Jocelyn Waters slowly opened her eyes and observed her surroundings. Her mind finally caught up with her as she struggled to piece together the previous events. She rolled onto her right side and her heart nearly stopped. Sitting near the side of the hospital bed was the boy with the dark, magnetizing eyes. For three painfully awkward minutes, they peered at each other; silence thick around them. “You’re welcome” he said, coldly. It was the second time she’d heard him speak and it sent chills down her spine.
“For what?” she said, still shocked that he sat before her. Without taking his eyes off of her, he reached for a smoothie cup and held it up. He took a few sips and then replied, “You took too long to wake up and I got thirsty”. He removed his straw, put a new one in, and handed her the cup. She, reluctantly, took a few sips and gagged. “Raspberry, broccoli, vanilla, and milk… my second favorite” he said; a devious smile plastered to his pale face. “I’m Jocelyn by the way” she said. His abyss like eyes stayed on her as he replied, “Alex”. Jocelyn was surprised that the once crippling Power that once radiated from him wasn’t as strong as it had been in the past. She could, however, feel something else; his stare. It clung to her skin and left chills in its place.
“So what’s up with that girl?” she said. He was silent for a minute and then replied, “Oh… Dakota. We tend to argue sometimes and we had one of those times. She stormed away from the table but since you two weren’t in eye-shot of me, I have to admit I don’t exactly know what happened. My… friends and I just heard the crash” he said; laughter pulling at his relaxed tone. As silence made its return, she stared at the ceiling. All of a sudden the door flew open and Jocelyn’s aunt, Michelle, appeared. “Oh honey, I’m so sorry I’m late. Traffic was a nightmare!” she said, throwing her arms around her slightly embarrassed niece. “I’m okay Aunt Michelle, you can let go” Jocelyn said. When her aunt finally released her, Jocelyn looked to Alex. Despite the sudden ruckus he aunt had caused, his eyes hadn’t left her.
“So exactly what happened?” Michelle said, observing the cuts and bruises plaguing her niece’s arms. All she had received was a short call urging her to get to the hospital and the caller, a waitress from the diner, mentioned Jocelyn’s name. Jocelyn once again looked to Ale and then toward her aunt. She wasn’t sure if she should tell on Dakota. ‘She obviously means something to Alex’ she thought. Almost as if he had heard, Alex smiled to himself. “Excuse me, what are you doing here?” Michelle said defensively. Jocelyn’s head snapped toward her aunt and followed her gaze to Alex. “I just happened to be an… innocent bystander in the diner. My friends and myself brought her here shortly after the incident” he said; his eyes never leaving Jocelyn. Michelle’s face softened and she replied, “Well thank you for looking after my niece”. Michelle’s phone rang and she dashed out into the hallway to take it.
Without so much as a look, Alex stood and made his way to the door. “Hey… thanks” the battered girl called. Alex looked over his shoulder at her and then continued out of the room. A few minutes later, Michelle returned with a short, chubby nurse named Tammy. “Miss Waters, how are you feeling?” the nurse asked. Jocelyn sat up and replied, “Fine”. The nurse scribbled a few things on some papers and handed them to Michelle. “So what exactly happened to me?” Jocelyn whispered. “Honey, we think that you just stumbled into something at work and fell with the orders. But, without any eye-witnesses we can’t say for sure” Tammy replied. “And were there any other people who helped bring me here?” Jocelyn asked. Tammy contemplated for a while and then said, “Oh there was a boy with long, curly blonde hair and a girl with long brown hair”. Jocelyn’s mind raced through all of the faces she had ever come in contact with. The boy with the blonde hair had to be Gabe but the girl was a complete mystery. “Come on honey, let’s get out of here” Michelle said, handing Jocelyn her clothes
