CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Remembrance
Madison quietly hummed along with the song once she caught which one it was. The party-goers up the beach had the radio playing loudly, but it was hindered some by the constant, salty breeze and repeated breaking of the waves. She didn't mind the late night soiree. Their boisterous laughter and conversing echoed her own happiness. She glanced at the small crowd as they mingled around a roaring bonfire.
"We can go over there if you like," Skyler lightly offered.
She shook her head and let it back against the windshield. The view from the hood of his car was just fine, as always. Staring up at the bright stars, she mindlessly tapped her fingers on her tummy along with the beat. The weight of the solitary diamond on her left hand was still new and instantly caught her attention with the movement.
Skyler stirred and looked to her. "Ok. What is it?"
"What?" She smiled. "It's a pretty night."
He studied her for a moment, tilted his head, and gave a smirk. She returned his expression but couldn't match it for long. She soon broke into a full smile at his peering. "You've been practically glowing all evening and have hardly said anything."
She shrugged and turned back to the endless sky. "Am I boring you?" she asked mockingly.
"No," he grunted. "You're making me nervous."
"How am I making you nervous?" she laughed.
He continued to stare at her. "I feel like you're hiding something."
Madison looked to him and gave a warmer smile. "You know I can't hide anything. I have no secrets."
"He asked you, didn't he?" She did her best to hold still as he narrowed his sparkling eyes. "Morgan finally proposed to you."
"He didn't tell you?"
Skyler snorted. "And neither did you!"
"I couldn't think of how to tell you," she quickly formed her defense. "I still don't."
He lightened and chuckled at her return.
"And what do you mean by finally?"
"You two have been shacked up for a few months now. I figured it was only a matter of time. And congratulations, by the way."
Madison shook her head once. "We're not 'shacked up', it's not like that." He gave another unimpressed snort. "I've been staying at his place, yes, but nothing more. I have my own room, you know that. Has he said otherwise?"
"No," he said. "He hasn't said much. He calls you a 'con with a conscience', but I've never asked what that means."
She cringed at the reminded pet name. It was a title she hated to be tagged with. Morgan used it jokingly, but she secretly felt sick each time he said it. Con. It seemed harsh. The people they targeted weren't exactly virtuous individuals.
But this wasn't just about her conscience. "It's more for a promise," she said.
He matched her quiet volume, "To whom?"
Biting her lip, she was slow to answer. "Myself." It came out sounding like a question. There was nothing in response from Skyler. She looked out the corner of her eye and found him watching her with his assessing gaze. She wondered what was going through his head. She didn't investigate. Long ago, she had accepted that his thoughts would always be out of her reach. For as well as he seemed to get her, she rarely understood him in return. He was her comfortable intrigue.
A consenting smile formed on his face, and he leaned back folding his arms behind his head. She could tell he was looking for more of an answer, but he was being polite, or maybe shy. She matched his posture and let the silence lapse between them. The sounds of the revelry up the beach washed around them as she reminded herself who she was sitting next to. He was her best friend, her confidant.
"I'm all right with where I am," she offered without making him ask. "I know what I want out of life, and I know it takes time and effort to get there. There are no quick fixes or instant happinesses. One has to work hard to get where they want to be." Madison paused and glanced at Skyler when she realized he had half turned to her. "You know as well as I do that people come and go. There are very few who actually stay. I'd made a promise to myself not to piece myself out to those who are only passing through. I don't want to be a one-night stand or someone's passing fling. I want the whole picture. I want someone to grow old with and to have a house and a family with. I want to hold onto that family with all my strength and to know that they would do the same for me ..."
She stopped short when Skyler's hand closed around hers. Madison was easily comforted by the gesture. It hadn't changed since the first day of their meeting except for their hands now being bigger. "You will have the whole picture," he said quietly as he looked up at the starry heavens. "You deserve it."
There was something odd about his statement. She didn't know if it was his tone or his words. Either way, it felt forced. A glance at him did little to calm her worries. She wondered if he was disappointed in her and if his thoughts on the matter were different from what he had spoken. He had been her family for the past fourteen years and she loved him for it. She hoped he knew that.
"And just so you know," she said with some cheer, "I told him it's a package deal." He shifted and looked at her, his brows raised in question. "You and I," she smirked. "I'm not going anywhere without you. Unless, of course, you and Jessica have plans."
