Tears Of Fire

Chapte Twenty, Part One

I sat at the rarely used table, pushing my food around my plate, but not eating. Drake and Dallas hovered over me, trying to get me to eat. I just wasn’t hungry. I dreaded blinking because every time I closed my eyes I was no longer in the cave. I was somewhere else, somewhere I had lived before, yet I myself had never been there. I wondered If Drake and Dallas remembered because I saw them with me, always.

“Sapphire, come on girl, eat. At least go see Aria, Jade, Aura, Molly, or Blaise?” Drake said, listing them all off as I shook my head. I felt incredibly old, like my soul had seen too much of the world, too much of hate, not enough love.

“At least eat?” Dallas asked me, I shook my head, remaining silent as I had for the past three days. I forgot about my rule on not to close my eyes, and I closed my eyes, attempting to hold back tears, but instead they only fell faster when I saw the beautiful angel behind my eyes. The boy who guided me through all the years, who protected me, he was no longer here. Lucifer was his distant cousin and that’s why I felt drawn, but not satisfied with him. Drake and Dallas were not yet used to my sudden outburst of tears. They were normal teenage boys, and didn’t know what to do. The tears slipped silently, like always, down my cheeks as I wondered where my angel was. I opened my eyes and was brought too suddenly back to the right time and place. I wanted to close my eyes again, to relive the days when a world changing decision wasn’t at hand. I heard footsteps coming down the hall so I wiped the tears from my face. I pushed the plate of food away from me. It scraped across the table with finality. The person got to the door of the kitchen and saw me sitting there, looking stubborn, with a plate of food pushed away from me. The girl put her hands on her hips.

“For God’s sake Sapphire! Eat something or I’ll shove it down your God damned throat!” Aria threatened. I ate a small bite of egg. Aria took a step forward but Drake and Dallas stopped her.

“That’s the most she’s eaten in three days, don’t make her worse.” Drake pleaded. I looked unhappily up at Aria.

“Get out of here. Go for a walk. Don’t come back until I call you.” Aria ordered both Drake and Dallas. When they hesitated she yelled at them, “now, you morons!”

“We’re going.” Dallas said, and dragged Drake out behind him. Aria turned to me. She took the plate and dumped it in the garbage.

“I don’t blame you for not eating what they cook.” Aria said, she may as well have been talking to a brick. I’m sure the brick would have answered more than I did. She stood with her back to me, washing the plate by hand although we had a dish washer that was empty. It reminded me of a few life times ago, when I was helping cook Elizabeth with the dishes after the feast.

“Do you mind explaining why you won’t eat? Or talk, or blink, or sleep?” She asked me. Now I’m positive a brick would have spoken more than I did right then. “Sapphire, talk to me or so help me,” She started. She didn’t have to finish the threat.

“Mi manca la mia vita, le meraviglie, la libertà, lo Chef Anche Elisabetta.

Mi manca seduta al sole, portando IL secchio pieno d'acqua. Mi manca IL mio Angelo.” I told her, speaking Italian; I miss my life, the wonders, the freedom, Chef Elizabeth too. I miss sitting in the sun, carrying the bucket full of water. I miss my Angel. It was the country we were in; it was also my favourite life time. Aria may have been part Italian with a very faint Italian accent herself, but she understood not Italian what so ever.

“Can you speak in English?” She asked me, obviously happy to have gotten a response, but confused because a week ago I hadn’t been able to order a hamburger at a restaurant, or buy a pair of socks. And now I was fluent in the language.