Capricorn Season - Jimmy Page

Chapter 20

"You ready?" I looked at Jimmy, who was standing in front of the mirror fixing his hair. His nimble fingers toyed with the scarf around his neck, checking to be sure it looked perfect. He's obsessed with the perception of perfection, it seems. He's always checking his hair out, making us late because he wants to look nice. I admire his attention to detail and I appreciate his preoccupation with appearances, but I can't help but see it as a response to his constant need to feel secure. If the outside isn't equitable then everything is lost.

"Yeah."

"You're going to be hot in that. You should change." 

"You're telling me what I can wear now, huh?" He turned to me, hands on his hips. 

"Yeah, I am. I promise you'll thank me later." 

"I'm only changing because I want to, not because you told me to." 

"Okay, whatever you say." 

It took another twenty minutes for him to be ready. I guess he took his time poking around in my suitcase. "Jimmy, those are my jeans and my t-shirt!" 

"We share." He said simply, making his way to the door. 

We exited the hotel, walking with our hands brushing together. I respected his disdain for PDA, although I wanted desperately to hold his hand or touch him in any way. I don't know what his issue with it is, but I won't push it. I guess we all have boundaries, and I've learned not to knock into those. "It's such a nice day out. Much better than London. Oh, how I've missed the California heat."

"I feel like I'm melting." When I looked at him, I saw the disgust on his face. His lips were downturned into a grimace, his brow coming together and a squint in his eyes. All he was missing was a cane, and he would've been a grouchy old man. He already has the hunch on his back.

"I think if I wore makeup I would melt. I'd look like a Dali painting." We shared a laugh at my artistic reference, then slipped into a quiet lull until we reached the shop.

The Oakland Equinox was scrawled in the large white swirly font on the shop window. When we entered, my eyes spotted the clientele. Everyone in the store was either wearing long ornate robes or brightly colored bell bottoms and tube tops. Incense smoke filled the air, clouding my nose and vision. It was a light and floral scent, perhaps violet. Jimmy quickly found the book section, as usual, and rifled through the shelves. As his lithe fingers danced around the spines of old books, I busied myself with the crystals. Not that I needed them anymore, but they were so pretty, that I had to indulge myself. I picked out a large chunk of amethyst and carnelian. This would hopefully bring me some courage. God knows I need it. He finally caught up to me, carrying an armful of books. "Jesus, are you buying a whole shelf?"

"Actually, yes, I did. I picked out every piece of Crowley material they had." I rolled my eyes and we put our things on the counter. This time there was no fuss over who was paying. I slapped some cash onto the counter, staring at him proudly, a smirk planted on my face.

"You're impossible." He spoke when we were on the street, headed back into the California heat. I hadn't realized how cool the shop was until we were thrust back into the volcanic conditions. Perhaps he was correct about the melting. "You know you love me!" I clasped my hands together, looking at him through my batting lashes, my chin pressed to my shoulder. "Well, of course, I do. You're a sweet treat." He patted my head, a small offer of love. It was endearing, if not a little weird.

We had been walking for no less than five minutes when my day went sour. Despite the sweat pricking on my forehead, the Summer heat seemed to break, the unrelenting sweltering coming to a halt as my eyes met dark features. I double, and triple-checked, to make sure I wasn't being crazy. It was him, in all his 6'3, Scorpio glory. Dominic Stephens. When my eyes set on him, I could feel the immediate heat in my chest. I felt like a figure in Stonehenge, the wind blowing through my hollow body. Panic jolted through me, working from my feet to the top of my head. Every part of me was charged and nervous, shaking and sweating. I was sweltering hot under the heat of the sun and the raging fire in my body, but I was shivering with gooseflesh prickling down my arms. I felt like vomiting. Seeing him filled me with the worst feeling, one of dread and absolute desolation. The world was coming to a halt, not in the way it did when Jimmy and I were alone, but in a way that felt like the apocalypse was starting in my body.

I wanted to hit him. I wanted to scream and kick and fight. But I held it back. I held back with every piece of me, draining my energy and patience. I thought I'd never see him again. After we went our separate ways I thought that would be the end of it. I also thought I was through with him. I thought we were dried ink on a page that had turned long ago. But it seemed we weren't. The ink was wet as the day it was written, smeared across the pages of my weary body. There were no tears, I would not weep for him, not so openly. But there was panic and rage, something he'd made me feel many times.

I tried to avoid him at first, hiding behind a tree. But that only caused more ruckus. "What are you doing, darling?" Jimmy found me, pulling me by my arm. I dug my heels into the dirt, acting like a dog who didn't want to come inside. I did all but growl as I fought him. "Oh, love, I've stepped in gum!" This stir caused Dominic to swivel in his position, now ogling at me. I know he saw me too. Our eyes locked, for only a moment. I looked away as soon as I found them, hoping he wouldn't take it as an invitation. But he was good at showing up at just the wrong time. He was always the most pleasant of unwelcome visitors, stepping in flower beds and tracking mud down the hall. But he did so with the most charming of smiles.