"What did you have to go and do a thing like that for?"
"Oh, c'mon, Sarah! Live a little!" Jennifer, Sarah's best friend, was pleading over the phone. "Toby can come over and play with Todd while we go out. Bethany is a completely capable babysitter, and it's not like we're leaving them for long."
Sarah sighed, running a hand through her hair. Jennifer wanted to go out partying, like she often did, while Sarah wanted to stay home with Toby. "I don't know, Jen. You know me and how I... don't do the partying thing." Sarah didn't have a good track record with parties and the reason Jennifer liked parties: boys.
"It won't be like that this time." Jennifer said, which is what she always said when trying to convince Sarah to do things. "C'mon, Sar. Please? You know you wanna!"
Sarah bit down on her lip, glancing back at Toby, who was serenely eating his cheese pizza and watching cartoons. She assumed that he probably would want to go play with his friend Todd. "But weird things happen, Jen." She whispered into the phone.
"I think sometimes you just have an overactive imagination." Jennifer whispered back dramatically.
She hesitated, torn between the practical and wild sides of herself. She really did like parties and the attention she often received, but she was trying to be responsible. "Okay." She relented. "But at the first sign of trouble, we skiddadle."
"Skiddadle." Jennifer scoffed. "Who even uses that word, Sar? Seriously? But, okay, whatever you feel comfortable with."
"Thanks." Sarah smiled, even though Jen couldn't see.
Jennifer let out a squeal of delight. "This is going to be so much fun, I promise!"
"Come pick me up?" Sarah looked at the clock quickly. "In twenty minutes?"
"Sounds good!" Jennifer replied enthusiastically.
The two girls said their goodbyes before hanging up. Sarah stood by the phone for a second, just thinking. She was excited, but also incredibly nervous. "Hey, Tobes?" She asked, coming over and muting the television. He looked up at her curiously. "How would you feel about going over to hang out with Todd tonight?"
He grinned brightly. "Yes!" He pumped his small fist in the air.
She laughed. "Okay, then! Lets get your stuff, and we'll go."
Twenty-five minutes later, Sarah and Toby were in Jennifer's car, Toby in his dinosaur pajamas and Sarah in a chic dress. Toby was getting out of the car, and a tall girl with short brown hair stood by a small boy at the doorway of a red brick house. "Love you, Tobes!" Sarah called after Toby.
"Bye, Sarah!" He waved goodbye before trotting over to his friend and the sitter.
"I'm so excited!" Jennifer giggled when they were on the road again. "I heard Drew Davidson's gonna be there. And he is so hot!"
"He's got a girlfriend." Sarah pointed out, smirking.
"Not for long!" Jennifer grinned, her voice cheery and bright.
They pulled into a busy driveway after a few more minutes, the sky dark and the noise level from inside the house high. "Part-ay!" Jen cried happily as they got out of the car. She practically skipped up to the front door, while Sarah casually walked.
An attractive man opened the door and Jen about swooned. It was Drew Davidson. "Hey, I didn't know you two were coming." His eyes lingered on Sarah for a moment longer than Jen. "C'mon in. Punch is in the back."
"Thanks." Sarah said coolly as Jen hyperventilated.
"Hot, hot, hot!" Jen squealed as they made their way through the crowded house.
"Girlfriend." Sarah reminded her friend steadily, taking two punches from the table in the back.
"Girlfriend, wife, lover, whatever. Who cares? I'd jump his bones anytime."
"Ew! Gross, Jen!" Sarah crinkled her nose in disgust while Jen grinned and rolled her eyes.
Suddenly, a boy a little older than Sarah approached them, his eyes fixed on Sarah. "Wanna dance?" He asked throatily.
She smiled. "Uh, sure." She left her punch with Jennifer, who was quickly looking around for Drew and ignoring the man behind her trying to ask her out on the dance floor too.
Sarah didn't even catch her partner's name before they started dancing. They moved up against one another in rhythm to the blaring beat. They swayed and moved and twirled for what seemed like forever.
She lost track of time, but eventually he grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the sea of people over to a secluded corner.
Her heart started to beat faster. This was it -- she could do this. Kiss and be kissed without something horrible happening. She wanted this, gosh darn it!
He pulled her into the corner, and his hand pulled her middle to meet his. She put one weak hand around his neck and groaned happily as he started kissing her ear, whispering sweet nothings against her earlobe. She made a pleasured noise in the back of her throat in response to his actions, her lips upturning in her happiness. It felt so good to be surrounded by a male body, to feel like a complete, adored goddess.
She moaned when he bit the top of her ear, and then pulled his lips down to meet hers. They kissed passionately, their tongues clashing for dominance. She pulled her limp hand up to meet the other one at the base of his neck, and leaned up to kiss him harder.
