The Waking (The Upturned Hourglass) (4 page)

Luci squared her shoulders under Jonathan’s arm as they walked. “Night demon,” she declared with assurance.

“Not a ghost this time?” Jonathan interjected, humor bubbling beneath the surface of his tone.

She shook her head seriously. “I was in her room a couple days ago. I didn’t feel anything strange.”

Valie snorted. Luci glared at her angrily.

Valie raised her hands in defense. “Sorry. I just don’t have all that much faith in your…uh…gift,” she said, making Luci pout.
“Anyway. You were saying? Night demon?”

“They’re these frightful little things with bats’ wings and glowing red eyes. They might be stealing your dreams, which, of course, totally disrupts the REM cycle.”

“Of course,” Jonathan replied, unable to keep the chuckle out of his words.

Valie, too, began to laugh. “Now see if they were howling, wolf-like creatures, maybe you’d have something. I saw one of
those
the other night. You, know, four paws, wagging tail?”

“So you saw a dog?” Jonathan laughed.

Luci flushed with anger, but Valie changed the subject before anything could come of it. The wonderful aroma of freshly brewed coffee assailed her nose and she stopped and sneezed three times.  Her friends blessed her in unison.

“Thanks. Hey, do you guys want to check out that new coffee shop across from the school? We’ve got extra time.”

The nicest thing about Luci was that she never held a grudge and now she sniffed the air, too. “I have a history test first period. I need to study,” Luci said regretfully.

“Oh, that’s all right, then. We don’t have to go this morning,” Valie offered with a forced smile, somewhat disappointed.

“Oh no, you guys can go! I’ll just meet up with you at school.”

“No. It’s cool, Luci,” Jonathan said. “We’ll just go another time.”

Valie yawned again.

Luci shook her head. “Valie needs the caffeine.”

“How about I go get my own coffee and you can go help her study? Okay?” Valie was tempted to wink at Jonathan, but knew Luci would have hated her for it. Instead she gave them both a sweet, diminutive smile.

“Sounds like a plan,” Jonathan replied. “We’ll catch you later, Valie.”

“Any hints for the history test?” Luci asked hurriedly. Valie could tell she was stalling because she was nervous to be alone with Jonathan.

“Don’t fail?”

As Luci walked away with Jonathan at her side, she glanced back at Valie, a sudden, nervous look in her eye.

Valie mouthed
You’ll be fine
before waving and turning away to continue to the coffee shop.

The clear, fingerprint-less glass door of the shop, swung heavily outward as Valie entered. The shop’s name and logo were etched broadly across the pristine glass double-doors. Valie caught the draft of the interior and thought the name most apt—
Steam
.

The warm, moist, fragrant air pleasantly brushed her skin. The room seemed quite spacious, though there were many small tables. Overall, the atmosphere of the room was that of lackadaisical comfort and put Valie immediately at ease.

There were only a few patrons and no line, so when Valie walked up to the register, the barista looked especially enthusiastic to serve her.

“A small cup of coffee with whip cream, please,” Valie ordered. The barista—a young woman, not much older than herself—grinned amiably and went to get the hot drink Valie was eager for. She desperately needed the energy boost, more than the heat; it was comfortable in the quaint shop.

As Valie turned away from the counter so as not to appear rude, she breathed into her hands, which remained somewhat cold.

Valie liked the coffee shop—it had a certain charm. It wasn’t just some Starbucks knockoff. Someone had actually put time, effort, and personality into the place. The royal purple couches and textured, warm brown walls served as the focal point of the odd design with mismatching cups and saucers for the people who stayed to enjoy the relaxed ambiance. Valie was just about to pick up one of the cups—hand painted by the look of it—when she felt the chilled wind blow in from an open door.

She started to turn to see who’d entered when the barista caught her attention. “Miss? Your drink…”

She turned to the young woman who held a steaming cup
out to take. “Thank you.” Valie smiled at her and went to take a seat at one of the vacant overstuffed armchairs. It was then that she noticed him—it must have been the person who’d entered before, though she had no clue how she’d missed his presence at the counter. He was standing just to the side of her, idly looking at some of the books and magazines available. Valie tried to blink, but couldn’t seem to. He was breathtaking.

The boy was dark-headed with a chaotic attractiveness to his style. He wasn’t especially tall, but his form was lithe, giving him a strong-looking presence without any imposing height. She watched him as he strode to the front of the counter. His movements were muscular, graceful. Though, there was something about his manner and the way he smiled at the café employee that gave Valie the impression that the boy was capable of great mischief.

Valie’s hearing fixated on his smooth voice. “Large coffee. Black. With two shots of espresso, please.”

How much of a caffeine fix did this guy need? Was that healthy?

“Coming right up,” the barista replied. Her pleasant voice sounded almost rough in comparison with the stranger’s.

He turned then and caught Valie staring.

She didn’t care. She would not have traded anything for that one glimpse of his face before she flushed and looked away. It made sense that the most beautiful boy she’d ever seen would have the most beautiful eyes, too. But was it possible to have such eyes? They were azure, such a dark blue they almost looked black—and penetrating. Valie, in that instant, felt as clear as glass, utterly shallow compared to the depth of those eyes.

Luckily reflex dictated that she
look down as quickly as possible—if that had not been the case she probably would have stared for an eternity.

