Chapter Fifty-Three

“The party seems to be pretty successful.” Amber commented to the petite braided beauty to her left whom she had come to consider her closest friend and most trusted confidant over the past year. “Everyone seems to be having a good time.”

Ebony nodded as she took a sip of her punch. She had been acting peculiar all night, Amber had noticed. Actually, when she really thought about it, Ebony hadn’t been acting herself since shortly after the Chosen had been overthrown, so Amber knew it wasn’t just the election that had her best friend so troubled. Ebony had not chosen to say anything to Amber as of yet, however, and Amber had a feeling it was something that Ebony would come to her about in her own time, when she was ready to talk.

After finishing her swallow, Ebony turned her full attention to Amber and gave her a tight-lipped, obviously distracted smile. “Yeah, it’s really great, Ambs.” She commented, her hazel-green eyes scanning the crowded room, “A real hit.”

Amber furrowed her brow, studying Ebony with a critical eye. Though her friend had gone to great lengths to make herself look spectacular that evening – glitter and diamond-like binidis accentuating her already natural beauty – there was nothing Ebony could do to disguise the troubled light in eyes and the dark circles underneath.

“Ebony, is—“ Amber began but was suddenly interrupted by a cheerful greeting from Aya, who was accompanied by both Silver and Grieco. The three women had dressed for the occasion as well and looked lovely.

“Hey Aya.” Ebony greeted the shorter brunette with a bright and somewhat forced smile, “Silver, Grieco. Are you enjoying the party?”

“It’s fabulous!” Silver gushed, her brilliant blue eyes lighting up with excitement. “I don’t think I’ve been to a party quite as fun since before the days of the virus. There was nothing much to celebrate, but now…”

“Exactly.” Grieco agreed in a much more subdued tone. She ran her fingers through her long dark brown hair that she had curled special for the evening. “It’s a lovely party. How about you two? You haven’t really seemed to have gotten into it much.”

“Just making sure everyone is having fun.” Amber shrugged her shoulders, not wanting to tell the girls that the real reason she had not danced with the numerous young men who had asked her was because she was concerned about Ebony. Ebony had been asked to dance by just as many, if not more men, but she had refused them all without really giving explanation why.

“Well, they are.” Aya assured her with a bright smile. “The party is a true success. It’s sure to help you with the election, Ebony.”

“That’s not really why we threw it though.” Ebony explained adjusting her sparkling red tube top with rhinestones and sequins that flashed brightly in the light. “Besides, most everyone who has shown up had already voiced their support before the party.”

“That’s good.” Silver turned away from the conversation, her eyes scanning the crowd. “There’s quite a few influential tribal leaders and tribes here. You’re sure to win the election, Ebony.”

“We hope so.” Amber made a face. “I’d hate to think what would happen if Billy Boy or Moz managed to win.”

“What about Jet? I haven’t heard much about her.” Grieco inquired politely as she served herself a tall glass of punch. “She’s the leader of the Gulls, correct?”

Ebony nodded her head and went on to explain how Jet was actually the second leader of the Gulls, the first, her older brother, had come down with the virus right when it resurfaced in the city. The antidote was not found in time and Jet had become embittered for a time against the Mall Rats for not finding the antidote in time to save her brother. However, when she herself had come down with the virus, she quickly changed her tune.

“Jet is a good woman.” Amber affirmed. “And will be a good leader, but I have my own hesitations about her. She is a friend to the Mall Rats, however, which is much more than can be said of Billy Boy or Moz.”

“We don’t have much history with the Mozquitos,” Ebony added, “But Moz has never been too friendly with any tribes. I fear she’ll be our biggest competition, however. She had quite a bit of influence we don’t exactly like to admit to.”

“Well, you have the Clarets support, that’s for sure.” Aya voiced, her voice tinged with excitement. “All of ours.”

“What do you mean?” Amber stared down at the shorter young woman, puzzled by her choice of words. As far as Amber knew, Aya was the only Claret that was accounted for after the Occupation.

