Be in the Real Page 22

  “It’s broken,” Kaila hollered. Her voice was barely audible over the sound of the squeaking wipers and the booms that seemed to have no pauses between them.

  “I locked it, you can’t have the window wide open in the middle of a storm.”

  Derrick was tense, like an elastic that had been stretched to the limit. Kaila could feel his fear as if it were a tangible item. Wanting to take his anxiety away, she reached for his forearm, resting her fingers against his flesh.

  Derrick was so focused on driving that he hadn’t seemed to notice that she was touching him, but Kaila noticed. His skin was warmer than her hand and was covered in a thin film of sweat. The fine hairs on his flesh felt like silk to the touch. Kaila wondered if what she was experiencing was what it felt like to comfort someone.

  Her hand stayed in place, unmoving; no spiders came. She felt his muscles move beneath his skin as he steered and jerked the wheel, maneuvering against a wind that seemed to shift the car around as though it were a toy.

  Even when the rain diminished and the sun returned, leaving little but the wet to say that it had ever existed, Kaila’s hand remained firmly in place. Only when Derrick tugged away to grab his sunglasses from the console did the contact break.

  “Gotta love those flash summer storms,” he said, breaking the quiet that had enveloped them since they had passed through the eye of the storm. Kaila gazed at him. His sunglasses were silver-framed and dark enough that she couldn’t see his eyes beneath. With the glasses in place there was a sense of mystery about him that transformed him back into a man. Kaila couldn’t pull her eyes away from him. She wanted to kiss him again, have his lips press against hers, lay her head against his bare chest, run her fingers across the infinity symbol that ran the length of his back.

  Kaila wanted so much to connect with Derrick, to take the place of his girlfriend, to do things that lovers did together. She had seen movies about love, read stories about it too, and had heard Pauline talk about what it felt like, but she had never truly understood it. Right then she understood something she hadn’t before; what love meant to her.

  Kaila knew that love wasn’t a universal concept, but more of an individual understanding. It wasn’t a whirlwind of flowers and roses, and everything big and bold either. Love for Kaila was knowing that someone was there to tell you everything was okay when no one else was, love was about accepting you for who you were, and not expecting any more than you could give. It was about trust, and knowing that someone was imperfect, yet not caring about their flaws. It was in a touch, an unspoken understanding. It was contained in a fight and the apology that came after. In truth, love was about being human and alive. In that moment Kaila knew that she had loved Pauline for a long time and would keep on loving her despite them being apart, and also that Pauline loved her too.

  “It is in the silence between the notes that the music is found,” Kaila murmured.

  Tears trickled down her cheeks as it all became real. And right then she realized that once you knew you were loved, nothing else mattered and that love was something Kaila had, but Trillian didn’t.

  CHAPTER 38

  Kaila was lost for the rest of the drive; her heart filled to overflowing with all she had discovered. When more houses sprouted upon the sprawling stretches of land, she instinctively knew that they were getting close. She grabbed a donut from the box that Derrick had picked up just before they had left town. Kaila bit into the powdered sugar exterior, reaching the gooey cherry jelly that was found inside within seconds. She released a sound of delight. It was loud enough for Derrick to glance briefly her way before he brought his focus back to the road ahead. He grinned but said nothing.

  Kaila chewed on the donut. She savored every flavor and subtlety, just as she had when she had eaten her first donut from the pink box. That one had been a Boston cream, heavy with pale yellow custard and topped in a thick glaze of milk chocolate. She had actually thought that the first donut was the best she had ever had, but after a few bites of the powdered donut she realized that she had been mistaken. They weren’t the first donuts she had ever had, but what went for the sweet confection at Wildwind was far removed from the treasures that she had discovered within the box. Wildwind donuts had been simple, fried dough that was sugared or left plain. The only variation being that sometimes the sugar had cinnamon added to it.

