Original Stories Fan Fiction ❯ Flowers of Occultism ❯ Silver Rose ( Chapter 8 )

Chapter 8

Silver Rose

 

You are absolutely crazy.

 

I know, isn't it great?

 

You really can't perceive the situation here can you? Do you really want to be responsible for inadvertently killing someone?

 

She's more than what you think. She's strong enough, I know it. I know you can see that too. Or, I guess you would smell it first, ne?

 

Not funny. But you really think she has an-

 

I know she does. And she has enough power. I'll prove that to both you and her…tonight.

 

Now where are you going?

 

Shopping. Watch after her in my absence. She very well might hold the key to our whole future.

 

……….You shouldn't choose someone on account of how much power they have……your mother would not have approved, rose-boy.

 

***

The dress was perfect, of course.

 

I awoke on the couch, and I gasped as soon as I saw it. The top was a vibrant red with a V neckline, a deep V backline and cap sleeves. The skirt was a red crinoline with black tulle covering it and belled out just enough. That annoying, itchy tulle didn't touch my legs, but the dress wasn't too wide to look stupid. It was lying in the chair, perfectly positioned so I would see it when I woke up, and I didn't even need to guess who had put it there.

 

It was William, though, who was standing in the kitchen, drying off a wine glass with a small hand towel. “Good morning Hali,” he greeted me in that warm voice of his and a smile. “You're up rather early,” he commented when he saw me admiring the dress.

 

I smiled back at him and took a swift look at the digital clock below the TV (it read 8:06). “Morning Will. Steven's not up yet?” I asked without thinking, the eagerness in my voice surprising me. I shouldn't be saying things like that….

 

William chuckled, and my guess was he had picked up on it too. “No, he had a long night. I think he got back here at about four. Sounded like he had to scour almost half the city.” He nodded toward the garment.

 

“I guess,” I whispered in awe, thinking what kinds of shops were open that late at night, and how it was possible that one of those shops really had this. I usually wasn't the kind of girl who wore this kind of thing, but the history-nut in me always wondered what it would have been like when things like this were the norm. And it was red and black too! He must have really put thought into this. I had only mentioned Shadow once to him, and yet he still remembered and registered the significance. “Beautiful…” I whispered hopefully inaudibly.

 

Will chuckled again, and I noted that he must have really good ears: I'd barely said anything. I heard the cooing noises I knew unmistakably as Gigo's coming from the kitchen, but I couldn't see him because of the high counter. William threw him an annoyed look. “Will you calm down? At least let me cut it first; we can't have you swallowing it whole, not after last time…” I saw him cut into something he had set on the counter, and it took me a moment to recognize it as a grapefruit. He handed half of it down to Gigo (there was an odd squelching noise and the sound of chewing), and then the other half.

 

My eyebrows rose. “Grapefruit?” I questioned.

 

William shrugged. “Yeah, I don't know either. He loves the stuff though.”

 

I smiled, shaking my head a little. Gigo reminded me so much of Jo it as scary. Not the whole devouring grapefruit thing, but the whole, random, scary, bouncing-of-the-walls-twenty-four-seven thing. Pushing the thought aside, I stood up and started walking automatically over to the door to Steven's room. I thought I heard William chuckle again, but I ignored him. Stupid, arrogant, noble-like, critic can think what he likes.

 

I pushed the door open slowly, not wanting to wake him. Peering in, however, I noticed that he wasn't even in his bed. Confused, I opened the door a bit more…..and saw him standing by the large window. He was partially turned away from me, so I couldn't see that much of him, but I could tell he had is eyes closed. He was wearing the same pants from the night before (I guess he slept in them), but a different shirt, a detail for which I was glad. His hands seemed like they were holding something, but from my angle I couldn't see what it was.

 

There was an oddity about the whole scene though. The sunrise seemed to have an odd, silverish glow it, and I heard an odd noise, somewhere between a hum and a sustained sung note, in a beautiful voice I'd come to associate with him…

 

He knew I was there somehow. In some odd way of his, he was aware of me; that much I could tell. Still, with my shy demeanor, I couldn't help but try to hide behind the partially opened door.

