A New Brand of Redemption.
Open Eyes and Touching Lips.
This is how it started, Trevor realized with a sick feeling of dé jà vu as he stared down the dim length of alleyway that stretched out in front of him. Trevor knew without even looking that Megan was walking beside him listening intently to the footsteps behind them.
In a minute she would ask, “Are they following us Trevor?”
He would smirk and say, “I highly doubt it.”
Then she would blush and say, “I just noticed they’ve been behind us since we left school.”
He would frown and glance back just as Brett shouted, “Freak!”
Raising his dark brows he would ask, “Now why would he say that?”
Megan would reply in a forced attempt at humor, “Well Trevor you’re fingernails are black and I’m pretty sure you’re wearing my eyeliner. You had that one coming.”
Before he could speak Brett would shout out, “You know Megan, if you want to stay invisible you shouldn’t hang out with such a complete loser.”
He would reach out and take her hand. Holding it tightly, he would tell himself it didn’t matter. Nothing they could say would ever matter. Then Brett would say something that did; something that broke his barely held silence
“ Maybe even Trevor’s not enough to make people see you. No one can ever see a ghost!”
Without even really meaning to , he would turn and scream so loud it hurt his lungs, “Keep your fuckin mouth shut Brett.”
And that would it. That would be all the excuse Brett needed. They would get in a fight and Brett would win.
So as Trevor stood and looked at the all too familiar alleyway he asked Megan, “Do you trust me?”
She sounded a little confused when she replied, “Of course I do.”
“Then run,” he whispered as he grabbed her hand.
Just when his feet began to move, the city grew blurry around him and Trevor knew he was dreaming. The sun seemed to expand and then it almost felt like they had taken flight. He held tight to Megan’s hand as everything around him turned to burning brightness.
Then Trevor saw white. Not a pure blinding white, but rather a sterile almost harsh sort of white. Staring at it he longed for a trace of dirt or anything else that would soften it’s impact on his eyes.
This can not be heaven, he thought as he closed his lids to block out the offensive color.
Then Trevor snapped them back open because he heard Megan’s voice ask, “Are you awake?”
This time he saw her face instead of the whiteness and Trevor thought he might be in heaven after all. She had never looked more like an angel then at that moment.
As she stared at him with emotion darkened eyes, he could only say, “Hi Meg.”
It was stupid and pretty inane considering there was so much else to say. But ,for some reason, Trevor couldn’t think of anything else except her; except the way she was looking at him. Looking at her, Trevor couldn’t help but raise his hand up to touch Megan’s cheek. Then, as he traced the line of her jaw with his fingertips, she did something he did not expect.
Megan started to kiss him! On his chin, his forehead ,and well pretty much all over his face. When she came to rest on his lips, Trevor could taste the salt of her tears on her mouth. He thought he had to be dying or something equally awful, because why else would she do it? Why else would Megan kiss him so urgently, so desperately, and so much like he was more then just her friend?
“Trevor promise me,” she said a minute later, “promise me you’ll never ever scare me like that again.”
He stared into the brown eyes not two inches away and said, “I didn’t exactly mean to get beaten to a pulp.”
Megan let out a half -hysterical laugh and said, “No, but you have to try extra hard not to. Without you my life doesn’t matter.”
Trevor wrapped his arms around her and pulled her against his chest. He held Megan so close it made every bruise there feel on fire. But he didn’t care because it was more then worth it.
It was so much more then worth it to be able to whisper in her ear, “Without you I don’t exist.”
And he knew he meant it. Trevor knew without Megan he would melt away like the shadows in the coming dawn. Because at that moment he realized he loved her and he always had.
When Trevor opened his eyes for the second time, his vision was blurred and his limbs felt heavy; like he was deep under water being weighed down by bricks. He didn’t feel any pain, just the numbing effect the medication they’d given him had on his system. Trevor rubbed his face and tried to shake it off. But, everything was still a little hazy when he looked around the room.
To his right Megan was slumped in chair beside his bed. Her soft brown eyes were wide and unfocused; like she wasn’t really reading the magazine draped in her lap.
She looked exhausted .No, more then that. Megan looked …drained. Except for the deep purple rings around her eyes, the color had completely left her face . Her normally wavy copper colored hair hung in a limp curtain around her shoulders. Megan looked like she hadn’t slept in an eternity and she probably felt like it too. But somehow she was still awake, still watchful, and still filled with so much nervous energy it seemed to radiate from her skin.
Trevor almost couldn’t look at her. He felt an ache surface that had nothing to do with his injuries; a pain that no medication could numb. He wanted reach out to Megan. More then anything he wanted to hold her close and tell her he loved her and he would never ever stop. Even when the sun exploded and the stars fell from the sky. Even when the moon turned black and ceased to shed her bright light. At the end of all things, when the entire earth was reduced to darkness, Trevor would love her. The question was, did Megan love him? He wasn’t brave enough to ask that.
So he just asked casually, “What time is it ?”
She looked up and smiled tiredly before saying, “Time for you to go back to sleep.”
“That means it’s really really late right?”
Smothering a chuckle, Megan nodded and said, “Yea.”
“ You shouldn’t still be here.”
“ I can’t just leave you,” she said quietly.
Trevor wanted to beg her to stay with him forever, but he couldn’t let her sit there; wide awake and unmoving. She needed to go home. She had to sleep.
So he asked with as much bravado as he could muster, “Why not Meg? It’s not like I’m mortally wounded or something. I mean, I don’t even have any battle scars.”
Megan rolled her eyes and no doubt thought with a long suffering sigh, MEN!
Then she got up and said, “ Okay, I’ll go, but before I do you need you to know something.”
