Dark Fire Page 15

  Chapter Thirty-Four: Kyler

  I woke up panting the next morning. I had a terrible dream where the darkness was suffocating me. I was choking for air and still recalled that gut-wrenching feeling. It shook me to my core and I found that I was coated in sweat too.

  Noticing the bed felt extra warm, I searched for the source and was momentarily surprised to see Remy. I’d forgotten I’d asked him to stay with me. I cuddled further into him for comfort after that dream, but he started to move.

  “I’m sorry. Did I wake you?” I whispered.

  “Yeah, but it’s okay,” he replied and threw his arm around me. His voice was rough from sleep, but it was sexy.

  “Let’s go get some breakfast. I’m starved from not eating dinner last night.”

  “Do you think we could get some clothes from Jeremiah first?” he asked. “My clothes are dirty.”

  “Of course. Let me change and then I’ll run to his room real quick.”

  Remy nodded his head in understanding and as quickly I could around the pain, changed into an old pair of jeans that was here and a different t-shirt. I rushed to Jeremiah’s room and banged on the door. He swung it open and was half-asleep like I’d expected him to be. He was also in his underwear and it was hard to hold in the laugh that wanted to come out at the sight.

  “Get a shirt and some clean pants for Remy to wear, and then I’ll let you go back to sleep,” I promised.

  He grunted and disappeared leaving the door cracked. I opened it more so I could step in. His room was a mess. There were clothes, papers, and books scattered everywhere. I didn’t understand how he could live in this chaos. It gave me anxiety just walking in it.

  It only took Jeremiah a minute or two before he was handing me some clothes and he kicked me out. He shut the door and nearly clipped my back. That boy was still as grumpy in the morning as ever.

  On the way back to my room, pangs of sorrow caused my heart to skip a beat. I still couldn’t believe Nova died. It was hard to believe.

  I wiped away the stray tears before I returned to Remy and he quickly changed into the shirt and khaki shorts Jeremiah gave up. Thankfully, they fit perfectly. I recalled my dad’s clothes being tight on him and was glad that he had better luck with these.

  “Ready?” I asked.

  “To face more elementals than I ever could’ve imagined talking to? I’m as ready as I’m ever going to be, I guess.”

  “That’s what I was hoping to hear. Let’s go.”

  I had to half-drag him to the cafeteria. I could understand his hesitation, but I was starving. He had to be pretty hungry too since he didn’t eat last night either.

  The cafeteria was full of chattering students when we reached it. Everyone stopped what they were doing when we entered and openly stared. It felt like I was back at Easterly, but that wasn’t possible since I burned it down.

  A few of them jumped up and came towards us. I recognized them immediately. It was Jenni, Michelle, and Anthony and they were all in my class.

  “Are you the half-human Jeremiah was talking about last night?” Jenni asked with excitement.

  Remy stepped back a pace and closer to me. His face reddened and I was pretty certain he froze up. I spoke quickly to save him from having to.

  “Give him some air you guys.”

  “But it’s so cool, man.” Anthony grinned welcomingly at him.

  “It is?” Remy questioned hesitantly.

  “Yeah, man. I’ve always wanted to meet a human,” Anthony added.

  Michelle glared at him. “He isn’t human, you idiot. He’s also an elemental.”

  “Which makes him cooler.” Anthony waved his arms around as if it would make his point the logical one.

  “You’re such an idiot.” Michelle rolled her eyes at him.

  “Guys, I’m hungry. Move it or you’re getting burned,” I warned.

  Nobody came between me and my food.

  The three made a path for us, and Remy picked up the pace to remain on my heels. The three followed behind us and watched as we loaded our plates with food.

  “Who are these guys?” Remy whispered after he grabbed some bacon.

  “Oh, I’m sorry. That’s Michelle, Jenni, and Anthony.” I pointed each of them out and they waved in response. “They’re the same level as me so they’re in my class. Apparently, they’re also your new fangirls.”