“This afternoon,” Aya explained, a huge smile breaking across her attractive face, “I received a message from the man who had always been my second in command in the tribe. Apparently the Clarets have begun to come back together. They were scattered after I was taken, but with the Chosen defeated, they’re returning home.”

“Oh Aya!” Amber gave the darker haired woman a impulsive hug. “That’s such great news! Your tribe! I’m so happy for you.”

“Yeah, it really is great.” Aya nodded. “Silver and Grieco have some great news too.”

“Really?” Ebony turned to the other women who had remained silent during Amber’s and Aya’s exchanged.

“Well, not quite as great.” Silver shrugged her shoulders, though her glowing facial expression told different. “I received word from my tribe as well. Nearly everyone has come back together.”

“Your brother too?” Amber asked softly, knowing that Silver had agonized over the disappearance of the young man.

“Uh, well, no.” Silver shook her head sadly. “But I’m hoping he’ll turn up soon. I was going to return to my tribe in the morning. Try and get a few search parties sent out or something.”

“And the Heavens?” Ebony asked Grieco politely.

“The Heavens have never exactly been what you would call a tribe,” Grieco explained, “Not like they are here in the city, but once my people learned I was here in the mall they sent word of their location. They want me to return as soon as possible.”

“So you’re all leaving us?” Amber asked softly, knowing that this time would be coming, but feeling a deep sense of loss now that it had arrived.

The three women nodded their heads slowly. “Tomorrow when the Gaians leave.” Aya informed them. “We decided that everyone leaving at once would be best. No long, dragged out goodbyes.”

“Wow.” Ebony breathed out. “This is such great news, though a little sudden. I’m really happy for you girls, though. And for your tribes. I’m sure they will benefit greatly back under your leadership.”

“Don’t worry Ebony,” Silver hastily put in, “We will continue to support you and I’ll be advising my tribe to be voting for you for city leader.”

“If you ever need any help, you can count on the Heavens.” Grieco added with a broad smile, something a little uncommon for the mysterious woman. “Though we may be a little tricky to contact. We’ll find you.”

“The Clarets too.” Aya smiled. “My tribe is your tribe.”

“Thank you.” Amber breathed out, gratitude swelling up inside her. “I hope we won’t have to ever call on you, but it’s wonderful to know that we have such magnificent allies.”

“More than allies, Amber.” Silver commented. “Friends.”

“Friends.” Grieco and Aya echoed.

“Alliances can be broken, but friendships like these will last forever.” Grieco nodded. “And friendships like yours,” She glanced back and forth between Amber and Ebony, “Are forged by fire and more powerful than any force that might come against you. You must remember that always. No matter what difficulties arise, if you have each other, nothing will defeat you.”

Amber let out a nervous laugh and nodded. “Thanks Grieco. We appreciate that, but hopefully now with the Chosen finished things will begin to smooth out.”

“Maybe.” Grieco’s eyes contained a mysterious light and a sudden chill raced down Amber’s spine, for the first time worrying that maybe they hadn’t come through the worst of it yet.

The others began to fall into a casual conversation as Ebony inquired politely after what they would be doing. Soon, Grieco joined in, but Amber found she could not. Her thoughts were still troubled and fearful for the future. Soon, the other tribal leaders began to make their excuses or in Aya’s case was whisked away by a good-looking Wild Kat requesting her favor on the dance floor, leaving Ebony and Amber standing in silence, watching the couples once again.

“I’m worried about Cloe.” Ebony suddenly blurted out, startling Amber.

“Huh?” Amber snapped her attention back to Ebony. “What did you say?”

“You were about to ask me what was bothering me before Aya and the others came up.” Ebony explained. “I’m worried about Cloe. I’ve been watching her all evening. She hasn’t exactly been acting herself.”

Amber was about to state that Cloe wasn’t the only one, but decided against it. Instead, she directed her gaze to the dance floor and spotted Cloe slow dancing with Jaguar, the much older Gaian. Cloe was dressed in a simple solid black boat-necked sleeveless dress and wore her hair piled up on her head, causing her to look much older than her thirteen-years and Amber found herself hoping that Jaguar had been fooled by the younger girl’s get-up.

