Chemistry
After class, Scarlett and Kat walked back towards their dorms.
“So have you got plans for tonight? Maybe with Jacob?” Scarlett teased.
“Shut up, no.”
“Come on, you can’t deny there’s something there. I see the way you two look at each other, you have so much chemistry.”
“He’s practically my teacher. Our teacher,” said Kat.
“He’s more like a substitute,” replied Scarlett.
“Speaking of chemistry—what about you and Dyston? The way you gaze at each other like star-crossed lovers… it’s the most intense thing I’ve ever seen.”
“Nothing really has happened yet,” Scarlett replied awkwardly.
“Really? ‘Cause I saw you in the library earlier. He hugged you.”
“Yeah, he’s kind of intense. I don’t know. I’ve never had a boyfriend before. It’s awkward, yet I feel like I’ve known him my whole life.”
“That’s deep. I say go for it. He doesn’t seem like a lot of other guys.”
“He’s unlike any guy I’ve ever met.” They reached Scarlett’s door and paused. “Go see what Jacob’s doing tonight. Okay?”
“Fine, and you see what Dyston’s doing.”
“Okay, deal.”
“See ya.” When the girls parted ways, Scarlett unlocked her door and stepped inside. Something crinkled underfoot. Scarlett looked down and saw that someone had slipped a note under the door. It was slightly scrunched, but she smoothed it out and read it.
“Can I take you out tonight? If yes, meet me out in front of the Academy at six.–D.” It was written in a beautiful intricate calligraphy. Her stomach did a little flip and butterflies used it as a flying space. Dyston had just asked her out, officially. She cursed to herself. She didn’t have a clue what to wear. Casual, smart-casual, or formal, she didn’t know. Where would he be taking her on a Friday night? She decided she needed advice, and fast. She booted up her laptop and clicked on the messenger icon.
Bing! She already had one instant message.
“What are you doing? I thought you were going to find Dyston?” it read, it was Kat.
“I thought you were going to find Jacob?” Scarlett typed back her counter offensive.
“Yeah,” came a delayed response.
“You’re chicken, aren’t you?”
“No!” she said. But a few seconds later, she added, “Yes.”
“Well… Dyston asked me out!” Smiley face.
“OMG! That’s great! Wait, you’re the one who’s scared now, right?”
“No, well, yes, I don’t know what to wear. I don’t know where he’s taking me.”
“Easy, I always go for smart casual, something sexy yet practical when I’m not sure.”
“Okay, so skinny jeans and vintage blouse?”
“Sounds perfect.”
“Oh, and what shoes?”
“Those kick-arse boots you were wearing yesterday. I love them,” said Kat. She added a heart and smiley face emoticon.
“Thanks, Kat. How do you know so much about dating?”
“I have two brothers. Plus, I’ve been on a few dates before.”
“So you should be confident enough to woo Jacob?” Scarlett asked.
“LOL. Who says woo anymore?”
“Sorry, bookworm here.”
“Anyway, give me all the deets later. Have fun.” Kat added another smiley face and then signed out.
“See ya.” And Scarlett was left alone to ponder her clothing options.
At precisely 5.55 p.m., Scarlett opened the front door of the Academy and stepped out into the cool twilight air. She was glad that she had worn her military coat. She hugged it tight around her body. No one was around except commuters leaving work and families and couples going out for a Friday night dinner across the street. Where was Dyston? Was he running late or had he changed his mind? She glanced at her watch. She still had four minutes, so she sat down on the steps and waited. Approximately two minutes later, the door opened behind her and out he stepped. She turned and took him in—he was entirely dressed in black with black boots, black skinny jeans, a long black coat, and black and white-striped scarf, which brought out his dark hair and eyes. Scarlett realised she had forgotten to breathe.
“Sorry, I hope you haven’t been waiting long,” he said, giving her a smile.
“No, it’s okay. I barely got here myself,” she said. She couldn’t take her gaze away from his face.
“Part of me thought you weren’t going to come,” he said.
“Why would you think that?”
“I don’t know. But I’m glad you are here. Are you ready?”
“Yep.” He began walking down the steps and paused on the one below her. Turning, he held out his hand, and she took it with no hesitation.
“So where are you taking me?” she asked as they strolled down Flinders Street.
“I thought we would go to dinner first, and then I want to take you to one of my favourite places.”
“Sounds good.” They turned left onto Exhibition Street, past Collins Street, and then right onto Bourke Street.
“Why aren’t we flying?” she asked out of curiosity.
“I like to experience the city on foot as well as by air. Plus, it wouldn’t nearly be as fun since you don’t have your wings yet.”
“You could carry me,” she suggested, flashing him a grin.
“You better not have just given me permission.” He laughed. “You’ll get too reliant on me. And when you do eventually get your wings, you won’t know how to use them,” he joked.
“Ha, ha!” She playfully shoved him, but he shoved her back harder causing her to lose her balance. She would have gone over if it weren’t for both of their fast reflexes. She managed to stop herself and he grabbed her arm at the same time. When she met his eyes, the world seemed to slow down around them.
