KISS (16 page)

Saint Louis.
It was her last thought.
The alarm clocked jarred her awake and she could hear her dad
shouting for her from downstairs. It was a tradition of theirs to
go fishing every morning. She rushed into the bathroom to brush her
teeth and drag a brush through her mane; her hair was wild, curly,
stretching past her shoulders and down her back. She had sky blue
eyes and sun kissed skin. She was quite beautiful but remained
unaware of such beauty.

Her dad waited downstairs for her. Short blond
hair covered his head and stunning sapphire eyes greeted her. He
smiled down at her as she raced into his arms.

“
Hi daddy!”

“
Good morning sweetheart.” They
each grabbed a cup of coffee, along with their toast and eggs.
Sitting down they quickly gobbled their food, barely pausing to
breathe. It wasn’t her fault. She got her unsavory manners from her
dad.

“
Ready?”

“
Yep.” Off they went to their
fishing pond.

Carondelet Park was established in 1875 and it
was the third largest park in the city of Saint Louis. Layla loved
the park, and the history that was a part of it. It just so
happened to be one of her favorite fishing spots. Her dad promised
to take her to Bennett Springs later in the summer. She smiled as
they cast their lines. It was a competition between them to catch
largest fish. She settled in, listening to the sway of the water
and the chirping of the birds.

“
You’ve got a birthday coming up
sweetheart.” Layla knew about her upcoming birthday. What kid
didn’t? She was a summer baby. There was nothing she really wanted
except her mother, but she kept that little thought to herself. She
couldn’t bear the pain that filled her father’s eyes.

“
I know, I’ll be eighteen soon,
then senior year will start.”

“
Isn’t there anything you
want?”

“
I don’t know dad. There’s not much
out there. I’m happy as I am.” She said smiling at him.

“
You’re a good kid,” he said trying
not tear up.

“
You’ll let me know if there was
anything wrong?” he asked her. She looked at her dad in confusion,
she came to him for everything. She couldn’t imagine a time when
she would not seek his advice.

“
Of course, dad. I’ve got a bite,”
she said laughing. “Look out old man, it’s my time to shine!” Layla
felt the fishing pulling on the bait. She reeled it in as fast as
she could. She felt the rod bend, the sound of the string releasing
filled the air. Her father set aside his own rod to cheer his
daughter on.

“
C’mon Layla, don’t be a girl and
let ‘em go.” He said goading her.

“
I am not being a girl,” she said
as she pulled and the fish came flying out of the water. It flopped
wildly about. She quickly strung the fish and tossed it in a large
bucket of water. She caught a large trout. Dinner was going to be
very fulfilling tonight. She smiled he was going to have to gut
them all. After catching the first fish and beating her dad she was
able to close her eyes for a brief nap. It was so easy to do with
the birds singing their lullaby and the wind whispering in her
ears.

When she opened her eyes, her father was no
longer beside her. The sun was high in the sky shining brightly and
filling her with its warmth. It always made her feel alive. She
glanced around searching for her father, maybe he left to go use
the men’s room. Layla’s thoughts flickered towards the emerald
green eyes imprinted in her mind. They were so vivid, and so real,
sighing she shook her thoughts aside. Suddenly, a feeling of
uneasiness filled her, her skin prickled indicating something
watched her. She scanned her surroundings looking for an intruder,
but didn’t see anyone; her brain must be fried from spending so
much time sun bathing. She wiped her hands on her blue jean shorts
and stood. All the fish they’d caught were gone, she speculated
whether or not her father was still gutting them. Anyhow, she
needed to find him. She was hungry and ready to go home.

