When I said "hot date up in two," I meant two chapters, not two weeks,
sorry if I got your hopes up. Might be up this chapter, I dunno. I mean,
sure, I'll try with the long weekend and all, but knowing me, something
will go horribly wrong. Oh well, enjoy!
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Suze's POV.
'Does it ever snow in Carmel?' I asked wistfully.
CeeCee jerked up, looking around her, her eyes suddenly fearful. Whoa.
'Cee? You sane?' I asked uncertainly.
She slackened with relief, 'Oh, nothing. Sorry, I thought I heard . . . nothing. Forget it, Suze.'
I stared at her. She had been acting weirdly all night. Like, paranoid.
Funny, I couldn't imagine why.
Oh well, it was Friday! I was in such a good mood that I couldn't let a little thing like suspicious CeeCee bother me. Aaah, minimum of three blissful hours with Jesse De Silva . . . I couldn't wait until tonight! It was lunch time, and we were in the Library. How bizarre of her, really.
'Where do you think he'll take me?' I asked for the hundredth time.
She groaned. 'Suze, I happy for you. Really I am. My heart sings for you. Just shut up already!' she actually looked quite disturbed by it though, so I stopped.
I smiled. 'Sorry.' Then, ten seconds later, not being able to help myself, I piped up with, 'So what do you think he'll be wearing?'
She glared at me.
Hang on!
WEARING!
OH MY GOD! I HAD NOTHING TO WEAR!!!
I swear, I almost fainted on site. I started to hyperventilate, and get really hot.
CeeCee stared at me, horrified. 'What is up with you Simon?' she asked hurriedly.
'D-D . . . D . . . Don't have . . . '
'Don't have what?'
'D . . . Don't have . . . a dress . . .' I stuttered finally.
CeeCee stared at me, and then snorted. Hey, I was in a crisis here! She had no right to go around snorting!!
I calmed down in my irritation. 'Hey, just because you don't have a date, stop thinking mine's a big joke,' I snapped at her impulsively.
She blinked at me, and then looked away.
Oh, now I felt awful. 'Oh, Cee, I'm sorry. That was a mean thing to say. I'm such a loser. Well, we all know about my foot in mouth problem. My therapist is working on it, I swear. Cee? I'm sorry.' I touched her shoulder, feeling way lower by the second. 'Sorry, Cee.'
She looked at me, and although she was still hurt, she managed a smile. 'Oh well, we can't all be radiant beauties like you, Suze,' she shrugged. Her eyes were very shiny. 'At least I'm smart. But unfortunately, guys don't find that too attractive.'
And lower, and lower . . .
'Cee,' I said seriously, 'Stop all of this stuff. God, you sound like a suicidal. You're a doll, trust me. Why are you suddenly so self-critical, any way?'
'I dunno . . . Just with Adam swooning over you, it's a bit hard not to be,' she said sadly. I rubbed her back soothingly.
'Cee, please, I'm nothing special. You are.'
'Sure your special. You've got heaps of guys after you!' she blurted out, and then looked panicky. I stared at her. Was it just me, or was something weird going on?
'What do you kn –'
'Nothing?' she yelped. 'Not a thing, not an iota. Nope, not me knowing something, no.'
'You not knowing something?' I smirked, 'It hasn't been written.'
Her face relaxed.
'Well,' I continued, my voice barely a whisper, 'Wanna skip a couple of classes?'
She was horrified. 'Suze! How could you suggest that? It's ridiculous! I can't wag! That'll –'
'Kill your teacher's pet rep? Fair enough, I know you had your heart set on that university in London, whatever it's called. This'll so ruin your chances, I understand totally,' I said sarcastically, leaning back in my chair with my arms crossed.
She sighed.
'For God's sake, Suze . . .' she bit her lip. 'Okay. You owe me, Simon!'
~*~
I stood outside my house. I didn't want to go in there. Not after the other day. I didn't want to see Paul ever again. Oh, and the fact that mum would wonder why the hell I wasn't at school. But yeah, mainly Paul, you know?
But I couldn't use CeeCee's money to buy a dress. That was evil. I had to get my own. I had a nice $200 sitting pretty in my money box, if only I could get to it . . .
I told CeeCee to wait out the front, while I slipped inside. Whistling. Crap, mum was in the kitchen. Strange, usually Andy cooked. Maybe she was just washing up . . . Oh well. I was just sneaking past, when –
'WOOF!'
Shit! Max started barking like crazy from the sofa! I totally froze on the spot.
'Max? Stop barking. What's wrong?' mum called from the kitchen, coming to see what was going on.
Oh no. No, no, no, no . . . don't see me. Don't see me . . .
Footsteps so close? My heart froze. This was it. I was officially dead.
'Max?'
NO! NOT FAIR! I panicked as I saw mum's shadow over the doorway, and . . .
I dematerialized.
~*~
Isn't that cool?!
Second time I did it! I had dematerialized to my room, and thank the Lord almighty, Paul had evacuated. Permanently, I couldn't tell. Well, here's for hoping. I grabbed my money, and ran, still bubbling about how easily I had dematerialized. THIS RULED! All I had done was though about not being there, and BAM! I wasn't! Well, that and the fact that I'd been about to piss my pants, but we'll strike that from the record, huh?
'Cee, got my money. Let's go,' I said.
After a long, fairly silent walk, we were at the Carmel Mall. I gulped nervously at the large building. I think I'm kind of mallophobic or something. It sucks, it really does. I kind of get shopping overload, and I have to sit down because I get dizzy and stuff, which makes shopping really hard. But I was on a mission! I couldn't give into my childish fears! No!
