Zoey

That was really the first time he said her name to me. As I lay against him, I softly stroked his chest with my fingers. This felt right. Every time we had sex, it felt right. He was a different man, but the change I saw in him today and how a piece of the darkness that shrouded him lifted, I got my hopes up he was starting to see things differently.

“I think we should get some sleep,” he spoke. “Good night, Zoey.” He kissed the top of my head.

“Good night, Carter.”

I opened my eyes and looked at the big red numbers on the clock that read two thirty a.m. As hard as I tried to go back to sleep, I couldn’t. I carefully and quietly climbed out of bed, grabbed the white robe that was hanging on the hook in the bathroom, and sat out on the small balcony that housed two lounge chairs. I sat there, staring at the darkened water and listened as the waves crashed against the shoreline. I didn’t know what was going to happen with us or if he could ever fully understand who I was. But he had to know I was falling in love with him and I couldn’t stop it. Suddenly, a rush of cold settled inside me.

“You have to make him open up about me,” I heard a voice whisper. “It’s the only way he’ll heal.”

I looked over to my right and saw Angelique standing there.

“He needs you, Zoey.”

Then she was gone.

“What are you doing out here?” Carter asked as he stepped onto the balcony.

“I couldn’t sleep. I hope I didn’t wake you.”

“You didn’t. I woke up and you were gone. Come back to bed.”

I stared straight into the vast open water and ignored his request.

“When the plane crashed and I opened my eyes, I was standing in a field of flowers. The sun was so bright I could barely see. But I could feel love and peace all around me.”

“What?” He took a seat in the chair next to me.

“A man and a woman walked over to me and each took my hand. We walked through the field of flowers together. The colors were so vibrant and the smell that filled the air was something I’d never smelled before. They explained to me that I was special and it wasn’t my time to stay with them. They told me that I had a purpose and that purpose was to help those who were dying not to be afraid and tell them of my experience and what I saw. They said that I wasn’t to be afraid of what awaited me on the other side and that two nice men were going to raise me and guide me along the way. I was to help those in need.”

“What did they mean by ‘what awaited you on the other side’?” he asked.

“After they sent me back and I woke up, Scott was there and picked me up. As he was carrying me off the plane, I watched all the souls of the people who died in the crash walk away, including my parents. But I didn’t feel sad. I smiled and waved to them because I knew the place they were going to.”

“Jesus, Zoey. I—”

“Every day since then, I am able to see the souls of those who passed, and some I have to help.”

“What do you mean you have to help?”

“Sometimes, I have to give their loved ones a message before they can move on. Like the guy at the hotel. He needed me to tell his wife that everything she needed was locked in the safe in their bedroom and the combination was taped under the drawer of his nightstand.”

“Have you ever told anyone else about this?” he asked.

“My dads know and my best friend, Holly. I knew I could trust her. We’re soul sisters.”

“I don’t know what to think or what to say about any of it,” he spoke with a shaky voice.

“You don’t have to say anything, Carter. I just needed you to listen.”

“I’m going to head back to bed. I think it would be a good idea if you slept in your room.”

I swallowed hard as I felt the stabbing of a knife go through my heart.

“I will if that’s what you really want,” I sadly spoke.

“It is. I’m sorry.”

He looked at me and then got up from his chair and went back inside. After a few moments, when I knew he was in bed, I went through the adjoining door, closed it, and climbed into my own bed. The truth was out and how he chose to deal with it had nothing to do with me. I couldn’t make him accept it. That would be something he’d have to do on his own.

“Give him time,” Nora whispered as she placed her hand on mine. “Eventually, he will accept it and he’ll see things differently.”

But I wasn’t so sure about that.

The next morning around eight a.m., I climbed out of bed, showered, and got dressed. I didn’t know if Carter was up and I wasn’t about to find out, so I went down to the café in the hotel for a cup of coffee and a donut. As I was sitting there, I saw Carter approaching my table.

“I knocked on your door and you didn’t answer. I also tried to call you, but I heard your phone ringing in your room,” he spoke in a stern tone.

“Sorry, I just came down for a cup of coffee. How did you sleep?” I cautiously asked.

“How the hell do you think I slept after what you told me last night?”

“I’m sure you still have questions,” I spoke.