  “I’m not a girl,” Anthony scoffed, but I ignored him and so did Remy.

  As we looked for a table, I started to explain how our classes were divided. He would probably be a level four since he could control his element well, which would be the same class as me.

  Michelle, Jenni, and Anthony sat with us, much to our dismay, and continued to ask Remy questions, but Anthony was the worst one of them.

  “Do you guys eat the same food as we do?” Anthony asked.

  “He’s eating it right now, dummy,” Michelle snarked.

  “Oh, well, do you guys pee the same?” Anthony leaned forward with his question.

  My eyes narrowed and the napkin in front of him burst into flame. He fell backwards out of his seat and landed on his butt. I leaned over the table to look down at him.

  “If you’re going to insist on being rude then I’m going to insist on you leaving.”

  He looked up at me with wide eyes, but Remy jumped in and saved his life.

  “He’s fine. Just curious. He reminds me of Ethan.”

  “He doesn’t look a thing like him,” I argued, annoyed.

  “Not his looks. I mean in the way he acts. Ethan was goofy like that too.”

  Remy got a faraway look on his face and I knew he was thinking about home. I was going to apologize, but I didn’t know what it would be for. I would only sound stupid.

  “I’m glad I found you guys. I need you two to come with me.” Mr. Jay placed his hand on Remy’s shoulder and had come out of nowhere.

  Remy and I said bye to the three and followed Mr. Jay into his office. It was so spacious and had leather seats so he could scold people in comfort. There were no pictures hanging up and the walls were painted a jungle green. Oddly enough, I always enjoyed getting called to Mr. Jay’s office. It was never dull and he usually had good advice when it was warranted.

  “So, your mother contacted me, Kyler. She said that Marcus is perfect and they’re leaving the hospital tomorrow. The only bad thing is that since he was premature, they don't want him flying on a plane until he’s six months.”

  “So?” I looked at Mr. Jay with raised eyebrows and hoped he didn’t mean what he was implying.

  “That means that they won’t be able to come here for another six months,” Mr. Jay elaborated.

  “Well, then, I’ll just go back home,” I reasoned.

  “You can’t, Kyler,” Mr. Jay stated.

  “Why the hell not?”

  “Kyler,” Remy said my name softly as if it was a warning.

  “What? Suddenly he’s your uncle and you have to defend him?” My eyes narrowed at him.

  “No, I’m only warning you that you need to get that anger under control before you set something else on fire.”

  “So, what? Now, my fire’s a problem?”

  “Kyler.” Remy moved and knelt in front of me. He took my hands in his. “I’m sorry you can’t see your family. I can’t see my parents at all anymore, but at least yours are okay. So, please, don’t take it out on us. It isn't our fault.”

  He took his hands out of mine to cup my cheeks. The look he was giving me was very intimate and my cheeks warmed. Mr. Jay cleared his throat and Remy pulled away.

  I sighed. “I’m sorry, you two. I have all this pent up anger that keeps flowing through me. It probably has to do with the sword still being within range. Where is it anyway?”

  Mr. Jay glanced at Remy and shook his head before looking back at me. “It’s here in the school. We are keeping it safe but think it’s best not to tell you where just in case the sword tries to take control of you again.”


  “Um, it can do that whether I know where it is or not,” I pointed out.

  “Yeah, but if you know where it is, then you’re going to poke your nose around the area,” Remy said. “I’m right, aren’t I?”

  I frowned at that because he was. It was crazy he already knew me so well when I felt like I didn’t really know him.

  “It isn’t far enough away then because I had a bad dream last night about darkness consuming me. It was suffocating me like it was trying to kill me this time and I woke up in a cold sweat.”

  “You had a nightmare and it woke you up? How did I not hear you?” Remy’s eyes were wide.

  “I’m not sure, but I ended up waking you up anyway when I tried to cuddle with you so maybe my startled awakening did affect you some,” I mused.