WILL FIGHT AGAINST MALLOPHOBIA!
o.O
. . . Is that a word even?
Breathing a little quicker, I entered the shopping mall. CeeCee looked at me anxiously. I'd told her about my unease previously. Well, at least she'd remembered. That was nice.
'You okay?' she asked. 'Was this really worth skipping class for?'
I gave her a look. 'What kind of a question is that?' I wanted to know.
She sighed. 'A stupid one, seeing that I'm talking to you, Simon.'
'Damn straight!' I smirked, my tummy getting rather queasy. I stopped in front of a really nice looking dress shop, called "Elegance." It looked really spiffy, with mauve and silver walls, and silver tiles and stuff, and a heck of a lot of mirrors. And the dresses . . . Voila! There were SO many! Just, the problem was, well, some of them were a little skanky.
I had a sneak peak around, trying to ignore the building pressure in my head and the churning of my stomach. There were black off the shoulders, red slip dresses, light blue cowl necks, the lot. But, none of them were the right one. I tried on a few, and CeeCee seemed to like them all, but, nothing was ever quite right . . .
I examined myself in a mirror, in a pretty gold dress with no straps. It was all right, but not "it." I sighed.
'This is hopeless,' I groaned, 'I need an aspirin, Cee.'
'Come on,' she encouraged me. 'We'll find something.' She lead a dizzy me to another shop called "The Upper Class." It was a lot different to "Elegance." Everything was black and white, including the dresses. No reds, no blues, not even grey. Just black and white. I felt like I was stuck in some colourless dimension. I felt so nauseous, like I was going to faint or something.
. . . .
Then
I
Saw
It.
I stopped completely. In front of me on a tall rack, there was the most divine dress I'd ever laid eyes on. It was the purest white I'd ever seen. It was silk, with a lacy bodice that dipped into a V, which was embellished with a stylish sprinkle of diamontes. The straps were thin and sophisticated. The skirt wasn't leg tight, it flared a little and finished just below the knees, and was covered with diamontes also, which gradually got fewer as they neared the waist. It shimmered in the bright light. It looked like it was heaven's uniform. It wasn't hip, and it wasn't sexy. It was pretty. Really, REALLY pretty, but not wedding dress pretty yet. It was perfect. So perfect . . .
'Now, THAT'S a great dress,' CeeCee smiled. I sighed at it. It was really so stunning. I'm way serious. I checked the price tag, and my spirits kind of sank. It was by Petra Anderson. I didn't know who she was – no designer I knew – but I didn't care. But that wasn't the downer –
'Two hundred and fifty,' I muttered.
'With the discount?' she asked, disappointed. 'What a bummer-'
'Discount?' I demanded, 'What is this discount you speak of-'
'The fifty percent discount on last season's dresses,' she explained, pointing to the large sign on the wall above the counter. 'Anything with that red sticker on it is last season. That has a red sticker on it, right? Yeah. So, did you discount it?'
Oh my God! THIS ROCKED SO MUCH!!!
I let out a rather embarrassing squeal, and flipped my hands about excitedly. 'I have enough!' I screamed, 'I'm trying it on!'
'You do that,' she said quickly, edging away – people were staring.
I bustled into one of the change-rooms, and ripped of my slacks and my tank top, substituting it with the magnificent white evening dress. I pulled it into place, and stared into the mirror.
I stared at myself, fingering the dress gently. It fell back into place into the pearly folds of the skirt.
And suddenly . . . I felt beautiful.
I just stared at my face. At my eyes. They were bright green. My hair looked a little daggy, just in a messy bun at the back of my head, but the dress made me feel, not like a mediator . . .
. . . But like a girl.
A girl going on a date.
Beautiful.
It had never occurred to me that I could look beautiful. Good looking, maybe. Stylish, all the time. With the fashion? Totally. But beautiful was something for brides and for fairy tale princesses. I felt like one. Pretty . . .
I sighed happily, and went out to show CeeCee.
'Wow,' she breathed, her eyes misty and a little envious. She was frozen, staring at me. 'Suze, you look like you could go to the prom. That is so beautiful . . .'
I beamed. 'Getting it,' I decided, feeling so exultant that my stomach shut up completely. I was cured!
~*~
An hour later, I was at CeeCee's house. It was now six. I'd just had a shower, and CeeCee was blow drying my erratic hair in front of her mirror in her rather yellow and green bedroom. It looked nice straight. My hair, I mean, not her bedroom. It's usually all curly, and looks really weird and a little messy, but straight, it's sleek and chic. I have a slightly layered hair-cut, so my dark brown hair skims my shoulders.
'Suze, I got a surprise for you,' CeeCee grinned.
I turned to face her. 'What?'
'You know when I said I was ducking into the loo?' she smirked, pulling out a little plastic bag. 'I lied . . .'
And with that, she pulled out the most incredible necklace ever! It was silver, with several chains dangling from the front, with a few more chains running horizontally, giving it like, a spider web look or something. Every time the silver chains crossed over, it would be studded with a crystal. She then withdrew bold, matching earrings, and lastly, a diamonte hair clip. She pulled the necklace on my neck, and it just seemed to mould onto it. My breathed softly.
'CeeCee,' I said, so absurdly thrilled, but still astonished, 'You . . . you didn't have to do that. But these, there are so pretty.'
'Twenty dollars out of a bargain bin,' she shrugged. 'I took some cash along as well. That's real Swarovski crystal. Feel privileged, Suze.'
I touched the necklace lightly. I was so awed. Then, I just turned around and hugged her. No words.
