FINALLY! CHAPTER 25!
"Raechelle, it's about darn time!" *you in a really high pitched, southern accent voice*
Ya ya, I know. But it's finally here!
Disclaimer:
Me: I read too many books, sing too loud, and don't understand the point of speed bumps.
Squirt: What?
Me: That's my bio on Twitter.
Squirt: You change that too often.
Me: You know what I don't change often?
Squirt: Your Darkest Powers fan fiction?
Short Stuff: YOU DON'T OWN THAT!
Me: Yea, whatever.
Chloe POV
I awoke to the sound of chirping birds and a soft breeze blowing. Scratch that - a recording of birds chirping and wind blowing. I smiled and opened my eyes. I let my eyes adjust to the bright light in the room, before I let them find the dark figure standing beside the window. I sat up, wiping the smile off my face.
"Wake up, sunshine." Jade strolled across the room, her green eyes tinted red as they danced over my face. My eyes found the stereo on the nightstand beside my bunk bed. She slammed a hand down on it to turn off the simulated sounds. "Did you enjoy your beauty sleep?" She spat out the words, and crossed her arms.
"Uh… I guess?" I blinked my eyes. Is this a dream? It has to be, Jade would never wake someone up. Not even in her dreams. If she even dreamed.
"Yes. Or. No." She said it almost in a strict teacher type of way. I noticed another figure across the room. Defiantly a ghost. Long blonde hair… But it wasn't Liz, this person's hair was darker. I sucked in a breath. It was Valerie. As in Valerie Trail. As in the girl who had been alive last night.
"Y-Yes." Curse my stupid stutter! Jade grinned wickedly, drinking in whatever expression was on my face. Valerie shook her head, muttering to herself before she vanished.
"Good." Jade walked across the room to a suitcase set up on the floor. She opened it, and pulled something out. She strode over to me, holding the thing behind her back. "How do you feel about-" She was cut off by her name being called, basically by bloody murder. She cursed silently to herself, and slid the mysterious unknown object back in the case. She grabbed my arm tightly, and dragged me to the door, then down the stairs, where we found Tilley rocking on her heels. "What do you want?" she growled at her sister.
"Graham's here." Tilley announced. "Hey Chloe!" She grinned, then took my arm and walked me to the kitchen.
"Thanks." I whispered as Tilley slid me into a chair at the small table.
"No prob." She walked over to the fridge, grabbed the carton of orange juice, and poured us some. I could hear Jade's and an semi-familiar voice talking at the front of the house, voices hushed. Whatever had been going on a few minutes ago was still freaking me out.
"Have you seen Valerie yet today?" I wrapped my sweaty hands around the cool glass of juice.
"I think she's sleeping." Tilley answered, cocking her head to the side. "Why?" I shook my head. I think I might be delusional.
"Never mind." I took a sip of juice. Jade walked into the kitchen, green and red eyes flashing from me to her sister. She was joined by a boy. He had shaggy black hair - and I mean shaggy. It was shaggier than Derek's. His eyes were green, and they swirled with blue and violet. The clothes he wore were fairly normal - baggy jeans, white t-shirt, black hoodie. He wore a goofy smile on his semi-familiar face, but when his eyes landed on me, it fell a tiny bit. He looked away from me and back to Jade. He whispered something in her ear, and the two of them walked upstairs. Tilley sat back in chair.
"Well…" She took a long swig of her juice. "He's a cutie." She set the glass down, completely drained, and wiped her mouth with her wrist.
"I think I've seen him before…" I wondered aloud. His features were familiar. A semi-crooked nose, thin pink lips, freckles sprinkled across his nose and cheeks…
"Probably at the airport." Tilley said, standing up. "He works there." I rolled that over in my brain. It's possible, my brain pulling the photo of Graham at the airport out of a filing cabinet, and comparing it to this one. Yea, that's probably it. I announced my leaving, and trudged up the stairs. I glanced into Valerie's room quickly. She was lying stomach down on her bunk, blonde hair tied back in a ponytail, and drool stains on her cheek. I shook my head. I'm defiantly getting delusional. Maybe a walk is what I need. I grab my bright red coat that I had bought yesterday. It wasn't too hot or warm outside, but I'd been shivering from head to toe these past few days. I pulled on my black New Balances and headed out the front door. I wandered the driveway for a little bit, taking in the green that had begun to envelope the skeletal like trees. I was aware that someone was following me. Human or ghost though, I'm not sure.
