Forgotten

Chapter Twenty Three

Three weeks had passed since I met everyone or re-met them. Which meant there were only three weeks until the attack. I had gotten a little better at the water and earth elements, but I hadn’t had any major breakthroughs. I was excelling at air, but I hadn’t tried fire yet. Honestly, I was a little scared to try it so I kept putting it off.

As for Zane and I; we held hands and such but he hadn’t kissed me since the sleigh riding. Kia and I were both upset about that… Blake and I were on speaking terms again and I found he wasn’t a bad person at all, but I still felt awkward around him. As for me and Missy; we tended to avoid each other. So far, it had, surprisingly, worked out well.

I was currently lying on my (yes it was mine by this point) couch, my hand entwined with Zane’s. It was eleven o’clock, but I was restless. I sighed and turned to my side, pulling my hand out of Zane’s. I frowned; I hadn’t meant to do that…

“You’re still awake?” Zane asked quietly.

I sat up and turned to face him. “I can’t fall asleep.” He nodded, stretching on the recliner.

“Me neither… Can I show you something?”

I dropped my feet onto the wood floor. “Sure.”

Zane got up as well and took my hand again, leading me towards the back door. We slipped out of the house quietly and he sat down on the steps. I did the same. “What was keeping you awake?” His eyes were curious.

“I don’t know… I guess I was thinking too much,” I replied. I looked around the dark yard, a shiver of fear going up my spine. Yet as creepy as it was out here, I felt safe next to Zane. He could throw fire balls; I would be fine.

“Ah,” he replied shortly with understanding.

I nodded, looking at him. I could just make out his figure in the dark night. “What about you?”

“I couldn’t stop thinking about you,” he admitted without embarrassment. His bluntness made my cheeks turn pink and I was suddenly thankful for the dark.

I glanced at our hands, threaded together. “Oh, really?”

“Yeah, I can’t stop thinking about why you won’t let me teach you to harness fire.” That wasn’t what I expected.

I frowned. “I’ll let you teach me.”

“Victoria, you find a way out every time I offer and at first I couldn’t figure out why. But I think I understand now. You’re afraid.”

I dropped his hand. “No, I’m not.”

“I don’t believe you. You’re scared because you don’t want to fail. If you try, you get everyone’s hopes up. They all expect you to defeat her and you don’t want to disappoint them.”

 “No, I want to help and I already know I don’t have a good chance at succeeding.”

“And if you learn fire, you might change your mind and then disappoint even yourself.”

I wrapped my arms around myself. “How do you know that?” My voice was a whisper, giving him all the proof he needed.

“I know because I’ve felt that way before. There’s a lot of pressure when you’re famous; you’ll understand that again soon.” He sounded so sure we would be famous again. That we would win.

My shoulders slumped. “So what if I’m scared? It’s okay to be scared that you might fail and destroy your entire world.”

“Yeah, it’s terrifying. But I think you’ll do okay. And you know you will have us,” he reminded me, wrapping an arm around my shoulders.

I shrugged away from him. “Don’t do that.”

“Why?”

My cheeks burned again, “Because you’re confusing me! You keep sending me all these signs that you like me, but you don’t say it and you don’t kiss me. I-”

“You want me to kiss you?” He asked, surprise filling his tone.

“That’s not what I was…”

Zane placed a hand on my hip, angling me towards him. “I’ll kiss you.” And he did before I had a chance to reply. His lips were passionate, determined. I tried to move back, but he simply tugged me closer. I couldn’t get away so I gave in and kissed him back.

When he leaned his forehead against mine, Zane and I were both gasping for air. He smiled, his green eyes excited. He brushed the back of his hand against my cheek so lightly it felt like snow falling. I smiled. “That was better than our first kiss.”

“You know you enjoyed them all,” he replied, cupping my neck with his hand.

I shook my head slightly. “The first was a disaster.”

“Well, let me make it up to you,” he breathed, kissing me again. This one was short and sweet, a vast comparison to the last.

I pouted when he leaned away again. “That didn’t last very long.” He smiled at my reply and kissed the corner of my lips. Then he moved further away, pulling his hands away from me. I sighed and did the same.

“But really, are you scared to succeed at fire?” He asked. How could he switch gears so fast? It confused me.

I sighed. “A little bit.” I wished we could go back to the kissing thing.  

He held out his hand and a small flame appeared, illuminating his face. I flinched back and his lips turned down. “Don’t be scared.”

“Fire is dangerous,” I whispered.

Zane shrugged. “So are water, earth and air; hurricanes, earthquakes and tornados. Each element is as dangerous as the others.”

“But fire burns everything in its way.”

He nodded. “It also helps to start new life.” I watched the fire sitting in the palm of his hand, wondering how it wasn’t burning him. He saw my gaze. “Do you want to try?”

“No!” I wasn’t only scared of failing; I was scared of being burned. I’d heard so many warnings of fire, seen so many fire trucks and heard so many tales. I didn’t want to hold it in my hand.

“Come on, I won’t let it hurt you. If you start to lose control, I’ll help you. You know I wouldn’t let you get hurt.” He was very persuasive.

I hesitated and then held out my slightly shaky hand. I guess I had to get it over with. Besides, if I did get burnt, Drake could freeze some water on my palms or something. Although, I trusted Zane completely, I didn’t trust myself, or the fire.

He shrunk the flame until it was the size of a peanut. Then he held it out to me on the tip of his pointer finger. “Here,” he said.

I gulped, but left my hand outstretched. He placed it softly on my palm, keeping one hand around mine just in case. It helped me relax. To my shock, the flame didn’t hurt or crackle dangerously at me. It sat on the palm of my hand, waving back and forth like a living thing. It was beautiful.

“I know,” Zane said softly. Had I said that out loud? I kept my attention on the small fire. I was too scared to try experimenting with it so I left it alone. I was getting used to the strange feeling.

I smiled and watched it until Zane shifted. “Are you ready to go back to bed?” I nodded, feeling more at peace now.

“How do I…?” I inclined my head towards the flame. I knew better than to drop it in the grass. He slid closer to me.

“Just blow it out like a candle,” he suggested. “I’ll teach you more tomorrow.” I followed his instructions and the fire disappeared, leaving my hand cold. Zane’s palm soon warmed it again as he took my hand. He helped me onto my feet and back inside.

When we reached the living room, he let go of my hand, starting towards the recliner. I grabbed his arm automatically, “Will you sleep on the couch with me again?” He had for the first week, but something had stopped him after that.

“Of course I will.” And he did. I fell asleep quickly, feeling more relaxed and peaceful than I had in a while.