Salvage: Book 3 of the Magic Mutations Series

30: Lukas

May, 2019

Midnight's memories meandered in my mind as I stirred late the next morning. Though, instead of getting up or rolling back over, I let them flourish, replaying again and again like a broken record... one that had sharp edges that sliced at my heart, of course.

· · ───── ∘☽༓☾∘ ───── · ·

An incandescent glow refracted off the pool in the muggy summer air as I brought my drink to my mouth. My eyes were heavy, the surroundings swirling, and I was finally forgetting meaning. But then...

"Hey stranger," an all-too-familiar voice caressed my ears, causing my body to get impossibly warmer as the air clouded with even more static.

Certain I was hearing things now, I reluctantly turned around to prove my delirious brain it had slipped into insanity.

But there she stood. At the edge of the pool gate, copper hair cascaded in loose waves down her chest—longer than I remembered. And the same shining emerald eyes enveloped me, almost assessing the state I had become.

"Olivia?" I replied in disbelief as her face swirled with familiarity.

At once, shame flooded me, and I placed my drink down.

I never wanted her to catch me in such a vulnerable state.

But why would she be here? I wondered. She was never coming back...

And why of all places would we run into each other at Jade's party?

No. I'm definitely seeing wrong. I'm definitely—

"How, um," she stumbled for her words as she stumbled closer, "How have you been?" Her face was consumed with concern as she closed the distance between us.

The manifestation is still speaking... fuck... I've really lost it now.

Instead of responding to my hallucination like the deranged fuck I had become, I clambered to my feet and made my way towards her, convinced that if I got closer she'd disappear like mirages do.

But the closer I got, the clearer she became, the edges of her figure sharpening, the familiar, sweet, hibiscus smell overpowering me. I stopped a breath away from her. Close enough to hear her heartbeat almost matching mine in rhythm. Close enough to see flecks of yellow and brown that mixed together with the green of her irises. Close enough to notice that she smelled like her... but different. Now masked with a perfume unfamiliar to me.

Unable to stop myself, I reached out to touch her.

Once again, I thought she would disappear. Or my hand would go straight through her apparition. But as my fingers collided with a lock of her hair, slowly dancing their way down its silky length—and she didn't pull away from me—I realised there was no escaping this illusion. So I may as well just enjoy it at this point.

"I, um—" she started to say, voice a little breathless.

But I cut her off with my comments of amusement. "I've never been this intoxicated before."

She cleared her throat before she spoke again. "I noticed you've had a few drinks."

"I swear I've had more without this happening. Maybe they're just hitting harder this time... or maybe the witches did something. Not that I'm going to complain."

Once again, she was silent for a moment, as if my mind was trying to manifest the most likely response Olivia would give. But then it tried, "What do you mean by 'this happening'?"