Chapter 18

A Chapter by Katie Wan

Exhaustion flew through my body and I just wanted to sleep. Phoenix had other ideas though.

Jo had taken me home from the game earlier. Sleep seemed to be the top priority on my necessities list. I had showered, brushed my teeth, and gotten into my shorts for bed. Just about the time my head hit the pillow and my eyes started to shut I heard my window open. I sighed deeply and flicked my lamp on.

Phoenix stood at the end of my bed watching me. He had obviously showered too because he looked just like he had today at school. My lips pursed together as I waited for him to tell me what we were doing. “Come with me,” was all he said and he stuck his hand out. Another sigh came from my lungs and I pushed the blankets off my body and stood up. I grabbed a sweatshirt from my closet and wrapped it around my body.

Phoenix pushed open the window and grabbed onto the tree next to my window. He leapt onto a branch and reached out his hand for me. I was getting used to leaving my house this way. In the middle of the night if Phoenix wanted me to go with him I would just escape down the tree.

I took Phoenix’s hand and jumped out of the tree onto the small patch of grass below. My small apartment complex had a small park for the kids to play in. I never played in it, but I enjoyed the trees and grass outside of my window.

Phoenix had brought his red mustang again and parked it along the curb. Our hands laced with each other’s and we walked over to the red gleaming car. He opened the door for me and helped me get in. Phoenix would usually warp into the other side but this time he walked. It was almost like he was trying to make this all drag out.

Silently he got into the car and started the roaring beast. After he shifted the car he grabbed my hand and rested the tangle bundle on my thigh. His fingers stroked the top of my thigh muscles playfully. I licked my lips and looked up at him, “you played a good game tonight.”

“It’s only because you were there.”

I huffed and looked out the windows. Phoenix’s hand tightened around mine. The car turned and I could tell that we were heading back to our school. “Where are we going?” I asked quietly almost not expecting an answer.

“You’ll see,” that’s usually why I didn’t ask. Phoenix never could give me a straight answer�"he was a wait and see kind of guy. Slowly but surely this idea became more apparent to me. That’s why I hardly ever asked anymore. But tonight was different. He had just played one of the best games of football in his entire life and he wanted to not go out with his team, but to spend time with me.

My head turned on the back rest and I looked over at his face. The lights from the dashboard brightened his face lightening every feature. I still couldn’t believe this beautiful creature was mine. The bright spheres in the center of his face illuminated the inside the cab of the car. Phoenix always drove with his powers on so he could protect me from other cars if something were to happen.

After a few minutes of driving I could see the parking lot of the school�"my inner directions were correct. Phoenix pulled into the parking lot and started driving behind the school to the stadium where we were earlier. The car ran over the gravel parking lot and finally pulled into a place next to the gate. All the lights had been shut off and all the gates locked. I had no idea why we were here.

Phoenix let go of my hand and got out of the car. I followed his actions and tightened the sweatshirt around me as I stepped into the cool air. I watched as Phoenix’s strong body walked into the darkness. Did he want me to follow him? Slowly I walked around the car and watched where he was going. His body disappeared behind a shed and I couldn’t see him anymore. The snap of metal filled the silent air around me. The gravel shifted uncomfortably under me as I ran to where the sound was. As I rounded the corner I saw Phoenix ducking through a hold he had made in the fence.

My eyebrows furrowed as he continued to walk into the stadium. A few flood lights on the back of the bleachers were lit. They would catch anyone trying to trespass. That is why my feet stayed perfectly planted on the gravel below.

Phoenix’s head popped around the corner and I could see his eyes illuminated. “Don’t worry they won’t catch you.” His powers did something to the security system so that we wouldn’t be caught.

I bent down to slip through the hole and as I did my hood got caught on some of the metal from the fence. My feet slid out from under me and I slid down into the dirt. I sighed loudly and tried to untangle myself from the metal web. Phoenix’s hand grabbed the hood and took it off with one try. This time he waited for me to stand up. His hand curled around mine again and he led me out onto the field.