He was suddenly gone.
Her eyes flashed open and she saw her make-out partner unconscious on the floor. She gasped and leaned down to check his pulse, her own heart beating frantically. He had a steady, clear pulse, and he looked like he was peacefully sleeping. Sarah's mind was in a whirlwind, thinking too many things at the same time; why was this happening? Why wasn't she surprised? Was he okay?
Sarah looked up and realized that no one else had even spared them a second glance. They had gone to the sacred kissing corner, where completely privacy was given. She forced herself to breathe, trying not to panic.
Then she ran, leaving all attempts to remain calm behind. She searched for Jennifer in the crowd, and when she found her, Sarah quickly grabbed her friend away from the guy she was with. Jennifer angrily cried out, "Hey! What the hell?"
Sarah turned around and gave her "the look". Jennifer paled. "Not again..." Jen mumbled, half in self-pity, and half in sympathy.
Sarah said nothing and marched outside with her friend.
"What happened?" Jen asked, a tinge of annoyance in her voice, as they both slipped into the car.
Sarah fidgeted with her hands, and she looked around nervously. "I don't know." She muttered pathetically. "I... I really don't know."
"Just tell me what happened." Jennifer demanded, revving up the engine and pulling out of the driveway. She loved Sarah, but sometimes she was just so much trouble.
"I..." Sarah shook her head. "Well, the guy... we danced and then we... and we... well, we started... uh..."
"Kissing?" Jen asked, raising an eyebrow.
Sarah nodded quickly, sinking into the seat. "What is wrong with me?" She groaned pathetically, letting her face fall into her hands.
"Oh, get a grip." Jen slapped Sarah's arm lightly. "There's nothing wrong with you! Except your attitude tonight. What the heck did you do that makes you feel so bad? Punch him? Knee him in the down unda' zone?"
"I somehow knocked him unconscious."
Jen's mouth dropped open, and the car stopped in the middle of the street. "Are you serious? How did you do that?"
"That's what I don't get!" Sarah half-yelled in frustration. "I didn't do anything wrong! He was just suddenly... down."
"Woah." Jen shook her head and started driving properly as a car honked behind her. "I'm goin', I'm goin'!" She shouted to the driver behind her, even though they probably couldn't hear her.
"So, what am I supposed to do?" Sarah asked, wetting her lips in a nervous gesture. "Stay clear of boys for the rest of my life? It seems like every time I get intimate, something bad happens! I've never even had a boyfriend, and I'm eighteen years old!"
"Don't even put that thought into my head." Jen grimaced. "No one should die a virgin! That's just wrong. And it's not like your an old grandma yet -- you still have plenty of time to find yourself a fella! And your good-looking, girl. It won't be hard."
Sarah just grumbled and muttered something under her breath.
Jen suddenly glanced down at Sarah's hand, which was lying palm-up on her lap. "Hey, has that birthmark always been red?"
Sarah looked at her hand quickly, and noticed the mark was a dull scarlet color. She frowned. "Um, no. It's always been more peach colored."
"That's weird." Jen remarked, her brow raising. "Did you get that guy's blood on your hand? I mean, you can spare some details, but don't spare all the details. Murder is a crime, sure, but friends don't rat on--"
"Just stop there, Jen." Sarah rolled her eyes. "No, I didn't get the guy's blood on my hands. He was perfectly intact when I left him."
Jen suddenly laughed loudly. "You just left him on the floor? Oh, smooth, Sarah, real smooth."
"What else was I supposed to do?" Sarah asked hotly. "Next time it happens, I'll call out, 'Hey, everyone, I was making out with this guy and he suddenly fainted on me for some unknown reason. Please stop the party to help me figure out what the hell is wrong with me.'"
"There's nothing wrong with you, for the last freaking time." Jennifer snapped. "Stop saying that."
"Is it just me, or is someone following us?" Sarah asked suddenly, looking in the rearview mirror. Jennifer quickly did the same, frowning. "Isn't that that guy that honked at you?" Sarah continued.
"Yeah." Jen said, sucking in one cheek in nervousness. "What do you think? Should I try to lose him?"
"Yeah." Sarah nodded. "Just to be safe."
They were silent as Jennifer pulled a couple of tricky moves to test the car behind them. It pulled back a little bit, but it was still following them, even when they got to Jen's neighborhood.
"Okay, this is getting kinda creepy." Jen breathed uneasily.
"Kinda?" Sarah said sarcastically.
"Should I call the police or something?" Jen asked, refusing to turn into her neighborhood. She didn't want any creeper to know where she lived.
