But crazy.
What the hell is happening? She’s fully committed to putting on a performance in my million-dollar testing facility. I’m reaching for the call button to end this madness when something unexpected happens.
Her hands moving up and down her body leave a trail of light behind like headlights in the night. I check to make sure no lights have been turned on and lean closer to the glass.
Her singing, still high and sweet, has grown stronger along with her confidence in the dance as she spins and taps and arches and sways. The glow that first appeared in her hands now spreads up her arms to her neck and face. She is the fullest moon in the blackest night complete with a halo of illumination.
“What the—” I whisper.
The glow intensifies from a lunar glimmer to the bright white of solar light, so bright I can no longer look at her straight on. I hold up an arm to protect my face and eyes, squinting as her form disappears into the radiance. The light builds, the show culminating when she throws her head back and light shoots up her throat and out her mouth like a beacon.
I stumble back against the opposite wall, temporarily blinded. Eventually the spots of black dancing across my vision melt together and my sight slowly returns. Even through the glass and the wall, the change in temperature is noticeable. Thank God we removed all the equipment prior to her demonstration because several spots on the cement walls have been marked with singes. The air buzzes with energy reminiscent of new electronics.
Standing there, head thrown back and panting, is Julia. She slowly comes back to herself, an ethereal beauty. Her curls are wild around her. She all but floats off the ground like some goddess descended from the stars. She reminds me of Storm from theX-Menafter she reigns down a lightning storm. That’s what the air feels like, charged with energy.
Goosebumps prickle my whole body.
“Wow,” I say.
When she seems to come back to herself and the light diminishes to a soft glow, her gaze is downcast. She studies the ground, her head low as sadness permeates off her. I’m in absolute awe. How could I not be? And yet she seems hesitant, her body already losing the confidence from only seconds ago.
I tap the glass loudly so she looks up, eyes wide with fear. I don’t know how to process anything I’ve just seen. I can’t scientifically explain anything. But what I do know, is that a mournful woman stands in front of me. I see somebody that has carried the burden of an unexplainable talent her entire life, totally alone. She has borne it in solitude and she has chosen to share this story with me. Me. Of all the people on this planet, she put her life in my hands. What have I ever done to deserve this sort of trust?
I lift my hand and press it to the glass. It’s still warm.
Her features relax into hesitant hope as she walks up to the glass. She is the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. She places her hand over mine on the partition, her face both so fearful and expectant. She’s a wild siren and I race to crash myself against the rocks at her feet.
For once, I don’t have any answers, but I know whatever comes next, we will figure it out together.
* * *
Julia
I’m light as air. I actually check to see if my feet are still on the ground. My kneecaps tingle, my whole body buzzes. I’ve never gone off like that. It felt different from ever before but the marks on the walls and the burning smell warns that as always, I’m still dangerous. I can only assume the change is because of Nathaniel. If he knew how my thoughts featured him as I danced … I couldn’t share my feelings that seem to be growing too fast and too soon. But I can pour my aching soul into that dance. I showed him everything. I hope he understands.
I don’t have the courage to look up right away. What will I do if he’s horrified? Or worse—what if he’s left me alone?
A knock on the glass has me lifting my head. His head is tilted and I struggle to process this emotion. His features are flat? Sad? He’s looking at me differently. Of course he is. Now he sees everything about me, how could he ever look at me the same?
I want to cry. Maybe I have made the biggest mistake of my life.
He lifts his hand to the glass. An offering. I let out a long and shaking breath. I step toward him and meet his hand with mine. This may be the closest we ever get to acknowledging this tension between us. I have to tell him the truth about what happens. I’m more than just a firework; I’m a bomb. But right now, in this moment, I let myself have this. This connection.
For the first time in a long time I’m not so alone.
He nods to the side, asking me to come out. I glance around the room to see if I caused any damage. Heat still pours off the walls but I don’t see any permanent destruction. At least we can blame the lasers if anybody notices the burns. Everything else is exactly as it was. Except me. I feel like a totally different person.
He lets me out of the side door. His hands are deep in his pockets.
I don’t speak. I don’t imagine there is anything I can really say.
“Are you hungry?” he asks.
I was not expecting that. I stand dumbfounded, my jaw swaying in the wind.
“I’m going to order a pizza. I figure we’re going to be here a while,” he explains with a smile.
“We are?” I ask.
“Oh yeah. You aren’t going anywhere.”
I shrug. “I could eat.”