  Kaila was still licking the last remnants of powdered sugar from her fingertips when Derrick took an off ramp that led to what looked to be a small town. He tapped the portable GPS stuck to the windshield, pressing in another address, presumably Pauline’s.

  As they drove, Kaila observed that the houses were spread farther apart than in the city that they had left. Here, there was so much more wide-open space, tall grass and various types of trees swaying too and fro in the wind. She gasped when she read the sign that named the place; it was called Miracle. She knew it was another sign, letting her know that they were doing something extremely important, something that she would not soon forget.

  The town was quaint with old-fashioned houses that wore faux shutters painted in bright yellow, red, navy blue and green. The streets were a narrow two lane and virtually deserted. They met very few cars as they drew closer to Pauline’s home. For Kaila, the excitement of seeing Pauline again was almost too much to contain. It felt as if she had lived a million lives in the time that they had been apart.

  They moved down the main street that was lined with stores and shops that matched the appeal of the town. Storefront windows showcased wedding dresses, shoes of every shape and size, flower sprays and many other offerings arranged in elaborate displays. They also passed by gourmet shops, a museum, and also a public library. Retro lampposts with rectangular glass fixtures were painted in white. Massive hanging baskets containing flowers of every color in the rainbow, dangled from hooks on the posts. Most of the stores and shops hadn’t opened for the day yet.

  Few people walked the pristine streets that showed no sign of wear, as though they had been recently paved. The sidewalks were white concrete and much like the streets, new. Though it all was beautiful to the eye, the life that had thrived on the streets of the city was absent. This new place didn’t have the same impact on Kaila as the other had, because it felt as if the portrayed happy ambience was all fake.

  Derrick turned right onto a narrow one-way side street. He turned again until they had emerged into a residential area with houses that were actually mansions. Unlike the places in the city, these houses were well spaced with what seemed like acres of land on either side. Wrought iron gates surrounded all of what could only be termed estates and most had quite visible and elaborate security systems that were meant to keep strangers and would-be burglars at bay. Derrick continued down the street, his eyes darted back and forth as he searched for the right place.

  “The number is 3232,” he said without looking at Kaila.

  She joined him in his hunt, studying every house they passed. When the numbers grew close to the right one, they both went on high alert.

  “Here it is,” Derrick said.

  He motioned to a two-story mansion that was mostly obscured by the mature Oak trees growing on the front lawn. An army green wrought iron fence, much like the ones enclosing all the other houses, was fitted with several security cameras and a speaker that presumably screened people before they entered the grounds. Derrick pulled onto the cobblestone driveway that ran from the main road right up to the front door of the place. He drove up to the closed gates, rolled his window down and pressed a red button on the mounted speaker to his left.

  The male voice that answered sounded mechanical. Kaila wondered if Pauline had robots working for her like she had seen in a movie a long time back.

  “Can I help you?”

  “We’re here to see Pauline,” Derrick responded.

  He threw a wary glance toward Kaila then brought his attention back to the box. They waited for a response.

  “I hope this is the right place,” he s
aid under his breath.

  “May I say whose calling?” the voice said from the speaker.

  “Derrick Chau,” he said.

  Kaila was surprised by the sound of his other name. She had never imagined him to be anyone other than just plain Derrick. But she reasoned, that in a world of many, there would be more than one Derrick and Pauline and even Kaila. The gates slowly edged open, soundless on well-oiled hinges. Then they were driving forward. Kaila thought that her heart might jump from the confines of her chest.

  More trees, towering high, edged the driveway. The thick netting of leaves allowed only dappled light to pass through. They didn’t see the house in all its entirety until they were almost upon it. The driveway curved around a stone fountain. A carved white stone Aphrodite, with a pitcher of water on her shoulder spilling continuously, stood at the center of the fountain. Spires, like those of a castle, topped the roof that was constructed of terra cotta. The two front doors were tall in polished wood with huge brass knockers at the center of each. The windows were mirror clean and sparkling. Boxwood hedges trimmed with perfect square edges surrounded the house. Pots as large as barrels were brimming with flowers of pink and white and green ivy too.

