The Protection

Thirty-Three

I stared at the blank page on the computer screen as I sucked on the end of my pen, willing myself to write something, anything. I had been sitting in the library for twenty minutes staring at the screen not exactly sure how to motivate myself. My Bible paper on the Dead Sea Scrolls was not any closer to being finished. All I wanted to type was brown. Brown Eyes. Brown eyes, kissing full lips, ripping off my clothes, hands on my body. I pulled on my long red-brown braid trying to pry my mind away from him. The same feeling nagged at me all week. Whether at the bar or in class or in Chapel, I couldn't shake the need to be near him. My need for him grew stronger and stronger every day we were apart. I closed my eyes focusing on Kyler, and I felt a humming, like a magnet, emanating from the stacks above me where I knew he was positioned. He had been true to his word, watching over me, albeit at a distance to maintain a low profile. I found the pull to him inside of me had grown this week while sitting in yet another boring Organic Chemistry class, our connection was now feasible within my own mind. My entire being was vibrating, pulling me towards him.

I stretched my arms lazily above my head and noticed a few basketball players stare at my buff bare stomach where my t-shirt had slid up my body. I smiled pretending like I appreciated their attention. I certainly would have appreciated the attention, before Kyler. Kyler. I pushed away from the table and walked lazily towards the front door needing a little air and a lot of inspiration. Each step I took away from him was painful, but I knew I would never write that paper unless I got some clarity.

Even at 10:30pm at the end of March, the air was still humid and warm. Yellow lanterns lit my path. I waved to a couple I vaguely recognized from Texas History who were sitting snuggled on the porch swing outside. I wished I could sit with Kyler like that - out in the open for the whole world to see. I sighed and rounded the corner when all of a sudden I felt like I had been hit by a semi truck. My brain slammed violently around my skull and my stomach rolled. The effect was overwhelming, and I staggered to the side, grabbing for the brick building.

She was texting her new boyfriend. Her green eyes on the phone. She hadn't even seen that girl crossing by the library. She would never purposely hurt her. The crunch of car against bones, the Psychology book flying into the air, and the white shirt turning burgundy with blood. Too much blood.

I heaved violently into a flower pot nearby before I straightened myself up, the sick feeling vanishing as suddenly as it had hit me. My eyes danced wildly around the courtyard. I saw no one, but a small blonde freshman carrying her Psychology book. Her flowered backpack bobbed up and down over her white Young Life t-shirt. The same shirt as in the vision. The same black Lexus sedan I had just seen in my mind turned the corner to my left. I could see the blue light from the cellphone illuminating the driver's face. She was not paying attention to the small girl walking in front of her, about to cross right into her path.

Before I could stop myself, I lunged forward, grabbing the strap of her backpack and yanked the small girl back from the curb. We both fell backwards as the Lexus careened by, totally unaware of what just happened. The young girl glared at me.

"What the hell?!" I felt my face burn. I searched for what to say about how I just saved her life, but was distracted when I saw Alana's puzzled look from behind the science building about a hundred feet away. Kyler's parting words rang in my ears: Blend in.

"I'm sorry, I just had to get your attention to find out where you got that backpack. It's so cute," I gushed and the girl's demeanor softened.   

"Thank you! I got it at Urban Outfitters. I can get you one next time I am there," she said, recognizing me and now worried about making a good impression to the campus poster child after her outburst. I looked up to where Alana had once been to find only grass and night sky.

"No, no worries. I'm about to graduate, but thanks for the offer." I smiled and hurried back towards the library, which seemed infinitely safer. Had I just blown my cover and given The Protection even more reason to believe I was one of them?! I knew Kyler said we could trust Alana, but what if he was blinded by whatever they had going on. What if she was more loyal to her future mother-in-law and the organization than she was to her fiance?

I sat at my same seat in the library, but my hands shook as I flipped the small refurbished laptop back open. I pretended to punch a few keys so if there were any lingering eyes they would think I had taken a minor study break. To make my computer work look realistic, I wrote a page about how the girl looked in my vision, splattered across the car. Her hair stuck to the dash, through the windshield, while her body hung limply over the hood ornament.

Eventually, I snapped my computer shut and packed up my backpack. My hands were still shaking. I had to talk to Kyler, no matter how dangerous it was to be around one another right now. He would know what to say to cease my shaking. I walked hastily to the side door waiting to see if anyone followed me. When I felt it was safe, I snuck up the stairs to the stacks where I could feel the vibration the strongest, throughout my entire body.

Kyler was seated on the floor with stacks of LIFE magazine from the 1960s spread around him in various piles. I couldn't hide my surprise. I wondered if he knew from watching me that this was one of my favorite past times.

"These are very interesting. The ads alone are incredible," he admitted with a bright genuine smile, dusting off his dark jeans. He was dressed in his typical black t-shirt, jeans, and cowboy boots. The look still made my heart pound uncontrollably. I crossed my shaking arms over my chest to help me resist the overwhelming urge to reach out and touch him.

"I just stopped a girl from being killed by a car," I blurted out. He took a step back. "I mean I saw the car before she almost walked out in front of it. I think it may have been my first vision. I still don't understand what happened, but maybe you were right, maybe I am a Seer after all," I breathed. He looked around frantically for extra eyes, but we were alone in this beautifully abandoned space. He pushed a finger to his lips and pulled me closer to him behind one of the stacks. My hips burned from where his hands touched me.

"What do you mean you saw her?" he demanded, but his voice never rose above a whisper. I raked my fingers through my hair pulling a little at the ends.

"I got this nauseated feeling like my head was going to explode, and then I saw her get struck by the car seconds before she was almost hit. The girl who ran her over in my vision was texting on her phone and not paying attention," I said and his eyebrows creased.

"That's impossible. We can't see accidents, only intentional violence." He shook his head. Still, his eyes darted cautiously around the room until I grabbed him by the face.

"Kyler, I know what I saw. I saw the accident before it happened," I insisted. He fell silent for several moments, his eyes searching mine. For possibly the first time in his life, he was caught off guard by something, and the fearful look on his handsome face told me that he didn't know what to do. After a few moments his eyes flashed and he turned, pushing me backwards against a row of books.

"You can't tell anyone about this," he breathed, and I found myself nodding in spite of my curiosity. "I'm serious, no one but you and me can know about this." He grabbed my face in his hands.

"I promise," I whispered. His brown eyes smoldered and locked onto mine. "I want you," I admitted. He stroked his thumb in a long line from my cheek to my lips, and I closed my eyes.

"I know. I want you too," he relented, closing the gap between our lips.

BANG!!! I jumped out of my skin, whipping my head around to the noise. A hardback version of an almanac lay on the floor in the middle of the stacks, untouched. My heart beat frantically. I could feel that someone else had been here. An energy lingered in the air that was somehow familiar. I turned back to Kyler, but he was gone. Vanished. I yanked my backpack around my shoulders and hurried down the stairs. I couldn't help but feel like a cornered animal as I ran out into the night, wishing I had a Protector to keep me safe. I didn't know what was happening with the vision I had seen, and from the way Kyler reacted, he didn't either, but I knew I saved a girl's life tonight. A life that would have otherwise have been lost. That thought alone fueled my panicked heart as I ran the rest of the way through campus to my apartment, passing the white stone monument that started this all.