Saturday, June 14, 2008

Chapter 7

I sighed, having second thoughts about this idiotic plan. Yes, I admit it’s idiotic. I mean, if he was really going to “take care of me” he’d let me fall and die. But if he wants all the glory of my death, he’d save me, than kill me. Wait! That made no sense…I thought dreadfully. I gulped and closed my eyes.
I was going through with it.
You’re an idiot. Was my last thought before I let myself jump off. After that, I didn’t think, I didn’t feel. I only let myself fall and pretend that Devin was saving me. No matter what, he’d always save me in my mind.
But no matter how hard I tried, the two feelings I can never get rid of these days haunted me: fear (that I’m going to die) and curiosity (is Devin’s really going to save me). They turned and twisted in the pit of my stomach. Eventually fear won the battle and I was terribly afraid. I was just ready to let out a scream when…
No, it’s not what you think. Devin didn’t save me. I hit the ground first, duh!
Okay, that’s not true either. Turns out neither happened.
Instead, I got snagged by a tree branch that had caught onto my shawl and my shirt.
I blew my curls out of my face annoyingly and folded my arms. This wasn’t going as I’d planned at all.
“Okay, I wasn’t expecting that but…I really should have.” A voice laughed.
“And now he shoes up!” I muttered loudly to myself, making it so he can hear. I felt a hand pull me up onto the tree branch. I looked up to see Devin. He wasn’t smiling though he’d been laughing a minute ago.
“You’re really good at this whole ‘damsel in distress’ thing.” He teased, a smile jerking up but never coming.
“Yeah, well you need to learn more on the whole ‘prince charming’ thing.” I teased back, not showing my joy that he was here and not just a figment of my imagination. Or at least I hoped not.
“Oh, so now I’m the prince charming?” he asked, seeming like he was getting angry. “But I’m the bad guy! When did I become prince charming, huh?!”
I twirled and gave him my angelic smile, “When you kissed me.” At that his head and shoulders slumped down.
“I knew I was going to regret doing that.” He muttered.
“Oh, don’t worry about that.” I said evilly “I’ll make sure you do.” He looked up at me now. He didn’t seem angry any more, or sad at all, more like he thought I couldn’t do that.
“And how are you?” he asked playfully, yet there was a hint of seriousness in there, I knew it.
“Well for one, I think Nani is going to band me from ever seeing you. So say goodbye.” I said, though that really wasn’t a way for him to regret it at all. It means less time for him to hypnotoxicate me. This is what he wanted.
“Yeah, that won’t stop me.” he finally smiled.
“Somehow I knew you were going to say that.” I sighed. So I found a different way. “This run is over, I’m gonna go home.” I went on my toes and kissed his cheek, “Bye-bye Devin.” I called as I hung off the branch and jumped to the bottom, it wasn’t that far down after all. I started walking away. I stole a glance at Devin’s completely shocked face.
“That’s what you get for kissing me,” I said meanly, turning back to the trail and then realizing I was lost. Like I knew my way home from the bottom of the overhang, I really am stupid.
<> <> <>
I eventually wandered home around…who knows?! I don’t keep a watch! I probably should. Anyway, I walked through the door and there stood Nani in the hallway, he eyes in glare mode, tapping her right foot on the wooden floor. That could only mean one thing. Grounded.
“You are in so much trouble, Angelea!” she shouted, walking over to me. “Do you have any idea of what time it is?”
“Not really…” I said nervously. I knew there were stars out but, how late could it be? Nani pointed angrily at the clock. It was half past midnight. “Oh.” I said, rubbing the back of my head in embarrassment, “my bad.”
“You’re still grounded.” She said.
“I know.” I sighed “I’m sorry it was such a long run, I bumped into Devin and…” I didn’t need to finish that sentence before I knew I had made a huge mistake.
“You bumped into Devin?” Nani said, trying to keep her temper down.
“Well…yes.” I said in a small voice.
“You-are-so-dead.” She said, pausing between each word to stop her from strangling me right then and there.
“I know.”
“Go to bed, now!”
“You don’t want to talk about this?”
“Fine, you were supposed to be back by lunchtime and you went on the longest walk in history and came back half past midnight!”
“Okay, I’ll take going to bed.” I walked quietly past Nani and into the kitchen, past the kitchen into the stairway going downstairs, which is where my room is, also Nani's across from mine. I went down the stairs and walked to my door. Then I noticed Nani’s room light was on. I let my curiosity get the better of me and I went in. I had been in Nani’s room thousands of times but I had never noticed this before. Normally Nani hung her pictures that she takes –Nani’s a professional photographer –above her bed. But this time, there was something else hanging there.
There was a dress, a ballroom gown. It had frilly light purple sleeves, a black collar and a grey see-through part that went down to the chest area and branched off an either side till it touched the sleeves. In the middle of where it branched, there was a small teardrop shaped hole. From the hole down along the stomach line was more of the grey cloth, it went all the way down the front until it stopped at the middle of the dress, which was marked with a golden-yellow ribbon wrapped around the waist area. All along the grey fabric below the hole had a criss-cross pattern in silky black ribbon. The rest of the top-half of the dress was dark purple (or red, i can't decide). After the golden-yellow ribbon, the dress widened and was –how I’d put it –puffy. One side of the bottom-half of the dress was dark purple (or red) with a black line going to the other side of the dress. On the other side it did the same thing. Leaving the middle of the bottom-half filled with light purple cloth that ended with the same golden-yellow ribbon at the bottom of the dress. It was different than any ballroom gown I’d ever seen.
“Do you like it?” Nani’s voice asked behind me. I turned around quickly and nervously. I thought she’d be mad but I saw a smile on her face.
“Actually, yes. I do like it, it reminds me of a purple (red) rose.” I said, turning back to look at the dress.
“I designed it.” Nani said happily. I now understood why she wasn’t mad at me staring at her dress in her room, she’d wanted me to see her creation.
You designed that dress?” I asked.
“Uh-huh. I’d taken so many pictures of girls in pretty ballroom gowns I finally decided I’d design one, make it, and take pictures of it and stuff. But now I can’t get anyone to wear it, I feel like no one but I should see it…well, except for you of course. I knew you’d encourage my designing dream.” Then I remembered. Grandma would always show me pictures of Nani’s amazing designs when I was little. But Nani always said she loved photography more. And so she went with that instead. But that never stopped her from drawing her designs. This was the first time she’d actually brought it to life.
“How did you make it?” I asked. Sadly, Nani didn’t have a clue of how to sow. Only I knew how, Grandma had taught me.
“Brain saw my design of it and he asked his mother to make it and she did. I was so happy I hung it here above my bed and I may never take it down!” she squealed. She’d never been this excited before. I smiled, I was happy for her.
“Good for you.” I said “now I’m off to bed.” I walked into my room and flopped down on the bed. Now all I had to worry about was whether I was going to have another nightmare, or not.

7 comments:

Decemberflower said...

now you write chapter 8, Cal.

Hoshi said...

sweet.

AliceLostWonderland said...

v. good.
the chapters are a bit small, but extremly good.

yes indeedy, i agree it it very sweet!

Decemberflower said...

actually, they're not small. maybe on the blog they seem small but... not really. their each about 5-6 pages long.

Rose Mary said...

that's long. and it was way good.

Decemberflower said...

thnx

Hoshi said...

we're talking humungo, college-ruled 4-subject notebook papers. pick one up at a local store if you see one and look through 5-6 pages. now imagine trying to fill that up with stuff for a book! it's hard. and i have writers block. so I'm procrastinating. Normally I'm more creative now... but I just woke up, too....