That Kiss (Revised)

Chapter Ten - The Clearing Pt. 1

                Joey found Savannah in her room, again. Hearing the light tap against her window, Savannah wondered if this was her new normal. She almost felt like Sandra Bullock in Miss Congeniality Two, all work no sleep.

                Reluctantly, she let him in. She was eager to know what he had to say, or maybe if Donnie had sent him.

                “Hey,” he breathed, crossing his arms against his chest. “It’s so cold out. I can’t believe we have to meet outside!”

                Savannah tilted her head. “What?”

                “My servant dude gave me a note from Donnie. He told me to wait here with you. He’d be here shortly and we’d talk away from the house so we’ll have some privacy.” He shrugged leaning back on Savannah’s bed, flipping half of her plush comforter over him. “We might freeze to death, enjoy the warmth while you can.” He winked.

                She hopped in next to him, heading his warning. It was cold enough just inside her room right now. She couldn’t imagine going out in the snow.

“So Donnie said he’d been here since he…” Joey trailed off, unsure of Savannah’s reaction to the end of his sentence.

                She stiffened at first before she forced herself to relax and nod. “He said he came here when he died. He had to learn the ropes just like we have been. I’m just thankful we found him to help us. Who knows how long it would’ve been before we screwed up.”

                Joey didn’t even want to think about the consequence that would follow if they did. A silence filled the air between them before Joey decided to address the elephant in the room. “How was it,” he looked downward for a moment before allowing Savannah to see the sincerity in his eyes, “How was it seeing Donnie again?”

                She faltered, probably not anticipating Joey’s bluntness. Yet, in a way she was glad she could talk to someone about it. It’s not every day you’re reunited with your dead brother you never thought you’d see again. “It was really weird. He completely surprised me.” She sighed, “Like I accidently told him I was envious of his eye color. Flat out. If he wouldn’t have been my Donnie, things could’ve gotten awkward very quickly.”

                “So he just knew it was you?”

                “More or less.”

                “Wow, talk about a siblings bond.” He chuckled. “So Michael’s a complete sleaze.”

                She fell back into her pillows with a soft thud, causing her lush pillows to fold around her. “Tell me about it. Not only is he a drunk, but a total pervert.” She rolled her eyes.

                Joey tightened, and his voice became hard. “Did he try anything this afternoon?”

                “Thank god, no. But he isn’t shy about verbalizing it. That’s for sure.”

                Joey rolled from his back to his stomach, resting on his elbows. His face was closer to Savannah’s now, and she took a long look at him.  “What am I supposed to do? Marry him? Kill him? How am I going to keep up with this façade?” Her voice was low and scared. Joey reached up and caressed her cheek.

                “Don’t worry about that Savannah. I’ll make sure you stay safe. Hopefully Donnie will have the solution to all of this. He may even know a way to send us back sooner than we expect. Preferably before any wedding or scheming can even take place.” He traced his thumb down her jaw, brushing lightly over her lips. His eyes flickered to them. They were so soft! Suddenly his head went fuzzy and he felt butterflies creeping through his stomach. Whoa. Too intense. Joey removed his hand in a quick jerk.

                Savannah noticed Joey’s change in mood, but didn’t pay it much mind. She was more focused on his words. ‘Donnie will have the solution to all of this, He may even know a way to send us back sooner than we expect,’ That should excite her. But all she felt was sadness. This type of sadness was familiar. She just gained her brother back. Did she really want to lose him already? And if he did know how to ‘send them back’, why hadn’t he come back himself already? Savannah swallowed those thoughts.

                “Maybe we were sent here to find him.” She muttered, speaking more to herself than Joey. “Maybe we were sent here to save him. Maybe there’s a way for us to bring him back with us.”

                Joey’s eyes looked pained. Sure, he understood that she missed him and that this all was quite a coincidence, but something about bringing a person back from the dead seemed unlikely. For Savannah’s sake, he nodded deciding to give her a little piece of hope to hold on it. “Maybe,”

                “It just wouldn’t make since why you came with me though,” she shook her head, clearly conflicted and unsure what to believe.

                He swallowed. If she wanted to throw out crazy scenarios, surely she couldn’t be upset if he offered his own. Maybe he’d gone with her because she was supposed to see that they were meant to be together. He decided against it.

                Soon enough, there was a faint, single knock on the door. “Savannah?”

                It was Donnie’s voice. She immediate hopped off the bed and let him in. Before he even had time to close the door behind him, she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck. He laughed and pushed her gently away. “Hey to you, too.”

                She looked up at him and Joey was jealous of the admiration in her eyes. He knew that she was his sister and all, but still she beamed up at him as if he was the hero. And hell, he just might be. The thing that worried him was just how long it’d be until she’d be heartbroken all over again.

                Donnie exchanged a nod with Joey, before looking back down at Savannah. “Put a coat on. We’re going back to the clearing. I know it’s cold out, but it’s the only place I feel safe here. Edith has eyes and ears everywhere.”

                The clearing? As in the place where this whole mess started? She didn’t ask questions, just fumbled through her huge closet and prepared herself for the worst.

                The three of them silently slipped through the house, making their way to the front door. Donnie lead, peaking around each corner before motioning for the rest to follow. As they rounded the last wall, the door in sight, Savannah heard a creek in the floor coming from a darkened hall. She froze, causing Joey to bump into her slightly. Donnie was already out of sight, waiting in the foyer while Savannah peered down the hall, willing her eyes to search for any kind of shadow.

                It was a small one. One that she’d recognized. Mrs. Crock. She noticed the shadow disappeared as quickly as she saw it. Savannah felt conflicted. Mrs. Crock seemed like a nice lady. It didn’t seem like she had any loyalties to Edith. But Donnie did say Edith had eyes and ears everywhere.

                Shaking it off, Savannah continued after Donnie and ventured out into the cold night.