'Thank you,' was all I said. She was my friend. She was a real, true friend, like Gina. I hugged her tighter.
'No biggie,' she beamed. She was clearly delighted. She very carefully put on my earrings for me, did my hair so it was half-up, half-down with little bangs coming down at the side, and clipping it with the hair clasp. It looked stunning on my dark hair, if I do say so myself. CeeCee then applied all my make-up for me. For someone who never wore anything, she sure knew what she was doing. By the end, my eyes seemed very big and green, and almost twinkling. My lips were a natural shade of pink, and I had bold eyeliner on. It was very dramatic, but looked fabulous. I don't usually look fabulous, so this was a very nice change.
'All the eye make-up is waterproof,' she assured me, 'If worst comes to worst, you know . . . '
'I doubt it,' I said confidently. Jesse wasn't like that. Well, he didn't seem like that.
*Things aren't always what they seem, Suze.*
You bet they aren't.
After all of that, it was quarter to eight. Rushing, I slipped into the Most Beautiful Dress In The World, and into some of CeeCee's high heels that matched my dress the best. She said she wore them for weddings. They were strappy silver ones. She then lent me her mother's evening handbag. I felt a little weird, using someone else's stuff, but I didn't swell on it. I had a last look in the mirror, saw that I looked quite radiant, really, in an angelic kind of way. Anyone loaning me a halo? And wings, if it's not too much trouble?
Aww, shucks.
That was when the doorbell rang.
My heart thudded in my chest. I inhaled and exhaled very carefully, trying not to skip any breaths. CeeCee walked to the door and opened it.
'Hello, CeeCee, is Susannah here?'
His voice sounded to sexy and rusty when I wasn't looking at his face. CeeCee smiled, and said, 'I'll just go get her. Wait there a second . . .'
She ran over to me, trying to maintain her excitement. 'Okay?' she asked, 'Ready?'
I released a shuddering breath. 'Ready.'
'Well, go then!' she hissed, slapping my butt for me to get a move on. Startled, I moved towards the door . . .
And wow . . .
My mouth fell open when I saw the ultimate Apollo standing there before me. Jesse De Silva. Man, did he look hot in Armani! He wore long black pants, a navy sleeved shirt that was open just enough to be heavenly, and a dark denim jacket that wasn't quite formal, but not quite casual either. He had a little cold chain with a crucifix on it. He looked perfect. And his teeth were incredible pearly this evening. Under the porch light, his hair was highlighted by brilliant gold reflections, and his eyes . . . He wasn't trying to hypnotize me and already, I was falling into a spell. His eyes, so black, mysterious, secretive, warm, so mesmerizingly dark . . .
Perfection.
I melted at the doorway like butter in the oven. I felt like I was liquid in his presence. Suze? Remember breathing? Just do that . . .
It took me a few seconds to realize that he was pretty impressed with me too, if by the way he was gazing at me longingly was any indication. I managed a smile.
'Hey, Jesse,' I greeted
'Querida,' he uttered, 'You look . . . magnífico tonight. Hermosa . . . '
I blushed, not knowing what the hell he meant. Well, "magnífico" was kind of obvious. But yeah. He was shaking his head at me softly. I didn't know why. But he had a dreamy expression on his face, so it had to be good, right? Right?!
I looked down subconsciously at my wrists. They were scarring. They looked horrible. Well, you could only notice them if you looked right at them, but still, I looked deformed. They totally screwed up the white dress . . . Totally.
He glanced down at them also, and saw why I was looking so put out. He took a step closer to me, and his finger touched my cheek. The reaction his skin had on mine tingled pleasantly.
'Please come,' he said, offering his hand. I accepted it, and he lead me to his car, that Cadilac or whatever. Yeah that's right, it was a Cadilac. See? I'm so good.
Yeah. Riiiiight . . .
After a ten minute drive, swapping compliments, we turned into this little place outside of Carmel. It was a beachfront restaurant. We exited the car. I felt rather breathless. I looked out at the ocean, washing in and out, in and out, rhythmic and repetitive. The sky was dark, with a gorgeous half moon. It was like a half a freshly manufactured quarter, all shiny and new. It reflected on the ocean brightly, a flickering silver light against a see of leather-like blackness.
Jesse touched my hand, and I was pulled out of my musing.
'Come on, querida,' he smiled mysteriously, his eyes twinkling under the moonlight. 'This is a restaurant that my family came to all the time before we moved to Seattle. It's called Sandy Dreams Restaurant. It's not much,' he added, embarrassed, 'But it has the best food I've tasted . . . '
I nodded, and he walked me in.
Oh my God . . .
NOT MUCH MY ASS!
Sure, it wasn't the biggest place, but it was all done up in candlelight, and floodlights, and had a hearty smell in the air that made my tastebuds dance and tempted me like no devil could. The smell was so good . . . In the corner, a band was playing, with a very beautiful woman singing lead. She rocked in front of the microphone stand gracefully, dressed in a bold red dress. She had an awesome voice. I really wish I could sing, you know? That would be so cool . . . Oh well, I can't.
Jesse went up to the counter. He swayed coolly as he walked. He really was a god on earth . . . So physically perfect in every possible way. Except for that scar on his eyebrow. Oh well, it only added to his character.
'"De Silva?" Secluded area?' he asked the woman there. She had droopy strawberry blonde hair.
'Yes sir,' she smiled flirtatiously at him, but Jesse didn't seem to notice. She eyed me with a cold smile that didn't reach her eyes, as if saying, "what are you doing with a guy like him?" Again, I looked insecurely at my wrists, running my fingers over the bumps of my skin that the rope had caused.