“Actually, I don’t. I’ve rented a boat and we’ll be heading out in about an hour. I’m going back up to my room. I’ll knock when it’s time to leave.” He turned and walked away.

I rolled my eyes and slowly shook my head. I could feel the tears emerging and I tried to stop them. After I finished my coffee and donut, I went back up to my room.

****

Carter

I lay on the bed with my hands behind my head still thinking about everything she told me last night. I didn’t know what to think or even how to process any of it. All of it was crazy to me. I heard her door shut and I jumped off the bed because I needed to tell her something and I couldn’t wait any longer. When I knocked on the adjoining door, she opened it.

“Are we leaving now?” she asked.

“No. There’s something I need to tell you.”

“What is it?”

“I’m going to Hawaii alone, so you’ll need to book a flight home.” I turned and began to walk away.

Suddenly, I felt a tight grip on my arm.

“Why?” Zoey shouted.

“Because I want to be alone!” I shouted back.

“Ah, of course you do because that’s what you’re good at. You’re a perfectionist when it comes to pushing people away. If anyone says something you don’t like or don’t want to hear, you run the other way. I’ve seen you do it with Nora and with me!” she continued to shout.

“You don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about. We aren’t good together and we never will be! Get that through your head! I’m not looking for a girlfriend or anyone to connect with. I’m happy living my life the way I do.”

“Who said anything about wanting to be your girlfriend? I can’t even stand you!” she shouted and caught me off guard.

I stood there and stared into her angry eyes.

“The only goddamn fucking reason I’m here is because they won’t let me leave!” she angrily spewed.

I’d never heard her talk like that before and I was taken aback.

“Who won’t let you leave?”

“Nora and Angelique! You think it was just a coincidence that my plane had mechanical problems and your rental car wouldn’t start? You think us meeting in the airport was an accident? What about LaGuardia and JFK having power outages? What about my flight getting canceled and there only being one seat left on the flight here?! The one directly across from you! I’m supposed to finish this trip with you and they’ll make sure it happens!”

“And why the fuck would they do that?” I angrily shouted at her.

“Because I’m supposed to help you! Damn it, Carter. Open your eyes and your mind. Leave your dark world for a minute and think about this.”

“You’re nuts! You fabricated that whole little story because you needed something to cling to because of the trauma from the plane crash!”

She stood there, a few feet from me, trembling from head to toe.

“Tell him to stay cool and not give Miss Harper a hard time anymore. Tell him that he was the best friend I ever had and he’s going to be okay.”

I swallowed hard and stood there, feeling paralyzed.

“What did you just say?”

She placed her hand on her head and turned away from me. I grabbed her arm and forced her to look at me.

“What did you just say?!”

“Let go of me.” She tried to get out of my grip, but I wasn’t letting her.

“Not until you answer my question!” I yelled through gritted teeth.

“Your friend, Andy. You were in an accident with him and his mom. He died and you broke your leg and needed surgery.”

“How the fuck do you know that?”

“Because I was the little girl who was on the other side of the curtain. I was the one who spoke those very words to you that day.”

My heart started to pound and I loosened my grip from her arm. Taking a seat on the bed, I rested my face in my hands as the memories of that day came flooding back. The little girl who came to my bedside. The feeling I felt when she placed her hand on mine. Those words. The ones Andy told her to tell me. I believed her then because there was no way she knew about my teacher, Miss Harper.

“Angelique told you that she loved you first, in the Empire State Building, about a month after you started seeing each other. You were having dinner and you reached across the table and knocked over her glass of red wine, spilling it all over the beige dress she was wearing. You felt so bad, and as you tried to clean the spots off her dress, she whispered that she loved you in your ear.”

I looked up at her in disbelief.

“After she died, you were going through her things and you found the cuff links she had bought you as a gift for your birthday. You wrapped them in a black silk cloth and keep them hidden in a small black box on the top shelf of your bedroom closet.”

“How the hell do you know that? I never told anyone about those cufflinks. Not even Nora.”

“How do you think I know, Carter? I’ll leave you alone now.”

She turned and went back in her room, closing and locking the adjoining door behind her. I sat there for a moment and then fell back onto the bed, closing my eyes for a moment to get hold of myself, my thoughts, and my feelings.