Nameless

Chapter Four:The Silver Necklace

I change into shorts and a tank top and climb the stairs to the upper floor. I stare at the wide variety of equipment to choose from. It’s a difficult decision. There’s so much to choose from. I start with the thing that looks like a bike. Then I try out the treadmill. The weights. The hot tub.

                By now I feel much better, but I still have a slight headache. I soak for a while, then get out and dry off. I look at the clock. It’s almost two. Merlyn never sleeps past seven, so I worry a bit. I’m about to open her door when I hear a deep moan, a squeal, and a giggle. I go shower instead.

After my shower, I’m a bit hungry, so I walk down to Subway. I’ve gotten my food and I’m sitting at one of the tables when someone slides in the booth in front of me. I look up to see my visitor. It’s Jason. He is even hotter in the daytime. The sunlight from the window streams through his dark brown hair, and his eyes are still absolutely startlingly green. He has a genuine smile on his face. “Hey, Arinda, what’s up?” He asks. I’m about to respond when I notice he called me Arinda. I had only told him Arin, right? My eyebrows narrow.

“How do you know my name is Arinda? I only told you my nickname.” He shuffles.”Your friend called you that last night, right when she was telling you it was time to leave. Well, that and you dropped your necklace.” He says, dropping a fine, silver chain with a small silver pendant into my hand. Engraved in curly letters spells out Arinda Marie. It was a gift from my father. Right before he died.

My free hand flies to my throat. How could I have not missed it?! I haven’t taken it off since I was five. I examine the clasp. It’s broken, alright, which means I can’t wear it until I can find a fine jewelers’ place…

I’m staring so intently at the necklace that I don’t notice when Jason sets a small plastic bin on the table. He slips the chain from between my fingers, ignoring my protests. He removes a set of thin, needle-nose pliers and a new silver clasp. He gets to work, removing the broken catch and replacing it; he even straightened the wonky link that had a kink in it. When he finishes, he stands up and walks behind me. I try not to fidget as he brushes my hair to the side and fastens the necklace. His cool, strong fingers brush my neck as he straightens the necklace. I can’t help but jump as static electricity runs through me.”There you go,”he says, “Good as new.”

                I’m speechless. I blink back the tears that threaten to overflow as memories of Jace flood my mind. This is exactly what he would have done. If he could, he would always fix what was wrong. I looked away as the tears overflowed. Jason looked slightly alarmed. “Did I do something wrong?”He asked. I shook my head, not letting my face be seen. He took my face in between his hands. ”What happened?”He asked his green eyes boring into mine.

Staring into those oddly familiar eyes, I was able to calm myself. And before I was fully conscious of what I was doing, I was talking.

“When I was fourteen, and my brother, Jace…Jason… was ten, I was kidnapped.”My eyes are closed, because I don’t want to see his reaction.”They took me to a place on the mountain, a log cabin that they called their headquarters. I was in that room for a month. It was cold, and they only fed me once a day. I would cry for my mother, and Jace, and sometimes my dead father. They hit me and told me to shut up. They gave me the thinnest blanket, and said if my mother didn’t pull through on the ransom, they would…do horrible things. And kill me. Jace was distraught. He cried for me, too. And the day my mother was able to scrap up the ransom was the day Jace died. It was a month until Christmas, and he thought to buy me a doll to place with when I got home. Of course, I never played with it, but after, I would hug her tightly.

                Jason was at the same store that the kidnappers were taking me when it happened. They took me to the rooftop and wore masks. My mother came, and seeing Jace, brought him along to. That was her first mistake. Jace, upon seeing me, broken and beaten, freaked out and tried to get to me. The leader of the two held up his gun and cocked it.”That’s a warning,” he said. Jason calmed down, but he never took his eyes off of me. Then the police came. The kidnappers tried to grab me and run, but I managed to slip past them, weak as I was. The leader screamed in frustration, and grabbed my brother and…he threw him over the edge. Jace didn’t die immediately. Th-those evil men were taken into custody. There was so much b-blood when he landed…   

Jason stayed at the hospital for about a month. I didn’t leave his side once. He had come to terms with the fact he was going to die. So, the morning of his death, the twenty-ninth, he gave me his braided Indian bracelet. It had an azurite stone in the center.”

I lifted my arm, showing him the bracelet. I hid my face with my long hair.”He kissed me and said, ’No matter what, I’ll always be your guardian angel. I’ll watch over you, forever and always.’ He told me not to worry, because I’d know it if it was his presence. ” Tears slipped down my face, dotting the tabletop.

“And he died. I cried for several weeks. And for the next two years, I didn’t speak one word. Not to my mother, my teachers or even my friends. Merlyn really helped me out in my sophomore year. She just sat down beside me and said, Hey, from now on, I’m your new BFFAEAE.’I had no idea what that meant, so I asked the first thing since my brother’s death;’ What the hell?!’She looked at me and started laughing. And I joined her. And we’ve been best friends since then.”

Jason had the weirdest expression on his face. It was foreign to me, but I had seen Dru look at Merph that way many times.

At first it looked like remembrance, but then… it looked like…love?

Dafuq?