 

He smiled over his shoulder at me. I took that as invitation enough to enter, and with a slight flutter in my chest, I did so. I wasn't any good at coming up with (good) topics of conversation, so I figured I'd just start out by doing the `good-girl' thing. “Thank you….” I said shyly after a few moments in awkward silence.

 

He set whatever he had been holding down on a nearby table, and he turned to face me in such a way that I couldn't see what it was. “I thought you might like it; it seemed like it would suit you.” I couldn't decipher his tone, or his smile. It was close to my smile, what I now called the smile that was for my eyes alone, but it wasn't quite right on.

 

I felt odd, like I should pay him back or something but he spoke before I could offer. “Think of it as sort of….a thank-you present.”

 

I was taken aback. Thank-you? What could I have possibly done for him? “For what?”

 

He sighed and fixed me with an intense sort of look that for some reason made me flush. “Well depending on how tonight goes……a number of things.”

 

Ah yes, tonight. I remembered Steven's promise to reveal everything tonight. Everything about Steven and me (if there truly was anything) would be completely altered. I didn't even have a guess as to what I would be hearing, or if I was prepared for it. But something about his promise for tonight carried a certain weight to it ….

 

…….There were too many variables for a no-risk taker like me. But it was all going downhill now and there was no stopping it.

 

My blush grew deeper as my stomach let out a mournful whine. Steven laughed, the seriousness and tension in the room melting as he did. I laughed with him, albeit abashedly. Since our questionnaire from last night, well, my questionnaire, I figured there was no harm in asking him anything now. I didn't want to jump the gun, but one I thought was innocent enough to ask. “So what were you doing when I came in, if you don't mind me asking?” Ugh, darn. That didn't come out like I'd meant to. I couldn't let my father and his strict upbringing of me pull my strings when he wasn't even here!

 

He smiled nostalgically, his vision fading away, like he was deep in thought or somewhere else. “Just thinking,” he mused, turning away from me back to the window.

 

As he turned, I finally saw what he must have been holding earlier. It was a small planter pot, barely big enough to hold the bouquet it contained. Around the outside edge there small, short stemmed roses, each a different color. I remembered someone telling me that each color of rose had a different meaning, but I couldn't remember what any of them were. All the outside roses had not bloomed, and their petals were close together, curling around the center of the flower like hurricane winds around the eye.

 

And in the center………in the center of the pot was a huge, full-bloomed rose that was so overflowing with petals the stem wasn't visible. I had no idea a tea-rose flower could get that big. Yet, it still looked just as young as the surrounding multicolor roses. The color of the middle rose blew me away too; redder then blood or anything I'd ever seen. I noted that none of the outside roses were red like the center one and wondered if there was some significance.

 

“Wow….” I said in an exhale. I longed to reach out and touch it, but I feared that it would somehow soil its splendor.

 

As I spoke, Steven looked back at me briefly, clearly wondering what I was looking at. He followed me awed gaze to the flower and his mouth tightened for a moment, almost making him grimace, before slipping into a sad smile. “It was…my mother's” he said hesitantly.

 

I blinked in surprise, and I was a little ashamed. I didn't like it when somebody brought up something uncomfortable about my mom. What I really hated though was the awkward apology that always followed, so I stopped the `I'm sorry' from coming out of my mouth. Trying to think of something to say, I remembered Steven mentioning that his mother died a while ago. Most flowering plants can't live that long (I guessed so anyway, I didn't pay much attention to sixth grade science because the teacher was a douche), and even if they could, they wouldn't look near that healthy. “You've…taken really good care of it,” I finally managed out.

 

The sad smile spread a bit, but now it had more of a… knowing edge to it, like there was some secret about this rose that only he knew.

