CHAPTER 29

HOW LONG?

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I just had a day with Aiden which unfolded into something beautiful, then had a nap and then I woke up to suddenly everything coming apart. There was still dull light outside and an unusual chillness. So I wasn't afraid like I actually would be if it were dark. But how did she know that the ghost wasn't there anymore at Auroville Villa?

"How does she know that?"

"She says some weird stories, Margo. Just block your thoughts of the ghost and stay away from the dark. Leave a light on in your room."

"Sure," I assured as I started to feel my body temperature rising. It was as if my body had its own weather now.

His voice now very anxious. "She says she needs to talk to you in person - "

"Aiden, put her on the phone."

"Margo?" She asked all skeptical. "Is this you?"

"Yeah..." It was weird. Maybe she thought I was possessed or something. "This is me. Don't fret. I am not possessed or anything."

"I want proof."

"O.... kay....," I drawled. "Like what?"

"Can you meet me?"

"Now?"

"Is there something immediate than now?"

"Not a chance, Verena. I just came home from Aiden's this afternoon. My mom would roast me alive if I say that I am going out again."

"Stop acting," she bellowed.

Oh God! How was I supposed to prove her that I am not possessed? Wait, No. The right question would be, how do I prove her that I am I?

"Verena... I can't meet you now. Put Aiden on the phone," I urged.

There was a ruffling phone noise for a brief second before Aiden took over. "Margo..." Aiden's voice was low with concern brimming now, which was completely unnecessary.

"I can't come out now and we certainly can't meet at Elec's house either. She is at her uncle's."

"Is there any possibility that we could meet at your house?"

"Aiden, are you kidding me? My mom would kill me. She has never met both of you. I can't imagine bringing a boy to my home and let alone a PSB."

"Okay..." He sighed. "Can we please meet tomorrow?"

"Calm down. We will meet tomorrow and ask the PSB to calm down." He chuckled. I continued, "she just sounded like she got ready for an exorcism or something." He laughed again. "Aiden, stop enjoying this so much," I whined.

"Verena, it's definitely Margo." I could still hear his smile.

The rest of the evening was an agony. I shut my window at 7pm. I couldn't imagine a ghost running loose on the streets to find someone to possess. I turned on a torch light and put it under my bed. Elec was in the clear, as she wasn't near here anywhere, but Irsia might get in trouble. Maybe Elec could too. What if I had underestimated the power of the ghost? I called them both and informed them about what had happened. Elec seemed to be in some loud place. Maybe she went shopping. Irsia was at her home. I warned her to keep her window shut and not to go look for anything. I even had to threaten her, saying that if she couldn't contain her curiosity, she'd end up in the dark somewhere. That worked. Um... okay... I saved everyone, but what about my own thoughts?

Music...! Loud music...! I took out my earphones and played something loud. It reduced the sound of the thoughts, but not the nagging feeling. It just kept surfacing and I tried lying in different positions, but nothing helped. I wished we had a sleep-over today. At about 10pm, Elec called to ask if I was doing okay and Irsia texted that I could call her anytime, if at all anything happened. When the clock hit midnight, I sat on my bed playing one of my favorite songs -not a loud song, but a song that always made me wonder if it had some magic in it because it made me float-my mind float.

As I listened to it, another memory surfaced. Something I thought I didn't have it in me at all. Something that I had denied myself. Thoughts of Aiden surfaced and I smiled. I groaned instantly as I couldn't sleep. I hugged my knees to my chest, thinking of him and the music intensified everything. I just couldn't wipe that stupid grin off my face. Then again, slowly the fear crept in and I switched to a loud song again and I hummed along with the music. I wanted to turn off the ceiling fan as it was getting too cold and the squealing of the fan wasn't soothing anymore. Taking off the blanket, I walked hurriedly to the switch and turned it off. I walked back to my bed and that was when I realized the torch light I had put under my bed had run out of juice.

The last step toward my bed was the real deal because I was so sure that something was going to pull my leg from underneath the bed and I would disappear into the darkness. I leaped on my bed, still in anticipation of something to appear out of nowhere, but nothing happened. I didn't know what broke inside me, I cried. I didn't know if it was the fear or anxiety or the fact that I couldn't sleep or the fact that I felt pathetic because I couldn't have one good day in my life. I lied on my side, wiping my tears. A little thought bloomed in my head. Maybe if I called Aiden, it would help me. Maybe it won't. If I called him at this hour, it might disturb him. Maybe it won't if he was deep asleep and that he wouldn't even hear his phone ringing. I decided to pull up my pants and call him. Just when a rush of thoughts attacked me to hang up, he picked up.

"Margo...," he gushed and I was relieved. "Why aren't you sleeping?"

"I couldn't."

"Because of me?" He got cocky again and that smile... I could feel the smile hazy before me.

I snapped out, shaking my head. "Shut up. It's what Verena said."

"Ohhh..." He paused. "So, nothing about me then?"

"Maybe a little," I said, again, with that stupid grin sprouting.

He chuckled. "Seriously though, are you ok?"

"No... I couldn't sleep and the torch light I put under my bed had run out of juice and I'm scared to put my feet down the bed," I whined and I felt pathetic, which was one of feelings that I hated to have.

"Do you want me to come over?"