Remembering the pain . . .
'Susannah?' Jesse said, 'Follow me.'
That lady lead us to a separate area divided by a glass wall, right in front of the beach. It was overwhelming, all of this. First date? Bet no one was ever going to beat this . . . The table was set for two, and there were three candles on the table. The napkins were all beige, and were folded into this kind of crown shape. The plates were a creamy colour, and the cutlery was sparkling. Three glass walls surrounded us, basically. I could still hear the music playing, and that woman singing romantic, slow songs.
Jesse sat me down in one of the two seats, and then sat himself in the other one charmingly. He had very good posture, and elite manners. He was a real gentleman, as my mum would say. We examined the menus without much talking, and after a waitress sidled up and took our orders, - throwing Jesse another teasing look – we started to have a conversation.
'So,' I began, 'How was your week?'
'Good,' he replied.
I stared.
Finally, I said, 'Don't you just hate the start of a conversation? Because someone always has to say the right thing to get the other person to talk about something they really care about, and I always such at starting conversations, so you'd better be the one to say something clever that will be me talking –'
'Susannah,' he interrupted. I stopped, and looked directly at him.
'Yes?'
'Please . . . slow down?'
I went scarlet, and once again, looked at my wrists.
'Paul?' he asked grimly, his mouth set.
I looked back up at him. 'No . . . Heather. I lied, he did hit me once. I'm sorry I didn't tell you. Just after I sent Heather to the Shadowland, when you kissed me at school. He must have been angry.' I can really lay it on thick when I want to, huh? Why did I keep lying to him?
He nodded. 'Oh. Okay then. Please tell me you aren't like Paul was, and you use ghosts –'
'God no,' I laughed. 'No, I'm whipped, I'll admit it. I always help them. It's my job, after all.'
'A job? No, it is a birthright, Susannah. Something we must do.'
'Also known as a job,' I said. 'Go join the Father Dominic and Co. Mediation-is-a-gift worshipping club already.'
He smiled knowingly. 'If you insist.'
'I do.'
'I know.'
I stopped, and asked him something that had been bothering me for a while now. 'Jesse, why isn't Kelly Prescott here?'
He frowned. 'I do not understand. You wish for Kelly Prescott to join us?' He looked almost sick. 'Why?'
'No, not that,' I shook my head. 'I mean, why do you like me? I'm just Suze. Nothing special. Except my toes are nice. It's really good to have nice toes, you know? If I ever wanted to be a foot model, I mean. That way, then, I would probably have to stop beating the crap out of ghosts, because I could break a toe or something. Wouldn't it be weird to have the most valuable feet in the-'
He was laughing. I stopped again. 'What?'
'Too fast,' he chuckled, his hand on his chin. I blew my hair out of my eyes.
'You think I'm an airhead, don't you,' I said sadly.
He looked shocked. 'Of course not, querida. I think you are . . . amazing.'
'Yeah,' I said. 'Sure.'
He now looked disturbed. 'Susannah, I'm here because I want to be. You're here because I wanted you to be. I want YOU here with me. Not Kelly Prescott, not that coy waitress at the front counter who was trying to flirt with me.'
So he did notice it. Just modest. Oh, isn't he so sweet?
I looked at his hair again. It was so crisp and clean. Perfect.
The food came soon enough. Entrées first. I'd ordered this creamy mushroom soup which was really nice, and Jesse had this tiny seafood platter. It was really interesting to look at. We ate, and as the night deepened, we discussed more important things, like ourselves, and crucially, the ghosts we'd dealt with in the past, our methods and our hardest situations. It was really intriguing, hearing what Jesse had to say. Most of the stories involved Paul. He talked about him like they'd never been friends, just two boys who shared an ability that were thrown together.
I began to see how intensely Jesse hated Paul. I saw his eyes narrow that little bit whenever Paul's name was mentioned. It was loathing, even. After the main – I had Kennedy Classic, a steak and creamy garlic prawns, and Jesse had this fancy lamb dish – we just kept talking.
We had quite a lot in common. Well, not really. I mean, I doubted Jesse got sick whenever he entered a shopping mall. But we agreed on a lot of things, I mean. Each word he spoke, I felt myself willingly falling more and more in love with him. With his smile, with that deep little chuckle of his, with his thick black hair, with his pouty Latino lips . . . with those onyx eyes that were stealing my heart away from me. And I was powerless against his theft. I wanted to be powerless. It felt too damn good to try and stop what was happening to me. My heart was beating in my chest quite fast still, and hot blood was pumping away through me, making me feel so alive. I sank further into this spell he had on me, involving no magic or shifter gimmicks. Everything was very romantic. I felt so relaxed. It was like talking to Gina – I could tell him anything. Accept anything about Paul. He couldn't know a thing. At last, after a delicious dessert had been consumed, we just sat there, not saying a word. I stared out at the hypnotic ocean, waves crashing over each other gently. I could hear it from here . . .
Everything was so perfect.
But then, he popped up with the question, 'Would you like to dance querida?'
Huh? DANCE?! Not perfect, I CAN'T DANCE!
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Now review!
Oh, and Tasha? Those two translations were supposed to be "son of a bitch," and "God damn it." I'm on an auto-translater, I just write what it says!
Okay, so how was that chapter? What do you think? And guys, I'm still looking for ideas for the next story, ninth key. WARNING FOR "NINTH KEY": Someone very close to Suze is going to be involved in a tragic incident. Who do you think it's going to be?