The green grass tickled at my bare ankles as he led me out on the field. I could see where the white lines had been rubbed off from the earlier game. Mud clots and cleat holes punctured the whole field. Phoenix walked on this grass like it was him home�"like he knew every bump and every curve. I, on the other hand, kept tripping over the small uneven ground as I tried to keep up with Phoenix. Only the light from Phoenix’s eyes lit the pathway.

When we finally stopped I realized we were standing in the center of the field. This was the first time I caught the glimpse of the football in Phoenix’s hands. All around us the stadium lights started to turn on with the help of Phoenix’s powers, of course. I cocked my hip and looked up at him. “What are you doing?”

Phoenix smiled his cocky half smile. “After every game I come out here. I think about what went well in the game and what didn’t. Sometimes I run the same plays hoping I’ll be able to catch what I did wrong. I’ll try and remember all the dodging and moving I had to do in order to miss people. That’s how I get good�"not my powers.” He seemed almost annoyed at this fact. Everyone must think he used his powers when he plays�"making the game unfair. “The only reason my dad comes to these games is he can take away my powers. When I play football I’m just as human as everyone else on this field.” Phoenix turned around and looked at the spray painted goal. “I work hard for what I’ve gotten on this field.”

The smile spread again on his face and he turned around. His arm cocked back and the ball flew right at me. I stepped out of the way and let it fall straight to the ground. I put my arms across my chest and shook my head. “Why are you so nervous around me�"still?”

“I’m not nervous around you. But when balls start flying at my face I get a little nervous at the situation*. I mean we did share a gym class once. You have to know how awful I am at sports.”

Phoenix started to laugh. I could see all of my most embarrassing moments passing right before his eyes. I bit my lip and started walking back towards the car. “Wait,” Phoenix called and I heard his feet jogging right next to me. His warm hand grasped my elbow and shocks sent through my arm. My body stopped and I faced him. “Won’t you try?”

“No,” I started walking again and he caught up once more.

“For me,” his eyes pleaded with that same jock-ish look in his eyes.

I sighed and turned around. “If you throw that thing harder than my old t-ball coach would, then I’m leaving.”

“Good,” Phoenix hopped once and started running back towards his spot. I grudgingly walked to a white line and planted my feet in the paint. Phoenix pulled his arm back and I waited for the ball. Lightly he pulled the muscles in his shoulder and flicked the ball my way. The brown pig skin spun gracefully through the air right to where my hands should’ve been. Instead it fell to the ground with a deep thud. “You need to relax, Sweets.” I picked up the ball and scrunched my face, “No Sweets?”

*Only for Jake…:

Phoenix asked with a smile on his face. Shyly I shook my head and layered my fingers on the white strips along the side of the ball. I pulled my arm back and threw the ball. Phoenix jogged forward and caught it gracefully in his hands�"even though my throw was very short.

Phoenix ran back to his spot and held the ball with both hands. “Darling?” he asked again as he threw the ball once more. Again as the ball soared to me I tried to reach for it but I failed once again. The ball plopped loudly into the ground. As I bent down I shook my head again. I took a deep breath and threw the ball back to him. This time the oval shape landed where it needed too. Phoenix smiled and nodded at the perfect throw. He closed his eyes and bit his lip as he though. “Baby,” he said as if he knew I would agree. One more time the ball flew through the air towards me. This time I caught it. The brown bubbly skin skidded across my fingertips and landed in between my hands. Phoenix smiled, “I think that means yes.”

Inevitably a smile crossed my face. I like the ring of that�"baby. Phoenix started walking towards me and I realized our small game of football was over. He probably just wanted to embarrass me for awhile. I let the ball flick off the top of my fingers and fall into his chest. He let the ball also slide off of his fingers into the ground below. Immediately the fingers where the ball was went to the sides of my face. “Baby,” Phoenix whispered so softly as if he wasn’t even saying it to me. I could feel sparks of electric current spreading through my face where his fingers were. My heart bounded loudly inside my chest. He was right�"I was still nervous around him, but how could I not be?

