THEO
"Do you want to talk about it?" I asked Devon when she'd finally calmed down. She buried her head in the crook of my neck and let out a shaky breath. "Thinking about it gives me the chills" she said.
"You were with Barza but then you were going to jump off a cliff. You refused to listen to me and I couldn't stop you from going with her. Your eyes were..." She hesitated, a shudder running through her.
"My eyes were what?" I asked, cautiously.
"Pitch black..... like Kayden's when he was possessed" she whispered, her voice small and fragile.
My heart sank
"What happened next?" I dared to ask.
"You became me and I watched myself jump off the cliff" she whimpered.
I was worried at that point. I had a feeling that it wasn't just a dream and I'll be damned if I let anything happen to her.
"Do you sincerely believe that?" She asked.
"Believe what?" I asked.
"Believe that....it was just a dream?" She asked.
I stared at our entwined fingers, knowing that I couldn't lie to her.
"No" I replied.
She heaved a sigh.
"You should also know that I would never let anything happen to you" I said and she nodded. She gazed into my eyes with a smile, gracing her lips.
"I trust you. I just do" she said, embracing me.
I smiled, holding her in my arms. "How did the meeting go?" She asked me and I shrugged.
"The new head of the Hexagon, Thane asked me to become his assistant" I said.
She gasped.
"No way!" She said.
"I didn't believe it at first but he meant it"
"Did you agree?" She asked.
"I don't know, Dev. I asked him to give me sometime to think. Being his assistant would require me being a lot more active in the Hexagon" I said. She nodded.
"What do you think I should do?" I asked.
"I think you should think it through,Theo. I mean we don't know what his true intentions are. We have to be careful but.... I don't think he's going to be trouble" she shrugged.
"Stay with me for the rest of the uh- morning?" She said.
I chuckled.
"Morning? Aren't you going to school, love?" I asked.
She pouted.
"You know what I mean....it's two minutes past four now. Stay with me until dawn" she said.
"Okay" I replied.
★★★★★★★★
DEVON
Tuesday and Wednesday moved by in a blur. Thursday morning came so quickly, my nerves started acting up. I didn't know what Theo would expect from me and I just wanted my date with Theo to be perfect. I bumped into a redhead just as I was stepping into the school hallway. He apologized quickly and walked off immediately. I rolled my eyes and walked up to Karla who was waiting for me.
"You look very nervous, Dev" Karla said to me as I wrapped my scarf around my neck. It was cold out and it was snowing outside due to the fact that it was late November. "I asked Theo out on a date" I said and her eyes went wide.
"Wow! That's amazing. I take it that you're nervous because of it" she said.
"I just want everything to be perfect" I groaned.
"Don't worry about that. I'll teach you everything you need to know when you ask a guy out on a date. We'll be having Dating 101 during lunch break today" she said. I chuckled and shut my locker. "Alright, I can't wait" I said and she giggled.
Amyra walked up to us with a grin on her face.
"Hey" she said.
"Hey, Amyra" Karla and I said. "I'm going to ask Luke out on a date tomorrow and I'm so nervous. I really-"
"Join the club, girl. I was just scheduling a Dating101 class for Dev" Karla said and Amyra's eyes widened.
"You asked Theo out on a date? That's so cool. How did you know that?" Amyra asked.
"Luke told me about the tradition" I said and she chuckled.
"Theo is lucky to have you, you're a nice girl" Amyra said to me.
'Punch her in the face'
I let out a horrified gasped, stepping backwards shakily.
I'd just heard Barza's annoying voice in my head.
"Dev, are you okay?" Karla asked, looking concerned.
"I-I'm fine" I said.
"Are you sure? I mean, you looked terribly pale and horrified"
"No, I'm fine" I said.
I wasn't.
I had a feeling that something bad was going to happen today. I also had a bad feeling that something was missing.
************
KARLA
"You don't have to move mountains just to please Theo. You don't have to plan a very expensive date. All you need is something simple and sweet. Dev? Are you even listening to me?" I asked, raising a brow.
She snapped out of whatever haze she was in.
"I-uh- sorry. I wasn't listening" she said, avoiding my eyes.
I stared at her, worried.
Something was not right. Her golden pendant wasn't hanging around her neck and her eyes looked vacant.
"Dev?" I said.
"Yeah?"
"Where's your pendant?" I asked. She frowned.
"What?"
"The pendant. The one Theo gave to you for your tenth birthday"
"Don't be silly. It's always around my neck" she said, rolling her eyes.
"That's the problem. It's not around your neck at the moment" I said.
She gasped and looked down, placing a hand around her neck.
"Oh my God... I swear.... I swear I had it on this morning" she said, her eyes wide with panic.
"Did you bump into someone today?" I asked her and her eyes widened by a fraction.
"Oh my God. Oh my God. A red head.....he looked to be in senior year....but.... I've never seen him before" she said, rising to her feet.
"Shit, Devon. We need to find him before he leaves with your pendant" I said, hurrying towards the exit with Devon panicking big time. We both ran into the parking lot in time to see a redhead vanishing into thin air. "No. No. He's gone! What do I do now? Theo is going to be mad at me for being so careless! I'm so stupid!" Devon cried, pulling at her hair. "Easy there, sweetheart. First of all, you're overreacting. Theo won't be mad at you. We just need to find Luke and tell him about this" I said.
"I'll find him" she said and walked away hurriedly.
