The Star Children's Destiny

Chapter Four

When Aletta awoke, she found that she was lying on something soft. Extremely soft. She sat up quickly and tried to get her thoughts together. Or that she could, at the very least, get them to the point where she could figure out what the hell had happened.

All right, let's see. I remember telling the others about everything. Well, everything of utmost importance, that is. Then we left the school and I remember hearing Cane say that we should go to their house, then I'm on cement. I wonder if they got the license plate of the truck that hit me?

For the first time, Aletta looked around the room. She immediately began to get sick. The entire room was a pastel pink. Even the furniture and carpet were pink. Getting up, she swayed for a moment trying to regain her equilibrium. Leaving the room, she found herself in a maze of corridors that she made her way through without even hesitating about which path to take. Finally, she reached the living and dining rooms and the kitchen. Her friends were in the kitchen because she could hear them. But there was one voice missing.

"Are you feeling better, Aletta?" someone asked as a pair of arms encircled her waist.

"Yes, Ethan. I'm fine," she said, turning and planting a kiss on his cheek.

Ethan pouted.

"What?"

"Now my lips are jealous."

"Fine," she said, and planted a light kiss on his lips.

When she pulled back, Ethan smiled deviously before sweeping her off her feet and bringing her into the kitchen. Cane snickered, which resulted in a slap from a wooden spoon that Khris had a hold of her. After Ethan sat Aletta down, Khris put a plate of pancakes in front of her. They were exactly the way she liked them, too. She suddenly looked at them all suspiciously.

"Okay, why the royal treatment?"

"My idea," Ethan said.

"Well then. That sweeping me off my feet should have explained everything," Aletta said, eating her pancakes. "Speaking of explaining, tell me what happened and how long I was out?"

"Well, as for how long you were out," Toby started, "it's been two days."

Ethan caught Aletta's fork just before it hit the floor.

Aletta stared at him for a moment. "And I did what again?"

"You clutched at your heart, let out an ear-piercing scream, then passed out," Stephanie said.

"Yeah, my ears are still ringing from it," Rich said.

"So? I'm going to have nightmares about it," Iceara said.

Aletta didn't hear the last two comments that came from her friends, though. She was remembering what had happened. She had felt Carlos's emotions. He was going to take his own life. He had said that it didn't matter anymore. After that, Airos had beat the shit out of him. That was when she felt Airos take control of him again. This time it was against his will. That was why she had felt the pain.

"ALETTA!" Rich yelled.

"What?!" she exclaimed, jumping about ten feet in the air.

"For one, the look on your face is priceless," Cane said.

"Well, you didn't think that you would get away with just one, did you? Now, what do you need help with?"

"I need you to get that skull off the wall," he said, nodding to it.

Aletta frowned. "What's so hard about that?"

"It's booby-trapped."

"Cool. I'm up." Aletta looked up at Ethan. "If you would be so kind as to move, I might get up and get it off the wall sometime this eon."