Bound by Forever (15)

Criss and Aydean have shared their first kiss, how sweet. But, Criss has seen something, a vision, she isn't sure what it is. And after Tristen's confession, even if it was only in her head, Criss feels even more scred than ever.

The feeling of being lost, alone, and empty, they were all healed by her touch. Her lips on mine for a split second was enough to make my heart soar. The way her eyes sparkled when she looked at me proved she loved me, and that was such an amazing feeling.

 

"There, perfect."

I sat my comb down and looked at my hair in the mirror. Aside from the fresh french manicured nail scratches  across my cheek, and the foot-sized bruises on my left ear, I didn't look too bad. I took another long stare and snarled in disgust. I ran my fingers through my hair and shook my head from side to side. The messy look wasn't as "well-taken-care-of" as I had hoped, but it beat the whole stuck up guy look.

 I ran back into my room and flipped off the switch in the bathroom. I plopped onto my bed and looked down at my jeans-which were torn and tattered at the knees. My dark blue T-shirt was the only neat part about me. She'll probally think Iook too much like a slacker. I thought worriedly. So, I changed into something neater: a pair of new jeans(well, not new, but new looking) a stripped polo shirt that had never been worn( I didn't even know why it was in my drawer,) and a pair of dirty tennis shoes(I didn't have any clean ones.) 

It was a little better, but not too much. GAH! Maybe she won't care. With any luck, she won't take any notice. 

I was supposed to have have met Criss by the creek the previous day, but couldn't go due to another beating and being too sore to move an inch.  She had told me she was going to town today with her family for something, and I wasn't supposed to come see her, but that didn't mean I couldn't be getting ready for the next day. I had nothing better to do, so why not?  I laughed. She's probally glad she's free from me for one night. My smiled dissapered and worry swept over me. She's going to be alone with that boy. My face beagn to heat up and a low growl escaped my lips. I had wished that my anger would have been caused by jealousy instead of fear, but some wishes don't come true. Maybe that other boy, her brother, will keep a good eye on her. 

 On a late night run once, I saw him talking to the boy. He was serious, and was saying something about his sister. He sounded kind of like a father having "the talk" with his daughter's date. Come to think of it, that was the night she and that boy went on their date. The first time she had seen me in wolf form. He was stern and firm when he talked to the boy and the guy nodded in such a geniune way, that both the brother and I believed him. Let's see...what was the boy's name again? Something with a T....Tristen! That's what she said. I followed Tristen, becmoing more and more suspicious with each inch that slimy snake slithered. 

I looked out my window and stared at Criss's house. Her borther's Truck was still in the driveway. So were two other cars, that I guessed belonged to her parents. I looked down at my watch and looked back at the cars. She said they were leaving at six-thirty. It was eight-o-nine.  What the? They were supposed to have left by now.

Click! The lock on my door came unhooked and I heard the chain (one of those small lock chains that slid across the door that my parents had put on the outside of my door along with several others) drop loose. My door creaked open and I dove onto my bed and hurried under the sheets. I remained perfectly still. I could hear my heart racing in the silence of the night. I closed my eyes in time to feel the sheets being ripped off me. A light shined on my eyes, but I kept them shut and continued to appear as if I was asleep. I heard Father grumble something I couldn't understand and shuffle away. I stayed in place another three or four minutes after hearing the door slam against it's frame. Finally, I sat up and looked aorund. phew. I doddged that bullet. I walked over to my window in time to see a red truck shot from out of Criss's driveway. It hurried down the road and drove out of sight. I looked back at her house. The lights to the window closest to the woods flipped on and a dark shadow slide across the blinds and vanished. I felt my head tilt to the side. What the hell is going on?

 

Criss's POV.....

 

I buried my hands in my face and slumped to the floor. I looked around my room and felt my hands start to shake. I had locked all the doors and turned on the alarm, so no one could get in(it's not like I was afraid of any one breaking in considering the only people around for miles were either really old, or really young. Our neighbors seemed to stuck up to do anything along the lines of "robbing he poor." Well, to them I'm sure we were poor. In truth, we were a proud middle class family.)

