Discovering Aether Read online

  “I’m so sorry that you had to go through that.” He touches his forehead to mine and looks deep into my eyes. His sparkling green eyes feel like they’re reaching into my soul, just like Nolan’s did earlier. “If you let me, I’ll always be here for you. I may not know loss, but I can give you a shoulder to cry on, if you’ll have me.”

  “Why am I okay with seeking comfort from a stranger?” I ask, a little surprised by how comfortable I am with Kevin. “Not that this is bad,” I add. In response, he pulls us back on the bed to lay down and repositions my head to rest on his chest.

  “I’m not going to try anything with you tonight. I just figured you might need some rest. I may be a stranger to you but, as partners, you call to me and me to you. You can trust me. I’ve waited all my life for you. I can continue waiting for as long as you need.” There’s a sincerity in his words that ring true. I’ve been around people pretending for three years and he doesn’t seem phoney like everyone else does. He wraps his freckled arms around me. Unsure but comforted, I pull one of my legs on top of his thighs and snuggle into him. Even though I should be uncomfortable doing this with a guy I only met today, my eyelids get heavy and I quickly fall asleep.

  Her eyes finally close and her breaths evens out. She’s actually allowing me to hold her while she sleeps. I run my fingers through her light brown curls, feeling their softness. Lavender and spruce fill my nostrils. I could smell these scents for the rest of my life and not get enough of them.

  I didn’t think this day would come. If we don’t find your Nucleus while in school, we’re pretty much guaranteed to never find them. I can’t believe at twenty three that she would just show up on our doorstep. I never gave up on her though, I had Nolan’s mom, Dawn, make up this room. Yes, it’s plain but I figured when I finally found her, that she could make this room her own. Nolan hated the idea, he never stepped foot in here. I suggested once that he should make a room up for his Nucleus and he disappeared for a week, then came back smelling like booze and weed. That’s how Nolan has dealt with this situation, girls, alcohol, and drugs. He used to not be like this.

  When we were in school together, everyone else in our grade had found their Nucleus and even though other people tried to include us, it always felt like we were on the outside. That’s how we became best friends. I tried to go to events and tag along on outings but it always made me feel sad. I was surrounded by people who were happy all the time. Nolan found me one night on a bench crying after a trip to the movies where everyone had left early to go back to the dorms they shared with their quads. He just pulled me into a hug and told me he would let me cry tonight but the next day I was going to get off my ass and just start hanging out with him. I knew he was alone too but he had always seemed so happy and confident. Nolan was the star at school, he played every sport and even excelled at training most of the time without having his quad, so I never realized that it got to him too. He told me he was lonely but not having a Nucleus was not going to stop him from living his life.

  He took me under his wing after that, even had us room in the same dorm so we wouldn’t be stuck living in the dorms with all the eleven and twelve year olds who hadn’t found their Nucleus. I acted like everything was fine during the day, but at night when I felt like I couldn’t handle being there anymore, Nolan would let me climb in his bed and he would comfort me until I fell asleep. In the five years since we left school, Nolan is still there for me. But there’s a difference in him, and he has slowly started to lose himself. I hope now that Adaline is here, that he won’t need those vices anymore.

  Adaline re-adjusts herself again and places her delicate arm across my body. I look down at her face, nestled in the spot where my collarbone meets my chest. She lets out a snore. It’s not a loud, annoying snore at least not yet, it’s just barely audible. I kiss her forehead and whisper, “My Heart's Center, I’m so glad you found me.”

  Gosh, I’m sweating. I open my eyes to find Kevin with his mouth open, snoring loudly with his eyes still closed. I can’t believe I was able to fall asleep with him so easily. I don’t think I even woke up once last night. My stomach grumbles. Ugh, I look down at my belly. I haven’t had a bite since I ate lunch at the restaurant yesterday. Kevin stirs underneath me and I look back up at his face. His gorgeous green eyes are on my face along with a huge grin plastered on his lips.

