20: Confusing Feelings

Witold sat in a small windowless room, on a flimsy metal chair with his hands patiently in his lap.  The walls were made of light stone blocks, which gave the room a cold feeling.  There was a metal door with a small window toward the top.  Witold was told that this was where he would be staying while in the human realm, all though there was no bed.

He stood up and walked to the door.  He reached for the door knob to ask Jess how long until Sora would be back, when he realized that there was not a handle.  The only thing there was a circular plate.  The door must have opened from the outside only.  Witold pressed his face up against the glass window to try and see Jess.  She was no where to be seen.

Witold had played off the stories about humans as a story to scare little Kiswan into doing what they were told.  If you didn't do what was expected, then the humans would come and get you.  Even Jess seemed to tiny and harmless, that he immediately put all thought of dangerous humans out of his mind... until now.  He began to pace the room looking for a way out.  He was not going to get this far and lay down.  If tiny little Jess could make him feel so comfortable, then turn around and lock him up, what might she have done to Sora?

That thought stopped him in his tracks.  He hadn't thought about that.  Was Sora alright?  He pulled the stone out of his pack and cradled it in his hand like it was a delicate flower that was beginning to wilt.  The glow that came from it was brighter than it had ever been.  Sora had to be close!  But what if something bad had happened to her, and the stone was left behind?

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He marched over to the door and began to pound on it.  The sound echoed through the entire building, but no one seemed to be around.  Where had Jess gone?  What was she going to do with him?  She was so tiny that he could have lifted her with one hand and tossed her aside.

The turmoil inside was alarming to Witold.  He had never had such hostile feelings toward anything.  His heart was pounding in his chest.  He had to break free!  He began pacing again as he felt his adrenaline building up.  Unsure of what he was doing, Witold walked up to wall next to the door and kicked it with all of his might.

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As they waited, Sora and Justin sat on the tailgate of his truck.  The wind had begun to pick up, and in the distance they could see a brown haze.  The trees put off a fragrance that permeated the air, showing off its lush healthy foliage.  Had it not been for an odd twist in events for the day, Justin would have been completely content.  He had never met a girl like Sora before.  She was so down to earth, and exotic.  Her drive alone was an intriguing feature about her.  She never seemed to stray from what she was supposed to be doing.  He admired that about her.  Ever since Sora had seen her friend Witold, she hadn't said much at all.  She seemed to be thousands of miles away, yet she sat right next to him.

Even her sweet aroma trumped that of the lush trees in whose shade they waited.  Justin leaned back in order to pull an apple from the ice chest.  His heart pounded with excitement as he sat back up.  In the split second it took to retrieve the apple, he acted upon impulse.  Justin quickly put his arm around Sora.

She removed her attention from the gravel road and looked Justin directly in the eyes.  They seemed to glow, with the flecks of gold adorning the beautiful brown eyes.  Before she could say anything, Justin leaned in, his cheeks flushing... the sun must have gotten hotter... He paused slightly...


Jess's voice could be heard shortly before it cut out completely, followed by the purr of her little car.  Sora hopped off of the tailgate and dashed through the trees only to see the tail lights of Jess's little blue car.


"Justin!"  Sora called back toward the truck, "She left!  Let's go get Witold!"


Justin slowly slid off of the tailgate and whispered to himself, "Right... Witold."  He wondered why he felt like Witold was more than just a friend to Sora.


Sora was apparently impatient, because she ran back toward the truck, nearly bumping into Justin.  "Let's go in!"


"Wait!  Hang on!"  Justin couldn't help but smile at Sora's percistence.  "We need to go in slowly and quietly to make sure no one else is in there.  The last thing we need is for the mayor to call the police on us for trespassing."


"Trespassing?  What's....." Sora was interrupted by Justin.


"Trespassing is when one person goes in another person's house our yard without asking first."  Justin crouched down next to a bush in order to observe the building.


Justin looked up at Sora, "Well, come on!  You don't want to be seen!"


Sora obediently crouched down as well.  "How long do we have to wait?"


"Well, we need to make sure that Jess is not coming back."  Justin took a bite of his apple and chewed then swallowed.  "We need to give it at least ten minutes."  Another bite..... "Then we'll go in."


Sora sighed and leaned against a tree.


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Sitting across from Justin, Sora had time to reflect on what had just happened.  She knew that she liked Justin, but something about the feelings felt so wrong.  She absentmindedly picked the bark off of a stick.  She wanted nothing more than to choose a partner that she loved, not just the partner that she was told to partner with.  Something strange had happened just before Sore had left the Kiswone Nation.  It was unsettling, and she had tried as hard as she could to push it out of her mind.... until she actually saw Witold riding in Jess's car.


Needless to say, Sora was very grateful for the distraction that prevented Justin from kissing her.  She had to focus on her task at hand.  If she didn't succeed, it wouldn't be very long before no one would be able to fall in love.


Sora timidly said, "Justin, I..." she stopped, "I can't," was all she could get out.

"Why?"  Justin's voice sounded truly hurt.

"I don't know...I just have to focus on my quest."  Sora tossed the stick aside and stood up.

Justin remained squatting down, giving himself time to think.  "Well, I suppose, now that your friend is here, you won't be needing my help."

Sora was very confused at the change in Justin's tone.  Humans were very sensitive beings... even if Justin had Kiswan blood running through his veins.

Justin interrupted his thoughts, "Look, forget it...we can go now."

He climbed the fence and turned around expectantly waiting for Sora to follow.  Once she was over, Justin looked back and forth, and began to stealthily walk toward the building.  Before he could take two steps, they heard a loud crash come from within.  Both Sora and Justin forgot about being sneaky and sprinted, closing the distance between them and the building much faster.  Justin tried the doorknob, and oddly enough, it was unlocked!  He turned the knob, and pulled the door open, trying to see inside through the dim lighting.

Sora stepped through the doorway first, pausing to let her eyes adjust to the sudden darkness.  There was not one light on, and there were not any windows in the large room.  Sora glanced down each wall, and found a short hallway scattered with broken cinder blocks.  Emerging from the hallway was Witold, a fierce look in his eyes.