REVIEW!! YOU ALL RULE!
Regards, Mystique Angelique.
YOU ROCK THE WORLD!!
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Suze's POV.
'Does it ever snow in Carmel?' I asked wistfully.
CeeCee jerked up, looking around her, her eyes suddenly fearful. Whoa.
'Cee? You sane?' I asked uncertainly.
She slackened with relief, 'Oh, nothing. Sorry, I thought I heard . . . nothing. Forget it, Suze.'
I stared at her. She had been acting weirdly all night. Like, paranoid.
Funny, I couldn't imagine why.
Oh well, it was Friday! I was in such a good mood that I couldn't let a little thing like suspicious CeeCee bother me. Aaah, minimum of three blissful hours with Jesse De Silva . . . I couldn't wait until tonight! It was lunch time, and we were in the Library. How bizarre of her, really.
'Where do you think he'll take me?' I asked for the hundredth time.
She groaned. 'Suze, I happy for you. Really I am. My heart sings for you. Just shut up already!' she actually looked quite disturbed by it though, so I stopped.
I smiled. 'Sorry.' Then, ten seconds later, not being able to help myself, I piped up with, 'So what do you think he'll be wearing?'
She glared at me.
Hang on!
WEARING!
OH MY GOD! I HAD NOTHING TO WEAR!!!
I swear, I almost fainted on site. I started to hyperventilate, and get really hot.
CeeCee stared at me, horrified. 'What is up with you Simon?' she asked hurriedly.
'D-D . . . D . . . Don't have . . . '
'Don't have what?'
'D . . . Don't have . . . a dress . . .' I stuttered finally.
CeeCee stared at me, and then snorted. Hey, I was in a crisis here! She had no right to go around snorting!!
I calmed down in my irritation. 'Hey, just because you don't have a date, stop thinking mine's a big joke,' I snapped at her impulsively.
She blinked at me, and then looked away.
Oh, now I felt awful. 'Oh, Cee, I'm sorry. That was a mean thing to say. I'm such a loser. Well, we all know about my foot in mouth problem. My therapist is working on it, I swear. Cee? I'm sorry.' I touched her shoulder, feeling way lower by the second. 'Sorry, Cee.'
She looked at me, and although she was still hurt, she managed a smile. 'Oh well, we can't all be radiant beauties like you, Suze,' she shrugged. Her eyes were very shiny. 'At least I'm smart. But unfortunately, guys don't find that too attractive.'
And lower, and lower . . .
'Cee,' I said seriously, 'Stop all of this stuff. God, you sound like a suicidal. You're a doll, trust me. Why are you suddenly so self-critical, any way?'
'I dunno . . . Just with Adam swooning over you, it's a bit hard not to be,' she said sadly. I rubbed her back soothingly.
'Cee, please, I'm nothing special. You are.'
'Sure your special. You've got heaps of guys after you!' she blurted out, and then looked panicky. I stared at her. Was it just me, or was something weird going on?
'What do you kn –'
'Nothing?' she yelped. 'Not a thing, not an iota. Nope, not me knowing something, no.'
'You not knowing something?' I smirked, 'It hasn't been written.'
Her face relaxed.
'Well,' I continued, my voice barely a whisper, 'Wanna skip a couple of classes?'
She was horrified. 'Suze! How could you suggest that? It's ridiculous! I can't wag! That'll –'
'Kill your teacher's pet rep? Fair enough, I know you had your heart set on that university in London, whatever it's called. This'll so ruin your chances, I understand totally,' I said sarcastically, leaning back in my chair with my arms crossed.
She sighed.
'For God's sake, Suze . . .' she bit her lip. 'Okay. You owe me, Simon!'
~*~
I stood outside my house. I didn't want to go in there. Not after the other day. I didn't want to see Paul ever again. Oh, and the fact that mum would wonder why the hell I wasn't at school. But yeah, mainly Paul, you know?
But I couldn't use CeeCee's money to buy a dress. That was evil. I had to get my own. I had a nice $200 sitting pretty in my money box, if only I could get to it . . .
I told CeeCee to wait out the front, while I slipped inside. Whistling. Crap, mum was in the kitchen. Strange, usually Andy cooked. Maybe she was just washing up . . . Oh well. I was just sneaking past, when –
'WOOF!'
Shit! Max started barking like crazy from the sofa! I totally froze on the spot.
'Max? Stop barking. What's wrong?' mum called from the kitchen, coming to see what was going on.
Oh no. No, no, no, no . . . don't see me. Don't see me . . .
Footsteps so close? My heart froze. This was it. I was officially dead.
'Max?'
NO! NOT FAIR! I panicked as I saw mum's shadow over the doorway, and . . .
I dematerialized.
~*~
Isn't that cool?!
Second time I did it! I had dematerialized to my room, and thank the Lord almighty, Paul had evacuated. Permanently, I couldn't tell. Well, here's for hoping. I grabbed my money, and ran, still bubbling about how easily I had dematerialized. THIS RULED! All I had done was though about not being there, and BAM! I wasn't! Well, that and the fact that I'd been about to piss my pants, but we'll strike that from the record, huh?
'Cee, got my money. Let's go,' I said.
After a long, fairly silent walk, we were at the Carmel Mall. I gulped nervously at the large building. I think I'm kind of mallophobic or something. It sucks, it really does. I kind of get shopping overload, and I have to sit down because I get dizzy and stuff, which makes shopping really hard. But I was on a mission! I couldn't give into my childish fears! No!
WILL FIGHT AGAINST MALLOPHOBIA!
o.O
. . . Is that a word even?
