Chapter 16

I woke up to the smell of breakfast being cooked. I stretched my tired yet sore body and found myself in a queen size bed with the covers pulled over me, I smiled to myself remembering last night's fantasy. I looked down and seen I had on his t-shirt and nothing else.

"Good morning sleepy head." Mike said as he walked into the room with a tray of food and a glass of juice. How cliched was this?

"Morning." I smiled at him as I sat up in the bed.

He walked over and sat the tray on the night table then sat next to me. I pulled his face close to mine and kissed his lips, as he did the same.

"When did you bring me in here?" I asked when I pulled away.

"Last night when you fell asleep. You looked too peaceful to be on the floor." He laughed.

"How long have you been up?" I asked nodding towards breakfast.

"About two hour's maybe. But I did make you breakfast." He said grabbing the tray from the table and sitting it on my lap.

"Aw, you're too sweet. You want to share it with me?" I asked as I held up a piece of bacon. He smiled and bit a piece of it then kissed my cheek.

"You enjoy your food. I'm going to go clean up the kitchen, then take a quick shower. Your clothes are in that closet; Jay brought them this morning. So you can relax and enjoy the day." He said stealing another piece of bacon from my plate. It took a few moments for his words to register and I gave him a fearful look, only for him to laugh at me.

"Don't worry I didn't tell him anything, and you were already in bed when he got here." He said answering my unspoken questions. Finally relaxing I began cutting into my waffle.

"Y'all just thought of everything, didn't you?" I questioned as I took a bite adding more syrup. This food is delicious.

"Pretty much, but go ahead and finish eating. I'm going to go clean up." He kissed my forehead and headed out the door. I made myself more comfortable in the bed and grabbed the remote from the nightstand and turned on the TV. I sat and watched reruns of old shows while I ate my food. It felt good to be taken care of for once.

Waking up in the morning without worrying about if my dad was going to beat on us or not. Or possibly what horror lurked around in the school building. I finished off my breakfast and sat the tray on the table next to me.

I climbed out of the bed and stretched my body upward. There was a slight pain in between my legs, as well as everywhere else, and I couldn't help but laugh to myself. I slowly limped over to the closet and found my duffel bag and pulled it out. I tossed it on the bed and began searching through it. I pulled out some underclothes and headed to the bathroom. Maybe a hot shower will help matters.

* * * * * *

The weather was warm, with a cool breeze. The sky was clear and blue with little to no clouds in sight, and the trees gave off a fresh pine scent. I closed my eyes and took in everything, I felt like I actually belonged here. It was just amazing.

"This place is just so beautiful." I said taking another look around me. We were walking along a trail that went from the back of the cabin into some trees. Just like the dream I had four months ago, the trees gave me a sense of comfort. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath and inhaled the full scent of pine and let it flow through my body. It was like all my senses had been heightened and my body was open to a whole new world.

Everything was so clear to me, the birds singing, the wind blowing, the rushing waters in the nearby river, and Mike's calm breathing. When I opened my eyes, it seemed like all the colors were turned up into high definition, and I could see every detail of the trail.

I let go of Mike's hand and stared at my own. My skin was a bit darker than before, but it seemed like there was something radiating from my skin. I looked up at Mike, but he was nowhere to be found. A sudden rush of panic began to rise within me. "Mike?" I called out. No answer. "Mike!" I said a bit louder. Again my answer was nothing but the sound of the trees and the rushing waters. "This isn't funny."

I began feeling that prickly feeling again in my stomach. Now I was really getting scared. "Mike!" I yelled as panic began to fill my voice. The feeling began to grow, I was afraid to lift my shirt and look, in fear of what I'd find. I backed up against a tree and just stood there trying to calm my panic state. Nothing seemed to work, and everything was suddenly too bright, it hurt my eyes.

I crouched down into a fetal position and began to cry. "Jay please help me." I said softly. With my new heightened senses, I heard the flapping of wings in the far distance. I looked up into the sky but saw nothing. Then there was a shadow that was cast over me, but just as quickly as it appeared it disappeared.

I stood with quickness and began looking around and saw nothing insight. After my shower I had decided to take advantage of this glorious morning and walk around a bit, I found this beautiful oak tree and decided to sit under it and admire the beautiful forest. I guess I ended up falling asleep in the process.

"Okay, calm down Lilly, it's just another dream." I said to myself as I tried to gain control over my spiraling emotions. I suddenly felt light-headed and dizzy. Before I knew what was going on, I dropped to the ground as a shadow blocked out the sun. I couldn't make out what or who it was before everything went black. I tried fighting for consciousness, but my body was too weak for the fight and I lost.

When I woke up I was back in the cabin, and the sweet aroma of tea kissed my nose lightly, yet a booming headache greeted me with open arms. Remembering all that happened my hands flew to my stomach in hopes it was the same as before I went into the forest. To my surprise, it wasn't. That same nasty gash was there except this time it seemed like it was closed up and left a big scar. Everything seemed as bright as it did when I was in the forest. So it wasn't a dream? I questioned as I tried to think back on what happened.

The sound of glass making contact with one another broke through my thoughts, and the light in the kitchen called for my attention. I slowly stood and was accepted by a piercing pain in my stomach that rolled down to my legs. I grabbed hold on the couch I was lying on for support before I could fall.

I slowly and carefully made my way towards the kitchen but didn't make it very far before I was swept off my feet, and held bridal style in someone's arms. I didn't have the strength to fight them off, so I allowed myself to be carried back to the couch. When they laid me down, I looked up and seen it was Jacob. I opened my mouth to speak, but he stopped me before I could say anything. 

I closed my mouth and studied him closely. He looked so much older than I remember. He didn't look like an 18-year-old guy anymore, he looked more like 25. Like he had aged since the last time I had seen him. How come I hadn't noticed this before. He placed my favorite teddy bear next to me and walked into the kitchen.

Moments later he walked out with Mike following behind with a tray in hand. He sat the tray down on the coffee table before sitting next to me on the couch. They both stared at me like I was some sort of experiment that would blow up any moment now. 

I had a million questions in my head and I wanted answers. I reached out and took hold of Mike's hand and placed it under my shirt and let his fingers lightly graze the scar. I laid there and watched his face. He looked over at Jacob, and they exchanged looks with one another.

"Look Lil, we haven't been completely honest with you." Jay spoke up first. "I never told you the truth because I hoped that things would've come a little easier and simpler for you, but they didn't." He paused for a while trying to collect his thoughts. I was confused, what was he telling me? I wanted to speak up but something told me not to.

"Jacob isn't your real brother, and the life you've been living was pretty much a cover up."

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So I decided to split this chapter up simply because it was a lot of information going into one chapter. Plus I felt this ended too quick. Either way I'm going to do my best and work on the second book. Hopefully it'll be longer. More questions will be answered. More problems will emerge. Just leave your comments on what you'd like to see happen in the next book.

EDIT: 12/15/19