You should’ve seen Gatlin’s face. His blush grazed his face and neck with a deep tint as he smiled wide. Again, Samuel didn’t really notice. He took a deep breath before he recited his poem.
What is life,
without your smile?
What is the world,
without your blue eyes?
Your kindness amazes me.
Your view of the world helps me understand.
Before you,I only knew of petty jealousy,
expressed through hate.
Shakespeare once wrote,
of a woman so fair,
that her beauty,
must be written down, immortalized,
into one of the greatest sonnets in all of history.
That is what,
I shall do with you, dear friend,
for you have been kinder to me than anyone,
and for that, I thank you.
And though it is hard for me to show,
I do care for you, as more than just a friend.
You may not return my affections,
or you may, as I am terrible at reading even you,
but I still wish to have you in my life,
for you are the only one,
who isn't mean about,
being envious of me.
As Gatlin and Mrs. Harlow clapped, the rest of the class, including past me, were gagging. Though it didn’t play out before my eyes, I knew exactly what I did that night. I cried myself to sleep, wondering why I couldn’t be that confident in myself.
~
My surroundings didn’t spin around me at breakneck pace this time; it only faded to white. Standing before me was a beautiful girl with dark curls and skin pale as bone. Her eyes like honey glowed with unnatural power.
“You may return now.” the angel said, “Go to your love.”
At the speed of light, she stood in front of me. Her smirk boasted with arrogance. Now I got a closer look at her, I noticed a resemblance between her and Gatlin and Samuel. Her palm touched my forehead. It couldn’t be.
It couldn’t be.
~
I awoke in the dark. It surrounded me like an opaque fog. I kicked at the top of the wood box to break it.
Was I in...a coffin? How long was I out?
When I escaped the coffin, I had to dig myself up and out of the damp earth. I just kept digging until I saw the sun. I turned in my hole, and I saw that there was a cross where I was buried.
Emerson, I thought over and over, I must find Emerson.
When my entire body was out of the ground finally, all the trees surrounding the grave were as dead as plants with no sun. I ran in the direction of the cabin. I knew the way by heart. Hopefully, a tree hasn’t fallen on it.
The cabin was surprisingly unharmed. I ran up and knocked on the door. I heard scurrying from the inside. The door flew open, and Xanthe stood there, shotgun in hand, like how I first met her.
“Who are you and what are you...” Xanthe started, threatening, “It...can’t be.”
Xanthe, realizing that I’m me, pulled me into a bone-crushing hug, dropping her shotgun on the floor.
“Can’t...” I croaked, “Breath!”
“We don’t have time for pleasantries, Lyle.” Xanthe said urgently, pulling me away, “I need your help.”
“What do you need me to do?” I asked, battle-ready.
“Okay, when you were dead...”
“I was dead?!”
“Of course you were! Anyways, when you were dead, it took a great toll on Emerson. He wasn’t himself. He couldn’t eat, sleep, or even function without you. All he thought about was avenging you.”
“Avenging me?”
“Yes. You see, he had been planning his attack for months.”
“I’ve been dead for months?!”
“Yes! Stop interrupting me!”
“Sorry.”
“Anyway, he’s been planning for months to attack the place where it all started.”
“School?”
“Yep.”
“So...what am I going to do?”
“You’re going to run in there and save Samuel’s butt, that’s what you’re going to do!”
“Clarify?”
“You are going to go in there, tell your Juliet you’re alive, give him his sanity back, and reunite like that cheesy crap in romance novels. Got it?”
“Yep.”
So we ran into town. It wasn’t the most practical choice, but it worked until we found a blue car with dents and rust. Xanthe picked the lock and entered the car in the driver’s side. She fiddled with it’s wires under the steering wheel.
“You’re going to hotwire somebody's car?” I asked, appalled.
“This is an emergency!” Xanthe replied, “Besides, it’s fun!”
I sighed, going along with the extreme criminal activity that I should be used to by now. The silence hung over our heads like a fog.
“We’re here, Ford.” Xanthe commanded as we pulled into the school parking lot, referring to my old nickname, “Go in there quick, Romeo, before your Juliet kills somebody!”
YOU ARE READING
The Nightingale Code (Monsters Series #2) (COMPLETE)
Romance"The Nightingale Code, the rules for every Guardian to follow, and the list of important people in a Guardian’s life. There are many minor rules, such as never cross a threshold with a crucifix above it; it’s an omen of discovery. The one major rule...