 

I studied him, and noticed that his hair was full of glimmering facets again. That shimmering, silver color always drove me crazy…

 

He turned to me and smiled my smile (why the heck was I calling it that? Too much Twilight…). “Come on, let's eat. Before Will and the furball empty out the kitchen.”

 

***

 

Breakfast was a surprisingly enjoyable event, at least in comparison to home. I was usually the only one who ever ate it at my house (strictly weekdays only however, not point in breakfast when you don't have to go anywhere `til after ten) and usually no one else was up yet, so it was never too awkward.

 

Now I satisfied myself with two slices of cinnamon sugar toast and watching Steven and William argue about…………nothing. No, really. I thought parents were bad; these two had their own league. It started with them discussing what they were going to do for tonight, and Steven cracked a joke about William's piano (a `box with strings' he jokingly called it, which somehow Will kept in his room. I took that to mean that Will's room had the same odd size quality that Steven's had.). Will retaliated with pointing out that at least he could play an instrument (actually he listed several: piano, violin, flute, ocarina, cello, any kind of guitar and a few others I didn't even know) while Steven could only sing. Steven got riled, and from that point the topics jumped around to Wall Street and stocks and then to politics and then to something about a restaurant in the city (which Will apparently owned). This debate was turning into a large learning experience for me. But, a history-nut always has to keep an eye and ear open and stay alert for all evidence, especially one like me, who is mainly preoccupied with the ancients. All the while Steven was periodically taking bites out of an apple, which added to the comedic flair. Will ate nothing, as far as I could tell. He must have eaten earlier.

 

Gigo jumped up on the counter I was leaning against and we watched them fight, me giving him the crust of my toast, which he nibbled like a hamster. When it finally started to settle down (William was claiming winner, Steven was claiming he didn't care anymore) the silver-haired boy turned his back on Will and faced Gigo and me.

 

I chewed my last bite, my face blank and my eyes staring right into his. After I swallowed, I spoke. “Wow, I'm amazed you to don't tear the place apart.”

 

Will coughed over his shoulder loudly and Steven had to force back what I guessed was a bout of hysteria. Apparently there was some joke I missed. Oh well; now that I was full, I was getting more apathetic about things. I raised my eyebrows but didn't question either of them.

 

Steven sighed and mussed his hair a bit (only now did I realize that it wasn't messy from bed; it laid in a casual disarray around his head, not spiked like how I had first seen him). “So, I suppose you should be getting back soon.”

 

Apathetic, except for that

 

I groaned, thinking about the hair-and-makeup induced torture that was waiting for me back at the hotel. Cali was probably up already, turning the bathroom into a gas chamber while Molly was doing everything to make sure her `little darlings' looked perfect. In comparison, I think I'd rather surrender my head to Cali. She preferred that I keep quiet and just let her do it. At least I could be happy about what I was wearing, a plus I had not expected.

 

An interesting thought struck me though. If they were up already, where did they think I was?

 

Steven laughed at my wordless complaint. “You sound so excited. Not one for formal occasions?”

 

“The occasion part I can deal with, it's the preparations.” Living with four other women really sucked sometimes. Though, I suppose it was better than living alone with Dad.

 

They both laughed then. I figured what the hey, I might as well go ahead and say it. “I'm not sure how to act though…where will they think I've been all night?”

 

Steven bit his lip and looked away, like a child who had just gotten caught while Will glared daggers at him. Gigo's ears twitched, showing he could sense the now tense atmosphere. After thinking a moment, he spoke to me in a sheepish tone, blatantly ignoring William. “…They'll think you've just been with them, so if they talk about anything that happened while you were gone just go along with whatever they say.” He added as an afterthought, “With the wedding and everything, I imagine they'll be more focused on that.” I guessed he was trying to save himself some grief from Will, whose gaze grew fierier with every word. Gigo's ears twitched again.

 

I nodded to him, showing I appreciated the information. I'd mostly become used to the mystery aspect of all this, when my mind wasn't riddled with anticipation.

