When Dairine awoke early the next morning, her room was gray with the light that came before dawn. Quietly she slipped out from under the covers, taking care not to disturb Nita. Dairine crept over to her window and slid it open. She climbed onto the windowsill, faced inward, and took hold of the edge of her roof with both hands. Then, with a motion that had taken years to perfect, she swung herself up and over.
Dairine knew that she could have used wizardry to reach the top of her roof much faster, but she preferred to do it this way. She liked the feeling it gave her, the way her heart pounded from adrenaline and her breath grew fast and heavy. She felt the effort it took and was reminded that everything was a spell in its own way. And as she sat there drinking in the sunrise, she felt replenished, as if the sun's rays were fill her with peace and strength.
It was a private ritual that Dairine had never shared with anyone. She knew that the world perceived as somewhat tough and unfeeling, and she liked that image of herself more than she cared to admit. Deep down, however, Dairine appreciated beauty as much as the next person, maybe more. How could she be a wizard otherwise?
When the sun had fully risen, Dairine sighed and clambered back down into her room. She dressed as quietly as possible so as not to wake Nita. When she was ready to leave, however, she hesitated, then walked over and tucked the blankets more tightly around Nita. "Sweet dreams, Neets," She whispered. Then, with a barely audible pop of displaced air, she was gone.
Kit was lying on his bed trying to read a book, but he kept getting distracted by thoughts of Nita. Finally he gave up and just lay there, thinking. He was drifting off into what promised to be a pleasant dream when he heard his sister Carmela's voice screeching at him from downstairs.
"KIT! KIT! GET UP, YOU LAZY BUM! NITA'S HERE TO SEE YOU! KIT!"
Kit snapped out of dreamland almost immediately. Nita! Nita was here? Or was he still dreaming? He decided to go find out.
Kit ran downstairs, taking the steps two at a time, to find that Nita was indeed waiting for him at the door, but she did not look remotely happy to see him. In fact, she looked desperately uncomfortable.
"Hey," Kit ventured, giving her a nervous smile that she did not return.
"Hi," She responded softly, "wanna go for a walk?"
"Sure,' Kit agreed.
They stepped out of the house and began to walk down Kit's street. Kit could literally feel the tension air between them, which seemed to crackle with electricity. He stole several furtive glances at Nita. How she managed to look beautiful in jeans and a sweatshirt, with her hair pulled back in a ponytail, was a mystery to him, but she did. Then she opened her mouth and ruined everything.
"I've been thinking," Nita began.
"Always dangerous," Kit joked, trying to lighten the mood. Nita didn't laugh, but waited for the smile to drop off his face before she continued.
"This isn't working out."
Nita's words hit him like a freight train going way too fast. Kit wished time would pause, rewind, but instead it seemed to be stuck on fast forward.
"What?" He managed to croak.
For the first time that day, Nita looked Kit right in the eye. He thought he registered a flicker of sadness in her eyes, a hint of regret. Then it was gone.
"You know what I mean," Nita kept speaking, oblivious to the fact that her every word pierced Kit like an arrow through his heart. "You, me. We aren't working out. Look, Kit, please don't make this harder than it actually is. If the Powers That Be send something our way that needs dealing with, you know I'll be right there, fighting with you. But for now, there's nothing. And I just don't think we should see each other anymore. I'm…I'm sorry."
Nita stepped forward and gave Kit an awkward hug. He buried his face in her hair, inhaling the sweet smell of her, and wondered if it was the last time he would ever hold her close to him. Close enough to feel the beating of her heart. He wanted to savor the moment, but she pulled away after only a few seconds.
"So…bye then," Nita mumbled.
"Bye," Kit responded numbly.
Nita spared him a nod and then turned briskly away. She walked away form him with her shoulder's squared and her head held high, as if she had better things to do. She went to the CVS on the corner and bought herself a coke, which she sipped as she sat in a park and looked up at the clear blue sky. Her body went through the motions, but her mind had checked out, gone MIA. She would have been worried if she could find it in herself to care. Her feet guided her home, to her room, where she sat down on her bed, kicked off her shoes, and came completely undone.