For a moment, Valie felt the boy watch her as he stood there by the counter. Out of habit, she began to fiddle with her hair, tidying little wisps behind her ears. Finally he moved away to his old position by the magazines. It took all Valie’s willpower not to look up, afraid he might catch her staring again.

When his drink was ready, he took it with a courteous “thank you” and moved silently away to a small corner table in the rear of the shop, almost out of sight—but not quite. Valie’s position was close to the door and it frustrated her immensely that he could see her better than she could see him. The boy’s mere presence in the room was like an electric charge which seemed to flow out of him, and through the air—Valie acting as a lightning rod, making her whole being throb.

Valie considered shifting in her chair to have a better vantage point, but she decided against it; it was too obvious. So she sat there, silently sipping her coffee, trying to focus on the delicious taste the drink provided rather than the hopeful feeling building in her stomach that someone was watching her.

The boy made no noise and every once in awhile Valie slipped, glancing in his direction, checking that he was still there. Each time, her eyes flickered to his waiting gaze. Valie berated herself, saying it was just her imagination—he wasn’t watching. But each time, she was not disappointed.

Finally, she had emptied her drink. She looked despairingly down at the dry cup and contemplated buying more just for a valid excuse to stay there longer. If he could drink a large mug of nearly pure liquid caffeine, Valie thought she could pretend to want another small cup of coffee…

However, just as she rose to buy a refill—in the blind hope that she could sneak a better look at the dazzling boy—another person walked through the glass door to the shop.

This time it was a girl who entered and her entrance was much more noticeable than the beautiful boy’s. She dashed right past Valie to the table where the young Adonis was seated and grabbed him by the shoulders, her tall, slender figure towering over the chocolate-haired boy who was leaning casually against the brown wall. The girl’s curled, bleach blonde hair fell around her face obscuring the few features Valie had glimpsed, but from what she could tell the girl was pretty enough for her beauty to not be obscured by the handsome boy’s. They were quite a pair.

Of course this boy would have a girlfriend. He was far too attractive to have avoided coupling for long. And Valie guessed she could picture worse girls…

Valie plopped her chin into her cupped hands and rolled
her eyes. She was jealous of a girl she didn’t know for being with a boy she’d never met. It was ridiculous. Maybe the fact that Luci practically had a boyfriend was getting to her after all. 

Valie contemplated leaving, throwing herself out of temptation but couldn’t bring herself to do it. Unable to resist, she returned to observing the pair with interest.

The girl was chattering away about something or other and seemed excited, enthusiastic. Though the boy’s response—a casual running of his hand through his chocolate-brown hair and a small, indulgent smile—suggested he wasn’t truly interested. He seemed unperturbed—in fact, a little . . . patronizing toward her? The blonde suddenly sat down and looked away petulantly. The boy just laughed softly and shook his head.

Once more the cobalt eyes found Valie’s. Now she really felt desperate to stop this whole game. Not only did she blush deeply and quickly avert her eyes, but this time she literally jumped to her feet and began to gather her things. Her whole body was turned toward the window. She heard him chuckling—probably at her, which made her furious with him and herself. Valie thought the blonde was laughing, too, but she was too embarrassed to check.

Once the girl had packed her things quickly and threw on her jacket, she felt a cool breeze waft through the room. The door had glided open for an extended period. Just long enough to let the interesting pair make their exit.

Valie came to the window and stared after them for over a minute as they advanced down the street in step. The girl’s long-haired curls bounced in time with her quick stride. The boy marched gracefully beside her, his arms raised, hands folded behind his head.

Emotionally drained, Valie almost fell back into her chair. These random events had transpired in less than twenty minutes, but it seemed like she had been watching the boy for hours.

It was only when the pair had disappeared around the corner that Valie remembered who she was and where she was going. Carefully, she set down her cup and grabbed her bag, then sprinted out the door and back into the cold. She inhaled the fresh air gratefully and ran, the image of the beautiful boy
emblazoned on her mind.

CHANGE OF FATE

As she sprinted down the empty hallways of
Anders High School, Valie’s sneakers squeaked loudly on the old linoleum— echoing, she feared, throughout the whole building. The bell had rung moments before she’d entered the school grounds and Mrs. Ables’ English class was on the far side of the main building. She was going to be late, something she hated almost as much as she hated the school.

As she dashed passed the various classrooms and slid to a stop near Mrs. Ables’ room, she remembered her copy of
The Scarlet Letter
was in her locker, a locker so remote there was no way of running there and back in an acceptable amount of time. Maybe Mrs. Ables would fail to notice her lack of a book…

Yeah. And maybe night demons were stealing her dreams.

Valie placed her hand on the knob of the classroom door, but hesitated, taking a couple of quick deep breaths to reduce her heart rate. She knew she would look flushed from the run; there was no way of helping that, but she didn’t need to be gulping down air like an asthmatic.

When her breathing was steadier, she opened the door and meekly entered the room, trying to avoid her teacher’s eyes. Except for a few whispers, the room was silent. Valie glanced around to find that the class was quietly delving deep into the recesses of Nathaniel Hawthorn’s dirty mind. Everyone stole a glance at her, but Mrs. Ables strolled menacingly down the aisles, determined that they not miss a word.

It was the perfect day to not have a book.

Valie sighed deeply and waited for Mrs. Ables to inevitably take notice of her. She finally turned her sharp features to face Valie’s awkward form near the door. She looked down her nose at the girl, disapproval oozing out her eyes, and indicated with one wrinkled hand that she should take her seat.