A HUGE thank you to padfootsimine for reading this and giving feedback. Padfoot, you are the milk to my Oreo and the diet to my Pepsi. Soul mates for life 3
It was dark outside when Jared announced, "We're here."
His words were more than a little welcome. Sharing breathing space with a person who obviously had problems with you was not the best experience I had ever had.
While everyone began grabbing their various accoutrements, I looked around at the familiar landscape. Yes, the Hiway House Motel had changed little over the years. It looked exactly as I remember it when Nate and I had stayed here a few years back. It was located on the eastern side of Albuquerque, and the lodgings were comfortable.
I turned back to the rest of the group. I had to keep from rolling my eyes. Not even five seconds had passed and Ian already had Wanda back in his arms. He had just whispered something in her ear and she released a small giggle, looking up at him with a look of complete adoration. Well that just wasn't right.
"I'll go check us in," I announced. "Wanda," I said pointedly, "do you want to come along?" Wanda look at me, then turned back to the group hesitantly.
"I don't know, I should really help unload everything-"
"Oh Wanda, just go with Burns. Ian always carries everything for you anyways," Andy interjected. I gave a small, encouraging smile to Wanda. She looked at Ian, and he gave a small shrug, already turning his back to unload more luggage. Still looking slightly hesitant, she began walking with me to the lobby, located on the opposite side of the parking lot.
"Thank God that drive is over," I said. "It was more than a little cramped in the back."
"I've always liked car rides, although you're right, that was long. It was nice talking to Mel, though. We rarely have time to talk these days."
"It's amazing you and her can be such good friends, given your… situation."
Wanda glanced around the parking lot, searching for anyone who might overhear. She needn't have bother; I had already scanned the area before we even started walking. Seeming satisfied, she answered, "Mel and I are as close as two sisters can be. She was the only friend I had when I first found Jeb and the others."
I stared at her from the corner of my eye. "They didn't respond to your presence with enthusiasm, I take it." I could only imagine; there had been more than a few attempts to kill me whenever Nate would find another human cell. Nate himself nearly shot me when I first found him.
There was a pause before she answered. "Some people's reactions were stronger than others'."
For some reason, I felt that was a severe understatement. A hint of smile began at the corners of her mouth. "Mel used to resent me too, but we eventually warmed up to each other." Again, there seemed to be a lot more to the story than she was telling.
"But surely Ian must have accepted you. You're both practically attached at the hip." I was proud of myself for saying that with as little resentment as possible.
There was a significantly longer pause before she answered, and she actually paused in our pursuit to the lobby. She seemed to thinking about something far away, and I somehow knew she wasn't going to tell me what it was. "Ian is my future, as is every single person in those caves, even Maggie and Sharon," she added with a smile. "I still sometimes wonder at how fortunate I am to be accepted within our little group of humanity. I have no doubts that I chose the right planet for my final life."
She looked towards me the same time she started walking again, this time at a faster pace. "Were you ever able to hear your host? Or were you affected by his memories as Sunny was?"
This time it was my turn to pause before answering. No, my original human had never talked to me, and I was certain the man originally known as Cole Ingram was permanently erased from this world. No thanks to my doing.
Of course she would ask the one question I was unwilling to answer. And in a parking lot no less.
Where would I even start? We had talked about the Singing and Flower planets in the car, as well as myriad of other things. Brandt and Andy had even asked about how I was involved with humans, and I had offered some information at the time. But how could I even begin to tell her about my life before Earth, about who I was before touched by humanity? How could I explain about the Walking Flowers, the first day I was inserted into my host, the first day I actually started living a life I had originally destroyed…about Scorching Rivers.
"No, I had a different experience entirely." I could not say more than that, for we had reached the doors of the lobby. It was obvious Wanda wanted to know more.
"We'll talk later," I whispered in her ear as we walked up to the receptionist.
"Hello," the attractive woman behind the desk said. "How are you doing today?"
"My partner, Floating Petals, and I just arrived from Flagstaff. We're just stopping for the night." When Wanda smiled at the receptionist, I wondered how anyone could possibly not think of her as anything but beautiful. The sincerity of her soul shone through her eyes; it took my breath away every time. Too bad she was already looking at the wrong man.
She looked between the two of us, a look of genuine concern crossing over her features. "I hope your drive was not too taxing." She paused to look down at her computer. "You will be in rooms 178 and 1710. Please let me know if I can help you with anything else. Our groundskeeper, Moon Shining Through the Leaves, is only a phone call away. He is always happy to assist our guests."
Of course, nothing but happiness and kindness from a soul. Typical.
"Thank you so much," Wanda said with a smile as she took our room key. It was discussed back in the caves that Wanda and I would be each other's 'partners'. Since souls didn't have a definition for siblings, and it was rare for souls to introduce themselves as 'husband and wife', Wanda and I would simply introduce ourselves as partners. We were both confident that no one would question our affiliation with one another.
Once we left the air conditioning of the lobby, Wanda looked up to me. "I want to hear more about your story later. I'm sure everyone else would love to hear it, too," she said with a smile as she practically started skipping across the parking. No doubt she wanted to help carry all that she could. I went at a slightly slower pace, recalling my conversation with Wanda.
I looked back to the group, noticing that Mel had parked the van in an excellent location. You couldn't see anything from the lobby window, and since we were parked in the back, no one could see us from their rooms. I had to hand it to this group of humans: they knew what they were doing. No wonder their number was the largest; their leadership and survival skills were the best I had seen in awhile. Although my original intention for joining them was to spend more time with Wanda, and eventually show her who she should really be spending her life with, I had grown fond of Jeb's cave dwellers. Despite Ian's obvious distaste, I knew he was a caring man; the way he fawned over Wanda was proof enough. They were a good group of people, who by working together made the most of their dire situation, proving once again the wonderfulness of the human race.
As I reached the van, I felt a twinge of fear in my heart. I was almost afraid to see their faces, especially Wanda's, when I told them it was my fault their species were all but extinct.
A/N
See, Burns isn't that bad. Sorry for all the POV changes…I promise I'll stick mainly to Wanda, Ian and Burns, maybe a few others. Next up should be Wanda, since we haven't heard from her in awhile :]
My apologies for the lateness of this chapter :[ I suffered from severe writer's block for quite a while, which is NOT a good thing when you're taking one writing class and two other writing based classes in college. I know this chapter isn't very long, but I needed to just get rid of it lest I obsess over it any longer. The next chapter will be longer, I promise!
BTW, Hiway House Motel is an actual place in east Albuquerque…I googled it and everything. I even looked up how long it would take to get from the west of Arizona to Albuquerque, just to see how long their ride would have been. Because I'm weird like that.
I've literally rewritten this chapter maybe three times, and I still feel like I don't have it right. Tell me what you think…
A HUGE, BIG, GARGANTUAN THANKS TO Ruth, Twilighternproud, colourfulchatterbox, gretlcascade, silverlight496, padfootsmine, Sierra154845, Ianosheaismine, LBB5, Moxie Michelle Cullen, Isabella, smileysgoboing, red 81, mandariini, Brown-eyed Wolf, , XxXxSlytherinPrincessxXxX, Shocking Pinx, RawSugarX23, TeamIanandEdward, Eminnis (and Alicia), NandinhaMa, and Kimmitwilight
You all are the best and I thank you from the bottom of my heart for reviewing :]
gretlcascade, I HAVN'T FORGOTTEN YOU!!! I will read it soon, I promise! 333