A Union of Souls, Chapter Eight
The party at the Tau Kappa house was exactly what Ami expected: it was loud, and it was obnoxious. But even more importantly, it was proving to be exactly what the doctor ordered. Among the madness, mayhem and music that shook the walls to their very foundations, Ami found distraction. After her 'encounter' in the quad and after talking to Adam and Megabyte, she had been ready to beg off tonight's engagement with Celia for an evening of sitting at home and –
"Completely upsetting yourself more than you already are," had been Adam's description of her intentions. She had a hard time believing that Adam was encouraging her to simply shrug off the oddities that had pervaded her life within less than twelve hours, but his explanation made sense. "Unless this woman shows up again, there's no reason to tie yourself in knots over it. Let me handle the paranoia around here. And besides, you can always keep an eye out for her; if it wasn't a fluke, and you see her again at the party, maybe someone else will too."
And most importantly, Ami knew that if she did see the mystery figure again, her two white knights – Adam Newman and Megabyte Damon – would come charging in to save her.
But right at this moment, the only thing she wanted saving from was the noise and racket inside the fraternity house. Weaving her way through the crowds, she made her way onto the front porch of the house. After a repeated check to make certain that the porch steps were dry, she plopped down and took a deep breath.
"Ami?"
The sound of her name caused her to turn and look up . . . and to cringe inwardly.
Standing no less than two feet away from her was a very attractive – and seemingly sober Delta Rho. "Pete. Hello."
Her blind date disaster absently pushed a lock of dark blonde hair away from his eyes and gave her what she had to admit was an extremely attractive smile. "I thought that was you. What's the matter, don't like the party?"
"It's a bit loud," Ami admitted. She lifted her drink of choice – bottled spring water – to her lips and wondered where a stampeding herd of elephants was when she needed one. "And hot and smoky."
"There's just no pleasing you, is there?" Ami would later wish that she had a mirror, because she would have loved to see the look on her face. Whatever it was, it made Pete instantly contrite as he held up a hand in protest and shook his head. "I meant that in a completely friendly teasing banter sort of way. It's just that when I get a little nervous or uneasy, I start to say the first thing that pops into my head. And usually end up eating my foot."
"Nervous?"
"Yeah. See, I'm trying to score points right now with the girl that I made a complete ass out of myself in front of last night, so this is kind of shaky ground." He looked absently around, stepping out of the path of three weaving girls who had more than enough to drink already. When he looked back, honey brown eyes pleaded with her. "A little encouragement would go a long way, here."
As much as Ami wanted to dismiss him, as much as she had been extremely disappointed last night, she couldn't help but smile slightly. Pete was charming. Despite her better judgment, she slid to the side making room for him to sit on the steps beside her and not block the entrance to Tau Kappa house. "You can sit down."
Pete released a visible sigh of relief as he lowered himself to the stone steps. "Let me say that I am really, really sorry about last night. I don't normally behave like that."
"You don't normally get so drunk that your friends have to carry you home when you go out on blind dates?"
"Well, I wouldn't call it a blind date. I mean, I stare at you every Tuesday and Thursday morning across Doleman Auditorium."
"I know," Ami looked away, feeling a warm blush rise to her cheeks. It had taken two weeks for Celia to convince her that the unidentified upperclassmen was watching her with interest and another two weeks for Celia to ingratiate herself into Pete's circle of friends and arrange last night's failed date. "So, that's your excuse?"
"No, hormones are my excuse. I was listening to the call of testosterone and trying to impress you. This morning I woke up with a terrible hangover and the realization that acting like a neanderthal did not impress you."
"You're right. It didn't."
"Ouch," Pete gave a low whistle. "You're harsh. I thought you British were supposed to be polite and unflappable."
Ami shrugs, "America's wearing off on me."
Pete smiled. "Can I get another chance, here? Take you to a movie? Buy you dinner? Show you my really cool and personable side?"
She smiled in spite of herself. She had to admit she actually did like this guy. As long as he stayed sober. "I'd like that."
"She smiles and she says yes. I had to do something right in a former life." Pete stood and looked to her a bit sheepishly. For the first time, she noticed the backpack he slung over one shoulder. "Well, as much as I hate to leave, I need to get to the library."
"On a Friday night?"
"Yeah. Remember that hangover that I told you about? It kept me out of class with Dr. Death, the professor from hell. However, in a rare moment of compassion, he is allowing me to make up the quiz I managed to … be sick through … this morning. The only caveat is that he also teaches the same class for three hours on Saturday. I have to be there tomorrow morning."
Pete fingered his shoulder strap thoughtfully. "I'm sure there's a lesson to be learned somewhere in there, but I haven't figured out what it is yet." Then he flashed her a smile, "I'll call you, all right?"
Ami nodded. "That'll be fine."
She was still smiling when he rounded the corner, disappearing in the direction of central campus. She even obliging slid aside making room for the slightly tipsy girl who joined her and began to babble about what hunky fun guys the Tau Kappas were.
"Hello, earth to Ami?"
Startled Ami gave a yelp and jumped back away from the hand being waved in front of her face. Celia stared at her, confusion apparent. "Boy, whatever she told you must have knocked your socks off."
"Who? What –" Ami blinked, suddenly aware that her head felt heavy and leaded. She felt as if someone had stuffed her head full of cotton. She leaned against the tree – tree, she didn't remember a tree, she had been sitting on the porch –
Ami's eyes focused on the frat house across the street, the party still in full swing. She didn't remember leaving the porch. She would have remembered walking across the street, wouldn't she? Her head spun and she took a few deep gulps of air to steady her breathing.
Something was very wrong.
The Tomorrow Person tried to focus on her roommate's words, but it was difficult. She could barely hold her shields in place, all of the background noise rising to sound like the din of a thousand tractor trailers on a bridge.
"Who was that skanky ho anyway? My god, I have never seen anything so nasty before. And the way she looked at me, as if I was interrupting her precious conversation. Please tell me that you know her from one of her classes and that she isn't –"
"Who are you talking about Celia?" Ami clutched the tree. Her head was throbbing; the noise just kept getting louder and louder.
"Miss Goth trash that you were talking to just now?"
"Goth trash. I wasn't – I didn't –" Ami gave up trying to talk. She didn't remember talking to anyone since the drunk girl took up residence in Pete's abandoned seat.
Something was very, very, very wrong.
"Celia. I'm going home. I don't feel too good." Before her roommate could say a word in objection, Ami lurched away. She stumbled to a halt in the first dark shadow she could find, and summoning all of her concentration, disappeared in crackle of light and energy.