She found her dad pacing back and forth on the
phone, watching from the safety of the trees, she couldn’t make out
his conversation. The only words she caught was the awakening. She
was confused. Awakening? What did that mean? She stepped on a stick
and it cracked beneath her foot reverberating through the air. She
cursed the birds as they fled from the trees threatening to give
her cover away. She needed to relax, she was a couple of feet away,
and her heart stumbled when her dad twisted around as if he heard
it. His gaze pierced her, but that was crazy he couldn’t see her
from this distance. When he continued his conversation as if
nothing happened, she relaxed. Her dad wouldn’t hide anything from
her.

***

The young man watched her from the woods. He
thought she was beautiful, she took his breath away. He didn’t
understand why he’d never noticed her. Her skin glowed and her sky
blue eyes stared into his soul. She would make the perfect
companion for him. He smiled. It would be easy luring her in and
making her his. He wanted to possess her in every way. Who knew he
would find such a rare gem here on earth. He turned his back and
used a dagger cutting a rift into the air. Stepping quickly into
the rift, he returned home.

Layla sat on the stool watching her father
seasoned and put the fish in the oven. Her stomach growled as the
smell wafted through the house. The phone rang and she jumped to
answer it.

“
Dad, I’m going to take this,” she
shouted. She ran upstairs with the phone in her grasp.

“
Hi Ryu! What’s going
on?”

“
Nothing much, wanted to see if you
got anything plan for your upcoming eighteenth
birthday.”

“
Nothing much, I don’t know if my
dad and I are going to do something.”

“
Your dad is one hottie!” she
giggled on the line.

“
Eww, I do not want to hear you
talk about my dad like that. I want to hurl.”

“
You know it’s true, everyone is
salivating after him. Women are practically throwing their panties
at him; this does include the female population at your
school.”

“
How annoying. Let’s just drop it.”
She said sighing.

“
You’re right of course, no one
wants to hear about their dad and his nightly activities. Anyway,
you should definitely find a hottie to date this year.”

“
I’m not interested in dating,” she
said exasperated into the phone.

“
Why not?”

“
I’m just not, there’s no one that
catches my eye.” She couldn’t possibly tell her about the emerald
green eyes that consumed her thoughts day and night.

“
You still dreaming about that
guy?” Ryu asked.

“
What?” she asked
surprised.

“
C’mon, you told me about that when
we were little girls. Your knight in shining armor that was going
to show up and save you.”

“
Girl, that only happens in
fairytales. Unfortunately, I live in a world called reality; where
that will never happen.”

“
You are so young to be so cynical.
Haven’t you heard of the hallmark channel? I recommend you watch
it. So what are we having for dinner?”

“
Trout.”

“
Ooo, on my way over love. See ya
in a bit.”

Layla shook her head. She looked in the mirror
to make sure she was still presentable. She felt odd, like her
center was off. She looked again and she saw her eyes flashed from
their sky blue color to a fuchsia, it was only for a nanosecond.
Was it even real? Did she imagine the whole thing? She shook her
head to clear her mind. After massaging her temples to get rid of
the headache she threw her hands out, and was surprised when all
her dresser drawers opened. Her heart thudded loudly filling her
ears with its erratic beat, as she looked around like a wild woman
who spent endless nights in the jungle.

This was a dream. None of this was happening.
She could feel the tremors starting. Taking a deep breath she
dispelled any panic that threaten to consume her. Layla quickly
closed each drawer and made her way downstairs, clearly the sun had
addled her brains.

Ryu burst through the front door.

“
Honey, I’m home,” she shouted into
the house. Layla laughed at her. She couldn’t help but smile at
Ryu’s large personality.

“
Welcome, Ryu. Dinner will be serve
in 10 minutes.”

“
Thanks, Mr. Vatskui.” She said as
she grabbed Layla’s hand racing into the basement. Ryu loved
Layla’s basement, there was a large entertainment area with a pool
table, dartboard and large flat screen TV; what more could a girl
ask for? The girls sat around and played music.

“
What’s eating you?” Ryu asked
her.