Breathing a little quicker, I entered the shopping mall. CeeCee looked at me anxiously. I'd told her about my unease previously. Well, at least she'd remembered. That was nice.
'You okay?' she asked. 'Was this really worth skipping class for?'
I gave her a look. 'What kind of a question is that?' I wanted to know.
She sighed. 'A stupid one, seeing that I'm talking to you, Simon.'
'Damn straight!' I smirked, my tummy getting rather queasy. I stopped in front of a really nice looking dress shop, called "Elegance." It looked really spiffy, with mauve and silver walls, and silver tiles and stuff, and a heck of a lot of mirrors. And the dresses . . . Voila! There were SO many! Just, the problem was, well, some of them were a little skanky.
I had a sneak peak around, trying to ignore the building pressure in my head and the churning of my stomach. There were black off the shoulders, red slip dresses, light blue cowl necks, the lot. But, none of them were the right one. I tried on a few, and CeeCee seemed to like them all, but, nothing was ever quite right . . .
I examined myself in a mirror, in a pretty gold dress with no straps. It was all right, but not "it." I sighed.
'This is hopeless,' I groaned, 'I need an aspirin, Cee.'
'Come on,' she encouraged me. 'We'll find something.' She lead a dizzy me to another shop called "The Upper Class." It was a lot different to "Elegance." Everything was black and white, including the dresses. No reds, no blues, not even grey. Just black and white. I felt like I was stuck in some colourless dimension. I felt so nauseous, like I was going to faint or something.
. . . .
Then
I
Saw
It.
I stopped completely. In front of me on a tall rack, there was the most divine dress I'd ever laid eyes on. It was the purest white I'd ever seen. It was silk, with a lacy bodice that dipped into a V, which was embellished with a stylish sprinkle of diamontes. The straps were thin and sophisticated. The skirt wasn't leg tight, it flared a little and finished just below the knees, and was covered with diamontes also, which gradually got fewer as they neared the waist. It shimmered in the bright light. It looked like it was heaven's uniform. It wasn't hip, and it wasn't sexy. It was pretty. Really, REALLY pretty, but not wedding dress pretty yet. It was perfect. So perfect . . .
'Now, THAT'S a great dress,' CeeCee smiled. I sighed at it. It was really so stunning. I'm way serious. I checked the price tag, and my spirits kind of sank. It was by Petra Anderson. I didn't know who she was – no designer I knew – but I didn't care. But that wasn't the downer –
'Two hundred and fifty,' I muttered.
'With the discount?' she asked, disappointed. 'What a bummer-'
'Discount?' I demanded, 'What is this discount you speak of-'
'The fifty percent discount on last season's dresses,' she explained, pointing to the large sign on the wall above the counter. 'Anything with that red sticker on it is last season. That has a red sticker on it, right? Yeah. So, did you discount it?'
Oh my God! THIS ROCKED SO MUCH!!!
I let out a rather embarrassing squeal, and flipped my hands about excitedly. 'I have enough!' I screamed, 'I'm trying it on!'
'You do that,' she said quickly, edging away – people were staring.
I bustled into one of the change-rooms, and ripped of my slacks and my tank top, substituting it with the magnificent white evening dress. I pulled it into place, and stared into the mirror.
I stared at myself, fingering the dress gently. It fell back into place into the pearly folds of the skirt.
And suddenly . . . I felt beautiful.
I just stared at my face. At my eyes. They were bright green. My hair looked a little daggy, just in a messy bun at the back of my head, but the dress made me feel, not like a mediator . . .
. . . But like a girl.
A girl going on a date.
Beautiful.
It had never occurred to me that I could look beautiful. Good looking, maybe. Stylish, all the time. With the fashion? Totally. But beautiful was something for brides and for fairy tale princesses. I felt like one. Pretty . . .
I sighed happily, and went out to show CeeCee.
'Wow,' she breathed, her eyes misty and a little envious. She was frozen, staring at me. 'Suze, you look like you could go to the prom. That is so beautiful . . .'
I beamed. 'Getting it,' I decided, feeling so exultant that my stomach shut up completely. I was cured!
~*~
An hour later, I was at CeeCee's house. It was now six. I'd just had a shower, and CeeCee was blow drying my erratic hair in front of her mirror in her rather yellow and green bedroom. It looked nice straight. My hair, I mean, not her bedroom. It's usually all curly, and looks really weird and a little messy, but straight, it's sleek and chic. I have a slightly layered hair-cut, so my dark brown hair skims my shoulders.
'Suze, I got a surprise for you,' CeeCee grinned.
I turned to face her. 'What?'
'You know when I said I was ducking into the loo?' she smirked, pulling out a little plastic bag. 'I lied . . .'
And with that, she pulled out the most incredible necklace ever! It was silver, with several chains dangling from the front, with a few more chains running horizontally, giving it like, a spider web look or something. Every time the silver chains crossed over, it would be studded with a crystal. She then withdrew bold, matching earrings, and lastly, a diamonte hair clip. She pulled the necklace on my neck, and it just seemed to mould onto it. My breathed softly.
'CeeCee,' I said, so absurdly thrilled, but still astonished, 'You . . . you didn't have to do that. But these, there are so pretty.'
'Twenty dollars out of a bargain bin,' she shrugged. 'I took some cash along as well. That's real Swarovski crystal. Feel privileged, Suze.'
I touched the necklace lightly. I was so awed. Then, I just turned around and hugged her. No words.
'Thank you,' was all I said. She was my friend. She was a real, true friend, like Gina. I hugged her tighter.