  “Sounds like you could use some breakfast. Come on, I’ll whip you up some pancakes and bacon.” My stomach growls again making us both laugh.

  “Pancakes sound great, but would it be too much trouble to ask for sausage instead of bacon?” I don’t eat bacon anymore, my dad loved bacon. I can’t help but think of him every time I eat it.”

  My eyes slide away, but Kevin cups my face. My eyes find his again and I see concern etched on his face. I continue talking, trying to explain, “His favorite meal was always breakfast, especially breakfast with just the two of us. Even when Brenda moved in with us, she wasn’t an early riser and wouldn’t get out of bed in the morning unless someone from the diner called for her help. He would experiment with new recipes all the time but bacon was always a staple ingredient. We would get up at five each morning and just talk for an hour over food before we got ready for the day.”

  “Yes, that’s fine, I’ll just whip up both. Nolan says he can’t do breakfast if bacon’s not on the menu.” He scoots off the bed and walks towards the door. “You coming?” he asks, turning his head back to me and holding out a hand.

  “Uh, yeah, I’ll be right behind you,” I hesitate. I’m not sure if I can deal with the smell of bacon when I go out there. Would it be wrong if I just skipped it? I don’t really eat breakfast anymore, my stomach probably couldn’t handle anything more than an apple. Eating on a budget meant that I limited my only healthy food to a piece of fruit for breakfast. I guess I could always use that as an excuse if I can’t stomach it when I go out there.

  “If you’re looking for clothes, Nolan put your backpack in the closet. Nao says you need more clothes than a small bag full, so expect an invite to go shopping later,” he announces as he walks out the door and closes it behind him.

  Sliding out of the comfy bed, I move to the closet and open it, finding my backpack on the floor. Unzipping it, it looks like no one has gone through my things and for that I’m grateful. My glasses still sit right on top of my things. I wonder if the guys know why my eyesight is perfect now. I pull out a plain white tee and jean shorts, as well as my favorite sports bra and black cotton underwear. I put on the clothes and open the bathroom to look at my hair. My hair is in disarray for some reason and my curls look weird so I pull it into a bun.

  Looking at my reflection in the mirror I wonder if maybe I should have learned to put on makeup. I never tried to look good for guys before, but I really want to look good for these two. That feels weird to even think!

  “You can do this,” I say quietly, trying to hype myself up. Man, I really want to believe my words. Might as well face the music... and the bacon.

  Just before I head out the door, I take a deep breath. As I hit the hallway, the smell of bacon nearly takes me to my knees, but I will myself to keep walking. A door opens behind me. I turn and find Nolan coming out of what must be his room in nothing but a pair of boxers. Oh my, he has a six pack.

  “Hey Adaline,” he says warmly. “I hope you slept well. I smelled the bacon and it woke me up. It’s my favorite.”

  I try to hold back my cringe when he says the word bacon. He approaches me and places his hand on my lower back. Why am I okay with all of this touching? I really should try to put some distance between us. He seems like a player, I mean he did have some random girl up here yesterday. Ugh, he’s cute. Why should I care that he had someone before me? Naomi did say yesterday that I should give him and Kevin a chance. Plus, well, it shouldn't bother me what he did before he even met me. At least that’s what I’ve been telling myself. Why am I jealous? I don’t even know him enough yet to know if I like him. I close my eyes for
a quick second, trying to calm down. Come on Adaline, just relax, I tell myself.

  “Shall we join Kevin?” I ask after my little freak out moment. I try not let him notice the effect he has on me by keeping a neutral expression on my face as I flick my hand in the direction of the kitchen.

  “Yes, let’s do that,” he responds as he mimics my hand movement. His tone and body language make me think he’s mocking me. I try to take it as a good humored response and move forward.

  Coming into the kitchen, we find that Kevin looks like he’s finished cooking already. The kitchen is all stainless steel except for the cabinets that have glass doors. On the counter, there is a vase of yellow daisies set out and three black plates with silverware. I can already tell which plate is mine since it is the only one without bacon and is set between the others. Nolan pulls out a black bar stool for me from the closet. I guess they normally only have each other at the bar when they eat. That is, unless Nolan brings his dates in here in the morning and Kevin just stays in his room. Why did my mind go there?

