IX
Norm lay back in the beach chair, the cool breeze sweeping against him. He had been at the beach for a few days now. He was trying to forget everything that had happened only a few short days ago. But, the pain in his cheek made it difficult to do so.
Chase Young had made Norm doubt his master, his friend, Jack Spicer. And now, Norm was alone again. The genie hated being alone. But, Norm had listened to what Chase had said, taking the word of a man he hated over the word of a man he…
Well, that's just it. Norm didn't know how to phrase that anymore. He didn't know how to phrase it to begin with. How could Norm even think that he had loved Jack when he had said such cruel things to the boy?
That's why the genie was at the beach; he wanted to get his mind off of everything that happened. But every time Norm was close to relaxing, he heard Jack's voice. He heard how hurt the boy had sounded. He opened his eyes and looked at the bracelet around his wrist. He kept trying to figure out what it meant and why he didn't get rid of it.
A gold flash caught his eye and he looked up to see a group of four teenagers walking along the shore. Norm searched for the source of the flash and discovered that all four of the kids had a bracelet that looked identical to the one around Norm's wrist. He stood up and approached the group.
"Hey!" He called. The one in a cowboy hat paused and looked at the genie. The blond turned to his companions and stopped them, motioning at Norm. The group looked at Norm in confusion.
"What is it?" The black haired girl asked, stepping forward. She looked down and saw the bracelet. "Hey… That's one of the bracelet's I gave Jack!"
Norm blinked at her. "How do you know it's his? You all the same one." He paused, looking over the group. They looked familiar. "Are you those Xiaolin monks Jack told me about?"
The girl nodded. "You must be Norm! That genie Jack told us about."
Norm merely nodded.
"So, where is Jack? Is he not with you?" The smallest monk, who Norm guessed was Omi, asked.
The genie shrugged. "He's probably back at his house. Not that it matters…"
Kimiko, the girl, stared at Norm. "Did you two get into a fight or something?"
"Yeah… I told him I couldn't trust him because I thought he would try to use me, just like all the others… But, he never did… And now, he'll never want to see me again," Norm explained, feeling a sharp pain in his heart.
He watched the group exchange a disappointed look. "Anyway, what do these bracelets mean?" Norm asked, holding his wrist up and pointing to the one around Kimiko's wrist.
Raimundo, the tan-skinned boy, smiled. "Kimiko made these as very special gifts. She and I are together, so we wear each other's. Omi hasn't found a girlfriend yet, and Clay's fiancée has his other one. Kim gave Jack two as well. He wears his all the time. He gave you the other."
"That still doesn't tell me what it means…" Norm replied.
Kimiko took Norm's arm and lifted it. "It represents the wings of the heart. The charm is symbolic of that fluttery feeling you get around that person you really like. Jack must feel that way around you or he never would have given it to you."
Norm felt it again. That stabbing pain in his chest. It was because he knew Jack loved him and the genie pushed him away. It was the pain of knowing that Jack truly loved him and now the boy was hurting. Hurting more than Norm.
"How did it feel after you fought with Jack? I mean, Jack was obviously hurt. How did you feel, Norm?" Omi asked, approaching the genie.
"It… It really…" Norm sighed. "It hurt. It hurt a lot. It still hurts. I never thought it could hurt this badly…"
"Seems to me that ya really love him, partner," the biggest monk, Clay, had said.
Norm blinked. "Yeah… I guess so, huh? But, after what happened, he'll never want to see me again."
"When has that ever stopped a genie?" Raimundo smirked. "Go on. He needs you. We know Jack. He'll forgive you, for sure."
The genie nodded and smiled. "I guess I won't know until I try. Thanks, kids." He turned. "See ya later!" He said and snapped his fingers, vanishing.
"I hope that everything works out for them…" Omi said to no one in particular. He merely voiced what his companions were thinking. And they all nodded as soon as it was said.
Norm managed to arrive at his intended destination; Chase Young's lair. "Chase! Come out!" He shouted. The genie growled when he saw Chase saunter to the cave entrance.
"You barked?" The warlord said off-handedly. "How did things go with Spicer? Did you call him out? Does he consider you to be a sla-…" A sharp pain on the side of his face cut Chase off. Since he was caught off guard, he stumbled. He glared up at who caused the pain. The damn genie.
"I did call him out on it and now I hate you even more! You made me doubt him! I knew he wasn't like that but I listened to you anyway!" Norm growled at the man.
"So, I was wrong?" Chase asked boredly. "So, what exactly did he do? Did he make his other wishes?"
Norm glared at Chase. "I'm not in my lamp, am I? He wished me free. And because of you, he never wants to see me again!"
Chase could hear the pain in Norm's voice clearly. Now, Chase felt sorry about what he did. "Well, I suppose you have a right to know why I did this." He stood and faced Norm, very serious. "I was jealous."
"Jealous?" Norm echoed, a bit confused.
"Yes. I was jealous. Spicer had always wanted me. I had become accustomed to his advances, but I was never interested. Then you show up. Now he only has eyes for you. I guess I wanted to ruin your relationship with him so that I could have him. I understand now that I only wanted him because I couldn't have him," Chase explained.
Norm narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms. "So, are you apologizing? Because, if you are, you're doing a shitty job of it."
"I'm not apologizing. I'm not sorry for what I did. I'm just telling you why I did it. Now, go. Spicer's waiting for you."
The genie hung his head. "No, he's not. He said he wanted to forget about me…"
Chase smirked. "I've known Spicer longer than you have. He'll forgive you, and I know he wants you to come back."
Norm looked at him in surprise. The monks had told him the same thing. They couldn't have all been lying to him. Then again, they could have been. Norm didn't care. It meant a lot to him that Jack might forgive him. He couldn't pass up that chance.
Chase turned and walked back into his lair. "Good luck." He waved dismissively and disappeared inside.
Norm smiled softly to himself. "So, he might forgive me? I don't deserve his forgiveness, but it's worth a shot…" That being said, Norm turned to go back to Jack's.