“Sorry,” he whispered.
“It’s okay,” she managed to say.
“It seems like I don’t know my own strength sometimes,” he muttered as they paused outside an Italian restaurant.
“Oh, Pellegrini’s, I’ve always wanted to eat here,” Scarlett stated.
“Good. Because this is one of my favourite restaurants.”
“It must be good then.”
“Extremely.” Dyston pushed the door open and the scent of pasta overwhelmed her senses. It was crowded, but Dyston managed to find two bar stools along the front counter that looked over into the kitchen. The restaurant was narrow and decked out in a retro design, black and white linoleum covered the floor, and red and chrome bar stools ran along the counter. And the back wall was actually a mirror to give the effect of a larger establishment. It was also covered in artefacts and memorabilia from Italy. Just as Scarlett had just read on the menu, the restaurant was family owned and served traditional home-style Italian cuisine.
“I recommend the Spaghetti Bolognese. It’s fantastic,” Dyston told her.
“Okay, I’ll have that, and a Merlot.” Dyston nodded and ordered for the both of them, in Italian nonetheless. Scarlett was dumbfounded.
After they had eaten their fill, Dyston paid the bill and they left, continuing down Bourke Street.
“So where’s this favourite place of yours, Apart from Pellegrini’s, that is?”
“You’ll have to wait and see.” He paused on the footpath and looked back up the street and then up into the sky.
“What are you doing?”
“Do you want to fly?” he asked. She could hardly refuse.
“Yes, I’d love to fly.” She smiled. Dyston walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist.
“Are you sure?” he asked in a low voice right into her ear. His breath was warm and it sounded like he was purring, which made her shiver.
“Yes,” she whispered.
“Okay.” Then in two swift movements he let out his wings and pushed up into the starry night sky.
Jacob opened his door just as Kat had ra
ised her fist to knock.
“Oh, hi,” she said as the door opened.
“Hi.” He smiled back.
“Um, what are you up to?” she asked.
“I just ordered a pizza, but I was heading to the student common room, if you want to join me.”
“There’s a student common room?” asked Kat. Jacob grinned.
“There’s several, actually. One for each year, but you can come in ours. Everyone’s out, so we’ll mostly have it to ourselves.”
“Sounds cool.”
“So, how are you?” he asked when he had locked his door.
“I’m fine, a bit bored since Scarlett, Emer, and Del have all gone out on dates tonight.”
“So, that’s why Dyston didn’t want to hang out.”
“You guys are pretty close, right?” she asked as they walked up the stairs.
“Yeah. We’ve known each other since we were five. Our families are friends. What about you?”
“I’ve never really had a best friend like that, until now. I’ve grown up with my two brothers.”
“You must be good at combat then?”
“I guess I’m okay. Why?” She met his eyes. They were the colour of molten caramel, and Kat couldn’t take her eyes away from them.
“I’ll have to fight you eventually,” he said, and they smiled at each other for a moment, until Jacob pushed open the door in front of them, and she realised that they were there—the Fourth Year Common room.
“Hey, Fox,” said a guy who was bent over his laptop in the corner. He had dirty blonde hair and wore bright blue glasses and had a fringe that hung over half of his face.
“Hey, Eddie, what’s new?” asked Jacob.
“Just updating my blog. Nothin’ much.”
“Just a typical Friday night, huh?”
“Pretty much. Anyway, I have to go. I’ll leave ya to it.” As Eddie left, his eyes seemed to run over Kat’s body. He gave her a wink, and then pushed through the door.
“He’s… creepy,” she said after he was gone.
“Yeah, he’s a little weird, but he’s good with computers, so any time there’s a problem, a crash, or virus, people ask him to help.”
“I guess that’s handy, but he still gives me the creeps,” she said. Jacob chuckled.
“Don’t worry, he’s harmless.”
“If you say so.” Kat took in her surroundings. There was a fireplace in the centre of the wall made of white marble, and comfy looking couches were placed haphazardly around the room. To the left of the room there was a kitchenette and a well-stocked bar, and to the left of that stood a pool table and jukebox.
“This is awesome,” she said as she took it all in. “I don’t know why I haven’t heard about this yet.”
“It’s probably because most First Years don’t know yet.” He came up beside her and offered her something. When she looked down, she noticed it was a glass of red wine.
“Oh, thanks. I love red wine.” She inhaled and took a sip. “Mm, Cabernet Sauvignon,” she said. Jacob looked surprised.
“You know your wines.”
“I’m the daughter of wine makers, so I should.” Then they shared a smile and both sipped their wines.
Scarlett inhaled sharply.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
“Yes. This is amazing, Dyston.”
“If you’re cold, remember to use your Trait.”
“Oh, yes. But I’m fine, really.”
“Good. We’re almost there.” They flew out over the railway line towards the bright lights of Etihad Stadium.
“Here we are,” he said finally.
“We’re going to a football game?”
“Yeah, hope you don’t mind?”
“No, I’ve never been before.”