My hands fell flat on his abs. His shirt rustled around the two fleshy palms. Silver eyes stared down fiercely at me. I couldn’t even imagine what was going through his head. I truthfully couldn’t even tell what emotion was on the top of his brain.

Suddenly there was a weird snapping noise like something as starting. That’s when I saw the mist from the sprinklers starting on the end of the field. Slowly one by one they started to turn on to water the field. I pulled my face away from Phoenix and started jogging back towards the car in hopes to avoid all the water.

Again, Phoenix had a different plan for me. The sprinklers were coming faster now. I quickly put my hood over the top of my head and cowered into his chest. I heard the last sprinkler right before us start up, but not a single drop of water touched my body. I opened my eyes and pulled away from Phoenix’s warm chest. A strange force field was surrounding us. Water droplets from the sprinklers ran down the circular blockade around us. It looked almost like I was standing in the center of a snow globe that was out sitting in the rain. My hands pushed away from Phoenix and he slid his hands along mine as I pushed away.

I walked over to the edge of the barrier and stuck my hand through. The water dripped onto my hand and puddle in the bottom of my palm. I smiled and spun around to look at Phoenix. He seemed to enjoy my amusement more than anything. A very…content… smile spread on his face. I wanted to be in his arms right then. I walked over and wrapped my arms around his torso and tucked my head between his Pecs.

I heard his lungs fill with a deep breath and he wrapped his arms around my shoulders. Lightly his thumb stroked the base of my neck. I wanted to stay with him like this forever�"in this bubble. We were safe from everything in this little sphere of our own world.

Phoenix brought me out of our own planet with one sentence. “How do you think people will react when we tell them?”

“Your team didn’t seem to react too badly when you kissed me tonight.” Phoenix smiled as he remembered the kiss that outed him to a lot of people.

The smile soon wiped. “The ones that cheered are the ones I told before the game.” My eyebrow lifted and I looked up into his face. He had told people without asking me? He understood my question without reading my mind. “I didn’t mention you.” I nodded but I knew he was going to continue. “I just felt like I was lying to them for so long. As a captain I’m supposed to be truthful to the men looking up to me�"I wasn’t doing that.” He stroked my cheek with his thumb and smiled. He found so much pleasure in just my touch, it astounded me. “When I told them I was in love they seemed to understand. They realized that if I had a choice I of course would choose the easier route.”

I pursed my lips together, “you told them you love me?” I said quietly as if someone was listening into our conversation.

“Not you specifically, but yes, I told them that I was in love with someone�"a manly-type someone.” My eyes darted to the green ground between us. Again my teeth found my bottom lip and I tried to concentrate on the words that I would say next. Phoenix spoke before I could say my planned out sentence. “You’re still confused aren’t you?”

I looked up at him and blurted out, “I haven’t had as long as you to deal with it.”

His eyes lowered to the ground where mine had been earlier. He licked his lips, “how do you feel when you’re with me?”

My shoulders lifted and then shrugged, “good I guess.”

“You guess?” Phoenix asked with a depressed tone. It seemed like he was becoming very frustrated with me. “Collin, I don’t know what else I have to do. I realize that you’re confused�"I get that. What I don’t get is that you can’t realize that you have feelings for me. You can’t deny that when I touch you�"” His hand went to the side of my face and I flinched away from the shock running up my spine. He didn’t have to say anymore. I knew that I had feelings for him, but I didn’t want to admit them. Being with Phoenix felt so warm and so safe. Everything anyone could ever want was inside of his eyes and loving arms. There’s no doubt that Phoenix was the single person on this earth destined for me.

