The Midnight Series: Darkness Comes to Light

17. On Cloud Nine

The sun was going down and there was a slight breeze now. I pulled my phone out of my purse and looked at the time, it said nine o’ clock. We were out pretty late, lost in having fun with each other. I truthfully did not care if I was home late, it was not as if my father was home, anyway, he was working.

“Well, as much as YOU would love to stare at my beautiful self, it’s getting late,” I smiled, proud at my attempt to tease him. I did not want to leave this beautiful place. I was having fun talking with Jason and this place was heavenly, but I was getting kinda cold. The dress I was wearing was not helping me preserve my warmth.

Jason jumped to his feet and reached his hand out for me to grab. I took his hard, pulling me to my feet. He then picked up the blanket and folded it, placing it on top of the lid of the basket, between the handles.

“May I pick you up?” he asked, holding the basket in his left hand.

I gave him a crazy, questionable look.

“I’m going to run us back to the car,” he explained.

“Okay. You can carry me,” I responded.

He bent down, putting his arms under my legs and an arm around my back. I put my arms around his neck as he held me tight against his chest. I could feel the coldness of his skin though his shirt. With my head against his shoulder, I closed my eyes a bit unsure of what was going to happen. My whole body felt giddy with excitement. I was not sure why I felt the way I did, honestly it scared me the feeling I felt.

I could feel a fast cold wind on my face and legs. Without opening my eyes, I knew we were running at a fast speed. The extreme cold breeze stopped and was back to normal, so I opened my eyes up and looked around. I looked up at Jason’s face; his strong arms still held me tight in his arms. I was happy being held in his arms. I did not want him to put me down. I closed my eyes again to cherish the moment of him holding me in his arms. I took a deep breath, inhaling the cologne he was wearing. He smelled like a combination of a woodsy forest mixed with sweet vanilla. The cologne smelled amazing, making me feel more attracted to him. “You can open your eyes,” Jason said softly in a husky voice.

I opened my eyes again, noticing we were back at the spot where he parked his car. His mustang was sitting a foot in front of us. I let my arms around his neck loosen up as he set me on my feet.

I stood there in front of Jason, my right hand laying on his chest, as I stared up at his face. My cheeks flushed pink with the closeness between Jason and myself. Damn, he is tall! A whole four inches taller than me. I have to tilt my head up to look directly in his eyes. I definitely feel small standing next to him.

I stood there, staring at his handsome face, thinking about what it would be like to kiss him. Just then at the most inconvenient moment, the phrase my mother constantly told me popped into my mind and distracted me from Jason, who was staring back at me. The brutal words of my mother were always said with a smug evil smirk, “You are not worthy of love. Love is for the beautiful woman. You are not neither.”

How is it my only reason to keep living is drawn to him? Everything inside my body, my mind, and my soul wants him to be with me and love me, but I know the entailing consequences if I continue down this love-and-date path. Truthfully, I am willing to take the risk if it means I can stay with him. How could he look at me, like I was anything but unattractive? He is a hunk and well, I am nothing of any sort of an appealing girl? I would not even clarify myself as on the average scale of beauty. At least, that is what Katherine stated on multiple occasions, making sure I would never forget. After a while of my mother’s insults, I stopped thinking I looked even a slightest bit attractive. No amount of clothing or compliments from other people helped my mind change my thoughts of how I saw myself. My mother accomplished lowering my self-confidence to the point all I saw in the mirror was as a girl not worthy of love or beauty.

I was completely distracted by my thoughts that I didn’t even notice Jason was looking at my face with his boyish smile. My eyes looked directly into his, but I was lost in my thoughts. I came out of my thoughts just as he reached his hand up and caressed my cheek. I didn’t move, I was transfixed on his plump lips. I bite the bottom of my lip, they feel dry. He leaned in closer until we were inches apart from each other. I could feel our lips inches away from touching. The smell of his strong cologne was surrounding the air I was breathing. I could feel his breath on my lips. I closed my eyes, not sure what to do. He closed the gap by pressing his lips against mine. I did not kiss him back right away. I was not sure what to do. Jason licked my lips with his tongue, asking for entrance. I parted my lips, and the kiss deepened. I was not really sure if I was kissing him properly.