I turned around, to see Valerie, a nervous look on her face. "Hey Val," I said, stopping to let her catch up. "What's wrong?" She spun around to look at me, her blue eyes tired and sad. Her blonde ponytail wasn't blowing in the breeze, and her clothes weren't rippling, like mine surely were. I knew she was a wind half-demon, so I figured she was just blocking it off herself.
"You want to know what's wrong?" She questioned me, her voice low and venomous. I took a step back in surprise. Valerie was never this biting. She was usually so monotone, but goofy. Never so serious. "Do you?" Her voice rose, but quivered at the end. I took another step back. Her eyes softened as she saw the expression on my face. "Sorry." Though she didn't sound sorry.
"What's wrong?" I asked again, then realized she might burst. But she didn't. She looked down at her feet. I followed her gaze, and realized she wasn't wearing any shoes, just mismatched striped socks. "Where are your shoes?" She looked back up at me, a sad smile spreading across her face.
"Chloe." She said softly, reaching an arm towards me. I looked questioning at her, then at her hand, as it passed through my shoulder. "Jade killed me." I took a step back, but ended up stumbling, and falling.
"W-why?" I brushed the dirt from my knees, but didn't stand up. Valerie looked back towards the house, expression sad and lonely. She tucked a strand of her bangs behind her ear, then returned her hands to her pockets.
"I knew too much." And then she vanished. I looked around, hoping to glance a retreating figure in the trees. No such luck. I stood up then, brushing the dirt from my legs, before racing back to the house. I ran right up the stairs to Valerie's room, passing a questioning Simon on the way. I burst through the door, finding the room empty, except for Valerie on one of the bottom bunks. I closed and locked the door behind me, before walking carefully over to her. I flipped her over, and stared, frozen in horror at her dead body. A black stake had been driven into her chest, directly into her heart. I took a step back, and fell onto my butt for the second time in ten minutes. Someone was banging on the door.
"Chloe?" Derek. "Are you in there?" He twisted the knob slightly, finding it locked. I heard him sniff the air, then grunt, and storm off somewhere else. I breathed a sigh of relief, then got up, flipped Valerie back over to hide her wound, and slip out the door. I checked the hallway, before racing down the hall towards Derek's room.
"Hey." I said, looking over to where he sat in a armchair, book in hand. "I heard you calling me." He glanced up, eyes searching my face. He set down his book, and motioned for me to come in. I walked over, and sat on the corner of the desk five feet in front of him.
"Why are you all dirty?" He asked, pointing to the mud stains on my jeans, and the elbows of my coat. I guess I didn't realize how dirty I was when I fell. I unbuttoned my coat, and set it on the desk beside me.
"I-I went f-for a walk." He raised an eyebrow, so I hastily added: "And I fell." I tucked a strand of faded red hair behind my ear. Derek leaned back in the chair, eyes still scanning my face.
"Okay." I knew he didn't believe me, he never did. But technically, I did tell him the truth, just left some things out. "Where were you when I was calling you?" I kept my eyes neutral like how Macy had taught me, while racking my brain.
"In my room." I answered lightly, tilting my head to the side. "Why?" His eyes didn't leave my face, as the gears turned in his head.
"Just wondering." He answered, grabbing his book off the arm and continuing to read. I took that as the sign to leave, so I picked up my jacket from the desk and started towards the bedroom door. "Wait, Chloe?" I stopped and looked over my shoulder, to see Derek walking towards me.
"Yea?" He stopped a few feet away, running his hand through his hair. He stepped towards me again, and again, before reaching a hand up to my face, leaning down, and placing his lips on mine. I responded almost immediately, smiling, and placing a hand on his arm. He ended it too soon, but rested his forehead against mine, smiling and blushing, the tips of his ears bright pink.