 I sighed and pulled my legs up to my chest. Everyone else had rushed to the hospital, leaving me here alone. I was glad. I wanted to be by myself. Besides, they probally wouldn't let me into the intense care room any way-

tap tap thump.

My heart stopped. What was that?

tap, tap thump.

I looked over at my window. All was silent for a moment. Then the taps turned into scrapes. I grabbed my dad's shotgun out of the cabniet and eased into the living room. I left my light on so as not to tip off  the intruder that I was coming. I flipped off the alarm and eased outside. I hid underneath the bushes and looked up at my window. A dark figure was peereched on the roof and was scratching my window. It looked like a large racoon. I pointed the gun and hollered. The figure froze in place.

"HEY! GET DOWN! GO ON, GET!" I shouted. The shadow took off running across the roof. As it stood, I realized it was human. I lowered the gun for a moment in fear. I shook my head and took of running after the person. They had jumped  onto a tree limb and were running through the woods. I kept on the trail, forgetting about the fact that I had a loaded gun that wasn't on saftey in my hands. Finally, the figure stepped on a loose limb and hurled towards the ground. They hit the ground with a crack and howled in pain. I pointed the gun at them, keeping my finger on the trigger. I edged closer until I was right on the figure. The guy-which I could tell was a man by his scream-lunged forward, knocking me to the ground. The gun fell from hands. I struggled to grab it, but my hand slipped, causing the gun to go off and kick me in the chin. I screeched in pain and held my jaw.

"D****T! AHHH!!! SON-OF-A-FREAKIN'-B***H!! GOD BLESS A FRIGGIN AMERICA!!! AHHH! SHITT, S**T, S**T!!!" I yelled.

The man stopped in his tracks and-I thought-looked over at me.

"Criss?"

I forgot about the pain for a minute. The voice sounded so familar. I just couldn't put my finger on it...

"Holy s**t! Are you okay?" the person hurried over to me and kneeled beside me.

"Aydean?" I mutterd through clenched teeth. "What the hell are you doing here?"

Ayden looked down at me and helped me up. "Are you okay?"

"Ow. I'm fine," I groaned, rubbing my sore jaw. Enough moonlight was shining through the trees to where I could see his face good. "What happened to you?"

Three long scratches stretched from his brow down to his neck. A large purple and black bruise had fromed on his left ear.  He looked at me in both confusion and worry.

"You...you just got kicked in the face by a gun, and you're worried about a few scratches on some boy's face-who, may I remind you, was on your roof?" he panted. Was he trying to get himself in trobule? Really? Or maybe he just found ammusement in pissing me off. Either way, he wasn't too bright.

"well, I...um." He was right. I should've been angry and more worried about myself. But I wasn't. I wasn't angry in the least...or worried. Well, I was deathly worried about him, but not me. "What are you doing here, dumbass?"

"I...wanted to see you," he moaned, rubbing his back.

"I told you not to come tonight!" I shouted.

"You said not to come because you were going to town....and yet, here you are," he pointed out. I noticed blood start to trickle down from a large gash on  his forehead.

I took his hand in my left and the gun in my right hand. "Come'on, we need to clean that cut."

He started to protest, but thought better of it and allowed me to lead him through the forest.

 Once we were inside, I led him to the bathroom and took out Momma's cleanin' basket thing. She had all the medicine and and band-aids and crap in there. He sat down on the edge of the tub while I doctored his wound. Great. This again!  I barely knew this boy and here he was, in my house while everyone else was gone.  I placed a bandage over the sore and put up the basket. 

"There, all better," I said, standing up. He ramined seated.

"You make an excellent doctor," he grinned. I rolled my eyes and began to walk away. I was grabbed by the hand and jerked backwards. I landed in Aydean's lap and we both fell backwards into the tub. It was still wet from the shower I had taken earlier.  My legs were bridged over his chest and his were still hanging over the tub. His arms were wrapped around me in a protective fashion and mine were just everywhere.