 

The two boys then occupied themselves with cleaning; William cleaning the kitchen, and Steven going back to his room to shower. I watched Will for a little while, seeing how crazily excessive he was. Everything had to be put in its place just so, and from what I saw they had no dishwasher, so he was hand washing dishes too. Every so often he'd empty out one cupboard and replace its contents with another, and then switch them back again. It was just plain weird, especially for a guy. After a few moments of watching this he turned on the TV for me, but mainly I just played catch with Gigo.

 

Yeah, “catch” not “fetch.”

 

It was actually one of the most amusing things I'd ever seen. Gigo had this small rubber ball that was a little smaller than the average racquetball. I'd sit on the couch and throw it to him, and he'd catch it in his mouth. Then he'd spit it out above him and hit it with his forehead or one of his huge ears. Every now and then when I threw it badly he'd make a mad scramble after it. Once it rolled toward the kitchen and he was going so fast he hit the side of the other couch.

 

Will looked over at us a few times, chuckling. When he was done in the kitchen (I caught him doing a quick survey to make sure everything was perfect), he also excused himself to the shower.

 

I settled into watching the TV after that, not wanting Gigo to wipe out again. I heard the water running from Will's room as the pros and cons of Wall Street for the day came across the screen. Dad was a commodity broker, and every now and then he'd talk stocks, so I kind of knew what they were talking about.

 

Their constant up and down movement got boring and I stated watching Gigo again. He was trying to balance the ball on his nose while standing on two legs. He wasn't very good at it. Random thoughts crossed my head as well, like how Will seemed to take a lot less time than Steven did in the shower.

 

Soon the door to William's room opened and Will stuck his head out. I would have been embarrassed, but he opened the door wide enough that I could see he was fully clothed. “Hali, could you pop into Steven's room and get the tie that the furball stole?” William was dressed similarly today; a long-sleeved white shirt with some embroidery on in that was in too light a thread for me to see at this distance, and bold mahogany slacks. He looked really very handsome, in an other-worldly kind of way.

 

“Sure,” I said, standing up from the couch. I recalled the aforementioned incident, and the awkward position it had placed Steven and me in, and laughed silently. Yep, Gigo certainly was a lot like Jo. I walked over to Steven's door, knocked once before opening it…………….and then immediately slammed it shut with a squeal.

 

A shout of surprise came from the other side, and that plus my squeal and the door slam was enough to make William burst into the room like someone had set off a fire alarm. He looked over at me. “What happened?”

 

I was too stunned to say anything.

 

Will looked at Steven's door, looked at me, and then looked at the door again. I could almost hear the inaudible click as he pieced things together. “Oh for the love of the Medici…” he grumbled angrily. I had no idea to whom he made the claim.

 

He marched across into Steven's room. Gigo tried to follow him, but the door shut (literally) on his face. I took a deep breath, the comedic act calming me down some. The little furball wandered over, looking a bit drunk. “You take a lot of head damage don't you?” I commented half to myself. He squeaked in response.

 

My head snapped up as I heard a sudden, sharp thwack from Steven's room, the unmistakable sound of someone being slapped. A few beats later, the sound of glass breaking. I gave the door a nervous look, wondering if I should go in. Turns out I didn't have to, for William walked out then, straightening his tie in a professional manner.

 

I threw him an inquiring look, smiling. “Just what was going on in there?”

 

He raised his eyebrows in a haughty sort of way, but he was smiling too. “Whatever do you mean? Just simple, gentlemanly discussion is all.” His tone and demeanor reminded me strongly of an aristocrat's. Or maybe that was my insatiable urge to compare him to Earl Cain.

 

I raised my own eyebrows, making it clear I didn't believe him, and he smiled condescendingly back, making it clear that he didn't care. Then, oddly, he looked over towards the still-drawn window (I wondered if those curtains even opened) dejectedly, like he was sad or…….longing for something. I looked over at them too, but I didn't see anything out of place.

