Holly

Chills

The earth feels rough under my bare arms. It is cold and uninviting under my delicate skin. When I stir, I only feel stones scratching my back. The odd feeling makes me open my eyes.

Even with my eyes open, I feel as if they are closed. Everything has a film over it as if a shadow covers the sky and ground. I realize I am laying on my back on some rough ground with an open night sky above me. The sound of dripping water comes from my right, and I turn my head. A single puddle is next to my head and water is dripping into it.

Soon, a downpour starts out of nowhere despite there being a clear sky. The puddle begins to grow next to me, the edge of water creeping towards my head. Remembering how it felt when my hand was in it last time, I began to panic. My heart rate spikes, and I begin to use my shoulders to inch away. It feels like I am paralyzed, and I try my best to move.

The puddle grows closer, and I look to where the fire had been before. There isn't one any more and I register how cold I feel. A sense of urgency for the fire overtakes me now and I feel as if I have been left behind.

Just as the sky grows darker and the puddle begins to touch my hair, I feel a sudden warmth. It feels as if my body has been coated in something that will protect me. The puddle recedes and the rain stops.

This warm feeling quickly fades, and I feel the hairs on my neck stand on end. I still can't move and lay at an odd angle on the ground with my head bent to the side. I feel exposed all of the sudden but in an exciting way.

Eyes. I feel dark blue eyes on me. The burning need to move rages through my body. I push myself, scream at myself to move and stop this...

I jerk awake and find myself lying in the cool sand. I am in the same spot I was when I fell asleep. Now, the sky is darker as the sun sets.

These dreams are just getting stranger. I've been having dreams about the puddle for a while. I rest my head against the sand and sigh. The feeling I felt before waking was different. I felt as though something was really there other than me.

"Go to the rock you and your friends jump off."

"What the..."

I sit up and look behind me to see him standing halfway in the water. His face is void of emotion as he stares at me.

How long was he standing there?

"How long..."

"I'll meet you there."

He disappears into the water and that warm feeling leaves me. Left with no other option, I hesitantly head towards the rock.

The walk isn't far, and I just have to climb through some trees at the end of the beach to get to it. The sun is now halfway behind the horizon, and I realize I didn't bring a flashlight with me. My phone will just have to do if I am out here that long.

As I get closer to the rock, I feel a chill. It is creepy seeing the spot where my friends and I hang out at dusk. It feels like I shouldn't be here. Like a liminal space.

As I stand over the cliff and look below, I see a figure standing on the ledge. It looks up at me and I feel that warmth again.

I rush down the side, sliding with the dirt and grabbing onto the trees around me.

"Hey, asshole." I shout jumping out of the tree line and onto the ledge. "How do you know I come here with my friends?"

He glares at me, and I blink at him, waiting for an answer.

"Just follow me."

He turns his back to me and continues to walk along the ledge. This is the moment that I realize the guy is butt naked. If I was in any other situation, I would love to stare at his perfect ass. Unfortunately, he is some legendary freaking monster that might be leading me to my death.

I try my best to keep my eyes on the back of his stupid handsome head instead of looking farther down. The ledge is longer than I thought it would be. I've never gone along the ledge and never bothered to see where it led.

"Why aren't you wearing pants, guy? Don't you know that's weird?" He doesn't say anything. "Can you please put some on? I don't want to be mooned."

I hear him chuckle in a suggestive way. "I don't wear clothes when I shift."

Ohhhhhh. That makes sense.

"So, you call it shifting? What do you look like when you are in the water? What if I really am just talking to a crazy person and you swim the ocean butt ass naked?"

He stops and turns around to face me. I have to really fight the urge to look down at this point.

"Do you want to see what we look like?" He gives me an evil smile before pointing to his right. I didn't even notice that we had come to a cave. I walk a little closer to him cautiously to look into the cave. "Go in there and you will see."

I stifle a laugh. "Yeah, right. You are going to kill me. You go first."