"A package deal, huh?" His eyes told that he wasn't down.
"He agreed to the terms."
"Poor guy. He has no idea what he's getting into." Skyler adjusted his hold on her hand. She could feel his finger press on the raised diamond as he examined the ring without actually looking at it. "And no, Jessica and I don't have any plans just yet. She has another year of collage that she needs to concentrate on."
Madison watched him as he went back to gazing at the stars. They were all right. She shifted her hand beneath his and interlaced their fingers. "So, what now?"
He drew a deep breath and gave her hand a playful squeeze. "It's getting late," he started slowly, sounding tired. "I should probably get you back before you turn into a pumpkin. Besides, Morgan will be looking for you."
"He's still out of town," she said with a sigh. "But it is late. Definitely past my bedtime."
"So it's just you in that great big house?"
"Uh-huh." She recognized that he was catching onto her meaning.
"Do you want to come back to my apartment, or are we staying at your mansion?" His tone was sarcastic, but she knew it was all in good humor.
"I won't chase you out of your room again, so if we go to your place, I get the couch this time. If we go to the house, you can use your room. And it is your room, there's no need to renew your lease in two months."
Skyler let out a laugh and pulled her hand to him. "What am I going to do with you?" he said as he sat up. "You sound just like Morgan." He slid off the hood and turned to help her down.
"That means your coming over, right?"
"Yes. But you have to go swimming when we get there."
She gave a frown as he walked her around the car. "You know I hate swimming," she tried to beg off.
"You would force me back to the house and make me swim alone?" Madison made the mistake of looking at him as he countered her. He had the big-eyed, wounded look to go along with his pleading. She never could deny him when he pulled that one, and he knew it. "Please?"
"What if I sit out there while you swim? Like last time." She made a mental note not to fall asleep this time. The last time she did, both her and Skyler ended up staying the night in the poolside chairs. Morgan woke them by dumping them into the water. They, of course, dragged him along, but it still wasn't Madison's favorite wake-up call. She could sit by the pool all day long, but she would do nearly anything to avoid getting in.
Skyler gave a nod and jogged around to the other side of the car and hopped in with a smile. "I'll take what I can get." He'd spend the entire night in the pool if he could sleep under water. Madison laughed to herself at his renewed vigor. She wond
ered if he was half fish and hadn't told her.
He turned the key in the ignition. The usually quiet engine started rather noisily. It felt smooth, but there was a harsh clattering to it. Skyler didn't seem to notice as he put the car in reverse and backed out of the parking space.
Suddenly feeling a chill, Madison shivered. The air around them changed. It was no longer salty and mixed with a hint of smoke from the bonfire. It smelled cold and mossy.
As they headed out of the empty lot and for the busier street, she looked out the open window and up at the stars. They were gone. There was nothing but a black void. Not even a single light remained. "That's strange," she murmured.
Looking to Skyler, she was startled to find he had changed as well. He looked sickly, as if he were about to fall over. She leaned closer and studied him. "Are you all right?"
He glanced at her asking. His expression was masked with shadows, but she thought it looked worn. "You need to wake up," he said in a tired voice.
She knew he was right, but she couldn't remember why. This place was so much warmer. It felt happier. At least it did at first. Now, it made her feel uneasy. Something was amiss. She wanted to cling to the fleeting warmth when she noticed it began to fade.
Turning back to the window, the void had claimed the bonfire and the party-goers around it. The beach was gone, taking the glistening waves and white sand and palm trees with it. The only sound was that of the choking car. Was it the car?
There was an alarming dread that struck her. It was hazy, but forceful. It was for Skyler. Her eyes immediately went to him. He was asleep. The car rolled aimlessly towards the crossing road with its fast moving traffic.
Madison tried to call to him, to warn him of the coming danger, but her voice caught in her throat. She reached for him in hopes to shake him from his unsafe slumber, but her hands couldn't find him. He was too far away. She desperately went for the wheel and the emergency brake, but her numb fingers wouldn't grasp them, slipping feebly off their target.
It was hopeless. She was powerless. With another pained look at Skyler, she recalled his words. She needed to wake up. All that remained here was disaster. She wrenched her eyes away from her unconscious friend and closed them tightly and thrust her head back against the seat.