  Hopefully, if I sit down and eat quickly I won’t have to smell the bacon too long. Man, do I miss bacon. I really miss bacon. A single tear rolls down my cheek.

  “Hey, are you okay?” Kevin asks, his eyes filled with sincerity, and maybe a little worry.

  “Oh, yeah I’m fine,” I answer, discreetly wiping my face. Sitting down quickly, I grab the syrup. I drizzle it over the pancakes and then stab a piece of sausage with my fork and take a bite, so I won’t have to answer any more questions.

  Nolan looks at me while chewing on his bottom lip, with a quizzical look in his eyes. “Uh, okay let’s eat,” he says as they both sit down beside me.

  I tuck into the food and eat quickly. After I have eaten most of the food on my plate, I try to think of an excuse to get back to the room… and away from the smell of the bacon that lingers.

  “So, Adaline,” Kevin starts. “Do you have any questions for us? I don’t know what all Nao said to you, so if you need to ask anything we’re all ears.”

  Welp, I guess I won’t be able to run back to the room like I wanted. Looking back and forth between him and Nolan, all that pops in my head is how much I would like to kiss them. Both of them. Yeah, nope. I need to focus on something else.

  “Would you two have any idea why all of a sudden I don’t need to wear my glasses anymore?” I whisper, deciding to get things started on something small, but also important. And away from thoughts of their lips. Nolan puts his hand on my lower back again. Seriously? I can’t do touching right now. One, it’s breakfast, the now worst meal in my life, and two, I’m still getting use to the sparks that run up and down my body whenever one of them touches me.

  I turn my back to the counter and face him. He looks crestfallen as his head hangs down. Though, thankfully, he’s pulled his hand back. I don’t need to be distracted while I’m talking to them. Yes, his body language makes me feel horrible for reacting this way, but I need to get my bearings in this bizarre situation that I’ve now found myself in. Instead of asking about why I put space between us, he thankfully answers my question.

  “Well, our bodies age like everyone else till we hit somewhere between eighteen and twenty-one. Then we stop aging all together and our genetics kick in and any issues we were having disappear. Our eyesight becomes sharper, we stop getting colds and we heal ten times faster when we get wounds. Thankfully, we have yet to have a kid get cancer in our community. I guess even as kids, our genetic makeup is still better than regular everyday people. The council still believes that getting colds as children helps our bodies. That’s why they stopped doing research to fix the problem. They don’t see it as one.” Nolan finishes.

  “So now I won’t get sick? Ever?” They nod in response. “Maybe this isn’t so bad after all. Wait, you said ‘stop aging.’ Am I immortal?” I look back and forth between them both a few times, my own eyes wide with curiosity and apprehension. Nolan laughs. Kevin smacks him upside his head trying to get him to knock it off. He stops laughing and rubs his head before he continues.

  “Well, practically immortal. You can live forever as long as you’re not killed, and it’s very hard to kill us once we stop aging. That’s one of the many things our ancestors wanted to achieve. The fact that your body has already began to stop aging now is amazing. It’s rare to begin at age eighteen. That just shows how powerful you are.” He sounds scared as he says those last few words. Wouldn’t the fact that I’m powerful be a good thing?

  “Well, I do have Aether right? Naomi said that it’s a powerful element, so I mean it would make sense, right?” I question.

  Kevin turns his body towards me, smiling brightly. “Yes, it makes sense, Adaline. You’re going to do amazing things. I’m so glad that we get to be around to experience it.” At least one of them seems happy about it.

  But now I’m not sure I want to hear how amazing it is. My face involuntarily cringes. “Yeah, no pressure.” I mutter.

  Nolan reaches for my hand, I guess to comfort me, so I let him. The tingles run up my arm again, but I think I’m growing accustomed to it.

