“How is this going to work, again?” My grip on steering wheel tightened as I began filtering my mind for possible things that could go wrong. I looked out at the darkening sky and pressed my lips tightly together to keep from saying more.
“Rachel,” James laughed, “I’ve said it three times.”
“Once more,” I encouraged. My foot accidentally slipped down harder on the gas pedal and I eased up on it a bit.
“We’re going to walk into the gas station,” he paused, “Do you understand that part?”
“Don’t patronize me,” I snapped, and then took a gulp of air and prompted him to finish, “And then what?”
“You’re going to go to the back of the building by the frozen goods. The milk and egg section. Got that?”
I nodded quickly, mentally storing that in the front of my brain.
James seemed satisfied that I had retained that bit of information. “Pretend like you’re looking for expiration dates on the produce or something. But you’re going to keep your eyes on me. Don’t make it too obvious, either. We don’t want to make things suspicious.”
“Okay…”
“When I feel like I’ve picked a good person to scar for life,” he grinned devilishly, “I’ll magically appear.”
“Are you sure this is a good idea?” I bit my lip, beginning to second guess the entire plan.
“Calm down,” James frowned. “Look we don’t have to do this tonight…”
“No,” I refused to turn around now. I knew James wanted to try it and I wasn’t about to crush his hope. If he wanted to try and materialize to another person, I wasn’t going to stop him. In fact, I would be right by his side. “We’re almost there anyways.”
James didn’t reply. He only nodded, paying close attention to his hands. His thumb traced the lines in his palm. It seemed as if my anxiousness had rubbed off on him.
“Hey…” I said softly, “Don’t let my pessimism get you down. This is going to work.”
“I hope so,” he replied quietly.
Minutes later, we arrived at the gas station. I drove slowly into an available slot and parked the truck. With five large steps, we’d be inside the grungy looking building. My limbs were already quivering with excitement.
“Okay, so you remember the plan? If I disappear and don’t come back, that just means my energy was drained. I’ll be back soon, though. Hopefully tomorrow,” James looked into my eyes as he said this.
I wrapped my arms around my waist in an attempt to warm myself up a little from the chilly nighttime air. “You nervous?” James raised an eyebrow at me.
“No,” I answered. James gave me a look which clearly told me he didn’t believe a word I said. “Well, a little,” I admitted.
“Don’t be,” James flicked my nose.
“Alright, let’s do this,” I eased myself out of the truck and managed to walk convincingly calm to the doors into the gas station. I opened the door and held it open for the girl behind me, whom I soon realized was Diane.
“Oh, hi,” I gave her a friendly smile.
“Hello,” she replied dryly, brushing swiftly past me. I felt my smile deflate and I shuffled my feet pathetically to the back of the store. I glanced stealthily behind me to check where James was standing. I surveyed the store, picking out possible victims.
There were two older men and one elderly lady shopping together. They were picking up cups of coffee and I sincerely hoped that James didn’t target them. The last thing I wanted was for one of those poor people to have a heart attack.
Remembering to stick to the plan, I opened the refrigerator and slowly checked the dates. The more realistically I stalled, the less suspicious things would appear.
“I got a pocket, got a pocketful of sunshine. I got the world and it’s all mine…” I hummed quietly to myself. I knew I was over thinking and over-doing it, but it couldn’t hurt to be extra cautious.
In the corner of my eye, I watched as James approached Diane. I tilted my face downwards so that my hair could cover my smiling face. It took a lot of will-power to not burst out laughing. I should’ve been feeling bad for the poor girl and what James had planned to do, but I could only think of her priceless reaction.
James took excited strides towards her kneeling body. She was inspecting some packaged doughnuts, most likely deciding whether or not she would buy them or not. Apparently she decided to get them because she picked the package up and swerved around in the direction of the counter.
James all of a sudden ran up in front of her and screamed, “Boo!” at the top of his lungs.
Diane screamed bloody murder, stumbling back a few steps. She managed to trip over her own feet and fall onto her backside. The doughnuts that were once in her hand flung up into the air and landed a good distance away from her startled body.
Her eyes darted around the store, frantically searching for James, even though he was still standing in front of her. My guess was that he had made it so that she couldn’t see him any longer.
A laugh threatened to escape my lips. It shouldn’t have been funny, but it was different when you were in on the joke. And it just so happened that she wasn’t the friendliest person I knew.
A male cashier jumped over the counter and sprinted over to where Diane sat. “Miss, are you alright?”
The entire convenience store went dead silent.
“No, didn’t you just see that?” Diane stammered, growing paler by the second. Her eyes were still as wide as saucers and I watched as her chest rose and fell rapidly.
“Miss, do I need to call someone for you?” The cashier was growing wearier by the second.
“You didn’t see that?” Diane shrieked to the loudest of her ability. Her eyes searched behind rows of packaged food items relentlessly, looking completely and utterly lost. When I glanced at her closer, I saw the tears building up in her eyes.
Lights began flickering on and off, the electricity buzzing lively in the air. When I was about to walk over and help Diane, my body seemed to have frozen mid-stride.
“This is forbidden, James Whyte. You’re dead and that’s all you’ll ever be,” a voice growled from the corner of the store. My eyes searched for the source and I took in James’s cowering figure and a large man standing over him.
Black tendrils of smoke curled around the looming body.
It was the same man that had met me the other night and doused me in ice water. The same one that had told me that he was coming back for me. The one that had recited the strange poem. The one that had read my mind and had changed into different people.
If I were able to move, I’m sure I would’ve made an attempt to run.
“Now I suggest you erase this ridiculous fantasy out of your brain before I make the rest of your existence torturous,” the voice was stone hard.
“I think you’ve forgotten that I can read your thoughts. Might want to censor those words –“ the voice laughed harshly, “I have half a mind to disintegrate you right now…. But the girl needs you, unfortunately.”
James mumbled something, which in fact sounded violent.
“You’re not going to be around for much longer, Mr. Whyte. I suggest you enjoy the time you have left, because she’s going to be one of us soon.”
The man disappeared, and James’s hazel eyes lolled to the back of his head. He vanished from my sight and suddenly I was able to move again.
As quick as I could, I walked out of the gas station. I tried not to run, otherwise someone may get suspicious. Although I did hear Diane reply, “My boyfriend is waiting out in the car. He can bring me home. I’m fine…”
~* *~
Later that night, I collapsed into bed with a shaky sigh. James had told me not to worry when he had disappeared, but he hadn’t given me instructions on what to do if something like this were to happen.
“James!” I called out, waiting for any sudden appearances.
Not a single thing.
I bobbed my legs nervously on the bed and looked around the room for a little bit. There was a pile of clothes in the left hand corner of my room because of my lack of a dresser.
When I looked blinked, a piece of paper materialized on the wall.
I’m fine.
Somehow, I knew the note was from James. And so I was able to fall asleep somewhat at ease. Though my mind was warped with nightmares relating to the figure that had spoken to James in the gas station.
My phone pinged and I half expected it to be another sign from James, but when I opened the message, it was from Ruth.
Ruth: Care to accompany William tomorrow?
Me: How so?
Ruth: He’s going out with friends, and you can suddenly appear?
William was going to start hating me, even before the babysitting process began.
Me: Whatever you say. (:
Ruth: Warning; I believe that these friends are druggies.
I stared dryly at the phone, wondering for a split second why my life couldn’t be simple.