Soul Watch

Chapter 9

The sunlight hit me like a slap in the face, and I immediatelythrew the covers over my head, blocking out the sunlight. The comfortermuffled my groan as I felt someone sat down on the mattress, theirweight pressing down on it.

"Pan, wake up! Can't you just smell that fabulous aroma in theair?" Crysta's voice came through the comforter, dripping with unsaidpleasure.

I opened my eyes slowly, and I felt the slight sting to it. My eyeswere still sore and swollen from all that crying. I gazed at the inside ofthe comforter. The sunlight was hitting it enough to make it translucent,and the events of last night came rushing back to me.

Crying in the bathroom, Helia making me hot chocolate, ustalking at the kitchen table and then going down to ask everyone to sleepover since it was getting late—everyone was ecstatic, to say the least.Each of us got our own room, and it was like a deluxe suite of a luxuryhotel. Poppy elbowed Crysta and whispered to her, "Way to choose yoursoul mate."

We all had our own bathrooms, a king-sized bed with themerooms. Torrey called dibs on the Hawaiian theme. Helia was waving offtheir slacked jaws explaining to them how boring it was to be staying athome while her husband was at work previously. She needed a project ofsome sort. I was given the room that Helia was the fondest of. Inspiredby her late husband she had said. The moment I walked in, I saw a muralof gods and goddess. A man with a gray beard was painted at the top ofthe bed with a lightning bolt in hand. I assumed that was Zeus. Besidethe bed, there was a human from her story that shared a body with foureyes and two mouths. The bed was a canopy bed with white draping, andI couldn't have asked for a better room.

"Pancakes with a hint of maple syrup, waffles with blueberryjam, freshly squeezed orange juice... what else is there?" Crysta took ahuge inhale. "Ah, how could I forget the French toast?" She chidedherself.

I threw the comforter off my head. "Really, Crysta? So you're abloodhound now?"Crysta looked at me, indignantly offended. "How can you notsmell this and not know what's for breakfast?" She huffed as she got upfrom my bed. The springs pushed me up as she got off."I can practically see the spread. Life is good." She twirled in acircle on the carpeted floor as I flipped over to my stomach to ignore her.It was no use. She rushed to my bed and pounced on top of me,her weight pushing my head first into the pillow. I was suffocating."Cr...ysta!" I gasped.

"Now, will you get out of bed, come down and have breakfastwith us?" She gleefully pressed down harder as she asked.I lifted my head up with what seemed like the last of mystrength, "Fine! Just get up," I breathed each word like it was my last.Slowly, she lifted herself off me and sat on one side of the bed. Iturned to glare at her, hoping my stare would resemble daggers."Hey—" She frowned at me and pushed herself closer to me."Your eyes, they look puffy." She peered at my eyes, squinting. "Haveyou been crying, Pan?" she asked, alarmed.

That was my cue to get up from the bed. I kicked off thecomforter and got up. I rubbed my eyes again as if rubbing them wouldremove the evidence. My mind searched for an explanation of somekind, something that wasn't the truth of last night. What was I supposedto say? That the truth of not having a soul mate finally hit me? "Nah, myeyes were just itching like crazy the whole night." I laughed it off as Ilooked back at her.

She was still frowning in suspicion. She wasn't buying this."I swear. I need eye drops or something. They're just itchy," Iassured her, carefully scratching the sides of my eyes to show her.Crysta pursed her lips, but her frown was disappearing. "Fine,I'll ask Carwyn for eye drops later. Do you know everyone is waiting foryou at the breakfast table? Mrs. Robertson wouldn't let them startwithout you."