"I've been wanting to do that for ages." He sighed and pulled away, going back over to his chair, and picking up his book. I walked out of the room, and down the stairs, a goofy smile on my face. I walked through the foyer, to see Tilley staring down the door to the room where the mystery boy was asleep in his coma. Sophie had read his mind, and found out that he was indeed Shawn - Jade's boyfriend - as Tilley had suspected. She glanced up and looked at me, then back at the door. She looked fairly normal today, wearing Sharpie marker covered jeans, a Glee 3D movie t-shirt, and light blue sneakers with black laces. Her hair hung down and curly, framing her face.
"What's up, Till?" I asked, staring at the door, trying to figure out what was so interesting about it. She shook her head and looked at me, a small smirk on her lips.
"Nothing," She looked back at the door, then at the wall mirror behind us. "Just experiencing déjà vu I guess." I raised an eyebrow, but continued to the kitchen, leaving Tilley to her door staring, déjà vu. No longer had I entered the kitchen, that I heard a shriek, and a thump from the foyer. I raced back to where Tilley was standing, a horrified look on her face, and Shawn, wrapped up in bandages, laying in the doorway of the room he had been passed out in for days. Sophie raced forward, and checked his pulse, a dark look passing over her face.
"Is he okay?" Tori asked, coming up to stand next to me. Sophie removed her hands from Shawn's neck, and placed them on her knees as she leaned over Shawn and looked at us. Tilley stepped forward, placing a hand on Sophie's shoulder.
"No." Sophie answered, shaking off Tilley's hand and standing up. "I'm afraid he's dead." She walked briskly over to the stairs, and walked up, head hanging. The group of us that had gathered in the foyer looked at each other, then back down at Shawn.
"How?" Macy asked, a piece of gum hanging from her lips. Tilley looked down at Shawn, a look passing over her face that none of us could identify.
"I don't know." She said, blinking rapidly, before following her mother's actions, and heading upstairs. The rest of us took one last look at each other, before splitting up, and heading to different directions around the house, no one bothering to take care of Shawn. Holly and Cam headed off to the basement, Macy wandered off to her favourite secret passageway, Hanna and Tori went back to the living room, and I just let my mind wander as I walked around the house aimlessly.
We were all gathered around the dining room table, me knee to knee with Holly and Derek. I hadn't bothered to tell anyone about Valerie yet, it was just too much. No one asked where she was though. According to Chad, she had a rough night. People think she's just passed out. No one's bothered to try and wake her. Or check on her.
Jade and Graham were yet to arrive for dinner, but it didn't look like people were waiting. I waited, of course, for the two to arrive. But after everyone was almost done, and I hadn't even started, I gave in and ate. The meal went by fast, just light conversation and the clatter of knives and forks. Jade and Graham were still yet to arrive when we were all sitting, full and no longer hungry. Eerie silence rang, and we could hear Jade and Graham talking upstairs. We heard their footsteps walk slowly down the stairs, muffled talking with them. They strode into the room, Jade snapped a cell phone shut, and Graham was… different. His black hair was no longer black, but blonde and cropped perfectly. His eyes weren't the swirling sea green with purple, but full out red. He scanned the table, grin on his face, canines too long to be human. His eyes went from person to person, taking in our faces. He sized up Derek, then grinned wickedly at me. When he looked behind me at Holly, his face fell, red eyes fading. They were green, not sea green, but green. Visible, clear green. They brought out the freckles I'd seen earlier. I'm sure Holly got it before I did, because her gasp was hanging in the air. Then I got it, slow little me.
Green eyes.
Blonde hair.
Riley.
And FINALLY the long awaited chapter 25! I am so sorry I didn't update earlier! I got major writers block when I had written the began and end to this chapter, not knowing how to fill it. And then I got obsessed with Gallagher Girls fan fiction, so I've been working on that also, so while I'm stumped for my next chapter in A Spy For A Spy, I managed to write a thousand or so words into this. I know it's short, but I absolutely promise the next chapter will be longer. A lot of shit goes down. Anyway, 26 up ASAP! :D