The Storm Spirits

Chief Dwyer nodded. “We already called your grandmother to come get you. Everything was explained to her, and she should be waiting for you out in the lobby.”

“Thanks.” I turned and started walking down the hall.

She caught up with me. “Are you all right, Charlotte?”

I shrugged again. “Maybe.”

“Charlotte …”

“It’s Char,” I returned, somewhat unkindly. “I need to go.”

Chief Dwyer nodded curtly. “I probably don’t need to say this, but I have to anyway. Do not repeat anything you heard here today, or we will have to take action.” I nodded back. “Thank you for your help today, Char; I appreciate your willingness. I hope you enjoy the rest of your vacation here, and please don’t hesitate to contact me if you need anything!” I didn’t respond, just pushed through the glass door that separated the back from the lobby.

Nana saw me come through and stood up, clutching her purse. “Oh, Char!” She came right over and hugged me; I was so numb from my conversation with Zack, so lost in my own thoughts, I didn’t even hug her back. “Are you all right? They told me what happened over the phone.”

“Can we just leave, please?” I asked, pulling away a little.

Nana let go of me and nodded. “Of course, dear.” She looked around me at the chief. “Are we free to leave?”

She nodded. “You sure are. If you need anything or think of anything else we should know, please don’t hesitate to call us.” She handed me a small card, which I stuffed into my pocket, and put a hand on my shoulder. “Thank you, Char, for helping us.”

“Yeah.” I walked toward the front doors, looking at the floor the entire time. Pushing through them, I hurried down the stairs and to where I saw the car parked on the street. Nana was right behind me, and she unlocked the car. I yanked the door open and got in as fast as I could. Nana went around to the other side and got in.

“Do you want to go somewhere?” she asked me as she started the car. “Coffee or something?”

“No,” I responded firmly. “I just want to go back to the apartment.”

“All right, dear.” She merged with traffic and drove us back to the apartment. We were barely parked before I was out of the car and up the stairs. I flopped down onto one of the chairs on the porch. Nana took her time coming up. “Can I make you something, dear? A sandwich perhaps?”

I shook my head. “No, thanks.”

“All right, dear.” She went inside.

I stayed outside, just staring at the dunes and water, Zack’s words replaying over and over and over in my head. Each time it went through my head, guilt grew a little more … and a little more … and a little more. My heart grew a little heavier with each repetition.

Finally, after a few hours of me sitting huddled up on a chair, Nana came out. “Char, dear, come on inside; I made supper.” Wordlessly, I got up and followed her inside. Sitting down at the table, I spooned a few bites of … something I didn’t even care to identify … into my mouth, then picked at the rest. “What’s bothering you, Char?”

I shrugged. “I mean, I just found out that I was dating an alien, Nana. Does something else need to be bothering me?”

She shook her head. “No, of course not. I was just wondering.” She didn’t say anything about me not eating, and took my plate away when she was finished. “Do you want to go up to the boardwalk tonight?”

“No.” I got up and headed back outside to watch the sunset, such as it was with the cloud-spaceship hanging over the city. I stayed outside until Nana came and told me she was going to bed; then I went inside and got into bed myself.

Once in bed, I tried to read, but I couldn’t focus. As much as I didn’t want to admit it, Zack had convicted me. OK, that’s a weird thought, considering I don’t even call myself a Christian. I closed my book and turned out my light, hoping that sleep would come, but I was wide awake and still thinking about Zack. Then the tears began. One after another rolled down my face, and I knew exactly why: because a boy (or someone who looked like a member of the male sex) whom I had liked very much revealed that I knew nothing about him at all, and his origins had scared me badly. I had tucked tail and run in the other direction, showing that I was no different than the majority of the human race when it came to aliens. I grabbed my pillow and sobbed into it. Time lost meaning as I cried out the angry and the hurt, but I finally fell asleep.

I woke up earlier than Nana the next morning. Weariness and anger toward myself felt like extra gravity pulling me down, but I managed to drag myself out to the kitchen and pour myself a glass of orange juice. I sat down at the table and sipped it absently, misery settling in like clouds before a storm.

Nana came out of her bedroom wearing a nightgown with seashells on it around six-thirty, and she looked surprised to see me. “Char! I thought you’d still be sleeping, dear.” I shrugged. “Do you want me to make pancakes for breakfast?”

I shrugged again. “Whatever you want, Nana. I’m not really hungry.” I took another small sip from my glass.

“All right, dear.” Nana moved around the kitchen, gathering ingredients for something.

“Nana?” I asked finally.

“Yes?”

“Can we leave today?”

She turned to me, surprised written all over her face again. “You, wanting to leave the beach? Early? Char, what’s wrong?”

“I just don’t feel like staying any longer.”

“Any particular reason?”

Yes. “I don’t know. I just don’t want to stay a moment longer than I have to.”

She was silent for a moment, then asked, “Does this have anything to do with Zack?”

I sighed. “Yeah. It does.”

She nodded. “Let me make breakfast, and we’ll leave as soon as we can.”

“OK.” I stood up. “I guess I’ll start packing up.” With that, I headed into my room, where I packed all my things up and got dressed. I was numb now, from the misery. Everything I did was almost like I was on automatic. I felt nothing anymore, nothing except guilt.