Magic

Chapter 14 - Fight for Life

Silence. We stand alone, at the edge of the barrier. I wait for an answer. When he doesn't speak, I ask again. The second time I'm not as polite. I'm angry, and the longer it takes for an answer, the angrier I get. He shrugs, like that's enough. Instead of yelling, I shake my head and walk away.

His voice follows me into the house, begging me to stop. Now he wants to talk. He tries to entice me with promises of no fighting, no raised voices, just talking. I stop just inside the house when I notice everyone standing in the hall. My pause makes it possible for Marcus to catch up. Again, he begs me to talk to him. I only agree because everyone is staring at us.

We retreat upstairs to talk in private. The room feels smaller once we're in it. I'm nervous, but I'm not sure why. Maybe it's fear of a fight, or fear of what will happen after the fight. There's so much to talk about, so much to work out. As he sits next to me and takes my hand, the fear fades. This isn't going to be a fight. He's just as nervous as I am.

"Are you going to leave me?" he asks with a tear in his voice. "Have I screwed up so bad you're considering an east coast college? Have I chased you away?"

"I don't know," I whisper. "It's not an easy decision. I love you too much."

"Then stay, ok? Please," he cries. "Don't leave me. I need you. I can't live without you."

"You said I'm weak," I say suddenly. Marcus is suffocating from the guilt as he stares at me. "How can you need someone you see as weak?"

He hangs his head in shame as he attempts to defend his words. "I didn't mean it the way it sounded. You're strong mentally. You've handled all of the drama of my position with grace. By weak, I mean Magically." He looks up at me, his eyes dripping with pain and guilt. "My Magic is intense. If I give you too much, it can kill you. If I give you enough and you can't handle it, it can kill you. You see my worry now?"

"What if it's our only option?" I say gently, choking back my tears. "Will you do it then?"

"The binding terrifies me. I need to know my magic won't kill you. I'm not giving up though," he sighs. When my tears being to fall, Marcus takes my face into his hands. "And for the record, I'm not giving up on you either. If you're going back east for school, I'm going with you. I told you once I'd follow you anywhere. I love you."

Maybe I'm wrong about us. Maybe we aren't over. He's willing to follow me anywhere to keep us together. He's not giving up on the biding. I should have threatened to leave two weeks ago. We might have talked like this sooner. If he's not giving up on me, I won't give up on him.

I pull him in for our first kiss in two weeks. and he melts into my embrace. He signs in relief as he pulls me onto his lap. I can feel the wall between us begin to crumble. It feels like we are putting the fighting behind us, but our fighting isn't the only one we need to get passed.

There is a knock at the door then Lizzy pokes her head in. There are tear stained streaks on her cheeks. Her eyes are puffy and red. She doesn't life her head because her shame is too heavy to lift. It's clear she hasn't made up with Tony yet, and I'm not exactly in the forgiving mood.

I shake my head, and Marcus understands. "Make if fast," Marcus snaps at her. "Neither of us really want you here."

"I know. I'll make this quick," she sniffles. "What I said was wrong. Nicole, I love you like a sister, and I hate everything Nathan has done. I'm sorry. I wish those words were enough, but they aren't. They still need to be said, and I hope you'll be able to forgive me."

She turns to leave, then stops and walks deeper into the room. "Before I go, I want to share what I found about your connection."

I look at Marcus and ask him what she's talking about. "I don't want to let you down. I want to do the binding, so I asked Lizzy to look into our connection. What did you find out?" he says to Lizzy, suddenly very interested.