“
There’s nothing wrong, I guess I’m
just nervous about senior year starting.” Layla knew that she
couldn’t very well tell Ryu the truth. She still questioned what
really happened upstairs. Her eyes flashing colors wasn’t normal.
Thankfully her dad entered with the trout and some steam
veggies.

“
Thanks dad,” she said taking the
plate from him and smiling. She focused on her food.

Ryu watched her friend eat. She knew something
was off about Layla today. She seemed a bit detached. Then again,
maybe she was reading too much into it. She observed Khalel
interaction with Layla. It was time her friend learned the truth.
Time was running out and she would reach womanhood soon. She would
be the first of her kind. Apart from Khalel and her parents, Ryu
was the only person who knew of her existence. She guarded the
secret with her life. There was one thing that Khalel left out and
it was the identity of Layla’s parents. She never asked, but she
was very curious about it. It was quite strange to be in a foreign
land where magic, dragons, and other species were nothing but
folklore. Once she finished dinner, she gave Layla a
hug.

“
You know you can tell me anything.
No matter how crazy it sounds, I’m your girl.” She whispered in her
ear giving her a squeeze. Call it woman’s intuition, but she knew
there something bothering Layla. She figured Layla would tell her
when she was ready.

“
Thanks for dinner Mr. Vatskui!” He
would call later. It was time they plan and make their next
move.

Layla buried her head under her pillow, her
mind attempted to process the day’s events. What was happening to
her? Magic didn’t exist. It was simply her imagination, she’d spent
too much time in the sun. Yeah, that was it. Eventually, she fell
asleep.

She walked along the corridor of an old and
ancient castle. Markings she’d never seen before adorned its walls,
but also seemed vaguely familiar.

“
Who are you?” a deep and masculine
voice demanded. Layla turned quickly to face the new mystery man.
Sitting on a throne was massive figure. One thing she did recognize
were his emerald green eyes, they’d been haunting her for so long
that she would know them anywhere.

“
I’ve seen you before,” she
whispered moving towards the mystery man. “Your eyes.” The shadow
man jumped from his throne, the movement reminded her of a large
cat, he moved like a predator. She couldn’t see his face, but those
eyes of his had become so familiar to her. He reached for her, but
it was too late. She drifted away and her dream took on a darker
theme. She was in a dungeon. She could hear screaming. Was it
coming from her? Her fear filled the air. One word ran through her
mind. Onyx.

Layla jolted awake, her heart thundered in her
chest, and she was drenched in sweat. What was that? The dream
frayed away to the edges of her mind until it was completely gone.
She could no longer recall it. Taking a quick shower, she changed
her sheets and cracked her window. The night air soothed her. She
laid down and drift off into a restless sleep.

Chapter 2: Sorceress Dilemma

The next morning Layla stretched her sleepy
and tired muscles. There was a burning sensation in the pit of her
stomach that was there yesterday. She didn’t recall eating any
spice foods. Maybe it was the fish. Today would be a better and
weird free day. Rushing to the bathroom she checked her eyes. They
were their usual color, a nice sky blue. Once she finished her
morning hygiene routine she felt better. There was clearly
something in the fish she ate yesterday that had her spacing
out.

He sat in his office, gazing at the scenic
view. His favorite time of the day was watching the two suns that
mirrored each other rise. It was the sign of hope for his people.
There were those who said the time of the dragon was over; but for
him it was just beginning. A rumble fell from his throat as he
stretched. He wished to be out in the open flying freely, but since
the last Great War, the council feared for their kind—they’d lost
many warriors and younglings. The council feared for their species
and as a result they were trying to tame a species that was meant
to be wild and free. Living under such conditions was not the
answer to their problems. They were a proud race. He’d been alive
for thousands of years, and this was a time where he wondered if
the time of the dragon was really at an end. Fear spread across his
nation because he hadn’t found a mate. What would the people do, if
their King was no more? He understood the dire circumstances better
than anyone. He knew he needed an heir; however he would not just
settle for anyone. He wanted his true mate.