Chapter 26: Where's Sebastian When You Need Him?

We had been flying back home from the convenience store for most of the time, but as we got closer, not only were we tired from carrying heavy bags, but we didn't want to risk being seen by anyone, so we decided to walk the few miles to the house. It was a silent walk in exception to the crickets that seemed to be following us with their annoying chirping and fireflies buzzing around and blinking their lights like watch towers, on and off, on and off, on and...

"Your mom" said Fang suddenly and I gritted my teeth.

"What is with you and your obsession with my mom?!" I asked, anger clearly entering my voice.

"I know why you don't want to look for her" Fang continued calmly, seeming to ignore my outburst. I quickly quieted down and looked at him in shock.

He knew?

He couldn't.

He can't read minds.

But when he met my stare, I had to look away again. I had the sudden feeling that he could see right through me when he looked in my eyes, see my every emotion, read me like an open book.

Was that a stupid accusation?

Maybe.

Was it cheesy?

Without a doubt.

Was it true?

Most definitely.

"You're scared. Afraid of what might happen if you did meet her. You're worried that she might not be the person that she is in your mind" he mumbled. My hand involuntarily clutched the grocery bag handles tighter and I kept my eyes down.

Was it so easy to see? Maybe Angel had read it in my mind at some time or another and conveyed it to him. Either way, I wasn't going to admit to him that he was right. But apparently, my silence said it all.

"You're not the only one, you know" Fang said.

"What about you and everyone else? What about your parents? Did you try and find them?" I asked, keeping my eyes away from him.

"Yeah, we looked. We found Iggy's parents, but things didn't turn out the way we thought it would" Fang said.

The forest that we were in began to open up, giving us more walking space instead of having to step over tree roots. I looked up at the sky to see a clear night with stars shining brightly and the moon big and round; very unusual for England.

"I just don't want for everyone to have to leave for nothing. Especially Melody" I said.

"Melody can take care of herself. Besides, she's willing to go, no matter what the outcome is" replied Fang. I picked up my pace slightly so that I could turn to face him while walking backwards.

"And what makes you say that?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at him. He just shrugged casually.

"Because she tells me. Why, is the big sister out of the loop?" Fang asked, a smile playing on his lips. I scowled at him.

"I know a lot of things about her; definitely more than you" I said defensively.

"Okay then. Name one" Fang challenged.

"Okay, fine. What she wants to be when she grows up is-"

"A vet" said Fang as he cut me off. "Continue."

"Her favorite food" I said.

"Steak,"

"Favorite flower,"

"Daffodil,"

"Favorite color,"

"Sky blue,"

I glowered at his smile, trying to think of something that she wouldn't tell anyone but me. And then I thought of one suddenly; the most personal thing that she had confided in me and made me swear that I wouldn't utter a single word to anyone.

"Ok, since you know her so well, what is her best memory?" I asked confidently. But it was then that I felt my heel catch on something and began to fall backward until I hit the ground with a loud thud. The grocery bag that I was carrying left my hand right as I hit the ground and rolled away, some of the items peeking out of the safety of the plastic bag. My breath had left me and I tried to prop myself up so that it would be easier for me to catch my breath. The thing that I had tripped over was the root of a tree, just sticking out of the ground randomly, as if the earth was ejecting it from its brown soil.

"Ember..." I heard Fang say as he brought his foot over the root to avoid the mistake that I made. But it had moved; the root had raised itself higher, tripping Fang regardless and causing him to fall right on top of me. Both bags he was carrying flew out of his hands, and he put his hands in front of him in an attempt to brace himself.

It was all too fast for me to move out of the way in time, so I put my hand out in front of myself to try and stop him. My palm made contact with his chest in a matter of seconds and I found myself inches away from Fang's face and his lips. His breath smelt oddly of spearmint and it hit my face like a bulldozer in response to his abrupt stop. We stayed in that position for what seemed like an eternity to me, my heart drumming in my ears while staring wide-eyed at him.

"It's you" Fang murmured, and I blinked twice, trying to understand what he just said.

"Huh?" I asked stupidly.

"If I were her, my best memory would be you" Fang said, his eyes never leaving mine, and it dawned on my slow brain that he was moving closer to me, like those anticipated kissing scenes that I only thought existed in movies. His eyes were entrapping me, disabling my body from moving or my brain from thinking, and I was losing myself fast in his midnight eyes...and then it began to pour. We were instantly soaked, sitting in an awkward position in dirt that was rapidly turning into puddles and under no shelter.

But I didn't care.

It didn't matter to me that the rain was seeping into my clothes or that my hair felt heavier on my head. It didn't matter even matter that thunder was rumbling overhead. We were still staring at each other, communicating not with words but with our eyes.

Fang had never looked as good as he did now with his hair drenched so that it stuck to his face and his bangs almost fell into his eyes with rain streaming down all the way to his chin, his eyes looking like charcoal in the night. His stare brought a fluttering feeling in my stomach and I instantly knew its interpretation.

I wanted him.

I wanted him now.

He may not like it, but I would worry about that later.

"Maybe we should get home" Fang said. I blinked again, and my mind revved up with a million thoughts.

Yes, that's right. Get home. You have food to bring, you have people who are waiting up for you, and you have duties; always have, always will. Get your head out of the clouds.

Yeah, I could think that all I wanted, but it didn't soften the blow of being rejected.

I nodded and Fang got up from the ground. He held out his hand to me and I took it without saying a word, not even looking at his face. The minute that I was standing, I took my hand out of his and went to get the grocery bag. Luckily, nothing had been damaged, so I was able to pick it up and start walking toward home with Fang right beside me, letting the rain drown out all sounds and run down my face in an attempt to silence my mind of thoughts.

.^"^.^"^.^"^.^"^.^"^.^"^.

Author's Note: Yes, yes. Very cheesy. Might change a few things in this chapter, but oh well lol. But you know, I will never know what needs changing unless I get reviews *coughcoughHACKcough* lol. (In case you didn't get that, it meant that I need reviews from you people XD).