“She’s dancing with Jaguar.” Amber commented, feeling her stomach begin to knot up inside her. She felt a certain responsibility towards Cloe, one that could only be explained as similar to the responsibility she had always felt towards her younger sister while they were growing up.

“And before Jaguar she was dancing with several other guys. All older. Much older.” Ebony added, her expression grim. “She doesn’t seem to have been drinking, but…”

“Yeah, I see what you mean.” Amber felt her worry for Cloe begin to increase. “Do you think we should go talk to her?”

“I’ve been debating that myself all evening.” Ebony sighed wearily as she shook her head slowly. “But I don’t see what good it would accomplish. We all make mistakes when we’re thirteen years old. I only hope that the mistakes Cloe makes aren’t nearly as life altering as the ones I made at that age.”

Amber nodded, finding her curiosity piqued by Ebony’s cryptic comment. “I hope so too.” She agreed, her voice soft. “I really hope so.”

~*~*~

“You are so beautiful, Cloe.” The tall Gaian who had introduced himself as Jaguar pulled Cloe closer to him, his hands traveling slowly down her back until they rested right at the small of her back, more than ready and willing to explore further if given permission. “So sexy. I have to confess, you’re driving me wild. What do you say you and I get out of here?”

Cloe stared up at him, trying to keep the shock from showing on her face. She hadn’t really been aware of what she was doing, only dancing the past several dances with Jaguar because he was a fantastic dancer and made her feel as light as air. She had only wanted to have fun, but obviously that wasn’t all Jaguar wanted.

Cloe nervously glanced around her, searching for a familiar face to rescue her from the predicament she had accidentally landed her in. The only one she knew that was near enough to save her was KC, but he was busy spinning at the DJ table had hadn’t even noticed her. Cloe was on her own this time.

“Um, Jaguar,” Cloe stammered while taking a step away from him, no longer wanting to feel the affect she had on him. “I’m really flattered, Jaguar, but I don’t think you realize—“

“Look,” Jaguar smiled down at her a disarming smile that made her heart feel like it was melting. “I realize you’re a little nervous, but I promise, I’ll be gentle. It will only hurt a little.”

“No, Jaguar, I don’t think you realize… I’m only thirteen.” Cloe felt her cheeks flush with color, hating to admit her age, even if she was using it as a life preserver.

“I realize that.” Jaguar pulled her close and began to tenderly kiss first her cheeks, then her forehead, temples, and chin, at last pressing his lips against her own, making her body feel as if it was on fire. Her body was screaming at her, telling her that she wanted this, and yet Cloe knew she had to put a stop to it, no matter how out of control her hormones were.

“It wouldn’t be right, Jaguar. You’re what, eighteen? If this was before the virus it would be illegal!”

“But we’re building a new world, Cloe.” He pulled her hard against him so she could feel the fullness of his arousal. “And I was kinda hoping that you and I could build it together. You and me, what do you think, Cloe? Wouldn’t it be beautiful?”

“You didn’t even know I was alive until tonight.” Cloe tried to free herself as Jaguar slowly began to pull her away from the center of the dance floor. She knew there was no way she would be able to stop him if he was determined to get what he wanted, but from the experience Cloe did have with him, she had always believed him to be a gentleman.

“But I did.” Jaguar’s lips began to travel down her neck and suddenly she felt his fingers tugging at the zipper at the back of her dress. He was going to undress her right there! “I always watched you, Cloe. You drove me wild from the moment you stepped foot in the Gaian village. I knew I wanted you.”

“I’m just a little girl, Jaguar!” Cloe exclaimed rather loudly, hoping to catch the attention of somebody.

“When was the last time you looked in the mirror, Cloe?” Jaguar released his hold on her, allowing her to relax slightly. “You’re a stunning young woman and more than old enough to make up her own mind about these sort of things, not let the rules of the old world dictate what is right and wrong.”

“I don’t want this Jaguar.” Cloe shook her head. “Not like this. I, well, I’m not in love with you. I always imagined my first time would be with someone I was in love with.”

