Faith Heights

Chapter 9

The storm slated against the building with a deluge-like vengeance. It tried to shatter the walls around us. From the sounds against the roof, I would have thought it successful, too. A large tree sat snuggly enough against my window for offshoots to claw at the glass, screeching and begging to be let in. The thunderous onslaught had been going on for hours, and occasionally lightning lit up my room in a blue-white blaze. 

I laid on my back, eyes closed against the flashing gale. The radio on my alarm clock played music futilely against the storm, adding another rhythm to the callous thunder. I was used to storms like this back home; the wind would rattle our house as if it was made from nothing but kindling. It had been frightening at first, and I'd always climbed into Steph's bed with her until the worst of it had passed. But soon enough it became something comforting, listening to the chaos and knowing that its attempts at harm would all end in vain. And although the school's original structure had been built in the late nineteenth century, I knew it wouldn't crumble.

I'd floated in and out of sleep for the past few hours, drifting between consciousness and unruly dreams. I thought I'd be kept awake with thoughts of Jackson's strangely grave promise, but instead, I found myself unable to rid my mind of the boy I'd met at the river. School had been hectic with homework and overfriendly advice on Lydia Clarke's behalf, trying to prevent us from stressing about the impending interviews. But nothing I did seemed to override the mental image of the way Nick had flown through the water so effortlessly, his easy grin against the moonlight.

A few minutes after the clock glowed 2am, I was pulled from my thoughts by a soft knock at my door.

"Lila? Are you awake?" I barely heard Rhea whisper over the wind's rage.

I sat up slowly, rubbing the sleep from my eyes. "Yeah. What's going on? Are you ok?"

She took a few steps forward before faltering. "Yeah- I'm fine."

Her tone wasn't convincing. Before I could say anything, she added softly, "Can you hear it?"

"The storm? Yeah, I think it'd be pretty hard not to." I looked out at the window, rain streaming down as if fleeing the storm's fury. 

She shook her head, tousling hair from her careful bob. "No, I don't mean the storm. Can't you hear the howling?"

I sat up straighter. "Howling? What are you talking about?"

When she stayed silent at the darkened doorway, I leaned over and turned off the radio. Over the sound of the rain roaring down, I could hear a faint, strange howling coming from outside. Like wolves, but with a melodious resonance that forced sharp goose bumps onto my skin. 

I reached over for my glasses, rubbing the last traces of drowsiness from my face. Rhea was frozen in the shadows, looking positively terrified. She wore a pink, silky nightdress that fell just below her knees, her shoulders covered by a snowy dressing gown that billowed around her bare feet. Her entire body was shaking beneath the soft layers.

Still, her attire made me feel a little inadequate in my grey singlet and boxer shorts. "It's nothing to worry about," I assured her. "Do you want to stay in here until it passes?"

She ducked her head. "I should probably just get back to my room..." She trailed off, shuffling her slippers.

I gently urged, "What's scaring you?"

She tried to shrug it off- but couldn't resist loosing a rattled breath. "You'll think that I'm crazy."

I patted the bed, and she slowly made her way over. 

"Do you have a view of the forest from your window?" She asked in a coarse whisper. 

I looked over again to the long glass to my left, peppered with the storm's tears. "A little. There's a monster of a tree blocking most of my view."