Life Lines

12: Should Already Know

Chapter Twelve

Midnight rolled around and I was still staring up at the ceiling. For some reason I couldn't get to sleep, my brain refusing to click off. The stars had long since blurred, appearing as continuous green streaks across the expanse.

Around one a.m. I heard something ping against my window. I stayed where I was until I heard it two more times, both seconds apart. There was only one person who ever threw rocks at my window so I wasn't surprised when I looked out, and Cecil stood on an open area of my backyard.

Well...

I sighed and held up a finger, signaling I'd be down in a second. That boy was seriously pushing my buttons today. I grabbed a discarded sweater from my overstuffed chair and headed outside. It wasn't cold out, but since I'd climbed out of my warm bed, everything was just chillier.

The back door closed with a soft click behind me but I didn't take the stairs down. Instead I stood there, arms folded over my chest. Cecil stood in the grass, his hands in his pockets. He was still decked out in all black and if my eyes weren't adjusted, I probably wouldn't notice him.

We both remained silent, the night air full of the sounds of crickets and cicadas.

"What's up?" I finally asked.

"I just wanted to make sure you were ok."

"As well as can be expected."

"You look tired."

I sighed and walked down the two steps, heading in his direction. If we were going to have a conversation, standing by the back door probably wasn't a good idea. My voice might carry inside and wake up my father, something I really didn't want to do.

"Can't sleep."

I brushed passed him, ignoring the shot of warmth I got when my shoulder came in contact with his. That was definitely new. I didn't have to ask him to follow, he did it on his own. There were many ghosts of the past in my backyard. We'd spent hours, playing among the trees and playing various different versions of tag. What remained of the old swing set loomed in front of me. It used to have a slide attached but after one of the hurricanes blew through, Dad had to take it off. I was sad to see it go but he said the rest of it could stay. He didn't want anyone getting hurt if they tried to go down the slide.

The swings were the black rubber kind, like the ones you'd see in a public park. They'd been baked in the Georgia heat for over a decade but they still remained sturdy. I sat down on one while Cecil took the other.

"Should I ask what happened after I left?"

He turned and looked at me but I couldn't see his face. He was drenched in shadows at the moment and I couldn't get a read on his features.

"Why don't you listen to me?"

"I'm assuming you mean in conjunction with Union."

"Yes."

I shrugged. "I like to make up my own mind about people."

His sigh was frustrated as he messed with the divot from long past at his feet.

"Don't be stubborn about this."

"Tell me what's going on between you two and I'll be more than happy to oblige."

"I can't tell you."

He didn't sound happy about that fact. Actually he sounded pained because he couldn't tell me. There was something important going on between them, something that concerned me on some level. Whatever the hold the mysterious man had on him, I didn't like it.