"What can they do?" Sarah shook her head. "Lets just hang out at someplace busy tonight. What time is it?" Jen held out her arm so Sarah could look at her watch. Sarah's mouth dropped open. "Two in the morning? Is anywhere busy at this time of night?"
"The church it is." Jennifer suddenly made a u-turn and went a little faster than she had before.
"I've never pegged you for a church-going girl." Sarah commented, raising an eyebrow.
"I'm not." Jen said, sticking out her tongue at her friend. "But it's probably the safest place in town. It's always open, and they always provide a safe haven to people in need."
"You sound like you've had to do this before." Sarah said.
Jennifer pressed her lips together wordlessly, and they were both silent for a moment. Finally, Jen decided to speak, "My mother and I had to go there once. Things had... gotten too violent at home."
Someone has been in my room again... I hate that! I HATE that!... I hate you! I hate YOU!...
Sarah frowned, brushing off another of the random thoughts that didn't seem to want to leave her alone. She thought about what Jen had said for a moment. "I'm sorry." She said genuinely, resting her head on her friend's shoulder. Jen let her head fall to rest on top of Sarah's.
"It was a long time ago." Jen said quietly.
"But still," Sarah said. "Bad things like that still hurt sometimes."
Help! You're hurting!
We are helping... we're helping hands...
Why was she remembering all of these weird dreams? She was a vivid dreamer, that she knew very well, but she never had such dark dreams. And no dreams that she had popped up in her mind of their own free will. She called them to her, not the other way around. "Yeah," Jen was saying softly. "But you move on."
They pulled in front of the church and quickly moved inside, not even looking behind them to see if the car was still there. Sarah's left hand started to tingle, but she was so stressed out that she ignored the sensation.
The church was mostly dark, the only light provided by candles. There was a priest praying in front of the grand alter of the Virgin Mary, his head bowed and a hood covering all of his face. Jen and Sarah slid into one of the long benches that filled the room silently. Jen immediately closed her eyes in respect and folded her hands in her lap, but Sarah kept her eyes wide open and she examined the altar with a her mouth slightly open.
Linda had been very religious and had forced Sarah and her dad to go to church every Sunday. Robert had stopped believing in the Christian God when he was eleven and he lost his father in spite of his many prayers, and he abandoned his belief in any God when Linda had left him after a year of counselling and many prayers to many different deities. Karen was very pious, but she liked to be so in the privacy of her own home. Robert would passively put up with Karen's strict religious rules, while Sarah had rebelled.
Sarah had stopped believing in God when her mother died.
But she had done her research when she was older, and found moral significances in all religions. She became much more submissive with Karen's laws when she realized what her stepmother was really trying to teach. She came to respect other peoples beliefs much more easily since...
She frowned, the tingling feeling on her hand becoming more pronounced. Something had happened when she was in her mid-teens that had opened up her mind. She could feel it on the tip of her tongue, but she felt like it wouldn't, couldn't yet roll out. She closed her eyes and thought and thought, but whatever it was slipped away back into the abyss of ignorance. She sighed, ignoring her hand, and kept her eyes closed as started to daydream. And soon, she fell into the realms of sleep.
The priest stood when both of the girl's breaths became steady and slow, indicating that they were both sleeping. Mismatched eyes watched the pair, but one girl in particular, for a moment before turning towards the stained glass window and looking beyond. There was no other car besides the girls. The priest who was not an actual priest placed more protective spells around the church before simply vanishing. But not without one last, longing look at the sleeping brunette.
How you turn my world you precious thing...
Wow. I mean, wow. I am so honored to have gotten such love and support from you all. When I saw that I had 15 reviews for chapter two, and how beautiful and supportive they were, I started to cry.
Then I promptly got to work on this chapter.
I didn't mean to get all religious on you guys at the end, really. It, in no way, reflects my own religious beliefs or has the intention of forcing any type of belief on anyone. All it is is Sarah's thoughts.
Sarah is also a lot meeker than I usually imagine her to be. She's more reserved and thoughtful than I had originally intended. In fact, I tried to reverse the roles in this chapter -- Sarah being the leader and Jennifer being the follower -- but it really failed miserably and it ended up being suckish. But don't get me wrong -- she still has that fire and spunk that I KNOW will be coming out eventually.
So now that you've finished my ramblesome author's note, REVIEW!! The more you review, the quicker the next chappy will get out! Plus, I left out a box of cyber cookies for people to take after the click that little button and tell me what they think. (There's also cyber milk in the cyber fridge. No, on your left. Your LEFT)
(Oh, and if you're lactose intolerant, grab the soy milk instead. ;D)
Love, love, love!
Disclaimer: I own nothing, nothing, tra la laaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!