“No, Cloe. You don’t want that.” Jaguar looked at her, his expression serious. “Your first time will be special, but you want to get used to it, learn some things before you do it with someone you really care about. Let me be your teacher, Cloe. I swear to you, I will never disappoint you.”

“Are you not understanding me?” Cloe gasped, horrified by how bluntly he was talking to her. “I don’t want to have sex with you, Jaguar. Not tonight, not tomorrow night. Not ever.”

“But—“

“Jag, I think you better pay attention to what the lady is saying.” Lex’s voice broke into Jaguar’s protest. “Go home, Jaguar. Take a cold shower, sober up a bit. But leave Cloe alone, you hear me?”

“Lex, I didn’t mean anything by this.” Jaguar protested, suddenly not seeming nearly the imposing man he had been only minutes before. “I was just looking for a little fun.”

“Not with Cloe.” Lex glared at him, taking a protective step between Cloe and Jaguar. “Go back to the mall, Jaguar.”

Jaguar stared at Lex for several seconds but at last nodded, his expression crushed. “I’m sorry, Cloe.” He whispered softly, “I didn’t mean to be like that, it’s just, well, you don’t realize half of what you’ve got going for you. You really do drive a man wild.”

Cloe felt herself coloring once again and was thankful when Jaguar disappeared into the dancing couples. She wanted to throw her arms around Lex and give him a huge hug, but embarrassment held her back and kept her eyes trained on the floor.

“Thank you Lex.” She managed to squeak out at last. “I really got myself into a mess back there.”

“Yeah, you did.” Lex agreed as he tucked two fingers under her chin and turned her face upright. “Just make sure you’re more careful from now on. Jaguar’s right. You’re a gorgeous young lady and you have weapons now.” He hesitated, giving her a once over then quickly added with a sly wink, “A full arsenal of them.”

“Lex!” Cloe gasped with mock-horror as she playfully smacked him on the arm.

“I’m just playing around with you, Cloe.” Lex smiled. “But I am serious when I’m telling you to be careful. There’s an awful lot of guys out there that don’t care if you’re only thirteen-years-old and a nice girl. You were lucky with Jaguar. He let you put him off, but if it had been someone else, someone like, er, well, just someone else, he wouldn’t have been so nice.”

Cloe screwed up her face and slowly nodded, not really understanding how Jaguar was being ‘nice’. He had been so dogged that Cloe had nearly given in. If Lex hadn’t stepped in when he had, Cloe doubted she would have been able to resist another line from Jaguar.

“Thank you, Lex.” Cloe said at last with a heavy sigh. “I really appreciate you coming along when you did. If you hadn’t…”

“Don’t worry about it.” Lex assured her. “Besides, I was just doing a favor for a friend.”

“A friend?” Cloe arched her eyebrow.

Lex jerked his head back in the direction he had come from and for the first time Cloe noticed KC standing a short distance behind Lex, his cheeks aflame with color. Cloe felt a slight disappointment that it was KC behind Lex and not someone else, maybe someone older, though not nearly as old as Jaguar, just someone else.

Lex suddenly leaned forward and whispered in Cloe’s ear softly so that KC would not overhear, though the distance was great enough that the noise from the music swallowed up any conversation that had passed between Cloe and Lex, “Be careful with him, Clo. He’s got it bad for you.” Lex murmured, “Remember what I said… Weapons, and weapons can hurt. Badly.”

“Right.” Cloe nodded, her eyes trained on KC. “Thanks Lex. You’re the best. I only hope that when I’m old enough to fall in love there’s someone like you around.”

Lex tilted his head back and let out a hearty laugh. “Oh, Cloe, I really don’t think you mean that. Besides, with my track record, by the time you’re ‘old enough’ I might still be in the game. Let’s hope not, though, eh?”

Cloe wrinkled her nose but smiled at him. Before leaving, Lex bent down once again and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek, then melted into the crowds, leaving Cloe alone with KC only a dozen or so feet away.