  As soon as Kaila spotted the willowy frame of Pauline stepping through the door she was out of the car, racing forward. Pauline had been staring at the car with an expression of confusion on her face. When she spotted Kaila barreling toward her, her face shifted immediately into absolute delight. Kaila closed the distance between them in seconds. She stopped abruptly a few feet away from Pauline, as if she wasn’t quite sure if it was really her friend. Pauline was tanned from hours spent in the sun and was dressed in a bikini, one that was so flimsy that the small triangles of fabric barely covered her breasts and pubis. Her hair was pulled back into a loose ponytail, revealing the star-shaped scar.

  Kaila reached out to touch Pauline; her fingers grazed the scar feather light. The skin was raised against her fingertips, keloid scars bursting from the center dent where the bullet had exited many years before. Pauline’s furrowed brow was the only indication that she was surprised by Kaila’s uncharacteristic touch. She stood exceptionally still, not speaking. Kaila let her hand drop back to her side, relieved that Pauline was in fact corporeal, not an illusion.

  “What are you guys doing here?” Pauline asked, tugging the clip from her hair. Her silky mane fell into place, obscuring the scar as it usually did.

  Derrick extricated himself from the car and was striding toward Pauline and Kaila. A tentative smile curved his lips. From the way his eyes remained glued to Pauline’s frame, he appreciated the revealing nature of her bathing suit. Kaila felt jealousy niggle at the back of her brain.

  “It’s a long story…”

  “He had another prophetic dream and you’re supposed to die Pauline, but we escaped so we could save you and…”

  Kaila swept her hand to indicate Derrick. She smiled with unremitting pleasure, paused to catch her breath then finished with. “We came here to save you.”

  She stopped speaking abruptly, her brow wrinkled like Pauline’s just had.

  “Do we have to wait until the end of the day for her to be safe?” Kaila asked, turning toward Derrick.

  Derrick chewed on the inside of his cheek, an expression of uncertainty colored his face.

  “I think the time has already passed, I think she’ll be okay,” he said after an extended space of time.

  Pauline’s puzzled expression said that she had no idea what either Kaila or Derrick were talking about.

  “I’ll explain later,” Derrick said to Pauline.

  His vague comment seemed to be enough for Pauline. She shrugged then motioned for them to follow her inside. Kaila was the first to oblige. She trailed Pauline into the foyer of the house that seemed the size of the whole cafeteria in Wildwind.

  The scent of freshly cut flowers filled her nose as soon as they had passed over the threshold. Oversized crystal vases were stuffed to the max with peach colored roses, yellow carnations, with accents of violet hued irises, and there were sprigs of white babies breath and greenery, so much greenery. Kaila appreciated the flowers but was immediately uncomfortable when she noticed that everything else in the space was in various shades of white or close to it.

  The walls were eggshell, the floor was a marble like stone with veins of beige, the ceiling was white stucco with pure white wainscoting edging it. A plush snowy sofa with blonde wooden legs sat to the right, near a small writing desk with wood that matched that of the sofa perfectly. Even the light fixtures kept with the theme, being dome-shaped and suspended from painted white metal curlicues.

  “I don’t like it here,” Kaila said.

  Pauline smiled, her lips only rising up on one side. Kaila hadn’t realized how much she had missed that smile until right then.

  “I don’t like it much either,” she said. “Lets go back to the pool.”

  The house seemed to go on forever, and much like the foyer was monochromatic and bland. Kaila kept her eyes forward, ignoring everything but Pauline who was a few feet ahead of her. She didn’t want to accept the memories of the White Room or the After Room that this house was conjuring up.