"You b*****d! Let me up!" I scowled as I tried to sit up and get out of the bathtub. He started laguhing and held me back. I was now compleltey lying in his lap."D****T AYDEAN!!! Let me go!"

"Nope!" he howled.

"Please?"

"NO!"

"You sadistic b*****d! Let me go before I call the cops!" That got him. He let me go and even helped me out. I headed towards the door but he was already walking around the living room.

He stopped at two doors and looked from one to another. "Which is your room?"

"That one," I said pointing to the one on the right. He opened the door and walked into Kodi's room. Posters of girls drinking beer on  tractors caught his attention. "Either you are gay, or you are lying to me!"

"Did I say right? I meant left!" I said sarcasticlly, walking into my room. He closed the door and followed me.

"You are such an a*s," he chuckled. He looked around and whistled.

"What?"

"This is....intresting," he murmmured looking at a ninja poster. When his eyes met the giant wolf poster hanging on my closet door, he shuddered and looked away quickly.

"You not like wolves?" I asked.

He stared at the floor coldly. "Not really."

"Oh. Well, If your gonna hang out with me, you better get used to 'em!" I assured.

He smiled. It was a faint, unsure smile. "Okay."

"Kay."

He looked  around awhile longer then sat on the floor. I sat down beside him. "Criss, where are your parents?"

"Huh? Oh," I sighed, looking at the carpet uneasily. "At the hospital, with my grandma."

"What's wrong with her?" he asked. He sounded genuinley concerned.

I bit my lip. "She got in a bad car crash on the way to the groccery store. They had to do surgery, and everyone else went to see her."

"Why didn't you go?" he asked.

"I don't know. I just....couldn't be around her while she's so banged up. I mean, I'm probally not even allowed in the intensive care room, anyway."

"I'm sorry," he said, wrapping a comforting arm around me.

"Thanks," I whsipered, laying my head on his shoulder.

 

Aydean's POV........

 

We sat in silence. Suddenly, her phone rang. She reached into her pocket and clicked the talk button. "Hello?"

I decided to let this conversation be private. She nodded her head and contiusly said "yeah" or "mm-hmm."

Finally, she hung up and looked up at me. "They said she's doing fine, but we'll be missin' the fireworks tomorrow. They want to stay the night, but Kodi and Tristen are supposed to be coming home in a few hours. They're going to stay with her again tomororw, all of them, and so we're going to miss the fireworks for the first time this year."

"Huh?" I asked.

"The Fireworks in Jefferson. We go to see 'em every fourth of July, but apparently we ain't this year. It sucks, but I understand."

"Oh. I'm sorry," I apologized.

"Oh, it's fine," she sighed. She was definetley dissapointed.

"Well, we have a good five or six hours before Kodi and them get back, wanna watch a movie or something?" she asked hurridley. She didn't want to sit in silence.

"That sounds great," I smiled, watching her rush over to her TV set and pull out a movie. I hadn't seen TV in almost a month.

"You-uh, like fairytale movies?" she asked sheepishly. She held up an animated movie with very good animtaions on the cover. The title said: Happily 'N Ever After.    

I nodded and smiled wider. She must have loved animated movies. And fairytales. She popped in the DVD and snuggled up beside me. Right when we both had gotten comfortable, She stood up.

"Oh! Here, this makes it better," she said, switching off the lights.

"Sure does," I said, pulling her closer to me.

She Tensed up and removed her head from my shoulder. I saw her play with something in her pocket. She was turning it over and over. The knife. She had her hand on the switch, ready to stab me. D****t, I went to far with that comment.

"Sorry, that pushed it a little too far," I apologized. She stopped for a moment, then she slipped the knife back into her pocket and relaxed. She looked up at the screen.