All I know is as soon as our lips touched, I felt the electricity course through my whole body. I was unclarified when it came to dating, kissing, or even being with a boy who was not my brother’s. I am inexperienced with everything that just happened, especially with kisses. This whole kissing and relationships in general was very new for me, since I never dated anyone before.

Jason pulled away slowly, releasing his hand from the small of my back. I slowly opened my eyes and stared at his plump moist lips. I was in full bliss from having kissed him. God, he was sexy as hell! The kiss was amazing. Just touching him was amazing. If I thought us touching hands was electrifying, the way I felt when we kissed was something that felt utterly magical. I was so star struck with how amazing the kiss was. I stood there, looking up at him, fully aware that there was some kind of connection between the both of us. It was something I never felt before. The feeling felt like something that I could not simply explain. I knew the feeling was special, and I definitely liked the feeling of the unexplained connection I had with Jason. I could not tell if Jason felt the same way though.

I knew it was too soon to tell him that I loved him, but I honestly felt like we had a very strong connection. A connection that I was not able to fully describe in words. The one word that I could describe it as is magical. I also knew that I would have never told anyone in my life that I loved them unless I was sure that I meant it.

“That was.. was amazing,” I stuttered, blushing and smiling in embarrassment over my loss of words.

Jason’s lips turned up forming a great, big smile. He caressed my cheek, closed his eyes, and leaned in again, lightly planting a kiss on my plump lips again. I opened my eyes as he backed up just a bit so he could look me in the eyes.

“I couldn’t agree more. You are quite amazing,” he smiled.

I rolled my eyes and smiled at his humorous response. He was looking at my chest, not in a perverted way but an intriguing way. I had totally forgotten I was wearing my locket. I was so used to wearing the necklace, all the time, so it usually felt like I was not wearing it most days. Besides, I never took it off. Jason reached down and held my locket in his fingers.

“What’s inside?” he asked, curiously.

I opened the locket and showed him the pictures on the inside. I looked at the pictures of my mom, my dad, and me. I have not opened the locket in a while, not since the day Dan left us. Looking inside the locket and seeing my parents on one side and a picture of Danny, Jared, Lucy and I on the other. The picture of my parents just reminds me of the good times, when they were happy or at least they would fake being happy for the sake of us kids.

Now all I feel is upset and a whirlwind of mixed emotions when I look at the picture of my mother inside the locket, where she is smiling. Seeing the picture of her smiling, knowing that at one point in her life she acted happy, just reminded me she was not happy when she was around me. The woman that I would call ‘my mother’ is just a stranger to me. It is harsh to say, but I personally do not consider her my motherly figure or a female role model. Just by looking at my mother in my locket, a rush of emotions came back to me. The thoughts of what I had to deal with while living in that house, all of my mother’s abuse and constant drunken bulls**t flooded into my mind.

My mother was the main reason for the many insecurities I had to deal with on a daily basis. I couldn’t fully trust people. The truth is everyone I love always ends in the crossfire of my constant hardships. My dramatic haunting past only caused me to blame myself in the end when they got hurt.

I closed the locket shut and held it tight in a closed fist. Jason must have seen all the overwhelming emotions that were washing over me all at once, as I stared at my clenched hand where my locket hid. I tried to hide all the emotions, but they were clearly displayed on my face; all the emotions of anger and sadness were evident. I could feel the tears swelling in my eyes, just thinking about my mother and her hatred towards me. I quickly blinked the tears away, before they escaped my eyes, masking my emotions with a stone-cold serious face.

“You okay?” he asked, his tone full of concern.

I nodded, letting go of the locket. “I’m fine,” I mumbled, trying to hide the sadness in my voice, but I completely failed.

“Emma, it’s okay if you don’t want to tell me. You can tell me when you’re ready. Just know you can trust me,” he reassured me.