  When they had finally reached the door that led outside, Kaila practically jogged to the exit. They stepped into an explosion of color, as if all the hues of life that had been stripped from the interior had been tossed outside. The pool was huge, almost as big as the wading pool that Derrick had taken her too, but this watery wonderland was in the shape of twin kidneys joined at the center with a hot tub. The water gave the illusion of being colored turquoise. On closer inspection Kaila realized that tinted underwater lights achieved the effect. Sable colored flat stones edged the entirety, contrasting perfectly, as if orchestrated by nature not man.

  Enormous flowers, in shockingly bright colors of pink, lavender and yellow seemed to emerge from every single bit of free space. Waxy green leaves of tropical plants, mixed with the color; Kaila imagined that she was in the great Amazon Jungle. Vines wrapped around everything, tangling, and were in various stages of blooming from green bud to spent flower. Somewhere a soundtrack of birds singing played through speakers made to resemble rocks.

  “This is my space,” Pauline said. “At least it is when the weather’s good.”

  She moved toward the glass-topped table where a tall glass of lemonade, complete with a tiny orange umbrella, sat half full.

  “You guys want something to drink?”

  Kaila nodded, so wanting to have her own drink with a miniature umbrella.

  “How about you?” she asked Derrick.

  He shrugged. “Yeah whatever, we can’t stay long though, I have to get her back to Wildwind.”

  His words made Pauline pause mid-stride. “Back to Wildwind? Why so soon? How long is her pass for?”

  Derrick appeared uncomfortable at the questions. He cut his eyes away from Pauline, who was now standing with her hands on her slim hips, poised in a stance of authority.

  “You’re not saying that you really did ditch Wildwind?”

  Derrick was back to being a man-boy, chewing at his bottom lip and shrinking down in size as if he wanted to disappear.

  “Yeah, that’s where it gets complicated.”

  “We broke out of Wildwind to save you,” Kaila blurted out, reiterating her previous statement.

  Pauline cocked her head to the side.

  Derrick opened his mouth to speak, but Kaila cut him off. She rapidly lodged into an abbreviated version of all that had happened since Derrick had told her about his prophecy. Pauline listened attentively, her eyes narrowed a little more with every word that Kaila spoke. This response surprised Kaila. She had expected Pauline to be as amazed as she had been about Derrick’s oracular abilities.

  “So Derrick had a dream about me dying?” she said.

  Her cynical expression disturbed Kaila; she wanted Pauline to know how truly lucky she had been that Derrick had come to save her.

>   “Yes,” Kaila said with emphasis.

  Derrick stepped forward, taking Pauline by the arm. He led her away from Kaila, far enough so she couldn’t hear what they were saying. Pauline’s expression shifted from puzzlement, to anger then it finally settled into resignation.

  “You’re an asshole for lying to her, but I’m glad you at least broke her out so I could see her,” Pauline said.

  Derrick colored red, his face was lined with fresh anxiety.

  Kaila’s heart was rapidly sinking at Pauline’s lack of appreciation. But more than that was the one sentence that seemed to sum up all her deepest fears; Derrick had been lying to her. From the day he had told her, everything in Kaila’s life had hinged on Derrick’s prophecy. Now she was trying to grab onto the last remnants of the high that had propelled her. It was impossible. A thick cloak of sadness wrapped around her and Kaila felt weak within it.

  “Hey Kaila, I’m sorry I didn’t mean to…you saved me, I know that now. Derrick explained it all and I see.”

  Pauline closed the distance between them. Her hand hovered a few inches in front of Kaila’s chest yet she didn’t touch her. Kaila felt like the world was spinning out of control. Even though she didn’t want it to happen, Pauline’s skeptical response had been enough to shake her fortitude, make her wonder if she had been tricked by Derrick.

  “I knew this was a mistake,” Derrick said from somewhere near Kaila.

  Kaila felt incapable of even turning her head to gauge where he was. She locked on an iron patio chair that was painted the color of copper patina. Suddenly dizzy, Kaila moved toward the chair. Even after her buttocks had come to rest on the plush pillow on the seat, the whirling within her brain continued.