When Lightning Ignites [COMPLETED]

Chapter 4: The Lonely Road

Julie sat on the floor next to her balcony doors hugging her knees to her chest. She put down her old red journal, trying to see if it helped to make sense of anything. Although it had been a few days since the conversation with the elders, she was still tired, her sleep invaded by blue and grey eyes. She realized now that even when she hadn't remembered Luke, she'd dreamed about him for months. His eyes were probably the last thing she'd seen before he'd wiped her memories.

Why did he have to do that? Her hand clenched in the carpet below.

She welcomed the sting of her forehead against the pane of glass. It was raining today, but if she went outside the air would be so heavy with heat and humidity she would be sweaty in moments. She missed her old house, her old window seat. She missed her old life in Atlanta. Even if it all had been a lie. It wasn't nearly as confusing as the life she was thrown into now.

Most of all, she missed dancing. Her skin felt tight, prickly again from the lack of practice. She needed to work off some of this energy before it literally shot out of her fingertips. But she wasn't allowed until she was fully restored.

Even if she could escape the island or find a way to get the Fey to let her leave, was it safe? Those men might be after her still. There was one person she could ask, one person who already knew and hadn't used the information yet.

Luke. But then she would have to talk to him.

Julie turned as someone knocked on her door.

"Can I come in?" Jamie asked.

"Sure. Why not? At least you asked." She was sure Andromeda or Lir had come to check on her several times while she'd slept over the last few days. How else was there a fresh glass of water at her fingertips or her covers tucked in around her every time she woke up? Taking care of her now didn't excuse them for everything they did.

"Hey." Her brother sat on the floor across from her.

"Hey," she said back dully. She wasn't sure what to think about Jamie. How much control did he have over anything that had happened? Had Lir prevented him from telling her?

"You have window head," he said after a few minutes.

She blinked. "What?"

"Your forehead is all red in a big round spot. You were leaning against the window." Jamie pointed to a spot that she could picture as a big red dot on the side of her forehead. He tilted his head to the side and smirked. "I don't know. Maybe it looks good on you. It distracts people from the rest of your face."

"Jamie, stop." Instead of being angry, she punched him on the arm. It was just like old times when they would hang out together before all this started. To her horror, she started crying again.

"Oh, Jules. I didn't mean to come in here and make you feel worse. I'll go." He started to get up.

"No," she said. "It's just been a long time since we joked around and I didn't think you were some alien or something." She wiped at her face with the end of her T–shirt. The same one she had been wearing for a few days. She probably didn't smell great either, but she didn't want to leave her room.

He laughed and settled back down. "You thought we were aliens?"

It was weird having him in here. She could count on one hand how many times he'd been in this room before today—two of which were because of Rory. Her fingers trembled. She didn't want to think about that. Luke's face popped in her head, and she closed her eyes for a minute to catch her breath.

When she opened her eyes, Julie focused on Jamie, giving him a tight smile. "Yeah, I couldn't figure out what was going on, and it was driving me nuts. Oh, and I also thought I was going nuts. Trying to convince yourself that you're not crazy when everything around you seems crazy isn't a lot of fun. I don't recommend it."