Possessed Soul

Chapter 38

Chapter 38

I could hear Emma screaming. They had just made their relationship known and didn't have to be secretive anymore, and now Holden was telling her he had to leave her to reunite me with my love. I would have preferred to go myself. I was considering running out the door now, while Holden was engaged in a tirade with Emma, but he would only follow me.

"Fine, go!" Emma yelled, throwing a suitcase full of his things at him. "But don't blame me when you come back and I'm not here. There's this guy I met at the club the other day and I gave him my number."

"You didn't go to the club recently," Holden replied, making his way down the stairs. "And if that happens, at least I'll know that you only chose someone else because you needed a rebound off of me." He smirked at her, causing his eyes to crinkle, and turned towards me with his knapsack over his shoulder. "Geez," he exclaimed looking at the suitcase I was bringing "How long do you expect us to be gone for?"

I shrugged. "I'm not coming back without her. Plus, we might need to kidnap her if she refuses to come with us. We can stuff her in the bag and hope she doesn't suffocate."

"If she does, you could always give her mouth to mouth," he pointed out.

"I was hoping to give her mouth to mouth for a completely different reason," I sighed, refusing to think about the last kiss we had shared.

"Well, Casanova, you've always had a way with words," Emma retorted, stopping halfway down the stairs. "You shouldn't have a problem charming her, maybe you could teach Holden a thing or two. You could start with explaining to him why he can't leave me here, and what he should do instead."

I turned to Holden and decided to humour Emma. "You can't leave her here, because she'll replace you. As for what you should do instead, give her a big fat snog to remember you by. And while she's still recovering from the effect of your kiss, shimmy out the door before she can stop you."

If looks could kill I'd have dropped down on the floor that very second, since the look Emma gave me was not something to be desired.

"Or we could just leave, while Emma's thinking about the most suitable way to kill you," Holden suggested.

"Is that your way of saying you don't want to kiss me goodbye?" Emma enquired, looking him in the eye.

"I didn't think you wanted me to kiss you," Holden told her. "Do you want me to kiss you?"

"Does it matter what I want? Because what I want is for you to stay here." She nervously occupied herself with picking microscopic dirt out of her nails and when she looked back up her eyes were swimming with unshed tears, and I instantly felt bad for teasing her.

Holden moved closer to her and let his bag slip off his shoulder. "I can't let Kaden go to find Sage himself."

"Why? He's a big boy."

"And if there's trouble with the FBI again?" He snaked his hand around her waist and kissed the crown of her head, before giving her a small smile. "You know I love you, right? And I'll be back before you know it."

"You'd better," she threatened, grabbing a fistful of his shirt and standing on her toes so that her eyes were on the same level as his.

"You have my word."

This looked like a scene out of a sappy romance movie, and it made me wonder if Sage and I looked at each other like that...with eyes full of adoration and mouths full of unspoken words.

***

"How did this thing with you and Emma happen in any event?" I asked Holden, who was busy lighting a cigarette. It took him a while to get the match lit since each time a spark ignited, the wind put it out. He shouldn't have been smoking in his current condition, but I couldn't imagine him listening to me if I told him to stop, so I chose not to comment on it.

"The fight we just had or us being in love?"

I raised my eyebrows at him. "You know what I mean." I wanted him to talk about his love life, so that I wouldn't have to think about mine.

"Do you still smoke?" He offered me the pack of cigars.

"Don't dodge my question," I replied, taking a cigarette out of the box and placing it in my mouth, before cupping my hands around it to try and light it.

"I wasn't," Holden shrugged. "I was just trying to be nice...and it's easier to talk to you when you're smoking."

"Really? Why is that?"

"You give all your attention to the cigarette and it's unclear how much information your brain is absorbing."

I scowled in response.

"It's not only smoking that has that effect, Sage does as well." Holden said.

"Huh?"

"Even when she's not around, she still gets all your attention. I don't think that level of addiction is healthy," Holden stated.

"It's healthier than a nicotine addiction," I argued.

"Are you sure about that?" Holden asked, with a wide grin.

"So, what about you and Emma?"

"I like her." Holden solemnly nodded his head.

"I would never have guessed,' I sarcastically replied.

"She's really sweet and funny. I like the way she blushes when I look at her. She's gorgeous and makes everything look like a fashion statement, even my dull, ragged clothes. She always knows the right thing to say or do."

"I don't recall you saying so much about anyone before."

"I don't have as many thoughts about anyone else."

"When did you start loving her? How did you know you loved her?" These were questions I was asking myself about Sage. I had started loving Sage the day I first saw her, even if I didn't know it back then. She'd had my heart from the second she spotted me stealing an old man's wallet. I only realised I loved her after our first kiss in the closet. The kiss that made me realise I could never kiss someone else again without thinking of her.

"I found out she liked me when she baked me a cake on my birthday. The cake tasted like crap, but I finished it anyway. I could never forget the way her eyes lit up, or the way she nervously twiddled her fingers while she waited for my verdict. I told her the truth, that the cake was horrible. She was so embarrassed that she had to laugh, and then she wouldn't stop laughing. I'd never heard her laugh like that before and I realised the sound of her laughter gave me a new kind of high. It was something I wanted to experience over and over again. Then she kissed me; and if her laughter made me drunk, her kiss sent me straight over the edge. I knew I wanted everything with her, so that night..."

"Okay," I cut him off. I wasn't expecting so much detail. I expected a very brief explanation, not the full package. "That's more than I wanted to know."

Holden chuckled. "You asked for it."

"Yeah, I guess I did," I said, as I took the turn that would lead us into the neighbourhood where Sage lived. I knew she wouldn't be here. When she was near, even if I couldn't see her, my heart felt like it was being electrocuted. I didn't feel anything now, only the empty void of darkness that loomed over me. But I also knew that going to her house would give us the start we needed, maybe we could even find out why the FBI was after her.