"Ah, D****t!" she cried, crawling on her hands and knees over to the DVD player. She pressed a button and suddenly the movie began to play. She scooted back over to me and returned to her orginal position.

Secretly, I pumped my fist in the air as a sign of victory. Well, I one this round, but there was still more matches to come.

 After the movie was over, she kept her eyes fixed on the carpet, her lip pulled over her teeth in disgust.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"Nothing."

"You need Prince Charming to solve your problems?" I mocked.

"I'll kill that blonde b*****d if he lays one stuck-up finger on me," she growled.

I quickley removed my hands and edged away. She looked at me  in an evil way, and suddenly bursted into laughter.

"You are such chicken," she snickered. "I'm not gonna kill you!" Her eyes narrowed and her face was evil looking again. "Unless...are you a prince?"

I shook my head. "No mi'lady, I'm just a poor servant to the king. I am of no royal blood." I mocked the peasant boy on the movie.

She smiled. "Good." She followed my trail and scooted right next to me."I hate princes. And princess. And kings. Queens are okay, but still."

"Really? Don't girls, like, wanna be a princess and stuff? With the whole crown and pink dress and marry the prince stuff?" I asked, confused. Every movie I'd seen and all the girls I knew back in North Dakota always talked about Princes and fairies and s**t. Gross.

She smiled a happy(yet very disturbing) smile, grabbed my finger and twisted really hard. I cried in pain. This girl was strong. "Say that again, go one. I dare ya."

"I....I'm good," I assured. She realsed my finger and returned to normal. "I take it you don't wanna be a princess?"

"Gee, how could you tell? And I thoguht I was hidin' it so well!" she said sarcasticly. "No, I'd rather be the Jester, or the cool peasant that ends up befirending the "Choosen one" or hero or whatever and helps save the day! I wanna have either skills in the bow and arrow, a sword, or magic!"

Her eyes were glowing. I grinned. "I take it you like fantasy."

"Do I!" she exclaimed. "It's awesome, it's amazing, it's wonderful, it's fantastic!"

I poked out my bottom lip and pretended to cry and be all upset and stuff. 

"What's wrong with you?"

"More than me?" I whimpered. I was begging for another beating. Getting your a*s kicked by a good looking girl with issues was better than being beaten half-to death by two parnets who are set on killing you. 

"More than you what? Oh...Yeah, Fantasy is more wonderful than you," she smirked.

I cried in mock dissapointment. She wrapped her arms around me. Didn't see that one coming, did ya reader? Yeah. Me neither. I thoguth for sure she was going to get pissed and kick me out.

"I'm just kidding. You're more amazing and more wonderful than the air itself," she cooed. I believe at that moment, both of our eyes widened and we both stopped breathing. It was a joke, that ended with such an intimate response that neither of us could believe what was said.

She shot up-still in shock- and looked at me-I as well was still in shock- and her cheecks turned red. "I...I can't believe I just said that. I'm sorry, I just...don't know where that came form."

"Um....It's okay," I stuttered. I didn't know what to say. So, I decided to just tell her the truth. "I'm glad you did." I felt my cheecks heat up this time. We both just satred at each other, our mouths agape. There was a soft knock on the door.

"Criss?" a voice called from behind the thick wood.

Her eyes widned again. She looked over at me and whispered, "It's my brother! Quick, hide!"

I ddin't waste any time. I looked around. She pointed to the bed. I nodded and scurried underneath it. There was so much stuff under there it wasn't funny. Most of the items were books.  The others were movies, shoes(mostly Tennis shoes,) a BB gun or two, and...a wolf painting. I rolled my eyes. GREAT!!!!

I silenced myself and listened. She flipped on the lights and moaned. It sounded like she had just gotten out of bed. I heard her ruflle the covers and drag her feet over to the door. I could only imagine what her 'sleepy' face looked like.

"Kodi, what did they-" she cut herself off in midsentence. The tension in the room was crazy thick. I heard the door shut and the lock click. Silence. What's going on? Please, be okay!