Chapter 6: Lexy and the Boy
“Lexy, wait!” Seth called after me as I started up the stairs.
I didn’t stop though. Of all the things going on right now, I didn’t need my once best friend waltzing back into my life in the middle of all this chaos to add more chaos.
“Please stop,” He begged, grabbing my hand. “You can’t ignore me forever.”
This time I turned toward him.
“I can, and I will.” I replied angrily.
I knew it wasn’t really his fault. But he was there. He was someone I could be angry at. I had no place for anger with everyone here. I didn’t know them. But I knew Seth. He had left without a goodbye, and that seemed like a lifetime ago. And I had been angry and hurt and those feeling were resurfacing. There was no room for hurt in this new life. And I knew I could be angry at him. I knew he could take it. And I knew he understood why.
“Lex, please… It’s been three days.”
“Actually, it’s been six years.” I countered before continuing, “I have to go check on my sisters.”
There was this pull to fall apart with him. To let things get messier. To let myself feel every emotion I was burying. But even in my exhausted state, I knew that was not an option.
I pulled my hand away and left him on the stairs. I moved to the room that my sisters would share for the time being. Alex had promised to get them a nanny and the best training in the worlds. But the weight of now being a parent was heavy. They were my responsibility. And that was terrifying. I was just a kid. I wasn’t supposed to be in charge of other kids except for a few hours at a time as a babysitter. I wasn’t supposed to be in that position. But my parents had abandoned us. I had no choice.
I opened the door slowly.
“Lexy?” Calynn murmured half asleep.
“Yes?” I entered the room and sat on her bed.
“I know I’m supposed to be a big girl, but I’m scared.”
I felt my heart break right then and there. I was not prepared for this.
“It’s okay to be scared, sweetie.” I told her gently. “You don’t have to be anything you are not.”
“Are we going to be okay? Honestly?”
I hesitated for a split second, but I played it off, “Of course we’re going to be okay. These people here, they are helping keep us safe. Mom and Daddy made some bad choices and that makes us a little vulnerable, but it’s safe here. We’re going to figure this out and we’re going to be just fine.”
I stroked her hair a moment and got up.
“Lexy?” She called out as I was about to leave.
“Hmm?”
“Thanks for coming back for us.”
“Thanks for being there and being smart enough to hide.” I answered. “Get some sleep.”
I didn’t wait for a response this time. I exited the room trying to fight the panic I was feeling coursing through me. I was the only person these two girls could rely on. There was no one else. Just me. And when reality hits, it hits like a truck.
“Are you okay?”
I jumped to see Seth standing across the hall looking at me intensely and a pain shot through side. I couldn’t stop myself; my hand flew to it as if it could stop the pain.
“Fine,” I answered as I tried to catch my breath; his timing was impeccable.
He cocked his head at me and studied me intensely.
“You’re not fine.” He said slowly, inching closer to me. “You’re hurting. What happened? Let me see.”
“Seth seriously, I just want to go to bed.” I tried to push him away.
“No, take off your shirt,” He was so close to me, I could barely breathe, and it wasn't from the panic I had felt just moments earlier.
“Seth, I don’t want to. I’m fine.” I tried again.
“You are not fine.” His voice was hushed, and my heart fluttered.
“I am fine.” I whispered back losing patience.
“Lexy?”
I jumped away from Seth and his arms dropped to his side. Again, pain shot through my side, but I ignored it.
“Annie,” I gasped. “What’s, uh, what’s up?”
“I just came to check on you.” She responded uncertainly. I could tell that she wasn’t sure what she had just walked up to. “You seemed, I don’t know, off.”
“I’m fine,” I smiled. “I just had to check on my sisters. And I ran into Seth, again.” I paused realizing they hadn’t been introduced, “Uh, Annie, this is uh Seth, we knew each other a long time ago. Seth this is Princess Annabeth”
“Pleasure, Princess.” He bowed to her.
“Okay…” She was hesitant, and I was acting weird. She knew me too well. “Well, that’s not necessary. I’m going back to my room to lay down a while, come find me later? Yea?”
I nodded, and she peeled off to her room. The next thing I knew, Anna’s door shut, and Seth was pulling me into what I could only guess was his room.