 

By the time I looked back over at him, he had gone to the kitchen and gotten out a variety of utensils and ingredients. He'd already gotten eggs, flour and butter and I hadn't even seen him move. Man, I must really be spacing this morning.

 

I decided I should probably go in and check if Steven and his room were all right. I opened his door cautiously this time, unsure if I was more worried about the disarray of the room or repeating another uncomfortable scene.

 

It turns out I was wrong on both accounts. Steven was sitting on his bed with his head in his hands, and the room was spotless as always.

 

He looked up as I came in, and a blush tinted his face. I hadn't known him for very long, but I could tell he didn't do this action very often. The reddening tint looked out of place on his creamy pale skin. “Sorry about that,” he muttered in a shaky tone. He was wearing a button-less purple jacket over a silver dress shirt with no tie. His purple slacks had cuffs with a silver band circling them. He had the same black shoes from before.

 

I was so busy scrutinizing it took a moment for me to register that he'd spoken. “…It's my fault; I should have waited after I knocked.” I was so used to everyone either being gone or asleep in the morning privacy was never an issue, so might have been why. My guess was that I was way too comfortable around him now. Was that necessarily a bad thing?

 

He smiled again, my smile this time, and I took a quick glance around the room, noting again how clean it was. Strange, I know I heard something break earlier…

 

I moved a bit closer to him, as close as I was comfortable. The sun was quickly creeping up in the sky; at least, what was visible of it behind the huge buildings. “…You were right; I should probably get going back…” I told him, demure. I was surprised by how much I truly didn't want to leave. That was definitely a bad sign.

 

Steven chuckled, no doubt picking up on my unhappy mood again. He didn't jest or anything though; he was in a much more serious mood. I wondered why.

 

I felt his eyes on me then, and mine eventually turned to meet his, unable to help it. There was an odd light in those pools of navy blue; a light that made my heart jump. I froze up, feeling like a deer in headlights. Somewhere in the back of my mind, the voice started muttering something indiscernible.

 

His expression changed to a confused look, cocking his head. I thought maybe he was going to mention something about it, but instead he asked, “For going back, would you prefer to take the normal way or my way?”

 

He threw me again with a simple question. “Whichever's easier for you I guess…?” Being a small-town girl, I barely had any idea how to hail a cab, much less try to explain to the cabby that I wanted to go to Jersey and I had no money. I was really at his mercy here.

 

Steven seemed perturbed by my non-committal answer (now how the freak did I know that?) He was silent for a while, and then he closed his eyes. His mood was so serious that I wanted to ask him if he was all right.

 

Of course, you think I would have learned by that time that when someone closes their eyes around Steven crazy stuff happens.

 

He turned his eyes back on me again. This time they held a mischievous glint in them, and his smile stretched into a devil's grin that made me tingle all over. Faster than I could blink, he was behind me, his arms around my waist. He swung my legs out from under me, and suddenly I was Scarlett O'Hara.

 

He looked down at me in his arms, still smiling wickedly. A few silver locks flitted across his face and the effect was rather………oh boy. He laid his forehead against mine. “My way it is then,” he said to me, and before I could respond, the balcony door was open and we were flying again.

 

***

 

We had quite a few…ah, disagreements on the way back. Probably the most notable happened about ten seconds after he jumped.

 

“Let me go!” I shouted, pushing him a bit and being careful not to look below. I had mostly grown out of my fear of heights long ago, but I was still a lot more comfortable when I had something stable under me like an elevator or a plane (although places like Vegas' Stratosphere really irked me…sorry, off topic again). This type of flying was a lot more like free-falling.

 

I could almost hear Steven roll his eyes. “Okay,” he said off-handedly, like he didn't need to put much thought into it, and he dropped me.

 

Yeah, just like that

 

I was just getting over the initial shock and was starting to scream when I felt his strong arms under me again. I hadn't fallen but a few feet. I blinked a few times, letting my heart slow. “You caught me,” I said, still a bit shell-shocked.