'No biggie,' she beamed. She was clearly delighted. She very carefully put on my earrings for me, did my hair so it was half-up, half-down with little bangs coming down at the side, and clipping it with the hair clasp. It looked stunning on my dark hair, if I do say so myself. CeeCee then applied all my make-up for me. For someone who never wore anything, she sure knew what she was doing. By the end, my eyes seemed very big and green, and almost twinkling. My lips were a natural shade of pink, and I had bold eyeliner on. It was very dramatic, but looked fabulous. I don't usually look fabulous, so this was a very nice change.
'All the eye make-up is waterproof,' she assured me, 'If worst comes to worst, you know . . . '
'I doubt it,' I said confidently. Jesse wasn't like that. Well, he didn't seem like that.
*Things aren't always what they seem, Suze.*
You bet they aren't.
After all of that, it was quarter to eight. Rushing, I slipped into the Most Beautiful Dress In The World, and into some of CeeCee's high heels that matched my dress the best. She said she wore them for weddings. They were strappy silver ones. She then lent me her mother's evening handbag. I felt a little weird, using someone else's stuff, but I didn't swell on it. I had a last look in the mirror, saw that I looked quite radiant, really, in an angelic kind of way. Anyone loaning me a halo? And wings, if it's not too much trouble?
Aww, shucks.
That was when the doorbell rang.
My heart thudded in my chest. I inhaled and exhaled very carefully, trying not to skip any breaths. CeeCee walked to the door and opened it.
'Hello, CeeCee, is Susannah here?'
His voice sounded to sexy and rusty when I wasn't looking at his face. CeeCee smiled, and said, 'I'll just go get her. Wait there a second . . .'
She ran over to me, trying to maintain her excitement. 'Okay?' she asked, 'Ready?'
I released a shuddering breath. 'Ready.'
'Well, go then!' she hissed, slapping my butt for me to get a move on. Startled, I moved towards the door . . .
And wow . . .
My mouth fell open when I saw the ultimate Apollo standing there before me. Jesse De Silva. Man, did he look hot in Armani! He wore long black pants, a navy sleeved shirt that was open just enough to be heavenly, and a dark denim jacket that wasn't quite formal, but not quite casual either. He had a little cold chain with a crucifix on it. He looked perfect. And his teeth were incredible pearly this evening. Under the porch light, his hair was highlighted by brilliant gold reflections, and his eyes . . . He wasn't trying to hypnotize me and already, I was falling into a spell. His eyes, so black, mysterious, secretive, warm, so mesmerizingly dark . . .
Perfection.
I melted at the doorway like butter in the oven. I felt like I was liquid in his presence. Suze? Remember breathing? Just do that . . .
It took me a few seconds to realize that he was pretty impressed with me too, if by the way he was gazing at me longingly was any indication. I managed a smile.
'Hey, Jesse,' I greeted
'Querida,' he uttered, 'You look . . . magnífico tonight. Hermosa . . . '
I blushed, not knowing what the hell he meant. Well, "magnífico" was kind of obvious. But yeah. He was shaking his head at me softly. I didn't know why. But he had a dreamy expression on his face, so it had to be good, right? Right?!
I looked down subconsciously at my wrists. They were scarring. They looked horrible. Well, you could only notice them if you looked right at them, but still, I looked deformed. They totally screwed up the white dress . . . Totally.
He glanced down at them also, and saw why I was looking so put out. He took a step closer to me, and his finger touched my cheek. The reaction his skin had on mine tingled pleasantly.
'Please come,' he said, offering his hand. I accepted it, and he lead me to his car, that Cadilac or whatever. Yeah that's right, it was a Cadilac. See? I'm so good.
Yeah. Riiiiight . . .
After a ten minute drive, swapping compliments, we turned into this little place outside of Carmel. It was a beachfront restaurant. We exited the car. I felt rather breathless. I looked out at the ocean, washing in and out, in and out, rhythmic and repetitive. The sky was dark, with a gorgeous half moon. It was like a half a freshly manufactured quarter, all shiny and new. It reflected on the ocean brightly, a flickering silver light against a see of leather-like blackness.
Jesse touched my hand, and I was pulled out of my musing.
'Come on, querida,' he smiled mysteriously, his eyes twinkling under the moonlight. 'This is a restaurant that my family came to all the time before we moved to Seattle. It's called Sandy Dreams Restaurant. It's not much,' he added, embarrassed, 'But it has the best food I've tasted . . . '
I nodded, and he walked me in.
Oh my God . . .
NOT MUCH MY ASS!
Sure, it wasn't the biggest place, but it was all done up in candlelight, and floodlights, and had a hearty smell in the air that made my tastebuds dance and tempted me like no devil could. The smell was so good . . . In the corner, a band was playing, with a very beautiful woman singing lead. She rocked in front of the microphone stand gracefully, dressed in a bold red dress. She had an awesome voice. I really wish I could sing, you know? That would be so cool . . . Oh well, I can't.
Jesse went up to the counter. He swayed coolly as he walked. He really was a god on earth . . . So physically perfect in every possible way. Except for that scar on his eyebrow. Oh well, it only added to his character.
'"De Silva?" Secluded area?' he asked the woman there. She had droopy strawberry blonde hair.
'Yes sir,' she smiled flirtatiously at him, but Jesse didn't seem to notice. She eyed me with a cold smile that didn't reach her eyes, as if saying, "what are you doing with a guy like him?" Again, I looked insecurely at my wrists, running my fingers over the bumps of my skin that the rope had caused.
Remembering the pain . . .