“Nice room.” I stated, as I looked around at the amount of stuff crammed into such a small room. On the far side of the room were bunkbeds catty-corner to each other with dark brown desks underneath them, and the walls were bare except for an army green color that seemed to have been painted ages ago. The look matched more of the downstairs, rather than the prestigiousness of Annabeth’s room and my sister’s room.
“We’re not here to talk about my room.” He replied seriously.
I had a sudden urge to run my hands through his blonde hair.
“What?” I smirked, walking over to the desk and picked up a glass ball thing. “No small talk?”
“Your attitude is way up here,” He raised his hand way above his head. “Bring it down.”
I crinkled my nose at him. “How bout no?”
“How bout you calm down?” He moved closer to me. There were only a few measly inches between us.
“I am calm,” I sounded breathless.
His blue eyes were locked with my brown.
He reached down slowly and started to lift my shirt. I didn’t stop him. I couldn’t. I was frozen. Our eyes still locked as I moved my arms slowly out of the t-shirt I had worn since arriving here at the base. I was really glad I had decided to wear a cute bra instead of just a sports bra the day everything had gone down.
He pulled it over my head, but his eyes were not staring at mine as they had been. Instead, they were now staring in horror at the gash in my side, and the bruises surrounding it.
“Whoa, that’s wicked.” The kid named Jake said in awe as he walked in the door. He was Seth’s roomie apparently.
“Lexy, you need to get that looked at. Alex, he can heal it for you.” Seth stuttered. I could feel his heart racing.
“I’m fine,” I answered, taking my shirt out of Seth’s hand, and putting it back on.
“Dude, you probably should get it looked at.” Jake reiterated Seth’s thoughts.
“Thanks for the concern, boys, but I am just fine.”
And with that I walked right out of their room and straight to Annabeth’s.
“This is wild.” I remarked as I collapsed onto her bed.
“You look exhausted.” She commented, putting down the magazine she had been reading.
“I am beyond exhausted,” I told her rolling over to look at her. “How are you doing? Still in pain?”
She shrugged, scooching over so I’d have more space.
“I feel mostly confused,” She answered staring at the blank blue wall.
“Me too,” I told her, but that wasn’t necessarily the truth. I was feeling a whole array of emotions from confusion to anger.
“What happened to your parents Lex?” She asked, turning to look at me.
“They sided with Viviana.” I explained with a sigh. “The lady who tried to kill you. And me. She is actually my dad’s sister. And the second they got the chance, they chose to side with her and abandoned our family.”
“You were given a choice to side with her, weren’t you?” She asked.
“Yea, but she was trying to kill you. You’re my best friend. I had to make a decision. She was hurting people to get what she wanted. I couldn’t side with that.”
Annie nodded.
“And do you think she will leave you alone since you chose me?”
“No. And she didn’t succeed in killing you because of me, so I think the target is even bigger.” I paused and sat up. “Annie, there’s so much we don’t know or understand about this. I’ve tried to get information from people since I got here. It turns out there was a prophecy that was made about your eventual reign and how it destroys Viviana’s.”
“Great,” Annie sighed. “So I have to be a hero. Lex, I don’t want to be a hero. I just want to be, I don’t know, normal. I don’t want a new life. I want our old life back.”
I tried to smile. I knew the feeling too well.
“Unfortunately, I don’t think that’s an option, Annie,” I sounded defeated, I felt defeated.
Annie looked at me with sad eyes.
“I know.” She replied.
“I’m sorry, Love,” I apologized, standing up.
“So what do we do now?” She asked.
“Well, I’m planning on going to sleep for a while, and we’ll figure it out from there,” I answered easily.
“Wait, Lexy,” She called me back as I reached for the door. “Will you stay?”
I could tell she was scared. This was all terrifying.
“Sure,” I found myself replying, even though I didn’t really want to.
“Everyone else shares a room, maybe we should too.” She was thinking out loud as I crawled under the covers, and she picked up her magazine on the other side.
“Yea, sure,” I mumbled sleepily. Now that my head was touching a pillow, I had next to no chance of staying awake.
“ We’ll have another bed moved in in the morning.” She said more to herself than to me, and I let the world slip away as I fell into a dreamless sleep that was very welcomed. Very welcomed indeed.