Hell Castle
Chapter Nineteen

The next day I drove us all to the mall. Joey met us at the food court and he had a small bouquet of wildflowers in hand. He handed them to me with a big smile on his face.

“Ok, so the gang’s all here. What should we do first?” Bart; the self-declared leader of our class; began to take over.

“Let’s go to the I-MAX and see the new dragon movie Fire and Fire.” Cathy and along with a bunch of other people voted.

“Ok I-MAX it is.” Bart declared.

Of Course, they want to see the new dragon movie. Not the new horror movie or the action movie; they want to see the dragon movie. Before I would have gone in a heartbeat. Now I think of Astreal each time I see the trailers for it. Making my heart just sink lower and lower into the ground. By now, I think it’s just burying itself in the dirt beneath me.

I took Joey’s hand and whispered in his ear. “I don’t want to see a movie, let’s go do something else.”

Joey looked at me and nodded. “Anywhere you want.” He whispered back.

I tapped Cathy on the shoulder. “Hey, I don’t feel like seeing that movie, we’re going to walk around and shop. See you after, ok.” Cathy gave me flirt eyes and nodded. What did she think I wanted to do instead of a movie? That girl is always thinking about something dirty or being flirted with. A bad influence, she is.

Joey and I walked around a number of stores. He did his best to make me laugh. Picking up African masks at Romancing of the Stone and saying gibberish. I giggled a bit when he took a hermit crab and placed it on his nose. We looked at many of the traditional clothes and jewelry that were displayed. Joey picked up a t-shirt and suggested that the pic on it is the cookie monster. When it clearly looked like a fuzzy rug. I liked many of the blue sapphire stone jewelry. I bought a pair of earrings and put them on. Joey bought a few belts. One studded belt with a locking clasp, one of a cartoon he uses to watch, and another checker belt.

When we walked out of the last store, I saw an engraving kiosk. I walked over without thinking. The man had a variety of metal and wood that he used to do engravings. “Can I help you miss?” The old man asked.

I pointed to a chain and plate bracelet “I want that with this name engraved in it.” I handed him a picture I had drawn.

“I can do that.” The man wrote the name down and handed me back the picture. It was one thing to draw them and write out their names. I just could not say them out loud. It hurt too much to try.

Joey walked over and handed me a bracelet. “There you are. I got this for you. When I turned around you were gone.” I looked at the bracelet.

“Thank you, Joey, I didn’t expect this; you didn’t have to buy me anything.” I was having a hard time accepting the bracelet. Given I had never been on an actual date before. I never thought he would buy me something at an expensive store.

“It’s a charm bracelet; I got you some charms too. A house, a book, and a school. The house so you remember that this place is your home. A book to represent all the reading you love to do. Lastly, a school to remind you that lessons learned in High School will always be with you.” Joey pointed each one out to me as he put it on my wrist.

He looked over at the counter. “That is an amazing drawing, do you draw dragons a lot?” he picked up the drawing.

“Here Miss, that will be fifteen dollars.” I reached into my pocket and handed the man the cash.

Joey looked at the name engraved on the metal. “Who is Astreal?” he asked interested in the bracelet I just had engraved.

“No one anymore,” I answered sadly. Joey looked at me with apathetic eyes.

The man put the bracelet in a bag and wished us a good day. We were heading back to meet up with the others when Joey looked at me, he took my hand and brought it up to his chest holding it tenderly. “I can tell your heart has been broken. You went through a lot while you were at your dad’s. I’m here for you, Rori. I’m not going anywhere; I’ll be here to help you mend your heart when you’re ready.” He didn’t wait for a response before he brought our hands back down as we started walking again.

We met up with the others and went in search for something good to eat. “King’s”, “Trent’s BBQ”, “Food court Abbie’s”, “Mongolian Grill” so many options and suggestions. “I made our reservations at Garfield’s,” Joey said to Bart and me.

“OK, everyone goes where you want for lunch. We will meet back up here and go to the amusement park at one sharp, ok.” Bart got most people to go their own way. Many of them pretended to be unhappy. Bart, Ali, Cathy, Mark, Joey and I walked over to Garfield’s.

Joey took my hand lightly as we walked. I looked at him. He looked worried. “Is this ok?” he asked. I nodded a bit, letting Joey hold my hand was not a big deal. To everyone it made me look more human. That is what I needed to be. No, that is what I am, I’m human.

Our waitress seated us in a round booth near the front. She left a cup of crayons for us to color on the paper that was covering the table. “So, how was the movie?” Joey asked. As we each took a color and started drawing.

“It was amazing. The dragons looked so real. You could almost reach up and touch one. Such great CGI.” Ali complimented as she drew hearts on the table with her and Bart’s names in them.

“Ya, that was intense in I-MAX.” Bart agreed.

I started to space out. Thinking about Astreal. Seeing that movie would make me miss him so much more. When I get to missing him, I missed everyone I had come to know while I was there. All that did was make me depressed and cry a lot.

“So why didn’t you two go see the movie?” Mark asked Joey as he nudged him.

“Rori didn’t want to see the movie, so we walked around some of the stores and shopped a bit,” Joey replied as he glanced at my wrist.

“That is a cute bracelet.” Cathy complimented while she examined it.

“Joey bought it for me.” I boasted as I went back to my drawing.

“Ok, time to spill. What is your dad like? Where did you live? Do you have any siblings? Did you get a boyfriend? Why did you leave so suddenly? What did you do for the five-plus months you were gone?” Ali demanded eagerly as she watched me intently.

“Ali!” Cathy scolded her.

“What? It’s not like I’m the only one curious. Rori has been back an entire month now. She has been tight-lipped and yet to tell anyone about it.” Ali remarked. Everyone grew quiet.

Cathy and Bart kept quiet and pretended to be busy coloring on the table. “Come on, Rori. It’s about time you spill...” Mark encouraged “...I mean, sheesh you’re among friends here. There has to be something good that happened while you were there?”

There was, I started to flashback to the time Loki saved me from beneath the frozen river. Pulling me out just in time, and then holding me in his arms protecting me. The day I found Astreal. The poor thing cleaned up nicely. The time Carter and Loki soothed me back to sleep after a nightmare. Holding me, making sure I was all right before attempting to leave. Going above and beyond their jobs, to make me feel safe. The times Eliot complained over not getting to sleep with me or kissing me. So I gave him a kiss to stop the complaints. The look on his face was priceless.

The first time Astreal spoke to me. It was after my awakening. I smiled as I thought about all these memories. His soft voice flowed through my head. The time Loki kissed me to save me from the vampire. Then tried to say that he was not jealous of Carter for getting a kiss. The day I met Hyland, on the bridge. I still remember how standing on that bridge railing with the wind blowing made me feel. Dancing with my Father under the night sky. Eliot helping me with my Chemistry homework and making a mess in the kitchen. Yes, there were many memories that were good. Yet, just as painful at the same time.

“Did you learn anything? Why did you come back?” Bart asked.

Still thinking back I answered him. “Ya, I learned how easy it is to lie and be lied to. Trusting people earns you nothing but heartache. No one, no matter how much you think you know about them, they are never what they appear to be. That’s what I learned.” I answered him in a numb tone. I didn’t look up to see their reactions. I didn’t care to. This was a subject that I had successfully avoided for a long time. Now, I found myself cornered with no help in sight.