Dark Light (The Dark Light Series)(127)

Assessing my closet, I realize that I need to go through it and discard old, outdated clothing. Many items are from high school, and though it was only a couple years ago, I’m not exactly going to be reverting to my old Goth days or the skater look complete with huge, wide-leg jeans. I begin to get nostalgic pulling the items from the hangers and tossing them into a pile for Goodwill.

High school wasn’t exactly pleasant for me, but it was a necessary experience that helped shape who I am today. I can’t believe I wore most of the apparel, and have a good laugh at my lack of fashion sense. I can only imagine what Morgan would say if she saw me in the tasteless frocks. She didn’t move to the Springs until right before Senior year when I had finally found my fashion footing. If she had met me just a year earlier, we probably would not have been friends, supernatural bond or not.

After I deplete almost half of my wardrobe, I get to work on my childhood collection of stuffed animals propped up on a little wooden bench. These will not be thrown away. At least Donna can come in here and reminisce on the days when I was a normal, non-threatening little girl. However, I do want to take a few to the new apartment, just to feel some kind of connection to my old life.

I pick up an old rust-colored teddy bear. Jared gave it to me after winning it at one of the county fairs some years back. He was always so skilled at carnival games. He could knock down empty tin cans with rubber balls and pop balloons with darts like nobody’s business. And I was always there cheering him on. I wonder if we’ll ever be like that again. Chances are Aurora now occupies that place in his life, though I doubt she’d be caught dead at one of our usual haunts.

I notice what appears to be a slip of paper hidden behind my little display of furry friends. I knock a few stuffed animals out of the way, and reach my hand behind the bench to fetch it. I can tell from the thickness of the paper that it’s actually a photograph. Once recovered, I look down at it cheerfully, expecting it to be an old picture of me and my friends. However, five totally different faces stare back at me from the aged photograph. They are all gloriously youthful, jovial and beautiful.

To the far left, I recognize what looks to be a young Chris. He looked so handsome, strong and carefree. Even back then his brown hair was clean cut, yet I can see a hint boyish charm in his gleaming smile. His face is turned towards a slim, gorgeous blonde. Donna. It’s strange how much she hasn’t changed over the years. In the photo her hair is longer, and her skin is luminescent, almost like porcelain. Chris is looking at her lovingly and it appears that she is laughing, her eyes closed and head tilted back just a bit. She’s happy, and I can almost feel her loving spirit exuding from the picture.

Next to Donna is the most stunning woman I’ve ever seen. Her long chocolate brown hair falls in deep waves down her back and her skin is the color of fresh cream. She is smiling brightly and her startling golden eyes hold immense ardor as she cradles her round, bulging belly. A large, masculine hand also embraces her pregnant stomach, the hand of the striking, caramel-colored man standing next to her. He, too, is smiling, and I can’t help but be in awe at his exquisite beauty. His thick, black hair stands in tiny coils and his full lips are fenced by a neat goatee. His most attractive feature is the contrast of his hauntingly light eyes against his copper skin. I’ve never seen the combination before and it’s breathtaking. The dazzling couple is obviously in love. And they seem overjoyed at the prospect of welcoming a new baby into their lives.

Their faces remind me of someone. They remind me of myself. The almond shape of the woman’s golden eyes. Her heart-shaped face. Her long wavy tresses. The man’s button nose. His dark hair. This is Natalia and Alexander. My parents- the Dark Hunter of the Light Enchanters and the Dark One from the Shadow. It’s hard for me to believe that I was conceived by such amazingly beautiful people. Their looks are otherworldly, astonishing, causing me to gasp in admiration.

I wish I could cherish this moment and enjoy seeing the faces of my birth parents for the first time. But their overwhelming beauty and their obvious affection for each other and their unborn daughter is overshadowed by another staggering discovery in the picture. Standing next to my father, Alex, stands a tall, sculpted figure displaying a seductive half-smile. Olive skin, hair the color of onyx, and smoldering ice blue irises. He appears to be in his mid-twenties, full of youthful exuberance and delicious danger. Seeing him here makes my heart pound with alarming fervor, and my breathing becomes ragged and shallow.

The alluring man in the photograph is no stranger to me. I know him well, just as he knows every inch of me inside and out.