  “Don’t even fret about it. I figured this week we can let you relax, then next week we can start training you. You’ll need to get a handle on your element and some exercise will do your body some good.”

  Did he just call me fat? I know I have a healthy weight. I look good. Who does this guy think he is?

  “What do you mean, ‘it will do my body good to exercise’?” I seethe. The smile vanishes from his face.

  “Wait, I didn’t mean it like that.” I jump up from my stool. This is a good opportunity to hightail it back to the room. Before I can make my escape, Kevin pulls me onto his lap and cups my face.

  “What Nolan meant is that we believe exercise helps when we’re learning to handle our element. It can clear the mind and helps put you in a good mood. You need that when you’re learning control. That’s it. We learned that from our teachers at school. They want everyone to do that. Plus, Alchemists believe that we should strive to live the healthiest lives possible. Our genetics are a gift from our ancestors and we want to respect what we’re lucky to have thanks to research. Believe me, you do not need to change your body, you look amazing.” I can’t help but grin at Kevin. I feel a little stupid now for taking Nolan’s words the wrong way.

  “Sorry, Nolan.” Without looking in my direction, he starts clearing the table. Picking up the dishes, he takes them to the sink and turns on the water.

  “It’s no problem, Adaline,” he replies curtly.

  Man, he’s a little sensitive. I apologized. And. really, anyone could have taken his words the way I did. I start to say something but Kevin grabs my hand and leads me out of the kitchen.

  “I promised Naomi I would drop you off upstairs,” he says. “She’s been texting me all morning. She really wants to take you shopping.”

  I’m not really a shopping trip kind of girl. But I guess I can make an exception for Naomi. As I follow him out the door, I look back real quick at Nolan while he’s washing the dishes. His back is stiff as he scrubs them with more exertion than needed. Maybe I’ll ask him later what’s really going on because it sure seems like he’s upset and not just about my reaction to his comment about my body.

  I walk through the doorway that leads out of the apartment, close it and start to make my way up the stairs as I hear the dishes clanking loudly from inside.

  A dish I sling into the rack breaks and I curse under my breath. I try to take a calming breath. I really screwed up with Adaline. I should have been the one to explain the exercise comment. But instead, Kevin did. Man, the way she looked at him, like he could do no wrong. I wish she would smile at me the way she does for him. In one day, I have ruined any possible connection with her. She turns away from me when I touch her but takes any contact she can receive from Kevin.

  Bracing my hands on the side of the sink, I hang my head in defeat. How did he receive her trust already? She slept in the same b
ed with him last night as I stood at her bedroom door trying to get up the courage to knock. But I couldn’t bring myself do it. Kevin told me this morning when he left her room that she said she didn’t mind what I had done before her. But if she didn’t mind, why is she acting like she doesn’t want any attention from me? I hop up on the counter and move the fallen strands of hair out of my face. My hair is long on my right side and cut short on the other. I liked the edgy look it gave me but I wonder what Adaline thinks of it. Most every girl I’ve been with liked to run their fingers through my silky brown strands but Adaline hasn’t done it once or remarked upon it. It’s strange to be rethinking everything about myself, and I know you can’t change who you are. But I will try for her.

  I tried to be confident when I saw her in the hallway this morning. Yet, when I walked towards her this morning talking, I swear I saw her cringe. Maybe I shouldn’t have touched her then either. I just want a connection. The truth is, I’m afraid. What if she only wants one guy? If she does, I have already lost to Kevin.

  God, I sound like a whiney girl. Some whiskey sounds really good right now. I hop down, and pull my chair out to stand on so I can look above the top cabinets for my stash. I hope Kevin hasn’t found my newest hiding place for the bottles yet.

  I really enjoy these fries. Naomi took me to Roosevelt Mall for our shopping excursion. We looked around Macy’s and New York and Company. She had me try on different exercise clothing that she said I needed for training. We also tried on various formal attire. Naomi informed me that the council likes to throw parties and such, especially for quads, from time to time. Formal dinner parties, scavenger hunts, and fancy balls are set up to bring the community together.