“Hey there.” Cloe called over to him at last, after she had swallowed her discomfort. “What’s up? Don’t you need to be at the table?”

KC was blushing furiously as he made his way over to her, his head half ducked. “Uh, well, I got someone to cover for me for a little while.”

“I see.” Cloe nodded, searching for something to say. With Jaguar he had immediately swept her out onto the dance floor, not really caring for conversation, only showering her with compliments. Somehow Cloe had a hunch compliments were a bit beyond KC at the moment.

An uncomfortable silence fell between the two and Cloe realized that she would have to make any and all moves in this situation. However, she wasn’t exactly sure she wanted to make any moves. After several minutes had ticked by, however, Cloe felt herself growing bored, so she snatched up KC’s hand and pulled him in the direction of the dance floor.

“Wh? What’s going on?” He exclaimed, his eyes widening and his cheeks flushed an even deeper pink.

“We’re dancing.” Cloe grinned at him, for the first time really noticing what pretty eyes he had. “Or didn’t you know that’s what this was called?”

~*~*~

“Once again, Hero Lex here to save the day.” Ebony let out a heavy sigh of relief as she and Amber halted in their tracks. They had been watching Cloe and Jaguar for several minutes before they realized that Jaguar was intent on sweeping Cloe away and out of the dance club.

“Yeah.” Amber breathed out, her heart still hammering wildly in her chest. She had always known that Jaguar had quite a reputation with the ladies, especially the younger ones, but she hadn’t realized she would have to keep an eye on him with Cloe. Cloe had handled her own well enough, but she was grateful that Lex had come along when he had, though he had needed a little direction from KC.

“That girl is really going to land herself in a heap of trouble one of these days if she’s not careful.” Ebony shook her head in dismay. “She grew up quickly. Far too quickly than is safe in this world. There’s going to be tons of guys like Jaguar just waiting in the wings to steal her innocence and she’s not always going to have someone nearby to help her out.”

“I’ll talk to her.” Amber promised her friend, still troubled over Cloe’s predicament. She had noticed Cloe had grown up a lot over the past several months, but she had been naïve enough to believe that something like this wouldn’t happen for a few years yet. “Better yet, we should talk to her. She respects you a lot more than she respects me.”

“Oh whatever, Amber.” Ebony rolled her eyes. “But sure, if you’re not comfortable talking to Cloe alone, I’ll come along. It would probably help with two of us telling her the same thing.”

“I fully intend on having a word or two with Jaguar as well.” Amber narrowed her eyes in the direction the tall Gaian had disappeared in. “I’m thankful he’s leaving tomorrow, though. Keep him away from Cloe.”

“Great White will have to keep an eye on him as well.” Ebony nodded as she flicked a stray braid over her shoulder. “Though I have a wild hunch she can handle him just fine.”

“Me too.” Amber laughed a little uncomfortably as her gaze settled on the young man who was approaching her. Pride. What did he want?

“Oh, look who’s coming.” Ebony rolled her eyes, noticing Pride a split second after Amber. “You want me to hang around or disappear?”

“Hang around, please.” Amber grabbed Ebony’s arm. “At least until I found out what he wants. If he’s looking for trouble—“

“He doesn’t look like he is.” Ebony’s brow furrowed as the duo studied the dark-haired Gaian as he neared them. His expression was pleasant and he wore a casual smile that masked no malevolence.

Seconds later Pride was upon them and Amber forced a smile to her lips, trying to calm the strange beating of her heart. It had been less than a year ago that she had pledged herself to Pride, committed to love him and no other. Yet that commitment hadn’t even lasted through the ceremony. Half-way through she had started to think of Bray again and found herself whispering the words as she thought of the man she had once imagined herself to love for eternity.

‘My what a fickle heart I have.’ She thought bitterly to herself.

“Good evening ladies.” Pride greeted them with a slight bow. “You both are looking ravishing.”

“Thank you, Pride.” Ebony accepted his compliment with a slight nod. “Are you having fun?”