A rush of thoughts washed away the anxiety. Aiden and I spending time together? I kind of knew exactly where that would go. I wished I could say yes, but... "Shut up...," I paused. "Don't shut up. Just talk. I need something to distract myself from thinking about what Verena told me."

"I thought you were good at blocking thoughts."

"Not today. I think that ability has taken an off day today." I had so many thoughts in my head-the ones that needed to be shut down. Thoughts about what Verena said, thoughts about Elec and Irsia and the hide-and-seek that we were playing and the thoughts about Aiden. It was all too much to handle at the moment.

"Okay... I could do that."

"Tell me, since when did you start liking me?" 

"That..." He sucked in a breath, as if he was nervous or contemplating.

"Hey, how come you are not sleeping right now? If you are sleepy, you can go sleep. I won't hold it against you." I blurted, as I felt like a complete idiot for calling him like that just after one kiss. But there was something about him that made me feel like we had been close for a very long time. That thought was the reason I called him.

"S.h.u.t.u.p," he said in a tight tone. "Do you know how long I have wanted you to call me when you needed something? Don't get me wrong. I am not trying to get in between you or your friends. It's just a desire that I had in me for so long."

"Why do you keep saying long? Just tell me since when have you liked me?"

"I don't know the exact moment, Margo, but I think I know when I realized it."

"And when was that?" I dragged, making myself comfortable on the bed to listen to his explanation. I knew it would be interesting.

"Do you remember the incident with Desiree and her dog?"

How could I forget that? Desiree had a dog named 'Piano'. I named the dog Piano when we were kids. Piano got hit by a biker when Desiree was crossing the road with Piano. Desiree fell down but Piano was badly hurt. I saw the whole thing from the other side of the road. The guy who ran over Piano was a really sick person. I chased down the guy in my car and I somehow stopped him. Well, more like his ego made him stop his bike. I got out of my car and I sprang to the guy asking him to take off his helmet. As he took off his helmet, I realized it was Mason Campbell. A friend of Kyle.

I didn't care. My fist had to meet his face. As he got angry, his reaction promised me harm. Elec, Irsia and Aiden reached there just in time. I wouldn't have been totally helpless even if they hadn't come because I took out my pepper spray and sprayed it over his eyes and I went to the extent of spraying it on his man parts. It was a struggle to douse his jeans but I did it. I've been carrying the pepper spray with me since the beginning of the CONMISDUM. A safety measure. I hoped it hurt him and burned through his skin. He howled disgustingly in pain and I pushed the mountain of a guy down. It wasn't hard to push him down, as he was clearly hurt.

I hit him with his helmet right across his face and later I heard that had knocked his premolar filling. Elec and Irsia had to pull me off that guy and I swung the helmet in rage. If Aiden hadn't ducked, I would have hurt him too. For a split second I snapped out and apologized to Aiden and then I shot back at the guy. Well, guess what happened next. I had to spend the next three hours in the cop station trying to explain what had happened. The interesting part was, Elec's mom had to talk for me and she rescued me. She also got Mason a month of jail time and also six months of community service else he had to pay a good amount of fine. So that's why Mason still stared at me whenever he saw me at school. Apparently, my mom's friend saw me drive like crazy and beat a guy up in the middle of the road and I was denied my car from then on.

"To this day, Aiden... I don't regret beating him up like that. He killed the dog. I wouldn't be raging like this if he had killed a human," I said, feeling the smoke out of my nostrils. "Piano was a corgidor. I mean, that's so rare," I cried.

"That is when I realized I liked you. You have a gift, Margo. You don't go halfway in anything." He was serious and I liked it.

"Well, I have to admit. I had never beaten up any guy before. Beating him up like that felt so good. Something about that made me feel liberated. Maybe it is the influence of Elec on me. She is the one who usually gets worked up like that, but she had never beaten up anybody. Expect for that one time when she threw water on Edric. Just her threats are enough to make people stay away from her. Maybe people don't take me seriously because I look petite. Maybe Mason didn't see that kind of violence coming from me because he thought I'm the petite, tame, bookish type," I paused with a realization. "Wait... what did you like about me when I attacked him?"

He chuckled that chuckle of his and I was already missing him. "You maybe petite, Margo, but not tame. Definitely not tame when it involves what you believe in. Your emotions, feelings, thoughts are bigger than you. I understood that you are the type that fights for what you believe and you just don't give up on it. You have that undying spark to just be something that everyone isn't. From then on, I always watched you like a hawk, heard all your poems. I wanted to spend time with you even though I knew you were with Kyle back then." He paused, taking a breath. "I still wanted to be with you. Maybe it was wrong, but it felt good -just watching you, being with you, even if it was for a few minutes. Everything about you felt right."

"Aiden Wilder..." I sighed a happy, exhilarated sigh.

"Yes..." That raspy half sleepy voice of him!

"Just who are you?" I asked in an unintentional whisper.

"I wonder the same thing about you, Margo Fawn." He answered matching my tone.

His voice and his occasional chuckles gave me a comfort that I had never felt before. Enough warmth, a little mischief, a lot of care -that's Aiden Wilder's voice. He was more. I would just have to explore what he was and I was all in. I didn't know when I fell asleep. I fell asleep with a cozy warmth spread through my body despite the cold weather and I slept without the fear of anything that could jump from underneath my bed.

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