“I�"I’m scared Phoenix,” I finally admitted. The truth finally came out�" and the truth is fear. I didn’t want to have to admit it. I was scared�"scared of how people would react. Scared how people will look at us. Scared at everything they would say. I guess you could say that I am conceited and shallow. My whole life has been spent trying to make people like me. Finally when I felt like I was being accepted into the life I always wanted Phoenix wanted to rip that all away. I was scared to lose everything I had worked for throughout my whole life. I needed to say this to Phoenix, “I’ve worked so hard to get where I am.”

He smiled and stroked my cheek again. “What if I promise you that everything will be okay?”

“It wouldn’t work, because you can’t promise that.”

Again the charming smile crossed his face, “who says?”

“The world.”

“The world doesn’t know anything about his situation.” I looked up at him. “Why would you want to be part of this world with all its flaws and insecurities? You can be in your own world where you make the rules. You get to decide where you live where you go. You get to decide who you love�"no one else gets that world, it’s only yours. You can share a world with me. A happy life where I will give you everything you’ve ever wanted�"anything you’ve ever strived for.” Slowly Phoenix started convincing me with his words. “Plus Collin, I’ve known these people a lot longer than you have. I know what goes on in their minds�"remember how I can do that?”

My eyes dropped to the ground. Phoenix lifted my chin with his fingers. He made sure that I was looking at him. “Collin I love you and I’ll make sure that everyone knows, because the only thing you have to be afraid of is hiding yourself. That’s the worst thing you could ever do. The world needs to see that it has at least one flawless creature on this planet�"that’s you.”

“Yeah I got that.” Phoenix chuckled and we both loosened up a bit.

“You don’t have to be afraid to love Collin.” Phoenix stepped away and sighed melodramatically. “What has this place come to when people are afraid to love?!” Phoenix shouted at the top of his lungs. I leapt for him and covered his mouth. Phoenix laughed and brought his voice down. His hands went to my elbows and he pulled me back into his chest. We both got quiet and serious as we waited for someone to speak. Again Phoenix was the one to break the silence, “I’m going to tell them Collin. I have to.”

I bit my lower lip again and nodded. His lips pressed into my forehead and he wrapped his arms around me. “I want you to be there.” I tried to push away from him but his grip was too strong. “I need you to be there.” There was no escaping this. I nodded one more time against his chest. “Tonight,” he said straight. His arms wrapped around my shoulders tighter as I started to protest and yell into his chest. I wasn’t ready to do this tonight. I could just barely even fathom the idea of being with Phoenix in public.

“I have something that might make it easier for you.” I stopped my yelling and he let go of his grip. He took two steps back and smiled brightly at me. I cocked my hip and waited for him to do whatever he had to.

All of a sudden the force field around us disappeared and a sprinkler shot straight into my chest spraying my whole body including my face. I gasped and I felt the anger rise in side of me, “Phoenix!” I shouted as loud as I could and he started to laugh. I took one step forward and Phoenix took off running. My flip flops flew off as I started to run after him. He led me through fountains of water on the field. My clothes started to soak up the water spraying me. Water dripped from my hair into my eyes, but I didn’t care. Somehow running through these sprinklers reminded me of a simpler time. During summer in Miami a lot of time was spent running around in sprinklers.

Finally I grabbed onto Phoenix’s shirt and pulled him back towards me. Just as I did he put his hands on the sides of my face and pressed his lips into mine. The water from the sprinklers sprayed our bodies and water dripped from our hair. My hands grabbed onto his wrists and I leaned into the kiss. In one swift movement one of his hands moved to my waist and he dipped my body. After a few seconds of being close to the ground he lifted me up and spun me around in the water. I could feel my clothes sticking to me as we moved around in the water.

Phoenix pulled his lips away from me and put his hands back on my face. His thumb stroked my cheekbone and he whispered, “How do you feel right now in this exact moment.”

I answered truthfully, “like mashed potatoes.”

Phoenix beamed, “Collin, that’s love.”

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