'Susannah?' Jesse said, 'Follow me.'
That lady lead us to a separate area divided by a glass wall, right in front of the beach. It was overwhelming, all of this. First date? Bet no one was ever going to beat this . . . The table was set for two, and there were three candles on the table. The napkins were all beige, and were folded into this kind of crown shape. The plates were a creamy colour, and the cutlery was sparkling. Three glass walls surrounded us, basically. I could still hear the music playing, and that woman singing romantic, slow songs.
Jesse sat me down in one of the two seats, and then sat himself in the other one charmingly. He had very good posture, and elite manners. He was a real gentleman, as my mum would say. We examined the menus without much talking, and after a waitress sidled up and took our orders, - throwing Jesse another teasing look – we started to have a conversation.
'So,' I began, 'How was your week?'
'Good,' he replied.
I stared.
Finally, I said, 'Don't you just hate the start of a conversation? Because someone always has to say the right thing to get the other person to talk about something they really care about, and I always such at starting conversations, so you'd better be the one to say something clever that will be me talking –'
'Susannah,' he interrupted. I stopped, and looked directly at him.
'Yes?'
'Please . . . slow down?'
I went scarlet, and once again, looked at my wrists.
'Paul?' he asked grimly, his mouth set.
I looked back up at him. 'No . . . Heather. I lied, he did hit me once. I'm sorry I didn't tell you. Just after I sent Heather to the Shadowland, when you kissed me at school. He must have been angry.' I can really lay it on thick when I want to, huh? Why did I keep lying to him?
He nodded. 'Oh. Okay then. Please tell me you aren't like Paul was, and you use ghosts –'
'God no,' I laughed. 'No, I'm whipped, I'll admit it. I always help them. It's my job, after all.'
'A job? No, it is a birthright, Susannah. Something we must do.'
'Also known as a job,' I said. 'Go join the Father Dominic and Co. Mediation-is-a-gift worshipping club already.'
He smiled knowingly. 'If you insist.'
'I do.'
'I know.'
I stopped, and asked him something that had been bothering me for a while now. 'Jesse, why isn't Kelly Prescott here?'
He frowned. 'I do not understand. You wish for Kelly Prescott to join us?' He looked almost sick. 'Why?'
'No, not that,' I shook my head. 'I mean, why do you like me? I'm just Suze. Nothing special. Except my toes are nice. It's really good to have nice toes, you know? If I ever wanted to be a foot model, I mean. That way, then, I would probably have to stop beating the crap out of ghosts, because I could break a toe or something. Wouldn't it be weird to have the most valuable feet in the-'
He was laughing. I stopped again. 'What?'
'Too fast,' he chuckled, his hand on his chin. I blew my hair out of my eyes.
'You think I'm an airhead, don't you,' I said sadly.
He looked shocked. 'Of course not, querida. I think you are . . . amazing.'
'Yeah,' I said. 'Sure.'
He now looked disturbed. 'Susannah, I'm here because I want to be. You're here because I wanted you to be. I want YOU here with me. Not Kelly Prescott, not that coy waitress at the front counter who was trying to flirt with me.'
So he did notice it. Just modest. Oh, isn't he so sweet?
I looked at his hair again. It was so crisp and clean. Perfect.
The food came soon enough. Entrées first. I'd ordered this creamy mushroom soup which was really nice, and Jesse had this tiny seafood platter. It was really interesting to look at. We ate, and as the night deepened, we discussed more important things, like ourselves, and crucially, the ghosts we'd dealt with in the past, our methods and our hardest situations. It was really intriguing, hearing what Jesse had to say. Most of the stories involved Paul. He talked about him like they'd never been friends, just two boys who shared an ability that were thrown together.
I began to see how intensely Jesse hated Paul. I saw his eyes narrow that little bit whenever Paul's name was mentioned. It was loathing, even. After the main – I had Kennedy Classic, a steak and creamy garlic prawns, and Jesse had this fancy lamb dish – we just kept talking.
We had quite a lot in common. Well, not really. I mean, I doubted Jesse got sick whenever he entered a shopping mall. But we agreed on a lot of things, I mean. Each word he spoke, I felt myself willingly falling more and more in love with him. With his smile, with that deep little chuckle of his, with his thick black hair, with his pouty Latino lips . . . with those onyx eyes that were stealing my heart away from me. And I was powerless against his theft. I wanted to be powerless. It felt too damn good to try and stop what was happening to me. My heart was beating in my chest quite fast still, and hot blood was pumping away through me, making me feel so alive. I sank further into this spell he had on me, involving no magic or shifter gimmicks. Everything was very romantic. I felt so relaxed. It was like talking to Gina – I could tell him anything. Accept anything about Paul. He couldn't know a thing. At last, after a delicious dessert had been consumed, we just sat there, not saying a word. I stared out at the hypnotic ocean, waves crashing over each other gently. I could hear it from here . . .
Everything was so perfect.
But then, he popped up with the question, 'Would you like to dance querida?'
Huh? DANCE?! Not perfect, I CAN'T DANCE!
**************************************************************************** **********
Now review!
Oh, and Tasha? Those two translations were supposed to be "son of a bitch," and "God damn it." I'm on an auto-translater, I just write what it says!
Okay, so how was that chapter? What do you think? And guys, I'm still looking for ideas for the next story, ninth key. WARNING FOR "NINTH KEY": Someone very close to Suze is going to be involved in a tragic incident. Who do you think it's going to be?
REVIEW!! YOU ALL RULE!
Regards, Mystique Angelique.
YOU ROCK THE WORLD!!