Burning Cities

The air between Devin and I was just this unbearable awkward silence, and the longer I drove feeling this way the tighter my grip on the steering wheel became. I'd look at him briefly every once and a while, noticing that his eyes had dulled as he put on this thoughtful, blank look. When I turned down my street his body tensed at the corner of my eye, and I wondered why.

When I focused on what was in front of me, I noticed Joe's car a few houses down from mine with the exhaust from the back of the car creating fog in the air. Fear swelled inside of me as I slowly pulled into my driveway, hearing the slamming of car doors after I turned the ignition off. I gave a worried look to Devin, who seemed to have concern and confusion on his face, and I reached out to him. I felt his confusion, and I heard him question inside my head why I felt so afraid.

"My ex boyfriend." I told him softly as I opened my door, stepping out just as Alan and his two best friends came up the short drive way.

Alan came up to me, only a foot away as he straightened up his back to tower over me. "You've had enough space, it's time to come back to me, and give me what I want."

I felt desire and rage coming from inside Alan, but I couldn't penetrate his thoughts like I could Devin. Though I figured he could smell my fear, and he wanted from me what I really didn't want to give him. "I'm not going to give anything to you."

Devin was beside me before Alan could put his greedy fingers on me, stepping between the two of us with a look of death in his eyes. "I suggest you leave."

"And who are you?" Alan asked, and his mood changed from desire and rage to rage, blood lust, and embarrassment.

"I'm the one thing you should be afraid of." Devin's voice lowered to a soft, but stern and rigid whisper. Alan didn't seem fazed, in fact, he felt more amused then anything. This was just a game for him.

"No, your the one thing that's keeping me from getting what I want. Now either you let me have her, or I will seriously fuck your shit up."

Devin smirked knowingly, but as I penetrated his thoughts, he was more confident then afraid and he ran through his plan. Before any of us knew what happened, Devin flicked his finger and a white spark emitted from the tip and went flying into Alan's chest. Alan doubled over and huffed out a low and painful growl.

"What did you do?" I nearly yelled out, asking Devin with much surprise and shock. Joe and Tyler had run to the car in apparent fear as Alan tried to scrambled away on the ice covered drive way. Devin just stood there with a blank and almost unhappy look on his face, but I couldn't feel his emotions, for he had masked them.

When the black car had driven past the house quick and swerved in a smooth Z, I looked to Devin who's body seemed to relax after the sound of Tyler's car engine had drifted away. Then he turned to me and gave me a slight smile.

"His desire wasn't fresh." He told me and I nodded.

"I know. It was today he tried to force me to his house and rape me. I could feel what he wanted, what he desired, and his friend Tyler pushed him over the edge." I shivered in fear and relieved that I had nearly escaped from Alan twice today. Nearly, and if it weren't for Devin just now I'm sure I would have been totally screwed. Alan had brought Tyler and Joe with him which meant he was completely serious about getting what he wanted and I'm sure he'll be back for more.

That simple thought made me shudder more with fear, and Devin placed his hands on my forearms and turned me towards the front door. "Maybe it's best you go inside."

I figured he was right when I fumbled with the keys on my key chain, some of them work keys that my dad gave me for emergencies, to grasp the house key and open the door. The warmth of the house was astonishing, which meant my dad must have come home from work for lunch and turned up the heat just a bit.

I took off my coat and just threw it on the floor in the closet. Dad has his own coat closet up in his office, so he never opens this one and even if he did see the mess I had made he wouldn't bother with it anyway. We have a house cleaner that comes once a week on Saturday to tidy things up, and I do chores around mostly too. If mother was still here, this place would be completely spotless. But she's not.

A sting of pain hit my chest but I waved it off as I lead Devin into the kitchen, the fear of having Alan there was still inside me despite what I had been feeling for my mother. I put the electric tea kettle on and looked over my shoulder, "tea?" He shook his head no so I just shrugged and grabbed one mug from the cupboard.

As I put a bag of Chamomile tea inside of the mug and leaned against the counter as I asked Devin what he had done to Alan, waiting for the water to boil. Devin just sat on the black stool by the island counter, his hands folded and tightened up his muscles.

"It's something Seekers can do. I'll teach you when I can." He whispered, and for a short while we just sat there in silence.

Then he opened his mouth, "I'm pretty sure by the desire inside of that boy that he isn't going to back down."

I sighed, "I know. I'm really afraid."

Devin stood just as the kettle clicked off and the sound of the water boiling stopped. I pulled it off the cradle and poured the water into the mug, setting the oven timer for six minutes. Devin put his hand on my shoulder and turned me so that I was looking straight up into his eyes. He was taller then me, maybe three or four inches, so he blatantly towered over me, more so then Alan does.

His lips loosened the tight line that they were as he sighed. "Seekers don't usually find each other like this."

"What are you saying?" I asked him as my breath caught in my throat from him just being so close to me. I could feel his breath against my chin.

"I don't believe in coincidences. And certainly this is not a coincidence." He tells me, his eyes seemed to darken to a much duller hue.

"So what are you saying?" He pulled away from me slightly and a cold feeling replaced where his hands had been on my arms.

"What I'm saying is you probably need to come home with me one of these days and meet my mother. Being a Seeker is not only a gift but a curse, and although we can feel others emotions we can do so much more then that. We have enemies too, people that believe that Seekers shouldn't exist. That's why there are so little of us now." He explained to me and I nodded. "Some also covet a Seeker's gift, and will most often use a Seeker for a dangerous use."

I gulped, "when can I meet her?"

"Tomorrow? It appears as though we've spent more then three hours and you probably ditched all of your afternoon classes at your school, right?" I nodded and he spoke on, "then I'll be heading out. If that boy comes back call me."

And thus he jotted down his phone number and walked out the door, leaving me to feel completely over-whelmed by this very day. I walked up the stairs and into my room with my tea and his phone number in hand, a warm feeling embraced me as the mug heated my hands. I was emotionally exhausted, and unprepared to face tomorrow.