Right or Left

The first two days of this trip have been ridiculous and I just wanted to relax for once. I needed normal, I needed girl time. I needed Carla.

Carla was in training for being camp counselor this summer at the YMCA so she was exercising like crazy. We decided to go on a hike up through a more mountainous part of the woods.

Right as we were leaving the cabin, Carla turned back to me and said “Are you really going to wear that?” I mock gasped and looked down at my gray pullover hoodie.

“Wow Carla. That really hurt. This is my lucky hoddie.”

She snorted “You know that’s not what I meant. It’s hot today and it will just get worse when we are sweating up on the trail.” I sighed. “I guess.” I pulled my hoodie over my head and tossed it on my bed.

“Can we go now? Or were you going to call the fashion police on me?” Carla scowled at me and pushed me out the door.

Once we started hiking I felt much better. There was no chance of Zane or the Summer brothers being up here and that was exactly what I needed. Carla prattled on about how hot and unique the Summer brothers are, especially Andrew. If only she knew.

After twenty minutes all about the brothers I was done.

“Carla. Oh em gee. You sound like you’re promoting them for a freaking movie; enough with the Summer brothers. I love you, but give it a break. They freak me out.” I breathed in and out slowly.

Carla looked pained for a minute, but covered it with a smile. “Okay. Chill. How about Zane? He is kinda hot. In that emo, look at me way.”

With one look at her I knew she was messing with me. “You’re such a bitch. You know that?”

She started laughing, “I love you too honey.”

That’s what I love about Carla, everything was a joke. Never end of the world serious.

“Hey have you talked to your parents lately?” she asked stopping to sit on a rock and drink her water.

I sat down across from her, “My dad sent me an email a couple days ago, before we got here. They are still in Africa. I think he said Chad or somewhere near there.”

The topic of my parents was a much safer topic than Zane and the Summer brothers, but it made me miss them. I know I’m more independent than codependent, but still. Who leaves a junior and goes to Africa for the next six months?

Okay, I guess they didn’t leave me since my Aunt Loris checks in on me every two weeks, but that’s kind of just asking for me to throw this huge party and get arrested.

“I still think you’re lucky. You have your whole house to yourself and nobody to bother you. If you let me we could throw the party of the year. Nobody would ever know.” She said smirking.

Odd, I was just thinking about that. Weren’t Seth and Andrew talking about somebody they gave the nickname C to? I totally forgot about that? Holy shit! What if she is a hybrid too? She could totally be reading my mind now. I mentally slapped myself.

You’ve know Carla forever! She can’t be a hybrid you crazy, paranoid person. Just to be sure I mentally pushed at Carla.

I was hit with static and black. I felt like my head was ripping apart. I clutched my head and fell forward. Carla rushed forward and grabbed me.

“Ash, Ashley. Answer me, are you okay?” She was becoming frantic, but I couldn’t answer her.

I was stuck. I was stuck in her mind. It was like a black hole. I don’t know if she was blocking me or what, but she didn’t seem aware of it.

I couldn’t see. I couldn’t pull out, but I could feel. I could feel her checking for my pulse. She relaxed a fraction when she found it.

ZANE!!!!!!!!!!! I screamed his name in my mind. I’m stuck. Oh my God it hurts.

Nothing happened. He didn’t answer, So much for him always listening to me.

Carla had pulled out her phone by now and was calling someone. I was still on the ground with my head in my hands when I heard footsteps, running.

“Help her! I don’t know what’s happening. Do something! She wasn’t supposed to get hurt.”

Carla was shouting at someone. Static. Black. Pounding.

Someone quieted her and suddenly I was picked up and I could feel the air rushing by like the person holding me was running, fast.

"Push. Just like you got in, push. You pushed in, push out." A voice filtered through my head.

I had no idea who it was. It could have been Zane, but I was too tired by now to recognize it.

I did what the voice told me to do. I pushed out and it worked. I was out of Carla’s mind, but whose arms was I in?

I looked up and saw green, and then I was gone.