  “Wait a minute,” Mr. Jay interjected. “You guys slept together last night?”

  Remy and I nodded our heads, guilty.

  Mr. Jay shook his. “That won’t happen again. Your parents would kill me if they found out. We’ll find you a room right now so that issue is resolved.”

  Mr. Jay pulled out a thick book and slammed it on the desk. He fingered through the words and stopped after turning a couple of pages. “There’s the room across the hall from Kyler that’s actually open. I’ll put you there. You guys will still be by each other but you’ll at least be in different rooms.”

  He handed Remy a set of keys and Remy thanked him.

  “Now, the next thing on the agenda is to meet Xavier. He’s going to take you guys into the town to buy some new clothes and whatnot.”

  Mr. Jay made to leave and beckoned us to follow. We did as he asked and he led us to the library. Xavier was sorting books when we entered, but stopped as soon as he saw us.

  “Is this him?” he asked as he approached and eyed Remy.

  It always amazed me that he didn’t look a thing like Mr. Jay. Remy actually looked more like Mr. Jay because of their eyes. Xavier had light blonde hair in contrast to Mr. Jay’s brown hair and Xavier’s eyes were chocolate brown with red specks.

  “Hello, I’m Remy,” he introduced himself.

  “And I’m Xavier. It’s nice to meet you. You two ready to get going?”

  We both nodded our heads and he quickly led us out of the school. In order to get to the town, we had to travel through a path in the woods. Earth wielders kept it up so it wasn’t a hard trek. The walk was spent with Remy and Xavier asking each other simple questions to get to know each other. It was the basic things you asked on a first date, so it was entertaining to watch.

  We broke through and the town came into view. I heard Remy gasp at the sight. The town of elementals consisted of log buildings. The businesses and houses were both made of logs and they were beautifully crafted. Most of them were ancient too.

  “How are we going to pay for everything? These shops look expensive,” Remy questioned.

  Xavier and I both laughed and I was the one to respond, “We don’t use money on this island. People do this stuff because they love it. There’s people who make clothes, grow food and produce snacks, and people who make other knickknacks like toys for the children.”

  “Really? You mean people work because they want to?” Remy quirked an eyebrow at us.

  Xavier replied this time, “It may seem weird to you, but it works for us. People enjoy being a productive part of society. It’s the elemental way. We all help each other where it’s needed too. Like if a farmer needs extra help, there’s plenty of volunteers to do so.”

  “That’s so crazy. Humans could never live like that. They’re too lazy and selfish,” Remy stated.

  “Well, it’s a good thing you’re only half-human then, isn’t it?” Xavier teased.

  “Yeah, I guess it is.” The awe was clear in Remy’s eyes as he took everything in. “I can’t believe my dad wanted to leave this place.”

  “It isn’t for everyone,” Xavier admitted.

  “Some like the idea of human money,” I added.

  “That was my dad,” Remy muttered.

  Xavier took us into a clothing store first and Remy and I got so many new clothes that I was going to have to use my air to help carry them back to the school. We were usually rationed on everything, but we were an exception since we didn’t have anything.

  Next, we stopped to grab a quick ice cream cone before going to the grocery store. I loved to keep snacks in my room, so I was going to stock up while we were here.

  I got my favorite nuts and berries and Remy even grabbed a few things. He was excited to try the homemade chips they had.

  “We get a lot of ideas for snacks and foods from the humans. They’re advanced with their technology, which we don’t have. We prefer the natural way and to live among the elements. It helps our body stay healthier and function correctly,” I explained.

  “I never would’ve known all this about our kind, so thank you for taking the time to show me.” Remy grinned.

  I shot him a bright smile of my own and we made our way back to Westville with our goodies in tow. It was a good thing I could control air right now or we would be weighed down and dragging our feet. Remy and Xavier were both grateful for it as they strolled back through the path ahead of me. They were talking about something, but I wasn’t really listening.