I took a deep breath, and then let it out with an unsteady, but heavy sigh. I wanted to tell him everything I went through right then and there. The only thing stopping me was I did not want to ruin the good moment and I was not ready for him to know what my horrible mother did to me. I was pretty sure telling him about my past and present day issues would scare him off. Who wouldn’t be scared off after telling them about abuse?

“It’s just the pictures in this locket are misleading, but very special to me. This locket was the last gift my dad gave me before he left five days after my sixteenth birthday. My parents fought all the time and it all started when I found them and moved in to live with them. It’s stupid, but I just wish they were still together.”

As I finished the last sentence, a single tear fell down my cheek. Jason wrapped his arms around me, hugging me close to his chest. I did not know how much I needed a hug, until he let go. He took his thumbs and wiped the stray tears from my cheeks.

“It’s not stupid,” he said in a soothing and comforting tone. He pulled me in close for one last short embrace, before letting go again. Jason took my hand, gently pulling me over to the car. He opened the passenger door and I climbed into the seat. He closed the door, as I buckled my seat belt. He sped around the front of the car and got into the driver’s seat, starting the ignition, and started heading back to my dad’s house. Jason held my hand as he drove all the way to our destination. I sat there content with how today ended. My insides are all bubbly and warm. I was truly happy for the first time in a long time.

When Jason pulled into the driveway, there were lights on inside the house that I did not leave on. I saw my dad’s pickup truck parked in front of the closed garage door. Sh*t, my dad is home. He must have forgotten something.

Jason got out and walked around the front of the car. I grabbed my jacket and my purse from the floorboard. He pulled the car door open, and held his hand out to help me out of the car. I took his hand graciously and stepped out of the car. I moved to the side, so he could close the door. He bent down and kissed my cheek. I was glad it was dark now, because he couldn’t see me blush and if Dan was spying from the window he could not see anything if he tried. Jason’s face was so close to mine, I could feel his cold cheek against my warm, flushed cheek. He moved his mouth close to my ear, and he whispered in a low voice, “Goodnight.”

Between his husky, sexy tone he used to whisper the word ‘goodnight’ and the butterflies in my stomach, I felt the electrifying chills run down my spine.

“Goodnight,” I whispered, smiling and pecking a kiss on his cheek, before quickly turning and walking towards the steps leading to the front door. The porch light was on, so it was easy for me to find my keys in my purse as I dug through my purse. I pulled my keys out of my purse and I unlocked the front door. I turned the door knob and opened the door. I turned around and waved at Jason, before I went inside. He was now standing on the driver’s side with the door open. He waved back and then climbed into his car, driving down the driveway. I walked inside, closed the door. I turned the lock of the deadbolt and the doorknob on the door. I turned to the staircase, ready to run up the stairs, when I saw my dad standing in the kitchen doorway holding a shotgun in his hands. The barrel pointing up towards the ceiling.

“Dad?” I gasped, my breathing hitched and my body shaking from fear. “What do you have that for?”

“Sorry, I thought it was someone else,” he said, relaxing and letting the barrel of the gun fall to the floor.

“It’s okay. I thought you were going to be at the firehouse. Did you forget something?” I questioned.

He nodded, “Yea, just came home to grab a couple of things, then I’m heading back to the station.”

“Okay,” I told him. “Well, I am going to bed. Goodnight.”

“Goodnight, Gumby,” he said, turning back into the kitchen.

I shook my head at the old nickname Dan had given me when I played softball. I never liked the nickname, but he always said I was stretchy when it came to catching the ball at first base. Dan even made me watch the show so I knew who Gumby was. Not gonna lie, Gumby did resemble my skills when I played first base. I made my way upstairs to get ready for bed. I decided to take a shower, so I grabbed my towel and made my way to the bathroom.

I hung my towel on the hook next to the shower, closing the door and locking it. I turned on the water to the hottest setting and then I turned to the vanity mirror. I looked in the mirror and for the first time I saw myself as pretty. I looked like a hot mess, due to a few of the bobby pins failing to do their job of securing my hair in place, but other than that I felt over the moon with everything that happened tonight. Tonight was full of bliss!

