it.
“No, you’re the fool, asshole. Now, send me back to my friends before I kill you.”
His body flashed in and out, like a light bulb using up its last source of energy. Next thing I knew, my arms crossed and I almost fell over. When I found my footing, in front of me were my friends, staring at me with their eyes wide. Dragging my hands through my hair, I felt flustered and relieved.
“Where the hell have you been?” Amanda scolded. “Mason was going crazy looking for you.”
“Don’t get mad at her.” Nick poked her shoulder. “It’s not like she was having fun.”
“Where’s Mason?”
“Sky, are you okay?” Ian asked, but I ignored him. I couldn’t even look at him. He took a few steps toward me, and then backed away. Though he’d had his reasons for what he did, I was still mad at him. It would take time for us to be friends again, if I ever decided that we could even get there.
“You didn’t tell it, did you?” Zara asked, examining me without an answer to my question. “Are you all right?”
“No, I didn’t tell it. I’m fine,” I answered quickly. “Where’s Mason?”
Just as I asked that question, a wind whooshed past me. There was only one person that could make that kind of air seep through me like a warm blanket.
“Right here.” Mason embraced me like he hadn’t seen me in days, then let go, checking me out as he always did. He had appeared out of nowhere. I figured he was searching for me. “Are you hurt? What happened?”
“What kind of shock do you send me on my text? What do you say?”
“Why are you asking me this right now?” Mason looked flustered, then cleared his throat. “Can I whisper it to you? Everyone is staring.”
“Yes.” I smiled. I needed to know. This was the only way.
Mason held me tighter and licked the tip of my ear. “Sending you a love shock, baby,” he whispered. “Maybe more next time. Satisfied?” His tone was smooth and hot, sending waves of tingles through me. I could already feel them. I had to take a moment to settle myself and remember where I was.
“Yes,” I murmured, feeling dazed. This was my Mason, for sure.
“Now that you two had time to make up, I think we should get going,” Zara said. “Sky, you can fill us in as we move forward.”
As we followed behind Zara and Tara, Mason held my hand. It was good to be back with my friends.
Looking around, I noted the ceiling was high. I tried to tilt my head back to try to find the end of it, but I couldn’t. It was like looking at a black hole, or looking at the night sky without stars. How was it bright in there? Where was the light coming from? I didn’t know how far we’d been walking…until I saw a puddle.
At first, that was all it was…just a puddle. But strangely, with each passing step, the puddle grew, expanding its length, its dimension, and possibly its depth. It seemed to be following us.
“What the hell?” Tim gawked in apprehension.
“We’re almost there. Keep away from it,” Tara warned. “We don’t know what it is.”
Amanda arched her brows in confusion, walking beside Noah. “Really? I thought it was water…you know, the stuff that looks like a clear liquid. I sure wish I could have some right now.”
“Isn’t it a bit too early or late to be sarcastic? You’re very good at observing the obvious,” Nick joked.
“Yeah, well….” Amanda stopped talking when Noah distracted her by creating animal shapes made of water in front of her. First, it was an elephant. It dissolved, then changed into a giraffe, then a dog, and then a lion. Amanda stuck her finger through it, but it never lost its shape.
“Here. Open your mouth.” Tara took out a dry, white cloth that was the size of her hand, breaking up the water animals with it.
“Open my mouth? What are you going to do, gag me with it?” Amanda backed away.
Tara opened her mouth and squeezed the cloth. Water dripped from it. “I’m giving you