Seven Weeks to Forever (Love / Romance)

Chapter Five

"Uh." I bite my lip, searching my brain for a reason. I'm about to say he told me his name when I realize I don't have to lie. I open my purse and dig through it, pulling out his student card a few seconds later.

I dangle the card in front of him. "Missing something?"

"Where did you find that?" He reaches out and takes it from my hand.

"On the ground at the Lazy Monday concert we were both at last night. Don't thank me or anything."

"I'm getting attitude from the girl who's roaming the dark streets of L.A. at night?" He glances up at the sky. He's smiling, though, and a quick check of his energy shows me the red sparks are starting to sputter out.

I extend my hand to him. "I'm Cassidy, in case you like to know the names of your damsels in distress once you've delivered them to safety."

He takes my hand. Only a second or two goes by before the tingling starts again. "I guess you already know who I am. For the record, though, I don't really make a habit of giving damsels much attention."

I want to ask what made him stop for me tonight, but the tingling distracts me. It's growing stronger. When I tune into my own energy, I see it's connected with his. Strange. I pull my energy back in toward my body and the tingling stops.

"Not the knight in shining armor type?" I ask, once I can force myself to focus. He shakes his head, releasing my hand. "What made you start with me?"

He shrugs. "You caught me in the right mood, I guess. And you seemed kind of cute and all."

I feel my cheeks getting warm again. "Kind of?" I try to look insulted, but I can tell I'm failing.

A grin spreads across his face. I smile back, since I'm not sure what else to do.

"Where were you coming from, anyway?" he asks. "You look a little young for the bars."

"The Lazy Monday show at the Roxy. Is that where you were?"

"I tried to get in, but the place was full when I got there. I ended up grabbing something to eat at Duke's."

He takes a few steps down the sidewalk, but I don't follow him. "I'm going that way," I call out. When he looks over, I point in the direction opposite from where he's headed. "My car is parked over there."

"Yeah, but I'm parked just past that stop sign, and I'm driving you to your car."

"You don't have to do that." My face still feels hot, although I'm not sure why.

"What kind of knight in shining armor would I be if I let you go back to your car alone?"

I smirk at him. "I thought you weren't a knight in shining armor?"

"I'm not. Are you coming?"

"Yeah, yeah." I walk a little faster to catch up to him.

He opens the passenger door for me when we get to his car, and I slide inside. He gets into the driver's seat a few seconds later. A minute passes before I realize he's not starting the car.

"Is everything okay?" I ask, looking over at him.

He looks thoughtful. "Can I see your phone for a sec?"

"Yeah, sure. Do you need to call someone?" I reach into my purse and pull out my phone. It's strange he's not carrying his phone, given that he wouldn't put it down last night.

He takes the phone from me and starts tapping the screen, then pauses for a few seconds.

"Need help using it?" I ask.

He shakes his head and starts to type something. When he finishes, he hands the phone back to me.

"I don't know," he says. "You tell me."

I look down and see a new entry in my contacts list. Riley Davis. Call for emergencies. His number is below that.

"Call for emergencies?" I ask.

He starts the car. "You said you're new here. You need someone you can call if something happens."

For someone who doesn't want to rescue strangers, he sure seems concerned about my safety. I'd point this out to him, but something tells me not to push it.

"Thanks," I say instead, slipping my phone back into my purse.

"No problem. Where'd you say your car was?" He glances at the rear-view mirror and then pulls out onto the street.

"It's over on Melrose."

The only talking I do for the rest of the short ride is to give directions. It's not long before we pull up to the curb behind my car.

"Thanks," I tell him. I wonder if I should hug him or something.

Since when do you hug anyone? I remind myself. It must be the energy surges messing with my mind. I reach for the door handle.

"Drive safely," he says. "And be safe."

I look back at him and smile, then get out of the car.

He stays parked behind me until I'm inside my own car. Once I'm in the driver's seat, gripping the steering wheel, I notice my hands are shaking. When Riley pulls away from the curb and passes me, I drop them to my lap so he can't see that I'm trembling.

I've found him again, and I even have a way of reaching him now, but I'm still in the dark about what comes next. I always thought when I found the person I was sent here to help, everything I needed to do would become obvious. After that, getting back to The Life-After would be a piece of cake. Unless I have some kind of epiphany in my sleep tonight, it's clear I was wrong. If I don't figure this out soon, I'll fail both of us.

This is the only chance I'll get. I just wish I knew where to begin.

* * *

The little orange light on my phone is blinking when I get home and walk into the kitchen. I set my purse down on the counter and scan through the call log. The only entry there is my aunt and uncle's home phone number, a call I must have missed by just a few minutes after leaving for the Lazy Monday show. It was still evening here, but considering the time difference, it was pretty late for anyone to be calling me from Boston.

I pick up the phone and press the voicemail button. My uncle's voice comes through the speaker.

"Hi Cassidy, it's Uncle Mike. Call me back when you can. There's a letter here for you from Harvard. Your aunt opened it in case it was important, and it's a good thing she did. There's been some kind of mix-up with the admissions office since they seem to think you won't be starting classes in the fall. We should get this straightened out first thing Monday morning."

I hold the phone out in front of me, listening to the beep when the message ends. There are a few choice words I could use right now, but none of them would come close to being the right one for this.

I wasn't counting on a follow-up letter from Harvard, or at least not this soon. The information in the letter isn't wrong. The mistake is my aunt and uncle finding out I have no plans to start college in a few weeks, and it's a big one.

At least it's the middle of the night in Boston. That gives me some time to figure out my story, since I definitely can't tell them the truth.