Scattered Souls

Chapter 12 - Into The Dark

I think I had finally reached the point of blissful denial. That was the only way to describe my current state.

We were in the cafeteria during lunch and I was focusing all my energy on stuffing my face with chocolate chip cookies in order to prevent myself from dwelling over Jordan's possible outcome.

I was a frantic mess last night. I couldn't help but think that when Xypher said he'd 'take care' of Jordan it obviously meant that Jordan would end up in a condition worse than Alexa. My mind kept conjuring up different scenarios.

I even tried opening the music box a few times, however there was no sign of Xypher as expected. I had finally accepted that the only thing I could do was wait and see how things unfold.

What made it worse was that there was no sign of Jordan today. Guys that are in your face like that don't just disappear. I contemplated telling Alexa and Scott about Xypher, but I was skeptical of how they would react and I would have a lot of explaining to do, so I decided to push that idea to the back burner until I exhausted all my other options.

By the end of the day there was still no sign of Jordan. I decided to hope for the best as Alexa and I headed home to tackle our Literature assignment.

"So what's the deal with this teapot?" she randomly asked while we were taking a break from How to Tame a Shrew.

"I haven't made much progress." I admitted.

"Although, do you think it's possible for an image, almost like a hologram, to appear?"

"If it's done with technology, then sure. Can this teapot do that?" you could tell she was intrigued.

"No, no. I was just wondering." I wasn't ready to tell anyone about Xypher.

As if on cue, Xypher appeared as soon as Alexa left.

"How come you only appear when I'm alone?"

"For your eyes only, darling." he winked.

The odd thing was, I could feel my cheeks heating up. God help me, was I seriously blushing for a hologram?

"What happens if I want to make contact with you?" I had to ask, since he keeps disappearing all the time.

"Simple, all you have to do is kiss the teapot and I'll appear." he beamed.

"What?" he can't be serious. Right?

"Calm down." he laughed. "You can tap on it three times and I'll appear."

"Ah, no rubbing the lamp like Aladdin then?" I teased.

"And more importantly, what have you done to Jordan?" I remembered the real reason I was eager to see him.

"Nothing at all."

The sly look on his face told me otherwise.

"He didn't show up to campus at all today. That's unlike him." I pointed out.

"Don't worry that pretty little head of yours. I'm sure he's fine."

I breathed a sigh of relief.

"He didn't get more than he deserved." he added proudly before he dissipated.

I groaned. This couldn't be good, given how proud Xypher seemed. And the most annoying part was that all I could do was wait. Sending Jordan a text would give him the wrong idea, and I didn't intend on enticing his creepy side. Perhaps there was someone else I could ask.

I called Alexa. Why hadn't I thought of this earlier?

"Missing me already?" she teased.

"You wish." I said with a laugh.

"Just checking if you've spoken to Jordan recently. He didn't show up today." I got straight to it.

"Not since last Friday, when I suggested he take you out. Are you seriously into that creep?"

"Nah, he just didn't show up at campus today."

"He...uhm... Well, he borrowed something from me." I made up on the spot. I felt awful for lying to Alexa.

After getting off the phone with Alexa, I went into the attic again. This time searching for any possible clues about the gift or the riddle, and not just the locket.

All I found was an old diary, which I suspected was Gran's, but I couldn't be too sure. It was protected by a lock. And not one of those cheap ones, this tiny lock required a uniquely designed key or code to open it.

I took the diary to my room, and after attempting a few codes to open it, I finally gave up and set it aside. I was emotionally exhausted. Worrying about what could have happened to Jordan, trying to decipher the riddle, trying to help Xypher find the locket. All of these things were taking it's toll on me. I was in dire need of some me time.

I poured myself a glass of wine, ran a bubble bath and got in, savouring the feeling of being inside the water. When I got out, I decided to catch up on episodes of Lucifer.

"Someone's having fun." Xypher commented as I was sprawled out on my bed, in front of my laptop, and stuffing my face with popcorn.

"You're intruding on me time." I groaned.

"I'll leave you to it."

I could tell he was preparing to disappear again.

"Actually, wait." I surprised the both of us by saying.

"You wanna watch?"

"Sure, why not? It's not like I have anything better to do." I was mildly surprised he agreed.

"Way to make a girl feel special." I teased. "Where do you go when you disappear?" I suddenly wondered out loud.

"Into the dark." He said.

"The dark?"

"Yeah, I'm just surrounded in darkness. It's just dark and empty."

That sounded sad and lonely.

"I think I got a glimpse of that when I touched the teapot twice before." I admitted. "I can't imagine what that must be like for extended periods of time."

"Trust me, it's awful."

I reached out and touched his cheek. This was becoming a regular thing for me, and so was the floating feeling that I was beginning to enjoy.