Forgetting

Chapter 24-One Heartbreak Closer To You

Akira woke up to squeaking mattresses and shuffling feet. The bedroom she found herself in was dark and eerie, but oddly familiar. Bewildered, she threw back the covers and stood up, her legs shaky.

What had happened? The last thing she remembered was finishing her book, alone in the bedroom, and then...

Nothing. She couldn't recall anything.

Creeping over to the door, she jerked it open and slipped outside. It was too dark for her to see clearly, but as her eyes adjusted, she noticed someone sprawled across the ground, fast asleep. He must have been stationed outside her room to keep an eye on her. She opened her mouth to wake him up, but something told her that was a very bad idea. It was the way he slept, eerily still and barely breathing, that made her wonder if he was really alive.

She didn't know where she was going, but instinct told her that she had to get out of this house as soon as possible. Nervously, she crept down the stairs and had barely reached the bottom floor when she spotted movement outside one of the windows.

A large throng of people crowded the lawn outside the house. Everyone was awake, but everyone was silent. Her stomach squeezed when she saw their faces: blank and empty and slack. They seemed awake but not awake. She spotted someone she recognized, a friend called Ravi, and opened her mouth to call out to him.

" Hey, Ravi-"

A large hand clamped down over her mouth. A scream rose up in her throat, before she recognized the familiar scent of his skin and relaxed.

" What do you think you're doing, Naomi?" Exclaimed Aidan , turning her around to face him.

He was a fine one to talk. What the hell was he doing here? He should be far, far away. Away from all this madness, she thought.

"Naomi?" She replied, confused," No. Akira."

Under the moonlight, his face turned white. The hands on her shoulders trembled slightly. She looked up at him in astonishment. Aidan never shook, never faltered. And yet, in that moment, he seemed unsure about what he was hearing, those beautiful silvery eyes wide with shock.

" What?" She snapped," Is it because we still haven't had the relationship talk ? We will, okay? As soon as someone tells me what the hell is going on-"

He moved so fast she could barely react in time. His mouth was on hers, and she stopped breathing. Thinking. Shivers shot through her as he deepened the kiss, parting her lips. She pushed off the wall and stole the tiny space between them, pressing herself against him and digging her fingers through his soft curls. It was like they were drowning in each other, and she was so tired of trying to stay afloat.

He pulled away all too soon, his breathing ragged and uneven.

" I can't believe you're back," He lifted her chin to meet his eyes," But right now, we need to get out of here. I'll explain everything later. You check the East entrance, and I'll check the back door for a way to escape. Then we'll meet back here in five minutes, okay?"

She nodded, still feeling dizzy from that last kiss, but the urgency in his voice reached her. A tiny knot of fear formed in her stomach. What if one of them got caught? And who was she supposed to be running from?

Aidan gave her a brief kiss on the forehead and disappeared into the shadows. Whipping around, she raced up two flights of stairs towards the East Entrance. Suddenly, as her eyes adjusted, she found herself staring at a photo wall beside a locked balcony.