“You’re nervous.”
“No, I’m uncomfortable. There’s a difference.” He didn’t move or say anything. “Look, we’re standing here whispering in my dark bedroom because I don’t want to get caught before I have a chance to break… well, you… to my mom. It’s like sneaking and I don’t like it. It makes me uncomfortable.” And it did. Just not as much as him staring at me with the dim light reflecting off those swirling multi-colored eyes… or horns… or lower canines that made surprise appearances. I needed time to adjust.
After a moment of silence, he nodded and I relaxed slightly. With everything that happened, I doubted I’d ever fall asleep tonight. Again, I tested his word to help me however he could without needing a deal. “Hey, Morik? Would you chant me to sleep before you go? I don’t want mom to know until I get a chance to talk to her.”
He walked toward me and gently nudged me toward the bed. As soon as the backs of my legs bumped the edge, he stopped moving and started speaking. The rhythm matched what had been said over me for years. Before he even touched me, I felt the tug of sleep. He helped me lay back and pulled the blankets over me.
When he bent down, leaning close to my face, my heart stuttered in fear. For a moment, I thought he would kiss me. Instead, he whispered in my ear. “Tomorrow I’ll give you a ride to school.”
What?! I fell completely under the spell before I could say a word.
Chapter 8
When I woke with mom standing over me, I didn’t bother with breakfast. Moving as if the mattress bit me, I tossed off the covers and sprang to my feet. My mom’s eyes rounded, but I didn’t slow down. I had no idea what time Morik would be here for school and wanted to be on my way before he could knock on the door.
Moving to my clothes, which were back on the chair thanks to my prep the night before, I asked, “Mom, can you come home an hour early tonight? It’s important.”
As I tugged my jeans up, I glanced at my desk. More than half the puzzle lay pieced together. I paused with one leg in and one leg out, staring.
“Do you need me to stay home?” Mom asked her voice laced with concern.
Tearing my eyes from the puzzle, I looked over at Mom while hopping around to get my other leg in. “No, I’m fine. I just want to talk. To all of you and there’s not much time before dark lately.”
“Okay. Today wouldn’t be a bad idea for it anyway. The weather’s going to turn. I think it’s supposed to snow by lunch.”
I grabbed the plate from her hand and kissed her cheek as I rushed by. “Good. I’ll see you later then.” Heading for the bathroom, I devoured the toast in four bites.
By the time I finished in the bathroom, Mom and Aunt Grace had already left. Coming home early meant getting to the office early. Gran sat at the table going through a cookbook when I stepped into the kitchen. “What’s for dinner tonight?”
“I’m thinking something bigger since everyone will be home earlier. How about roasted chicken?” She thumbed through a few more pages while she spoke.
“Sounds good to me. Do we have a chicken?” I walked toward the door and grabbed my jacket.
“Nope. I’ll walk to the store,” she closed the book with a decisive snap and stood. I handed her coat and scarf to her. We both bundled up. Gran moved to the door, but laughed when I followed. “I think you’re forgetting something. Give me a kiss and go get your books.”
Normally, Mom waited at the door with them. I quickly kissed her warm cheek and said good-bye before running back to my room. My eyes once again fell on the puzzle. Although it’d been a glow-in-the-dark puzzle, the pieces hadn’t glowed enough for me to see them. And the lamp light hadn’t been bright enough to charge them. Not only were his eyes abnormally, yet beautifully, colored, he could also see in the dark. The differences between us amazed and troubled me. He wasn’t human and he’d never answered my question about what he was.
Shouldering my bag, I headed back toward the door, calling good-bye to Aunt Danielle. She made a sound of acknowledgement from her chair, but said nothing.
When I opened the door, I smiled wide. Gone was the dead brown grass of fall. A crisp clean blanket of snow covered everything muting the usual sounds of morning traffic. The world looked fresh and new. Peaceful. And the overcast sky promised more than the sampling it’d already provided.
Clavin’s car idled at the curb. After last night, I’d thought Morik would show up as himself. I’d made my opinion clear enough regarding his body snatching, but maybe he didn’t have his own car. It made sense if he hardly interacted with humans. At least it was Clavin and not some random person showing up.