Counting Shadows [complete]

Chapter 5

I had no way to contact Jonathan or Jake - somehow in their stalking attempts to collaborate they forgot to leave a business card. I had my accounting classes on Monday and Wednesday and I hoped he would try again his creepy trick with the shadow in the bush. I waited the weekend out keeping me busy with various things. One result of me feeling antsy was a good carrot cake I made on Sunday. It didn't help anything but it made the kids and Lee-Ann happy, despite Lee-Ann claiming she was keeping a diet. She had kept some sort of diet for as long as I knew her, not that it would help her eat better.

Every night I went into the garden to pick up yet another silver lily. I kept them safely in my room in a cupboard. The wood absorbed any light coming from them, allowing me to ignore them.

By Monday I was seriously hoping Jonathan would jump out of the shadows. I was hoping I didn't scare him, I hoped he was desperate enough to try to contact me again. Of course, I was considering what other options I had, but I wanted to keep my options open.

After the class, it was easy to disappear into the park alone. I simply avoided talking to Saira. It is generally speaking quite easy to just appear that you are not somewhere. Sometimes it is actually harder to make your presence visible. I guess witches are more natural observers. They don't like to be in the spotlight, not because they would be shy, but it would mean that they were not in control anymore.

It was starting to be a little more chilly. The trees were a bit chatty, as usual. I was waiting, becoming impatient. The trees were too chatty for Jonathan to be around. It felt rather silly. I felt like a girl who was stood up on a date. Definitely not something I was into.

"Jane?"

A dark silhouette approached me. Jake stepped into the light of the only street lamp around, he was smiling.

"I was hoping to see you around here." He said, as if it weren't dark already, we were alone in the park and we both knew that this meeting was rather arranged. The street lamp's light made him look charming with his broad smile. In the yellow warm light, he looked healthy.

"Where is Jonathan?" I asked as if I didn't know already he was not there. Jake looked a bit hurt. He looked like he hoped I would be pleased to see him. To say the truth, I might have been, should the situation be different. Unfortunately, men tend not to see the simplest things. Sometimes, you just have to focus on one thing and it's not flirting.

"He sent you to see if I am ready to talk to him," I said matter-of-factly.

"Well, I am," I added and then repeated again: "Where is he?"

"Why the change?" Jake sounded very curious. He was coming closer to me as if someone could overhear us. I think he was not expecting to persuade me so easily. I am not sure what he was expecting. More flirting? Persuading me with some nonsense promises? Having a chat about the weather?

"Not your business really. You came to see me to see if I want to see Jonathan. The irony and the grammar aside, here I am, ready to talk to him. All yours." I left my hands theatrically. Now he looked totally shocked.

"He warned me, that if you make up your mind, you will try to charm me. I didn't expect," he paused as if he wasn't sure what to say.

"What?" I encouraged him to keep talking.

"That you would be so normal." And here it was. I realised that I met the perfect guy. Except Jake was not at all perfect. Plus it's not like he was interested, he was here to deliver a message. Simple nobody to be ordered around by Jonathan.

"Are you OK?" He asked me. I had to be quiet for a bit too long. To be fair, I was absolutely speechless. Instead of saying something, I nodded. Jake looked relieved. I guess he didn't want to scare me and the thought that he could scare me made me laugh.

"I am taking back the part about you being normal." He said and I stopped laughing trying to look serious.

"So can we see Jonathan now?" I asked but he just shook his head. I was disappointed. Personally, I thought Jonathan wanted the thing, whatever it was, sorted out as quickly as possible. I actually wanted to sort out my problem as soon as possible.

"He can meet you on Thursday."

"I didn't realise he has such a busy schedule. He seemed free enough last week to stalk me around." Jake smirked.

"I am working on Thursday. Come to see me after my shift ends." Jake looked surprised again. It was starting to be getting on my nerves. Clearly, he was not perfect after all.

"What, I can't take an extra shift or what?"

"Sorry", he mumbled. Or that's what I thought I heard. I couldn't be sure because I simply started to walk back home.

"Are you ok to walk home alone?" I could hear him calling after me.

"I think I should be fine. It's not like there is a vampire lurking from a bush or anything. I will survive." I shouted back, not bothering to slow down or wait for his response. This was not what I expected to happen, but there wasn't much I could do.

When I came home, I simply picked up another silver lily glowing in the night in the front garden and put it next to the others into the drawer in my room. My personal light source.

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