 

He laughed as he got me situated. “Yes, I did.” As he laughed, I was torn between wanting to hit him and wanting to cling to him for the rest of the trip. I fixed him with a hard glare, but I settled for the latter and laced my arms about his neck as discreetly as I could and was even more careful not to look down. I was pretty sure he noticed, for I felt his chest move as he chuckled. “I'm sorry for scaring you. I promise you this, Hali; as long as I breathe, you're safe with me.” He was looking down at me intently, and something about that look made me pretty sure he wasn't just talking about right now.

 

I didn't respond, how could I? Seriously, what would you say if some guy said that to you?

 

We flew for a little bit longer, and from what I could tell from my sense of vertigo, we were headed more up than foreword. Suddenly we stopped, simply suspended in midair. I felt Steven turn around, and I gripped his jacket tightly. “Don't be afraid,” he whispered gently to me, his silken voice persuading. “Look.”

 

I almost didn't want to. But…that voice of his…I found my body was turning to look without even realizing. I tightened my hold on his jacket and slowly turned my head and opened one eye to glimpse what it was he wanted me to see.

 

My fear was immediately replaced by euphoria.

 

I had thought the skyline was spectacular. Now, it seemed more like a student's rendering of the Mona Lisa. What I was looking at now…this was the real thing. I'm not even sure how to explain it here. The vast, ever-reaching skyscrapers stood tall and proud like the spires of a Gothic castle, and the shadows the cast seemed to protect the city's inhabitants just as well. Cars, other vehicles, and foot traffic were bustling around in all directions, yet still adequately organized, like…well; it reminded me of the human circulatory system, except there was no heart. The city relied on nothing but its own power to keep it flowing. The city was stable and sedentary, and at the same time providing the constant motion that was required for life.

 

I can't explain it; I can't. You would be here all day. And perhaps my reaction was partially influenced by the mystical stranger (if he still merited that description) who held me in his arms. Perhaps…maybe a little. “Beautiful…” It was insufficient, but the best my awestruck brain could come up with at that moment.

 

“Yes,” he replied, his voice filled with such reverence that I looked up at him. “I didn't think you had gotten a good look before.” He gazed out over the same city I did, but there was a completely different look in his eyes. It was like……a child looking at his mother and realizing all the things she'd done for him, and she loving him as only a mother could.

 

He looked back down and me, and the dazed, almost melancholy smile stretched into mine. We stared at each other in silence for a while; not an awkward silence, but a silence all the same. Then, he turned back around to the direction we were heading before, towards Jersey, and I took a moment to catch a completely different view.

 

Vast countryside looked back at me; the trees bloomed with the growing buds of the late spring. There were no mountains or hills, and fewer expanses of yellowed farmland than there were back home. The interstate and what I guessed was the Turnpike stood boldly out on the landscape, and much less obtuse were the narrow, winding back roads that, around Iowa at least, you better have all-wheel drive if you want to make it. But the main beauty of this view was that it was so simple. It was in and of itself; it didn't need anything less than the purity of nature to make it spectacular. The city proved it was large and obtuse by being loud, busy, and always moving. But this…this didn't have to prove anything. It just was.

 

“That's pretty amazing too,” I said with a smile.

 

“It's all right,” I heard Steven mumble and felt him shrug. I was surprised at his contempt for a moment, but I remembered Celia and Julie, who unlike their mom had grown up in the city most of their life, and how they reacted to small town life. Steven's reaction wasn't any different. I guess most people preferred one or the other. I was kind of glad to be the exception; just keep me away from the beach.

 

“Hold on,” my silver-haired companion told me, tightening his own grip. I did as was told and we started to fly away from the city at a brisk pace that almost felt hasty. I sensed tension from him, and it was so weird…it was like he was running from something. I kept my grip firm, lest his speed dislodge me. I thought about asking him what was wrong a few times, but I caught myself. It was probably better that I didn't ask. Maybe I didn't want to know.

