The Shadow Wanderers

Chapter 6

Walking on the tiny pebbles by the edge, she smiles at the cracking sounds under her feet. The crackling pebbles feel like broken glass, abandoned by their owner after years of companionship. Her feet blow dust behind her. She raises her gaze to once again encounter a promising sunrise. The canvas of the sky is painted with patches of blue and pink clouds.

Having abandoned her bicycle today, her feet carry her to the only spot where she feels like the knots around her neck are loosened. A few steps away from the edge, she stands on the top of the cliff. Her ears buzz with a palpable silence. The only sounds she can hear are the distant early-morning chirping of the birds and the smooth ebb and flow of the waves beneath her; like the breathing of some great, slumbering creature.

Any emptiness she was previously feeling vanishes as soon as she inhales the salty air of her favorite spot. Her hand reaches to her neck and she clutches her mother's daisy pendant.

"I don't know, but I always feel like this place has become alive since you took your last breathe here, Mom. This very spot should have become morbid for me. I should hate this place, but... I don't. I feel more alive here than anywhere else on this island. I can still sense the traces of your last breathe here, Mother."

Loosening her grip on her pendant, she relieves a huge breath. "I feel closer to you here than I did when I was with you. The events of the other day don't matter to me. I will never stop associating this place with you, a place where I can be free, a place where you can hear me."

Her mother's golden eyes appear before her. Her surroundings are blurry and panicked shouts reverberate in her head. She remembers that all she wanted was to hug her mother's transparent figure.

"Thank you for showing me a glimpse of yourself the other day, Mom. You gave me the closest memory of you where I could feel you alive."

As soon as she blinks, another unforgettable image appears in her inner eye. Her breath stops momentarily and a frown appears on her face. She sighs, thinking, she may never find the answers to the questions burning in her head. The one with the red eyes. Will she ever see those eyes again?

We're normal. Naomi's voice rings in her ears. What was it that she saw was normal? Ever since she practiced the legend, her life appears to have crossed the barriers of normality. Everything that has been happening for the past couple of days cannot be regarded as normal, can it?

She still doesn't know how she had fallen on the cliffs. Her mother's image. Shattering of the mirror. The man with the red eyes. Suddenly earning the attention of the whole school. Things kept adding up. She couldn't recognize her life from two days ago. Was there an explanation for all of this?

Snapping out of her thoughts, she glances at the time on her phone before realizing she's late for school. She pivots around on her heel, not knowing what stands behind her. Before her mind can even perceive the image in front of her, her heart lurches and she staggers backward with a shriek. Her left leg turns weightless, her heart skipping a beat as it does. She loses her balance but something, or someone, is quick to seize her wrist before she falls.

Calista glances beneath her and realizes her upper body is inclined towards the fall, her right leg still on the cliff and other dangling weightless in the height. She brings her gaze to her savior and she's met with the only person who was able to carve his way into the depths of her thoughts.

The man with the red eyes.

Both of them are holding on to the other's wrist as though their life depended on it. Well, for Calista, it did. She finds it a perfect opportunity to look into his scintillating fiery eyes. They are fixed on her face, free of any emotions, calm and still, yet fiery havoc. She could stare into them her whole life and never get tired.

He effortlessly pulls Calista up until both her feet are on the ground. He doesn't let go of her hand as he drags her transfixed form a few steps away from the edge. As soon as he leaves her hand, she starts to sway. Her feet still feel weightless and she takes her head in her arms, finally taking her eyes off his red ones. Calista clears her throat, trying to regain her balance and stop her palpitating heart.

The guy steps toward her, fearing she might lose her balance and fall again. She can feel the adrenaline pumping in her veins as the stranger closes the distance between them by hovering over her.

"What's with you and falling again and again?" he says. His voice is fruity and shallow, which sends shivers down her spine.

"What's with you and scaring me to death again and again?" Calista counter-questions. Her voice comes out shaky and hesitant, which isn't hard for him to catch. She takes deep breathes to calm herself down.

"Now that's thrice in a row I've saved your life. Let's not carry this streak, if you will?" He grins.

She looks up at him and realizes that she's only a few inches shorter than him, which means he's tall considering that she's five feet seven. This is a stupid thing to notice.

She clears her throat, focusing on his words. "T- Twice."

"Thrice, my lady," he corrects, shaking his head. An unnoticeable smirk plays on his lips. Calista raises an eyebrow in confusion, and he starts, "The first time; on the cliff right here. Second; in your room, and third; today."

Calista shakes her head. "No. No, why do I think I'm missing something here? When did you save me on the cliff?"

"Like, ten seconds ago."

"No, the first time."

"Oh," he says, looking around. "That's kind of a long story."

"Not that I have a bus to catch," Calista replies, shrugging. But then her eyes pop out wide as a sudden realization strikes her. "But school sure started ten minutes ago!"

She turns, ready to sprint in the direction of the school, but then she feels something tugging at her waist. She turns to see the guy grabbing hold of her waist and bringing her arm around his shoulder.

"What're you do-" Calista starts to ask but then lets out a shriek. She feels a sharp tug on her whole body and tightens her grip around the stranger's neck as a hard gust of wind blows over her. In an instant, the nauseating sensation is over and she opens her eyes, scrambling out of the guy's hold. What she sees before her, hangs her mouth agape.

"Here's your school. Enjoy your day," the guy says, turning around, leaving Calista staring at the school building in front of her. It's deserted from the outside that probably meant she was the only one late. Did he just... teleport us here?

His fading footsteps reach her ears and a thought occurs to her. "Hey!" she calls out to the man, who turns around at her voice. "I'll see you again, won't I?"

A brilliant smile appears on his face and he shrugs. "I'll be around," he says, turning around, takes a few small steps before vanishing into thin air.