“What,” Trevor managed to ask before he was being kissed once again.
“I love you,” she whispered in his ear.
Then she was gone.
In a minute she would ask, “Are they following us Trevor?”
He would smirk and say, “I highly doubt it.”
Then she would blush and say, “I just noticed they’ve been behind us since we left school.”
He would frown and glance back just as Brett shouted, “Freak!”
Raising his dark brows he would ask, “Now why would he say that?”
Megan would reply in a forced attempt at humor, “Well Trevor you’re fingernails are black and I’m pretty sure you’re wearing my eyeliner. You had that one coming.”
Before he could speak Brett would shout out, “You know Megan, if you want to stay invisible you shouldn’t hang out with such a complete loser.”
He would reach out and take her hand. Holding it tightly, he would tell himself it didn’t matter. Nothing they could say would ever matter. Then Brett would say something that did; something that broke his barely held silence
“ Maybe even Trevor’s not enough to make people see you. No one can ever see a ghost!”
Without even really meaning to , he would turn and scream so loud it hurt his lungs, “Keep your fuckin mouth shut Brett.”
And that would it. That would be all the excuse Brett needed. They would get in a fight and Brett would win.
So as Trevor stood and looked at the all too familiar alleyway he asked Megan, “Do you trust me?”
She sounded a little confused when she replied, “Of course I do.”
“Then run,” he whispered as he grabbed her hand.
Just when his feet began to move, the city grew blurry around him and Trevor knew he was dreaming. The sun seemed to expand and then it almost felt like they had taken flight. He held tight to Megan’s hand as everything around him turned to burning brightness.
Then Trevor saw white. Not a pure blinding white, but rather a sterile almost harsh sort of white. Staring at it he longed for a trace of dirt or anything else that would soften it’s impact on his eyes.
This can not be heaven, he thought as he closed his lids to block out the offensive color.
Then Trevor snapped them back open because he heard Megan’s voice ask, “Are you awake?”
This time he saw her face instead of the whiteness and Trevor thought he might be in heaven after all. She had never looked more like an angel then at that moment.
As she stared at him with emotion darkened eyes, he could only say, “Hi Meg.”
It was stupid and pretty inane considering there was so much else to say. But ,for some reason, Trevor couldn’t think of anything else except her; except the way she was looking at him. Looking at her, Trevor couldn’t help but raise his hand up to touch Megan’s cheek. Then, as he traced the line of her jaw with his fingertips, she did something he did not expect.
Megan started to kiss him! On his chin, his forehead ,and well pretty much all over his face. When she came to rest on his lips, Trevor could taste the salt of her tears on her mouth. He thought he had to be dying or something equally awful, because why else would she do it? Why else would Megan kiss him so urgently, so desperately, and so much like he was more then just her friend?
“Trevor promise me,” she said a minute later, “promise me you’ll never ever scare me like that again.”
He stared into the brown eyes not two inches away and said, “I didn’t exactly mean to get beaten to a pulp.”
Megan let out a half -hysterical laugh and said, “No, but you have to try extra hard not to. Without you my life doesn’t matter.”
Trevor wrapped his arms around her and pulled her against his chest. He held Megan so close it made every bruise there feel on fire. But he didn’t care because it was more then worth it.
It was so much more then worth it to be able to whisper in her ear, “Without you I don’t exist.”
And he knew he meant it. Trevor knew without Megan he would melt away like the shadows in the coming dawn. Because at that moment he realized he loved her and he always had.
When Trevor opened his eyes for the second time, his vision was blurred and his limbs felt heavy; like he was deep under water being weighed down by bricks. He didn’t feel any pain, just the numbing effect the medication they’d given him had on his system. Trevor rubbed his face and tried to shake it off. But, everything was still a little hazy when he looked around the room.
To his right Megan was slumped in chair beside his bed. Her soft brown eyes were wide and unfocused; like she wasn’t really reading the magazine draped in her lap.
She looked exhausted .No, more then that. Megan looked …drained. Except for the deep purple rings around her eyes, the color had completely left her face . Her normally wavy copper colored hair hung in a limp curtain around her shoulders. Megan looked like she hadn’t slept in an eternity and she probably felt like it too. But somehow she was still awake, still watchful, and still filled with so much nervous energy it seemed to radiate from her skin.
Trevor almost couldn’t look at her. He felt an ache surface that had nothing to do with his injuries; a pain that no medication could numb. He wanted reach out to Megan. More then anything he wanted to hold her close and tell her he loved her and he would never ever stop. Even when the sun exploded and the stars fell from the sky. Even when the moon turned black and ceased to shed her bright light. At the end of all things, when the entire earth was reduced to darkness, Trevor would love her. The question was, did Megan love him? He wasn’t brave enough to ask that.
So he just asked casually, “What time is it ?”
She looked up and smiled tiredly before saying, “Time for you to go back to sleep.”
“That means it’s really really late right?”
Smothering a chuckle, Megan nodded and said, “Yea.”
“ You shouldn’t still be here.”
“ I can’t just leave you,” she said quietly.
Trevor wanted to beg her to stay with him forever, but he couldn’t let her sit there; wide awake and unmoving. She needed to go home. She had to sleep.
So he asked with as much bravado as he could muster, “Why not Meg? It’s not like I’m mortally wounded or something. I mean, I don’t even have any battle scars.”
Megan rolled her eyes and no doubt thought with a long suffering sigh, MEN!
Then she got up and said, “ Okay, I’ll go, but before I do you need you to know something.”
“What,” Trevor managed to ask before he was being kissed once again.
“I love you,” she whispered in his ear.
Then she was gone.