to put the pieces of my life back together. It was only because of Drake and a few other friends that I was able to finally move on.”

“Jade, I told you don’t have to explain a thing,” Alex calmly reaffirmed. “It wouldn’t have been fair for you to stop living just because I died. You’re only nineteen.”

Jade is relieved that Alex is taking the news of her dating someone else so well. It’s not like she felt he would throw a tantrum or anything. Her main concern was hurting him emotionally. Jade takes off her jacket, kicks off her shoes, and takes a seat on the couch. Alex sits down beside her.

“So tell me about this dude,” he asked in a good-humored, best friend kind of way. “Is he a good guy or is he a bad boy…You know, like how I was?”

Laughing at Alex’s humor, Jade responds, “First of all, I’ve never heard of any bad boys having an eleven o’clock curfew.”

Laughing, Alex comes back, “Hey, I didn’t need to be out past eleven to do my thing. I did all my thuggin’ before the street lights came on.” As Jade laugh at Alex’s jesting, he goes on to add, “That’s how much of a gangster I was. I did all of my dirt in broad daylight.”

“Like what? Weren’t you too busy with your student council meetings and all the other after school functions you were a part of?”

Alex is stunned at Jade’s witty personality. Over the course of their separation, he almost forgot how funny she could be. “I see you still got jokes. But if you’re done with you comedy bit, I believe I asked you a question about your new friend.”

Jade shifts her position on the couch. “I don’t know, Alex. I don’t really feel comfortable talking to you about this.”

Alex wraps his arm around Jades shoulders. “Come on, Jade. You know me better than that. You can talk to me about anything…Even another guy. It’s not like you’re my girl anymore.

“He’s okay,” she halfheartedly revealed. “He’s not like how you were at all. He’s actually the total opposite. He’s arrogant, cocky, self-centered at times, and a bit of an adrenaline junkie, too.”

“Sounds like your typical bad boy. It’s funny…Of all the times I checked in on you, not once do I remember sensing another guy. I’m usually pretty good with keeping up with the people you associate with. So, does he treat right?

“Yeah, he does. He has his days where he can be a total jerk, but even on those days he treats me the same way you did. That’s the only characteristic you two share. You both treat me like I’m a queen.”

“You are.” Alex declared to her with no delay. An awkward silence follows, which is then followed by them briefly locking eyes. “Hey, you’re probably tired, right? Why don’t you go ahead and try to get some sleep?” said Alex, abruptly changing the subject.

“I am tired. I’m not use to staying up all night. But to be honest, I’m too afraid to close my eyes. I’m afraid of what I might see when I open them.”

“You don’t have to worry about that. I’m here now and I’m not going to let anything happen to you. The only thing you’re going to see when you open your eyes is me.”

“I’ll tell you what…I’ll go to sleep if you promise to tell me everything you know about what’s going on when I wake up.” Jade curls up onto the couch and snuggles up with one of the couch’s decorative pillows. “I would have you tell me first, but it probably wouldn’t be wise to add more monsters to the nightmares I’m already going to have. Do we have a deal?”

“You got a deal.” Alex picks up Jade’s jacket and covers her with it. Jade closes her eyes and drifts off to sleep.

Alex silently stands over her for several seconds admiring the beauty he’s missed for so long. He bends down and softly kisses her on her cheek. “Sleep tight, Jade,” he whispered. He stands up and moves over to a window that overlooks the front yard. He makes this spot his lookout post, patiently standing on guard, anticipating the arrival of any uninvited guests.

CHAPTER 14

Hours go by, the sun holding steady in the center of the sky. So far, there hasn’t been any sign of lurking evil. Alex hasn’t budged an inch from his self-assigned post, staying on high alert as Jade peacefully sleeps on the couch. Alex steals an occasional peek at her, observing her in all her exquisiteness.

Jade begins to toss and turn. Alex walks over to her and stands silently over her, hoping she’ll push through her discomforting dream so he won’t have to wake her up. Her tossing and turning escalates into more violent shuffling and scurrying about, which is then followed by her screaming.

“Jade! Wake up, Jade!” Alex said loudly, gently shaking her awake.

Jade comes to. She’s out of breath and panicked. She takes several deep breaths trying to regulate her breathing.

“Must’ve been a scary one,” Alex implied. “Care to talk about it?”

Jade wipes the sleep from her eyes as she sits upright. “No, not really.” She glances out the window. “I think this is officially the first time I’ve ever had a scary dream in the middle of the day.”

Alex takes a seat next to her. “At least you got a few good hours of sleep in first.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be selfish. Did you want to take a nap? You exerted as much energy physically as I did mentally. You probably more exhausted than I was.”

Alex readjusts himself on the couch so he can address Jade from a more comfortable position. “I don’t think I can fall asleep. I’ve been up ever since I came back here and that was days ago. I’m not even tired.”

“So you don’t sleep? That’s interesting to know. Well, do you at least want something to eat? I can go in there and make us something.”

“Haven’t eaten a thing since the day I died. No appetite. I haven’t even had so much as even a sip of water. I guess I don’t need that stuff anymore.”

Jade raises one of her eyebrows. “Heaven doesn’t have food?”

“No, there’s food there, but they’re all natural. They’re the kind of foods that are created from plants and trees. Whenever you want to taste a strawberry, bananas, or tomato, all you have to do is pick one. But technically, you’re never hungry.

Jade directs herself into a position that allows her to face Alex and give him her full attention. She stares him directly in the eyes and asks, “What’s Heaven like?”

An expression of pure nirvana slips across Alex’s face. “It’s a place you’d have to see to believe, Jade. I don’t know if they’re any words that can do it justice. It has similarities to what we’re told about in church, but it’s different in so many ways.”

Jade inquires, “How so?”

“Okay, let’s see here. For instance, it’s not a bunch of angels literally living up in the clouds. It pretty much looks like a purified Earth. People have houses and apartments like they do here, they just don’t worry about paying for rent or utilities. Money doesn’t exist up there. You don’t have to worry about heat or air conditioning because the weather is always perfect, with the exception of an occasional shower every now and then, but that’s only because we wanted it to rain.”

“Wait, you said money doesn’t exist up there. I thought you said Heaven wasn’t in the clouds.”

“It’s not. But somehow, someway, whenever you want to see earth all you have to do is concentrate on it and then you suddenly descend. You go so fast it’ll feel like you’re moving at the speed of light. So in some aspect, it is a place that exists in the skies, only it’s more sophisticated than anyone probably realizes.”

“Is that how you got back here?” she asked.

“Yes and no,” Alex stated. He tries to thoroughly explain how he came back in the easiest way he can. “You see, normally an angel can only hover over the people you want to visit. It’s an outer body experience that brings angels here. All the ghosts you hear people claiming to see are usually angels that’ve come back to visit. For some reason, I was able to ascend my concentration beyond a mere outer body experience and cross over physically.”