  We’d spent the majority of the day in town and we only had about an hour and a half before dinner was going to be served by the time we made it back. Remy and I quickly threw our stuff in our rooms and I gave him a quick tour since I was too tired to do it yesterday.

  Man, I was so happy to be walking these halls again.

  Chapter Thirty-Five: Remy

  A week went by and it had been an interesting one. I’d met my uncle and cousin that I didn’t know existed, got a new wardrobe, and I was introduced to several other elementals. Anthony and I also became friends despite the hellish first meeting. Kyler and I had become inseparable, but she still wouldn’t admit how she felt about me. It was time to have a long, overdue conversation now that things were starting to settle down.

  So, I pulled Kyler outside to take a walk. She was hesitant, but it was such a pretty day that she finally caved. That, and I was pretty persistent.

  “What’s this all about?” Kyler asked with a smile.

  It lit up her face and made my lips morph into a grin.

  “It’s time we talked about us.”

  “What do you mean?” She shot me a cute confused look.

  “I think you know exactly what I mean. We’ve been through a lot, so I put this off as long as I could manage. You and I are soulmates.”

  “What did you say? You said the last part so fast I couldn’t understand it. It sounded like another language.”

  Dang, I thought I’d articulated it perfectly.

  “Let’s try this again. You and I are soulmates.”

  “Remy, you did it again. Whatever it is, you don’t have to be afraid to tell me. Just do it where I can understand you.”

  “You and I are soulmates.” This time I accidentally yelled it and she jumped back.

  “I already knew that.” She giggled. “Is that what you were so scared to tell me?”

  “How long have you known?” I asked incredulously because she didn’t act like she knew about it.

  “Since the day I blew my secret. I guess I didn’t want to address it because I thought you were all human. It didn’t make sense how a human could be my soulmate.”

  “Would you still date me if I was all human?”

  She smiled. “Of course I still would. The pull was too strong between us to ignore it forever. How long have you felt it?”

  “Well, I knew since the day I first saw you at that diner,” I admitted.

  “You’ve known for that long?” she exclaimed.

  “You probably would’ve figured it out sooner if you weren’t so blinded from your stubbornness and condescending manner.”

  “Yeah, sorry about that. I’m not like my mom. I don’t feel as negatively towards humans
as I did, but I still don’t think humans and elementals belong together. If anything, everything that happened the past week proved nothing good comes from us interacting.”

  “Including me?”

  I knew that wasn’t what she meant, but that was the way it sounded. Her face dropped when she understood what I was implying.

  “I didn’t mean it like that. You’re wonderful, Remy. I can’t imagine anyone else being my soulmate. I guess I should’ve said that bad things are bound to happen when our two kinds mingle. I just keep worrying about something happening to you like with Nova. The sight of her motionless on the ground still haunts me.”

  “I bet you’re glad we were forced to stay on this island then.”

  “I sure am,” she answered without hesitation.

  “Well, I wish I could at least go back and say bye to my friends. Even though they were stupid humans.”

  “Look, I’m sorry that you’re stuck here, but let’s stop going down the path that leads to an argument. What do you want to do now that we both accept we’re soulmates?”

  She was right. I could feel myself getting angrier and angrier, but that wasn’t the direction I wanted this conversation to go. It was supposed to be a happy moment. An idea struck me of what I’d really been wanting to do ever since I saw her.

  “This,” I rasped as I grabbed the back of her neck and pulled her head towards mine.

  Fireworks exploded in my mind at the toe-curling kiss we shared. She deepened it and our bodies pressed together. Her skin was warm and made every fiber within me come alive.

  When we broke apart, I whispered, “You can’t even fathom how long I’ve wanted to do that.”

  “You’re so cheesy, aren’t you?” she laughed and pecked my lips.

  “It’s about damn time,” a familiar voice cheered.

  I looked behind Kyler to see Jeremiah standing there with a smug grin on his face. Kyler turned to face him and stuck out her tongue.