Pride shrugged his shoulders. “Yeah, I suppose so. I really haven’t gotten into it much, though I had a really interesting conversation with Trudy a few minutes ago.”

“Trudy?” Amber and Ebony quickly exchanged looks. Amber had told Ebony and no other about Trudy’s little statement about Zoot being alive. Amber hadn’t known what to make of Trudy’s hysterical words, didn’t know if she should believe them or not, but after discussing it with Ebony for a time she realized it really didn’t matter if Zoot was alive or not. It would change nothing. They could only take one day at a time.

Pride nodded. “She was feeling a little tired though so I walked her back to the mall.”

“Thank you. I appreciate that.” Amber smiled at Pride’s thoughtfulness. “It isn’t exactly safe on the streets for her these days. Though she’s been publicly forgiven for all her crimes, since she was only acting to keep her daughter safe.”

“Yeah, I’d really hate to have been in her shoes. She was stuck between a rock and a hard place.” Pride agreed before he smoothly changed the subject. “Anyway, Amber, I was wondering if you would dance with me. Just one song.”

“Uh…” Amber hesitated, exchanging a sideways glance with Ebony before she agreed. “Alright, Pride. Sure.”

“Great.” Pride snatched up her hand and began to pull her in the direction of the dance floor.

“I’ll catch up with you later, Ebony.” Amber gave her friend a half-wave over her shoulder as she allowed Pride to lead her.

He positioned them near the center of the floor before dropping his hands to her waist, holding her at a short distance, far enough apart to carry on a conversation. They danced for several seconds before Pride attempted at one, however, and Amber was thankful. She hadn’t spoken to him once since the incident back at the old Rebel base, hadn’t really felt comfortable doing so and since Pride had made no attempt to approach her, Amber had been more than happy to let things progress naturally.

“Amber,” Pride began slowly as the song began to slow slightly, “I wanted to apologize for my behavior awhile back. I was acting half-crazy, well, more than half-crazy, full on crazy, and I’m sorry. I never did handle being broken up with well. Always preferred to be on the other side of the situation.”

Amber let out a nervous laugh and nodded. “Don’t worry about it, Pride. You didn’t do me any harm. How’s the leg, though?”

Pride winced. “It actually healed up pretty good. I was surprised. Didn’t quite tear into my leg as much as I first thought. It still hurts a bit, but that only serves to remind me of what an idiot I was being.”

“Well, I was pretty heartless.” Amber let out a heavy sigh. “I should have been honest with you upfront. I was never really over Bray and then when he suddenly showed up in the village I didn’t know how to respond. I did a lot of things wrong, to both of you and—“

“Don’t say that, Amber.” Pride shook his head, his expression stoic. “You never behaved wrong towards either of us. Don’t you ever try and justify with Bray tried to do to you.”

“I wasn’t, Pride—“

“Yes, you were. I can see it in your eyes, Amber.” Pride frowned down at her, “You have a compassionate soul and always want to give everyone the benefit of the doubt. The truth is, the only wrong you did towards Bray was by not punishing him. That boy deserved to be strung up for what he tried to do.”

“I think you’re letting your emotions rule a bit, Pride.” Amber chided gently. “Bray did not actually do anything. He only tried. He was stopped before anything happened.”

“But you can’t stand there and tell me that he wouldn’t have raped you if Lex hadn’t come in when he did.”

Amber shook her head slowly, her heart skipping a beat at the mention of the dark-haired Mall Rat’s name. “No, I can’t, Pride. You’re right. The intent was there, but thankfully he didn’t succeed. Even so, Ebony and Panther’s punishment was more than enough. He’s still suffering from some of those wounds.”

“It wasn’t enough.” Pride shook his head adamantly. “No matter what you say, Amber, I’ve looked into that guy’s eyes. He’s not remorseful for what he tried to do.”

“That’s because he doesn’t remember it Pride.” Amber explained, though sometimes she wondered at just how much of Bray’s selective amnesia story was true. “He was drunk and not himself. The Fieldings don’t handle alcohol well.”

“You’re still making excuses for him, Amber. You’re defending him.” Pride’s lips tightened into a grim line. “Stop.”

