Glitch and Cody

Chapter 17 - The Royal Pair

Glitch

Clouds are chasing one another in the depths of Cody's eyes, killing the lively sparks that lived in them when I met him in the town square this afternoon, and I can feel him slip away from me further and further into a dark place where I can't follow.

My throat is closing up, seeing painful thoughts reflected on his face, dragging him away from me. I saw it earlier too, when the ceremony ended, but it's worse now. Cody is sitting here beside me, close enough to feel the heat radiating from his body, but I know he's leaving me.

I don't want him to leave me. The thought paralyzes me with fear. He drags darkness around with him like an oppressive shroud, and yet, when he's with me, he ignites the colours around me, making them shine vibrantly. I want to dig into his heart, tear out all the pain and fill him with life.

Without stopping to think about what I'm doing, simply following my heart – something I am often in trouble for - I lean over and touch my lips to his, wanting to breathe the pieces of his soul he'd cried into mine back into him. I want to bring the sparkling life rushing into his eyes again. I want to make him whole.

The contact of our lips sends bolts of electricity shivering through my entire body, and for a moment, I believe I was struck by lightning.

I don't think I've ever kissed a boy before. If I had, it got locked away in that chained-shut chest in the dark corners of my mind. I don't remember it. Many of my good and happy memories got shoved in there with the dark ones. 

This is undoubtedly a kiss. It wasn't meant to be one; it was only going to be a breath of life, but now my lips are happy, feeling Cody's lips against them, and I cannot tear them away. They have found their gentle home.

The evening breeze cools his lips, their surfaces bathed in the sweetness of the grape juice he drank; it is forming an intoxicating combination with the taste of his skin.

I want to stay like this forever! 

The sounds of the festival are fading further and further away, becoming a gentle lullaby, floating me away on a cloud of bliss. My heart is filling with so much warmth; it's melting away the fear that always hides in its corners, ready to pounce when I least expect it. 

I awake from my peaceful slumber when Cody tentatively moves his lips over mine, and my heart leaps almost painfully in my chest. Goosebumps spread over my skin as each nerve ending sparks to life, causing me to shiver, and a soft sound of protest escapes from my throat when Cody pulls away from me. He moves closer to the furthest edge of the bale we're sitting on, creating a tiny space between us.

I can still feel his quickened breath whisper against my face, and his eyes, looking at me very intently, are a vague gleam in the poor light. I cannot tell whether the pieces of his soul have returned to him or not.

Time ticks by slowly while we sit in the dark, just staring at each other, neither of us willing to break the silence and speak about what just happened. I breathe him in; the fresh aroma of lemons, the grape juice he drank and something a little darker and secretive fill my nose. It is a heady mixture, and I can imagine Cody as a dangerous mythical creature camouflaged in moonlight and shadows, and yet I am not afraid.

"You're shivering," he suddenly says, and before I can protest, he takes off his jacket and puts it around my shoulders, wrapping me in his exquisite fragrance and his warmth. I wasn't shivering from the cold; it is a balmy evening, but I close my eyes and slip my arms into the overly large jacket sleeves, relishing the heat, the smell and the coarse textures. 

"I'm hungry," Cody mutters hoarsely, and I open my eyes to see him working his injured leg off the haybale he was using as a rest. "How about you?"

Is he happy about the kiss? Is he upset about it? I cannot tell; he is avoiding looking at me, and I don't think it is just because his leg is paining him, and he is struggling to get it to cooperate.