I never had time to myself like that. I really like Jason, he has a crazy sense of humor, makes me laugh, and he is honest and caring. I don’t think there is anyone I could picture better than him. Honestly, I do not think anyone could make me feel like he does. I am happy. Feeling happy is a rare thing for me, I barely remember what it felt like until now. Besides, Jason’s personality is the brighter side of him being a vampire. His humor and jokes definitely complimented the fact that he is basically dead figuratively on the inside and out.

I still can’t believe we kissed. I think when we touched and kissed Jason felt the same electrifying connection between us that I felt. It was an unfamiliar feeling for me, but I liked it.

I grabbed my toothbrush and applied my toothpaste on the bristles. I brushed my teeth, gargled some water for my mouth and set my toothbrush back in the dispenser. I started to remove the bobby pins from my hair and ran my fingers through my hair to get rid of any knots. I removed my clothing and stepped into the shower. I stood at the back of the shower and stuck my hand under the water to test the temperature. I turned the water down, so it was lukewarm. I stepped under it, turning around and stepping backwards, letting the water cascade down my back, saturating my hair. The warm water felt good on my skin.

I lathered my soaking wet hair with conditioner, wrapping my hair up in a bun on top of my head to let the conditioner set, while I washed my body. I scrub my body clean with the loofah. As I scrubbed my body, my hair was falling out of the make-shift bun. I rinsed the soap off of my body, and then rinsed the conditioner out of my hair. As the water ran through my hair, I ran my fingers through my hair a few times making sure all the conditioner was washed out. Once I was sure I had all the conditioner out of my hair, I turned the water off. I pulled the shower curtain back and grabbed the towel on the hook. I patted my body with the towel, then wrapped the towel around myself and stepped out. I grabbed the other towel on the hook and wrapped my hair up. I picked up my clothes I had taken off, opened the door, and went to my room. I felt clean and refreshed.

I walked into my bedroom, shutting the door behind me and flicking the light switch on. I put the clothes I had worn in the dirty hamper, then grabbed my pajamas from my dresser. I put clean underwear on and my cloth sports bra that I wore just to sleep in. I lathered myself in unscented baby oil lotion, before I put my black plaid pajama pants and my fuchsia pink tank top on. I dried my hair with the towel, not caring to put product in it. I combed my hair and then covered my hair with my dorag.

I was ready for bed, so I turned the light off and walked over to my bed. I turned the lamp on and climbed onto bed. I sat on my bed with my back resting up against the backboard. I grabbed my purse that I set on the ground beside my bed. I pulled my phone out and set my purse back on the ground. I opened my phone and scrolled through my contacts. I debated on whether I should call Kali and decided not to. I clicked my phone lock and held my phone in my hand, while I stared at the window that was across from my bed.

I was in the house alone now, my father went back to the station. I was tired, but I was not used to sleeping in a house alone. I was never good with being alone in a house by myself. I have only been living in this house for a couple of weeks, so I was not comfortable with sleeping alone in this house. Besides, I never actually had to sleep in a house alone before. When I lived with my mother, Lucy and Jared were in the house and they are not here. Staying in the house alone is going to be an adjustment.

I looked at my phone and it was eleven o’clock. It was going to be a long night alone, or should I say weekend, since I had till Sunday night before my father came back. I have never been the type to stay the night at someone else’s house or ask for favors, but I was seriously considering calling Kali, even though it was late at night.

I opened my contacts in my phone and found her contact. I put her as ‘best friend’ in my phone contacts. I opened a new text message and texted her: Hi Kali, it’s Emma. Tonight was fantastic! I can not wait to tell you about it.

Within a minute of pressing send, I could see she read it and was responding. The little dots indicating she was typing back. As I stared at the screen of my phone, waiting for her to respond back, my eyes were starting to drift close. Despite me being scared to sleep in the house alone, trying to stay awake was inevitable because my eyes were heavy with sleep.