 

We were at the hotel in no time at all. I kept telling myself that it was just the New Yorker in him that made Steven rush, but I wasn't so sure…

 

I was worried. He looked like a nervous wreck. He landed gently on the small, outside landing and let me down, looking over his shoulder every few seconds. He looked so distraught; I couldn't help but try to comfort him. “Do you want to stay for a little-?”

 

“No,” he cut me off abruptly; in such a tone that I wondered if that would have made it worse. He took a shaky breath, trying to calm himself. “No, I need to go,” he said more gently this time. Another swift look over the shoulder. “I'm sorry. Hali, I….” He fumbled for words for a moment, and then shook his head, seeming to change his mind. “I have to go,” he spoke to the concrete beneath us, looking away from me. He moved is gaze back to me and stared at me intently. “I promise…I swear it; you will know everything tonight. And…after…” He grimaced and looked away from me again. “Well, that will be up to you.”

 

I was too befuddled to respond.

 

Steven smiled apologetically. He look like he wanted to say something more, but he held his tongue. Then, he disappeared. No flying off into the sunset, no jumping off the balcony. He was simply there, and then he wasn't.

 

For the first time since this whole thing, binding claws of fear gripped my heart stronger than that Demonike had. It was the fear that I really might be hallucinating after all, and soon I would wake up and find out none of this was real.

 

Hmph, like I'm really that creative.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lol, yes, the writer made a joke.

 

Key:

The dress was perfect, of course.—okay, so I had a picture. But…..I lost it. So, like a lot of things in this story, y'all are going to have to use those imaginations (sorry if I sound southern, been watching True Blood)

 

Most flowering plants can't live that long (I guessed so anyway, I didn't pay much attention to sixth grade science because the teacher was a douche)—While the parentheses are true, I really do not know that much about plants. If I do get a detail wrong, and that goes for anything, please just let me know. I `m not gonna freak out (as long as you don't) and I'm one of those crazy people who likes to learn crap like that. So please, just tell me, especially if it's anything about New York.

 

He turned to me and smiled my smile (why the heck was I calling it that? Too much Twilight…)—The book by Stephenie Myer (and disclaimed by me!). Bella (the lead) mentions several times where Edward gives her “my favorite crooked smile.” Hali is reading this at the time, hence the reference.

 

Gigo had this small rubber ball that was a little smaller than the average racquetball.—A tennis ball, pretty much, for those of you who haven't played the sport.

 

Dad was a commodity broker,--Where average brokers trade stocks, commodity brokers trade contracts of corn, beans, livestock, and other products. The two brokers are similar n practice, if not in content, so Hali pretty much has half an idea of what they're saying.

 

I walked over to Steven's door, knocked once before opening it…………….and then immediately slammed it shut with a squeal.—As for what she saw and what happened when William went in; my friends, that is entirely up to you.

 

 

He swung my legs out from under me, and suddenly I was Scarlett O'Hara.—This is a Gone With the Wind reference (I can't believe there's people out there who haven't SEEN this movie). It's a famous scene where Rhett (male lead) picks up his wife, Scarlett, bridal style. (The scene's actually pretty funny `cause they're in the middle of a fight…)

 

(although places like Vegas' Stratosphere really irked me…--The Stratosphere is, well, was a landmark in Vegas that's now a hotel (out in the middle of nowhere I might add). It's really tall, 108 stories, and they have this insane roller-coaster ride at the top. Hali got a view from the observation deck, and…well, let's just say it's pretty high.

 

Erm, as for the ending…..don't know why, but sometimes I get in these random poetic moods, especially when I'm writing about Steven. Sorry if it's a bit hard to follow.

 

This is totally random and unneeded, but I absolutely love William in this chapter. No idea why; maybe it's just his quick reaction to crisis. Or the fact that he's a bystander in all this. I don't know why, I just do. Anyway, any questions please email or put in a review, and please review anyway! `Til nine y'all (okay, time to stop saying that now…)