Black Angel (BoyXBoy)

Chapter 15: The Scar

So, Gabriel and Melody were at Gabriel's house this evening because Gabriel's parents were having a get together with all the vampiric hotshots in the town, so Shawn and I spent some quality time together. We were in the backyard playing toss with one of those foam Nerf  footballs. A few of the kids played with us until Ms. Katherine told them to get inside. Ms. Katherine gave me that look that said that we would talk later and slam the door behind her on her way back into the house.

After Ms. Katherine is gone, Shawn waits a moment longer before saying, "She's the one that gave you that mark right?" He points to his cheek when I look at him confused.

"Oh, yeah. It was an accident."

Shawn doesn't seem to hear me, he just glares after her with multi-colored eyes, muttering "bitch" before he throws the ball back to me. I miss it and have to chase after it, luckily I can use this moment to hide my smile.

About 8:30 rolls around when Shawn and I both get texts from Melody asking where we are. Maybe five minutes after I text her back saying that we were at my house, she and Gabriel arrive, dressed in jeans and tee-shirts, but Melody's hair and make-up is impeccably composed.

"A revolution!" Melody gaps when she sees up. "Fight... plans.... attack... Krusnik.... Six...." She doubles over, wheezing loudly. 

Shawn and I share a confused look before the duo eye colored boy moves to rub the wheezing girl's back soothing. "I'm sorry, repeat that again." Melody waves at Gabriel, hands falling to her knees as she doubles over.

"Need... to.... exercise more...." Melody gasps.

"That didn't sound like what you said," Shawn jokes, trying to lighten the mood.

Melody glares with no real anger. "Smart... ass."

"What happened? Why are you two so out of breath?" I ask, looking between Gabriel and Melody. Both glance at each other, suddenly hesitant.

Finally, Gabriel asks, "Can we... talk somewhere in private?" He sounds like he's finally gaining his breath back. "It can't wait, it's important."

 I nod and the four of us head to the edge of the property away from the road and toward the backside of the house. There is a small play set with swings and slides and a small spiderweb but beyond that, there is a creek and a forest. Not very thick, it only stretches for a couple of yards before there is a rundown road that leads into or out of town from a back way. Rarely used.

We go a few trees in so I can still see the house in case Ms. Katherine come out to see if I'm still on the property. Gabriel leans against the thick bark of one of the trees while Melody sits on a stump. I grin at Shawn when he stands close to her. He notices my stare and give a little pout and a shrug before looking away.

I sit on the trunk of a tree that lays flat against the earth: a good portion of it's roots are revealed but the tree is healthy and still curves upward half way through the length of the trunk. I look over at Gabriel to see him staring at me with intense brown eyes. Suddenly self-conscious I shift slightly which breaks the spell easily enough and he looks down at his worn sneakers into the powdery dirt instead.

"So..." I say quietly, not sure how to go about this. Both Melody and Gabriel have regained their breath, but now neither of them are talking.

"What's up, Mel?" Shawn finally asks, seeing that I wasn't going to continue.

Melody blinks a few times, shaking her head seemingly to clear it. Her eyebrows are pulled together in a clear expression of concern. She looks at Gabriel but he doesn't return her gaze, he's still looking at the dirt.