Up With The Birds

Chapter 7

Our lunch is going well until Chris's secret order comes out. Jonny keeps looking at his plate with lust in his eyes.

"Good God, Chris," he gushes, "Can I have a bite of that?" Chris smiles innocently.

"Why of course, Jonny Boy!" He pats Jon on the back. "I would love to share this delightful meal with you." His food is some sort of grilled meat, and it looks and smells amazing. I'm tempted to ask for a bite, but I have plenty of frosted scones to hold me over.

Jonny slices off a hunk of meat and chews it ravenously. He sighs contently.

"What is this? I need more of it!" he whines. Chris has a smile flickering on and off of his face. He's trying his best to hide it.

"I don't know if you can handle knowing what it is," Chris warns him. I exchange a look with Will.

What is it? I mouth to him. Will shrugs his shoulders. Guy looks lost too.

"Of course I can handle it, you bloody idiot!" Jonny exclaims. "Just tell me what it is."

"Lamb chop," Chris tells him cheekily. Jonny's face turns scarlet as  the blood rushes to his head. Will is biting his lip to avoid laughing. Guy's eyes reflect the humor that his face doesn't.

"That's it, screw you Chris! We're leaving." Jon lays a five down on the table and walks out. Chris rolls out of his chair in laughter. Jonny flips him off on his way through the doors.

"How long is he going to be mad?" I ask, concerned. 

"Well, judging by the fact that we do this on a regular basis, I'd say he'll be over it by the time I start the car," Guy answers.

We pay for the food and leave the building. I grab all of my leftover scones - there's no way I'll waste such a perfect delicacy. Jonny is sitting in Chris's seat. It looks like he's still seething. Chris slides in beside him. 

"Hey old chap, how are you?" he asks.

"Oh I'm doing brilliantly you twit,"  Jon mumbles. The rest of us get in and the same noisy chatter from earlier returns. Guy drops off Will and Jonny first, and then there's only Chris and I to drop off. Guy puts earbuds in.

"Lana," Chris whispers. "I want you to know something." 

"What is it?" I reply.

"In the case that you ever need someone, leave a light on at midnight, and I'll come to you," he tells me. "That way, you'll never have to feel alone." 

I feel warmth spread in my chest. How sweet of him! Most people wouldn't be willing to stay up until midnight just to make me feel safe.

"What about if I left one on tonight?" I hint. Chris grins.

"I would come to see you, of course." 

We pull up to my house, and I Guy pulls out his earbuds. 

"Glad to have you with us, Lana," he says sincerely.

"It was my pleasure!" I assure him. "Thanks for the ride, and for the fun evening." I get out and head to the house.

My dad is sitting with my mom on the couch, his face grim.

"Dad?" I question. "What's wrong?" My mom's eyes are red and puffy, like she's been crying.  My dad sighs deeply, and turns to me. His gaze his serious - very different from his usual laughing eyes.

"I don't really know how to tell you this, because I didn't want you or your mom to find out. But I think that right now, you need to know this for your own safety. When the bureau sent me here, those bastards had more than just our protection in mine. They sent me here to take down suspected accomplices of Dakota Rider. I'm still furious about it. There are four believed accomplices here in London, and they sent us straight to the same town they're in." His voice is full of spite. 

"And now, I think that they've found me before I found them. I had my case files on the table, and the information on one of the suspects is gone. So they know where we are." My body goes cold and rigid. I hear my mom sniff as tears fill her eyes. My dad keeps talking, but the sound of his voice slowly fades out. All I can think about is how they've found us.

I told Chris that I wasn't traumatized from the last encounter with Rider. Nothing too awful had happened. But the idea of something like that happening again to anyone in my family makes me weak with fear.

"Do you know who it was?" I ask, trembling.

"That's the frustrating thing," my dad spats. "I only had the time to look through the first two suspects files; the other ones were untouched. Lana, I want you to be extra careful. Stay around your friends as much as you can."

I should have paid more attention to those papers this morning. Then I could tell him who the suspect is. 

I stumble to my room. I can't believe that this is happening. When could they have taken the papers? They were there this morning... I need to talk to someone. I need Chris. I use my shaking hand to turn on the light. It's only 7, so I know he won't be here for a long time. Not until midnight. But he'll be here.

I settle into a cocoon with my comforter. I nestle my head into the my pillows, but with the tension in my mind, they're as hard as rocks. But slowly, I drift into a troubled sleep.

******

The sound of somebody shifting beside me makes my eyes snap open. Have they come for me already? I resist the urge to scream. A warm body is next to mine, and my face rests on soft fabric atop a rising chest. Tentatively, I look over to see their face. Relief floods my body. It's only Chris. He has a way of appearing in the most alarming ways. 

My arm lays across his chest. He must have tried not to wake me. And it must've worked, because he looks like he's in a deep sleep. Chris looks so peaceful - I wish I could show him that he's at peace while he sleeps.

His eyes flutter open. Groggily, he speaks.

"Damn, did I wake you?" He rubs his face.

"No, but you scared the crap out of me," I grumble. "You seem to be good at that." 

"Yeah, I wanted to talk to you, but I didn't want to disturb you. Although you seemed to be very restless in your sleep anyways." Fully awake now, Chris turns on his side so that he's facing me. 

"I think I can explain that. Today I found out that Dakota Rider has accomplices in London who know where we live. One of the suspects stole the papers my dad had on him before he could read it. So any moment could be my last."

"Oh my God, Lana. That's terrifying to think about. I can't bear the thought of losing you. Does he know who took it?" He looks so worried about me. 

"No," I say. "That's the problem. Did you see any names when you looked at them this morning?" Chris thinks for a moment, his eyes moving around the room.

"I don't recall any names, only Dakota Rider's. Listen, Lana. If these people are after you, you've got to be careful. They're going to have one eye watching you, and the other one is going to be focused on their primary goal I'm sure. So be careful who you talk to, and where you go. I don't want you to get hurt."

His voice cracks as he speaks. Just the thought of someone hurting me pains him.

"I'll be careful, Chris. Trust me, I want to keep myself safe just as much as you do." 

"Good," he says. "Maybe I should come over more often. What if I came over every rainy day? Rainy days are a bit creepy. I could come over to your house and watch out for you."

"I would love that," I tell him. Being with Chris is like being on a cloud. I feel so at peace, like nothing is going to touch me. I don't think there's a bad bone in his body. Sure, he's a clown when he's around his friends, but when it comes down to it, he's such a deep, caring person. "We should get back to sleep," I remind him. 

"You're right," Chris agrees. "Goodnight, Lana." 

"Goodnight, Chris." 

I sink back into sleep, with his arm around me and my head on his shoulder. This time, peaceful thoughts fuel my dreams rather than fearful thoughts.