I start to rack my brain for anything that might connect to the name Joden but then stop myself. How could I possibly know this insane stranger?
"Not ringing any bells here," I say a little impatiently. So far, he's been feeding me crumbs of information, most of it probably false. I need answers. "What are you doing in my room? who summoned you?"
"Your questions are getting better. My name is Joden and I'm here because I've been called. And trust me, I don't get summoned by accident," he says while sqiunting his eyes and shaking his head.
"Are you sure you've got the right house?"
He chuckles, "I'm sure".
I mull over everything he's said so far but one thing immediately stands out. "You said you're from the East?"
"Yes."
"But that doesn't make sense, nobody goes there. It's abandoned."
"It is."
"Will you stop that?! Don't give me 1 or 2 worded answers. There isn't a living soul on East Elona, it's impossible to li-" I stop and stare at him. The only thing that's alive in the East is the cursed tree. Could he really be from there? Was he using that tree as some sort of energy source to help him alive? Nothing else makes sense.
"You're almost there," he says, walking around my room like I'm the intruder.
"What-," wait a minute. "Did you just respond to my thoughts?" I whisper.
"Yes, I did."
How the hell did he do that?
"Like this."
I stumble backwards and he laughs. "I haven't had this much fun in a century!"
I stare at him for a long time, maybe 5 minutes until he looks up and takes an exasperated breath. "We obviously aren't getting anywhere here so I'll give you another crumb of information: either you accidentally summoned me (which I highly doubt) or somone has a lot of ill will against you, but either ways we're now connected forever."
It finally occurs to me who he is. Oh my goodness. There were rumors I heard recently about a certain crackhead that escaped one of the mental assylums nearby. I can't believe I was feeding into his delusions this whole time. I have to get help.
He suddenly goes into full blown laughter. "Stop it, please, you'll wake my family." This makes it worse. He starts wheezing.
"Oh I really like you," he tells me while putting one leg atop the other on my desk.
"Please, I don't know what you want from me but you have to leave. You're going to wake my family."
"Why is it that you call them family when they show you so little respect? Especially that witch you call your step mother. Why care about them so much?"
"First of all they're not that bad and second of all you don't know anything about me or how I'm treated by my family," I say even though everything he said about me and my family was true.
"I beg to differ."
"Well beg outside of my house!" I respond in a hushed tone.
He smiles. "If I leave now, you have to give me something in return."
"Is this about money? because your asking a 15 year old and the amount I have in my allowance is lower than my age number."
Incredulously, he watches me for a long time before saying, "I don't want your money" in a more serious tone.
"Then what do you want?"
"For you to call me Joden from now on."
That's all he wants? For me to call him by his name? It's too easy but I really need him out of this house, so I say, "Ok, Joden. Now leave."
The moment I say his name I see something flash in his eyes, only for a moment. Joden gets up from the chair and bows, "until next time then," he says before the lights turn off. When I switch them on again, he's no where to be found. With a sigh, I get inside my comforter and check the time. 3am. No way I was talking to him for that long. My mind starts to go over everything that just happened. No. If I think about it now, it'll just keep me up longer. Instead, I close my eyes and try to keep my mind from wondering until sleep finally takes over.
****
"Lissa!"
I hear my step mom calling. Rubbing my eyes, I get up from bed. I've never felt this kind of exhaustion before in my life. I'm probably going to see dark circles around my eyes when I check the mirror.
"Lissa!"
"What!" I say with a hint of irritation in my voice.
"Come down here, breakfast is ready!" she shouts. "Alright I'm coming!" I call back.
Thank god for muscle memory, my feet took over the whole way to the dinning table because of how fuzzy my brain was being.
"Move," Cienna shoves me aside in the hallway while he and the rest of my brothers pass me to take their seats in the dining room. I say nothing, like always.
I look around the table and notice that every seat is filled. Odd...there's usually a seat for one more. I look at my step mother and who sits next to her. Nope, not odd at all. A man not older than 30, with a lot of facial hair might I add, stares back at me.
"So this must be her then," he says with a warm grin and a strange, familiar glint in his eyes. "You were right, she is scrawny."
Ciena smiles while my step mother smiles. "I tell her that she doesn't eat enough but she doesn't listen." My step mom stands up and gives me a plate of scrambled eggs with sliced bread. "There's a chair in the kitchen, why don't you go finish your breakfast there".
Happily, I take my plate and leave. I wasn't really eager to sit with them anyways, especially after that little comment about my body. I start to walk towards the black chair waiting by the kitchen table but turn and stride towards my room instead. The events of last night slowly start to leave the back of my mind, taking over my thoughts as I sit down and begin munching on some bread. The previous night feels almost unreal now. Even the way Gertrude was acting. Now that I think about it, I haven't seen Gerturde anywhere since then, which is a little unusual given how clingy she is.
As if summoned by my thoughts, the cat strutts passed the door and jumps onto my lap. Maybe she was acting strange the night before because she felt his presence too. Petting her fur, I try to remeber what his name was.
"Maybe you can remind me?," I say with a smile. "What was his name again? Jared,.....John,...Jacob?"
None of those feel right so I keep thinking. "Was it Joden?"
Immediately after I say the name, the cat jumps up from my lap and knocks some of my breakfast to the ground. Ok, so I think I got the name right. My gaze shifts to the floor. Thank god there's no stain or much food, my step mom wouldn't be so content if there was. I take a piece of cloth along with a trash can from the restroom and start to clean up.
As I clean, his words from last night start replaying in my head. The bit about him being alive for as long as as a century more than the rest. Most of the things he uttered were strange to me, along with his actions. I start to push all the thoughts away but end up reflecting on them again. Elona is a small town and almost all of its people know eachother. There's no chance someone like him would go unnoticed. He stands out in every way. So why have I never heard of him before? Is he really from the East? And if he really is, how on earth did he survive for so long?
After I finish cleaning, I put the cloth and trash can back where I found them. "Lissa!," a voice I immediately recognize calls from outside my room.
"Yes!," I respond while walking towards the door.
Hair slicked back in a neat bun and dressed in a beige pantsuit, my step mom rummages through her purse as she takes a few steps towards me. "I'm heading out now and I won't be back for a while so I want you to prepare lunch today."
"But I'm terrible at cooking," I say remebering the last time she asked me to, "what if I burn something again?"
She stares at me for a minute, like she's going to change her mind but in the end she says, "You'll be fine. Cienna can help you."
Nope. No way. "Actually, I'll be fine on my own. You don't need to bother him."
"Oh no, you made an excellent point. I don't want anything to happen while I'm away. I want someone older to watch over you while you're in the kitchen." She gives me a smile that's way too innocent but I'm convinced she knows exactly what she's doing.
Tilting her head, she calls, "Cienna!"
A second later, Cienna strides down the hall holding a dark green jacket and brown boots. "What is it?"
"Cienna, I want you to watch over Lissa in the kitchen for as long as she's cooking."
His gaze flicks towards me then back to his mother. "I have plans with my friends today, remeber. You said I could go during breakfast."
"I have plans too, that's why you're going to stay here."
"I'm not a nanny! Why can't one of the others accompany her?," he says, looking really frustrated.
"He's right actually," I add, "I mean, he doesn't have to do this. I'll be fi—"
My step mom cuts me off while looking at Cienna, "first of all, don't raise your voice at me. Second, it's only until I get back. You need to eat as well and you can't do that if she has an accident in the kitchen."
With that, she makes her way down the stairs and shuts the door behind her.