He keeps his smile as he rolls his eyes and walks into the cave. I guess he can see in the dark because he disappears into the darkness with ease.

I, unfortunately, do not have night vision. I pull out my phone and turn on the pathetic light as an effort to see. It is a small cave, and his ass lights up in the light soon after I enter.

He turns and leans against the wall of the cave. I notice something lying next to him and turn my attention to the strange pile of bones.

Approaching, I see something shocking. The perfect skeleton of a monster is on the ground. It is a wild one, mouth wide open and clawed hand reaching towards the mouth of the cave. The upper half looks human, but it is hard to miss the long spines coming from its back and running down its tail. The spines are each nearly three feet long with barbs at the end.

"This isn't the same as me, but it is similar." He speaks as I inspect the skeleton.

"What is the difference then?"

"I am more intelligent, and I can shift. These things behave like wild animals."

There are remains of dried scales clinging to the bones and on the cave floor. The scales are black in color with some seeming to have gray in them.

"Why are you showing me this?" I ask.

He doesn't respond and I look at him. His eyes are locked on mine. They seem deep in thought, almost hesitant. This hesitance is the first emotion I have seen in him that isn't shock, anger, or mischief. It almost makes him look vulnerable. That would be the case if he wasn't frowning like he is angry.

"If you are going to help me with the curse, I figure your knowledge of the biology of aquatic animals would help."

"How do you know I have that kind of knowledge?" I never told him that.

He doesn't say anything.

Freaking stalker.

"Why can't I just see what you look like? It would be easier to see a living specimen than a pile of bones."

I expect to get a good explanation but instead I am met with a mischievous grin. "I can show you living ones. I'll warn you though, they are nowhere near pleasant."

Little does he know; I already saw one.

"Show me a living one." I say standing up and approaching him.

He stares at me again and seems to be thinking something through. I have no clue how I am supposed to break this curse. It has to be obvious by now. To be honest, I don't think he knows either.

"Something tells me there is another reason why you brought me to see this measly little skeleton. Are you afraid that I might run screaming when I see a real one? You want to ease me into seeing them?" He glares at me. "That's so sweet of you."

"This is serious, Holly."

It is so fucking cliche that when he says my name, I feel a chill go down my back.

He leans over me, and I suddenly realize how close he is to me. Not to mention, still void of any pants.

"You haven't seen how they behave."

I look him in the eyes, trying to look anywhere else. "I've seen some messed up things in my life. I'm sure I can handle it. Why do you care so much anyway? All you should be worried about is how I am going to get rid of this curse."

Humor clashes across his eyes and something dawns on him. "Your friend hasn't told you."

I glare at him. He is keeping secrets too. "If you want me to help you, why don't you tell me what you are thinking about?"

A small smile appears at the corner of his lips, and I feel weak in the knees. "You don't need to know."

I see a spark of mischief and arrogance in his eyes. He is dangling something in front of me and I don't even know what it is. The worst part is this whole situation. I am supposed to break this curse and I don't even know why I must do it or if I even can. Normally, if you want someone's help to break your damn curse, you don't tease them like this. It is like he knows I can't help my curiosity and won't be going anywhere.

"Tell me." I say, feeling determined. "Or I am not helping you anymore, Arius."

He again glares at me. This time I see a glint of pain in his eyes. That tells me everything I need to know. This curse hurts him way more than he lets on. He knows why I have to be the one to break it which means if I walk out, he has no hope.

That idea of leaving him with no hope hurts me.

"Holly."

I feel a chill go down my spine again and my eyes return to him. He is smiling. He knows what he is doing.

"Stop it." I snap.

"You won't stop helping me, Holly." His smile is one of arrogance. "You will find a way, Holly."

"Stop saying my name." I can't focus, damn it.

He steps away from me and turns his back to me as he heads out of the cave. "I know you will, Holly."

I race after him but am met with an empty ledge and a splash in the water.

I can't help but come to the realization that when I said his name, he felt the same chill that I did. He is just as influenced by my presence as I am with his.