“Seriously?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, you’re going to love it. After this, you’ll be addicted,” he told her. Scarlett held her breath as Dyston flew over the lights and into the mouth of the open roof. Her stomach leaped into her throat as he dipped down and glided around a full revolution of the stadium before setting her down in the grandstand.
“Our seats are this way,” he said. Dyston led her through some doors, and warm air and food smells immediately struck her.
“Do you want another wine?” he asked.
“Sure.” Her voice came out croaky. It must be the cold air, she thought. She had to clear her throat. Dyston grabbed their drinks and led her back outside to their seats.
“So, is this Angel Ball?” she asked when they had taken their seats.
“Yeah. Have you ever seen a game?”
“Maybe once or twice on TV. My Grandfather watched it.”
“Do you need me to explain the rules?”
“Yes, please.”
“Okay, so the rules are pretty similar to AFL, except players are allowed to use their wings, so most of the game is played in the air. The two big goal posts in the middle at each end are worth six points, whereas the two on the outside are worth one,” he explained, pointing to the four poles situated at each end of the stadium.
“So, every seat in the stadium would be a good seat right?”
“Right.”
Scarlett took it all in. A few of the players were already on the field. A guy wearing a red and white striped jersey let out his brilliant white wings and leaped into the air, kicking the ball through the colossal goal posts, which were as high as the stadium roof.
“Wow!” she exclaimed.
“Pretty amazing, huh?”
“Yeah. So which one’s your team?” she asked.
“Isn’t it obvious?” He smirked, wrapping his black and white scarf tighter around his neck. She smiled back at him. He put his arm around her and she leaned into him just as the siren sounded.
“I hope you don’t mind, I got one with everything,” Jacob said as he placed the pizza box on the coffee table near the fireplace.
“No that’s fine, I like everything.” Kat joined him, wine glass in hand.
“So what’s your Trait?” Kat asked, in between bites of pizza.
“I’m not going to tell you that,” he teased, taking another sip of wine.
“Oh, come on! I’ll tell you what I think mine is.”
“Go on,” he said, relaxing back into his chair, waiting for her to talk.
“No, it doesn’t work like that, Jacob.” She leaned closer. “I’ll show you mine if you show me yours.”
“Oh, it’s like that, is it?” he chuckled and then sighed. “Fine.” He took the glove off his right hand and touched his wine glass. It frosted up and then began to turn gold.
Kat gasped. “You have the Midas touch.”
“Yeah, it’s a worthless Trait if you ask me, unless you want to be greedy and rich.”
“It’s not worthless,” she whispered. And then she leaned forward and pressed her lips against his. Immediately, she felt his lips begin to harden, it was a strange sensation. Her lips began to crack and a moment later, they were fine again. Jacob pulled away and looked at her in shock.
“What? What happened?” she asked. He was staring at her like she had something on her face.
“Your lips, they… I shouldn’t have kissed you.” He stood up and turned away from her.
“Jacob,” she stood up too and put a hand on his shoulder, “tell me what happened.”
He sighed and turned around to face her. “When our lips touched I turned yours to gold. But then the weirdest thing happened.”
“What?”
“Instead of staying gold, they turned to stone. I guess you could say it was kind of like a defence mechanism.”
“Stone?”
“Yeah.” He put his glove back on and pushed the hair away from her face, and she forgot to breathe. “Kat,” he whispered, “I believe that is your Trait.”
When Dyston flew them back to the Academy, he didn’t go through the front door. Instead, he landed on his own balcony. Scarlett realised this too late.
“This isn’t my room,” she said before he put her down.
“I know, it’s my room.” He pushed open the French doors and stepped inside the billowing white curtains. Scarlett had no choice but to follow him. Once inside, she glanced around and took it all in. His room was in pretty much the same layout as hers save for the baby grand piano in the corner. His bed was dark mahogany draped in white curtains instead of the red she had on hers. His quilt was white velvet and lace, and Scarlett thought that it looked like clouds. She felt a sudden urge to jump into it, but she restrained herself. Her gaze found Dyston sitting at the piano. She realised he’d been playing a melody that she recognised.
“What is that?” she asked, taking a seat beside him.
“Just a melody I haven’t been able to stop playing,” he said.
“I’ve heard it before.”
“I was playing it before we bumped into each other in the hall that day.”
“Maybe that’s where I’ve heard it,” she said, watching his nimble fingers dance over the sleek black and white keys. “Is this the one you wrote?”
“Yeah. It’s not finished. I still don’t know how to end it,” he said.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, I heard it once in a dream and haven’t been able to stop playing it since, but I can never make it to the end. It’s as if the end keeps slipping from my grasp.” He sighed, paused, and started playing the beginning of the melody again. “I’ll catch it one day.”
“Does it have a name?”
“No, but it reminds me of you for some reason, so I’ve been calling it Flame.” Their eyes met while he continued to play, not missing a note. Scarlett smiled and slid closer to him so that her shoulder was touching his arm. She leaned against him. She didn’t know why, but the song felt like an omen. She pushed the thought away and relaxed to the sound of her melody.
Chapter Six