Amber looked down, holding her tongue. She didn’t want this to escalate into a full-scale argument with possible disastrous results. “Was that all you wanted to talk to me about Pride?” Amber asked at last, bringing her eyes back up to look into his face.

“No, it’s not.” Pride shook his head, the tension easing slowly out of his face. “I wanted to let you know that tomorrow when the Gaians leave, I won’t be leaving with them.”

“You won’t?” Amber stared at him in shock. “But I thought—“

Pride shrugged his shoulders and gave her a lopsided smile. “You thought wrong. There’s still some things holding me to the city.”

“Not me, I hope.”

“No, Amber, not you.” Pride assured her, his tone wistful. “Though if I thought I stood any chance with you again at all I would remain by your side until my dying day. But I realize that our time has passed and I’ve let you go, Amber, my little Eagle. Though you’ll always hold a special place in my heart.”

“Oh Pride.” Amber felt herself growing misty-eyed. “Believe me, you will always hold a special place in my heart as well.” She felt against him and allowed him to hold her tightly, hoping that the tall Gaian would not get the wrong idea.

“Thank you,” She separated from him. “Thank you for your friendship and for your l-love.”

“And thank you for forgiving me, Amber.” Pride whispered. “You are an amazing woman and hopefully I’ll find someone equally as amazing someday.”

~*~*~

After drinking a eight glass of the rather potent punch, Ebony had moved away from the drink table, knowing that in the mood she was in she could drink down the entire punch bowl if she was not careful. She had half hoped Amber’s and Pride’s dance would be cut short and Amber would come back quickly, there to rescue Ebony away from her reminiscent thoughts, but instead their single dance had stretched into several and Ebony found herself alone for longer than she felt comfortable with.

She had found the first vacant seat in a darkened corner and sat down, taking a full glass of punch with her. Before she was halfway through, she had already opened that carefully guarded door to the past and found herself remembering the stupid mistakes she had made when she was thirteen-years-old. She had blown it back then, destroying probably the only chance she had at happiness.

Ebony pulled her legs up tight against her chest, resting her head on her knees as she struggled to hold back the tears that stung the back of her eyes. It had been a very long time since she had allowed herself to even start to think about him, her first love, her only true love, but now she found the memories of those precious months they had spent together washing over her as if they had happened yesterday.

Their romance had been so beautiful, so innocent. They were happy, friends first and then boyfriend and girlfriend. They never went all the way, time had not allowed, but Ebony knew deep inside that he had loved her just as much as she had loved him. Back then she had fancied they would one day get married and she would become Mrs. Ebony Peterson. She had practiced writing her name like that dozens of times, as silly as it seemed now.

Ebony blinked at her tears, her heart aching so badly her throat hurt. Their relationship had been perfect and then she had ruined it. Though reflecting back on it, Ebony knew that she, just like he, had been a victim of circumstance, that there really wasn’t anything either of them could have done to stop the misunderstanding from happening, but she still blamed herself.

‘Should have been honest up front.’ Her mind still chided her, time not making the rebuke any less harsh. ‘You should have told him.’ She knew it didn’t make a difference any longer, their love have died long ago, scattered in the whirlwinds of change. Only, she still loved him, more and more each day.

They had fallen in love in such a crazy time, the months just before the virus gripped the entire world in its deadly grasp, claiming the life of every last adult on the face of the planet. Even if he hadn’t left her before the virus, they would have been separated soon anyway. Ebony, going back to the city to live with her sisters and parents during their last days of life, and he, staying at her grandparents with his little brother until they at last succumbed to the virus.

His little brother. The memory of her young friend brought a smile to her lips. They had been mates, pals even before she and his older brother had gotten together. He had written her, apologizing for what had happened, saying that he was to blame, and swearing that he would somehow fix things, but the virus had not allowed that. Or maybe it had. Ebony would never know. She would never see either of the Peterson brothers ever again.

“Oh Jay.” She whispered, feeling her salty tears finally escape. “I need you so much.”