Chapter 10
Far from home
To fall fall from your post is to lose where you stand...
Mary-Lynette was rubbing her forehead, but not because she had a headache, it was to cover her eyes.
"So, Hunter Redfern told you Jeremy had been killed." Ash confirmed.
"Yes!" Airiana said loudly. Now she was rubbing her forehead. It was a very very very painful thing to say.
Airiana lifted herself from the lounge and started for the door.
"Where are you going?" Jez called after her.
"Somewhere...anywhere." Airiana whispered that last word to herself.
And soon enough, she heard footsteps chasing her own.
"I'm coming." Jez said as she appeared next to Airiana.
Jez and Airiana found themselves sitting cross-legged at the end of a near-by warf over-looking the waters of Chicago.
"How do you feel?" Jez asked out of random. She was now determined to know everything.
"Like shit. Like, how some might feel after the last person on Earth who cared about you died. Like, how some might feel after lost everything except one person, and then learning that person died." Airiana shrugged like the subject might be casual.
Jez nodded. "I almost know how you feel. I wish I could fully understand." Jez commented.
"No you don't." Airiana replied, giving Jez a cool side-wards glance.
Jez realised what she said sounded like. "That's not what I meant." She whispered.
"I know." Airiana said and looked back out at the water.
Jez wanted to tell her the whole truth more than ever.
And Jez wasn't one to even tell the truth.
But she never had to lie about something like this.
Mary-Lynette sure is taking her sweet time, she thought.
But then it hit.
SELFISH BITCH, she thought.
She's protecting herself.
What a coward.
What a...SELFISH BITCH.
Airiana put her hand on Jez's shoulder. "Are you ok." She said softly, her voice echoing into Jez's mind.
Am I ok, Am I ok, she thought.
She looked down and saw that her fists were clenchedso tightly, her knuckles were turning white.
She loosened her hands and nodded, looking up and smiling nervously.
Airiana stood up and started to walk back down the warf.
"Where are you going now?" Jez asked.
"...Back..." It didn't feel right to say 'home'. Airiana was far from home.
When they returned, half of the daybreaker soulmates had gone to bed, including Mare and Ash.
Morgead reached for Jez's hand. "It's getting late, you've had a rough day. Let's go to bed."
"No...I'm gonna stay up a little later." Jez said and looked at him, her eyes begging him to leave.
Morgead nodded and kissed her on the cheek.
He'd been worried about Jez the whole time she'd been gone. But he had to trust her...
After everyone had gone off to bed, Jez and Airiana were alone in the loungeroom.
"Hey, Airiana...before, in the forest, I saw a bit of the tattoo on your back. I was wondering if I could see the whole thing?" Jez asked.
Airiana giggled and turned her back to Jez, lifting her singlet.
It was all words. The first in big kryptic writing, the second paragraph in ittalics, and a name in bold aglerian print, it was all in black:
RECKLESS
Trust your heart
The seas catch fire
Live by love
The stars walk backward
TRISTON BLACKTHORN
Jez caught her gasp in her throat, 'BLACKTHORN', a relative of Morgead's.
Jez ran her fingers along Airiana's back and traced the words.
"What about this guy, does he care about you?"Jez asked.
"Oh, I don't know. Probably not." Airiana brushed her fingers through her hair, the long brown tousles separated.
"What do you mean, you don't know?" Jez was digging deep.
"It's been a long time." She said softly.
Jez sighed and pulled Airiana's singlet down over her back again.
She forcefully turned Airiana around to face her.
When she did, Airiana's eyes were gold.
Jez looked all around the room.
"This is your cue to freak out." Jez laughed.
"No, I'm not scared anymore." Airiana replied, looking just above Jez's head, making Jez paranoid, looking above her, knowing she couldn't see them anyway.
"Anyway, we have a long time." Jez said, urging Airiana her to tell her everything about this TRISTON BLACKTHORN.
"Tell me everything about this TRISTON BLACKTHORN." She said, speaking her mind. She waited a while so Airiana could put it all together.
"Well, he's a vampire. He's black, like, dark-skinned, he's probably related to Morgead somehow, and he's my soulmate." Airiana said.
Jez scoffed. "So where is the guy?"
Airiana shrugged.
"Well, if he's your soulmate, why isn't he here with you." Jez felt guilty, knowing Morgead was right upstairs.
"It's...complicated." Airiana said slowly, looking up at Jez.
"Oh." Jez teased, smiling.
Airiana bit her bottom lip, holding back a smile.
Jez's smile got bigger and bigger.
"...He's an ASSHOLE!" Airiana exclaimed. A big broad smile crossing her lips.
Jez was laughing. Trying to speak.
"But...but...that's what Morgead was like..." Jez's stomach was hurting from laughing so much.
"Yeah, well, Morgead didn't leave you, did he." Airiana was still smiling.
But Jez stopped laughing.
"But, whatever, shit happens." Airiana sung and caused Jez to start giggling again.
Airiana and Jez stood.
Airiana places her hands upon Jez's shoulders. "Well, goodnight darling, you've made my day."
"Goodnight." Jez said and watched Airiana disappear up the staircase.
Jez sighed, rubbed her eyes and fell back on the lounge.
she felt terrible.