She was acting so strange, it was really weird.
....
DEVON
"Luke, I need to talk to you" I said to him when I found him by his locker having a conversation with Amyra. "What's wrong?" He asked, turning to look at me. I bit my lip, avoiding his gaze. "My pendant..... it's missing" I said and his eyes widened.
"You're joking, right? You might've forgotten it at home" he said.
"No, I didn't. I was wearing it today. I'm sure of it. I bumped into a redhead.... he's the one who took it. Karla and I went after him....but he vanished" I said and Luke's eyes widened further.
"Okay, this is bad. I know who's behind this.... she's probably planning to hurt you" he said
"Barza. I heard her say something in my head" I said, staring at the lockers blankly.
Luke grabbed my hand, tension building up around him. "When? When did this happen?"
"This morning" I breathed, my heart beat accelerating.
"I don't know what she's planning. But I can feel it.... She's up to no good"
************
'Take deep breaths' I muttered to myself as I smoothened my hair. I was wearing my dark blue thigh high boots, maroon skirt and a dark blue shirt.
"Wow, you look gorgeous" Karla said to me, ruffling my curls. I grinned, twirling around in front of the mirror.
My brown hair was in wavy curls down my shoulder and my makeup was simple.
"Honey! Your date is here!" My mum yelled from downstairs.
"Now, go get your man" Karla said to me.
I grabbed my purse and inhaled sharply. I'm going to relax and I'm going to enjoy this date. Tonight is all about me and Theo..... nothing else.
I made my way downstairs with Karla.
My mum grinned and embraced me.
"You look beautiful, Dev. Have fun, okay?" She said and I nodded.
Karla gave me an air kiss.
"I'll be leaving now. I'm pretty sure you can handle this" she said and left.
I gasped, my eyes widening at the sight of my flawless Theo. He was just as stunning as always. He was dressed in black pants and a light blue shirt with two buttons undone. His hair was in a neat bun with a bit of hair hanging over his left eye.
"You look beautiful" he said to me, grinning at me.
"Well, you look stunning" I said and he chuckled.
"Here, I got you these" he said, handing me a bouquet of beautiful red roses. My heart fluttered as I took them from him.
"They're lovely, thanks" I smiled. My mum took them from me with a giddy smile on her face. "Now you two should get going. I trust that you'll keep her safe" Mum said to Theo.
"You can count on that" he said. I stepped out of the house with our fingers entwined.
"So, where are we going?" He asked. I smiled.
"I'm not going to tell you. It's a surprise" I said.
He grinned.
"Well, I can't wait"
"How hungry are you?" I asked. He chuckled.
" I could eat a horse" he replied.
"Good"
...
We both stepped into Lorenzo's italiano delicacies, a very fancy restaurant.
"Hmm, Italian. Nice" Theo said with the corner of his lips curved. I had booked a special table for the both of us. Every lady in the restaurant was basically ogling Theo and it took everything in me not to lash out at them. Annoying piece of shit, that's what they are. As we ate, I felt myself relax.
"Do you sometimes wish that you had a mate that is like you?" I asked.
"No, I don't. You are everything I need, Dev" he said and I blushed hard.
"You never told me how old you are" I said.
"I'm twenty and you're eighteen. We're even" he said. I grinned.
"If you really know a lot about me-"
He shook his head, wagging his index finger.
"Not everything" he said.
"I actually don't know a lot about you. Let's play a guessing game. The winner gets a prize" I said.
"Oh, I'll like that" he said, his eyes glinting mischievously.
As we strolled towards the amusement park, we held hands.
"What's my favorite color?" I said
"Violet" he said and I groaned.
"How the hell do you know that? Your favorite color is probably gold or....blue?" I said, grimacing.
"Surprisingly, you're correct" he said.
I grinned and stopped in front of a trick shop.
"What's my favorite food?" I said."I don't know about that ....but I do know that you'll do anything to get yourself a large helping of steak" he said and my cheeks turned pink.
"That's not fair!" I pouted.
"You should know my favourite food too" he said.
"I don't know.... maybe burgers? Burritos? I have no idea" I groaned.
"You're so cute when you're frustrated" he said, pinching my nose gently.
"If you hit the bull's eye, you get five points from me" he said as I grabbed the toy gun. I slipped in a coin and aimed at the bull's eye. I released the trigger and of course, I hit the bull's eye.
We stared at the stuffed toys in the glass box.
"You get to take pairs....Pick your choice" the man who owned the trick shop said, grinning at us. I started to move the hook around until it latched itself on a pair of stuffed white bears.
I handed one of them to Theo and he smiled.
Written on the toy was 'My love for you conquers all, dear soulmate'
I felt pleased to be the reason why he was smiling.
"Young love..... it's so sweet. You two are so adorable. I hope you two find comfort in each other" the owner of the trick shop said to the both of us.
"C'mon, let's go" I said, holding Theo's hand.
"I'm actually very pleased, Dev" he said.
"Don't worry. We're not done yet" I said.
He laughed.
"Whatever you say, love"
I placed my arms around his neck and kissed him.
He smiled and kissed my back, his hands resting on my waist.
"What do you say, we go to your house and watch a movie?" I asked.
"That's not a bad idea-"
He froze and turned to look at the far end of the street. There stood Allen. He was covered in blood.
Blood that was mostly not his. So much for spending time alone with Theo.