Having lost the man she loved to the cold clutches of suicide, Amara's impulsive decision to join him leads her to accept the marriage proposal of a mysterious stranger she shares a drink with at a bar.
Xelan's weddings were an awful affair, with ea...
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It was the summer before sophomore year all over again. Amara sat by the pool of Hardin's house, watching her feet swirl in the chlorine treated water. She looked up, seeing all the other kids invited having fun either in or out of the pool. It should be criminal that she had managed to get into one of the most anticipated parties of Greenville High and she was sitting by herself, being dull. Even more so, when Katy had worked her butt off to get them into it. She was pretty sure Katy would bury her alive for wasting her precious youth. Well, if Amara could find her anywhere.
She stood and looked around hoping to see a glimpse of Kaitlyn's auburn bob while some of the seniors were flinging themselves into the water as a joke. She really hoped her parents hadn't changed their minds at the last moment. This would have been the best time to have a phone. Or maybe they should have met up at Kaitlyn's place instead of here. With one more look around the place, she decided to leave. She couldn't be here for long anyway. Ma would be expecting her by now. She made to leave but was stopped in her tracks by a hoarse familiar whisper.
"Key."
Chilled to bone, she turned to see who it was only to have an arm draped across her shoulder. She looked up to see Corey, another popular senior who normally hung out with Hardin.
"We got a runner," he announced to the crowd, eliciting boos. She felt herself freeze up in embarrassment and a bit of confusion. Had she just been imagining things?
"I...I wasn't running," she replied, trying to meet his gaze. Upperclassmen always had a way of making her feel two sizes smaller. Corey wasn't even listening, his attention going to the brunette boy on the other side of the pool.
"Yo, Hardin. I don't think she's enjoying your party that much. What do you suggest?"
The brunette turned, his gaze landing squarely on her before moving over to Corey.
"A little water never hurt anyone," he yelled back. The grin on Corey's face grew even wider at the reply, as he turned back to Amara.
"You heard the man. Let's see how well you float, chubs," he said. Her eyes almost bulged out of their sockets.
"Wait..." She had called out too late before she was thrown right into the pool amidst the excited hollers and cheers. She felt her body sink for a bit, silently cursing herself for ever agreeing to this. But as she tried to swim back up, it felt as if she was being held down. She looked down, seeing a black mist below her, sucking her leg in. She couldn't help but scream, her voice lost in the water and over the laughter of all the others above. The mist kept rising as she frantically clawed her way back to the surface, two red orifices shining in all that black.
"Key," a voice seemed to croak from within the mist. The grip on her leg tugged hard, pulling her down to the pool floor. Her efforts to pull away only seemed to trap her below water. She was going to die here. Did no one seem to notice she hadn't come up? Just when she felt herself giving up, a hand reached out to pull her. She felt herself be lifted out, her back touching the cool tile floor. The sun blinding her sight got blocked by head full of ginger red hair.
