Hidden Close (Jr. Year)

Chapter 46

Part 46 Of The First Draft

There's one other glaring thing I have to address before we meet with Ignitro. There was that woman who had been with him. She looked just like Carlie. Does Carlie know about her? I decided to find out,

“Carlie. Do you have a sister?”

Carlie smiled, and answered,

“Yes, but I have not seen her for a long time. Why?”

I sighed, wanting to disclose as little as I can to Carlie,

“I may have seen her recently. She looked just like you.”

Carlie was very surprised. She asked, as she was beside with astonishment,

“Really? What is she doing here in....uhh....”

Carlie must not even realize what town she is in. Pressing her just a little, I asked,

“What’s her name? She's very pretty, much like you.”

Carlie blushed, and tried what she could to cast away my compliment. She answered me, with much joy in her voice,

“Her name is Josie, and I miss her so. Where is she?”

Now is when I have to make my play. I will be putting Carlie in danger, but she is critical to our plan.

“I know where she is, but I need to bring you to her. I know you really don't know this town, and I can't bring you to her until this weekend. School does matter to me, Carlie.”

Carlie lowered her eyes, and she agreed, somewhat reluctantly,

“Oh...okay......”

I pulled forward, and gave Carlie a huge hug, and told her the words she deserves.

“I love you, Carlie. You are like the aunt I've never had. That’s how much you mean to me.”

A tear fell down her cheek, and I squeezed her harder. After releasing her, I left Carlie to her emotions. I needed to, before mine got the best of me. I returned to my room, and opened up my school notebook. On a piece of paper were my grades. They were worse than I have ever done, mostly Cs. I hadn't shown my parents yet, as I hoped to raise them to Bs at midterms. I hated it. Although my mother would fully understand, I still feel like I'm letting her down. It doesn't even matter if some strange demon is trying to kill us. My mother deserves the best, if only to make up for how messed up I am.

Thanksgiving is next week. Even if we defeat Ignitro, I feel like we won't really have all that peaceful of a holiday. It's just a feeling that I have, a hunch, if you will. My life hasn't been normal for quite some time. Ever since I met Perry my life has been full of danger. I can't ever tell if my parents like Perry or just really want to make me happy. They've not really expressed too much about their thoughts about him. They merely just comment on how reliable or smart he is, not really sharing whether they like him or not. I think my dad enjoys him, but it is as if my mother is constantly testing him. I think she knows how difficult I am and she wants to know for sure that he is strong enough to protect me from what endangers me the most, my own emotion. My mom must be smart, as I have failed to realize that she is doing this until now. My mom knows of what all the doctors have said about me. I'll never forget what they said a few years back when I developed my depression problem,

“It's amazing she hasn't killed herself yet. Mindi had expressed countless problems to us, all relating to depression. She feels that she'll never have a friend who understands her and she feels like you hate her. She feels unpretty and thinks that no boy or girl will ever love her because she weighs too much. She's even tried cutting.”

I'll never forget what my mom said, either.

“She’s my daughter and I love her. I'll do anything to protect her and trust me, someday, doctor, she'll be a strong and independent woman. Just you wait and see.”

My mom will always be my hero and role model. She is by far the one that I admire, much as I do Grace. Speaking of Grace, she’s been unusually quiet since Carlita has been defeated. I feel as if she will interfere with our fight against Ignitro. Perry had told me that he picked up on thoughts of Ignitro the other day. He says that he won't be alone when we come back to see him this weekend. We have rallied all of us, including Brad, who feels well enough to fight again. Lana is worried about him, but she knows that with him there she can fight much stronger than normal. I suppose even a strong woman like Lana needs a stud backing her up. Sometimes, I swear that she and I really are sisters, we just have that much in common.

Friday came, and we felt like the time was right to make our approach. Everyone besides my parents were there, and as I looked us over, I remarked,

“It looks like we are all dressed to kill. Let me ask you, though. Are you all prepared to die tonight? This could be the end....”

Grace laughed, telling me and the others,

“Ha ha ha! Listen to her, guys. She thinks we will lose. She really is crazy!”

Becky and Lana were dressed rather lightly as they wished to blend in with the clubbers. Meanwhile Brad and Perry were in evening suits that brought out the best of their mature looks. Carlie was dressed in the same outfit she had on when she was still the evil Carlita, and Grace was in an extremely modest dress that didn't interfere with her sheer youthful beauty. Renee, though, was the real stunner of the group, as she was in an all-leather body suit and it stuck to her rather nicely, making me wonder what it would be like to with her and not her brother. I can't think about that now, though, as tempting as it is. We have a demon to roast.