It was seven o'clock when we left my parents and the sun was already long gone. Depending on the traffic and any unscheduled stops, we'd make it back to Vida around three in the morning. Since Nate drove me around all day, I offered to take the first shift, so he could get some sleep. He didn't hesitate to take me up on the offer and reclined the passenger seat to rest.
I needed stimulation to keep me going, causing me to turn on the tunes and jam while I made my way down I-90. After a couple of hours, I started to get bored, though. Driving in the dark had never been one of my favorite things, and there wasn't a lot of traffic around to keep my senses on their toes.
New York was hours ahead, so my usual partner in crime when Nate was occupied was probably asleep, at least I assumed Rick would be, after complaining about having actual work to do. Frannie might have been up, but if she was she was probably in a nightclub somewhere, and I really didn't want to interrupt her fun.
So, left to amuse myself, I started thinking about the memories that I'd had so far, especially the one with my daughter. I wondered if anything in the box that was sitting in one of the seats behind me had anything to do with that daughter. Before I knew it, the road in front of me disappeared and I was transported to a different time. Maybe taking a shift driving without supervision wasn't the best idea.
"Safa, what are you doing out here?" I hear a voice say that again is in a language I don't know by ear, but can understand. I wonder if I go through enough memories, whether I'll be able to understand different languages without having my full memories. I look up to see my mother coming down a path. She is dressed in very primitive looking clothing. We're talking just enough animal skin to cover her top and bottom bits. I am seeing way more of my mother than I ever wanted to see.
"I'm collecting some berries mother." I look down and see a basket full of berries I have never seen before. They look similar to raspberries, but are a bright purple color. I also take in my own attire and see that I am wearing a very similar outfit. I am so happy I live in my present time, where I have more choice on what I can wear.
The thought amuses me a bit, since I care little about what I wear. It's just important to me that no one gets a sneak peak at my midriff and the majority of my thighs. I had to be thankful that at least the memory included some clothing, chances were good at some point in my life it had been optional.
"You shouldn't be out here alone, Zarek will be upset. Where is your escort?" she asks.
"Oh Mother, you all worry way too much. Nothing is going to happen to me." I am going to have to guess that Zarek is Nate if being out wandering would upset him. I'm also hoping that the escort was Freddie and I slipped away from him. Maybe I should tease him about it when I get back to the present.
"You know we have reason to worry. Someone tried to kidnap you two days ago, but they got away before we could question them," she scolds.
"They didn't even have a real chance mother, I disarmed them almost immediately and they ran away. They won't get another chance, even if I am alone. I think it would be wise for me to try to lure them out in the open, so we can find out what they wanted. It could be just a matter of someone thinking I'm attractive, there is no reason to think they know what I can do." I pick up my basket of berries and start walking towards my mother.
"There is no way you would be allowed to do something that dangerous so get the idea out of your head right now. Zarek would take you over his knee if he heard you speak of it. Why don't you head back to the village and check on your father," she suggests.
My body and myself are in agreement that doesn't sound like a very fun idea, but we head down the path anyway. Before long we come to a stream. It's a beautiful setting and I sit for a minute, dipping my toes at the edge. The water is very cold, but refreshing because of the warm air temperature.
I'm curious where exactly I am. It doesn't feel like anywhere I've been, but it was probably centuries before I had working memories, so it very well could've been my backyard in Montana a hundred years before my parents' home was built.
After a few minutes, I stand up to leave and feel arms wrap around me, picking me up like I'm nothing more than a twig. "Put me down!" I screech.
I could tell the bit of fear in my voice was an act. I knew exactly who was touching me and the old me was thrilled to feel his warm fingers dig into my skin.
"I think you need a bath," a voice says as he walks me into the water. It's Nate, otherwise known as Zarek in this time.
"I do not, let me go. I just bathed this morning and you know it." I try to struggle, but he is too strong. Before I know it, we are both in the water, fully submerged. I come up out of the water quickly, shaking my long, drenched hair. I can imagine my lips turning blue I am so cold.
It seems wrong to be so cold when the air temperature feels so inviting. I don't know how it is possible, but my old self regulates the temperature of the water and before more than a second passes, the water feels like a nice warm bath.
"Maybe that will teach you to stop wandering by yourself," Nate slash Zarek says as he comes over to me and wraps his arms around me. He lowers his head and starts to give me a kiss. Evidently, this body hasn't set any boundaries for kisses because it quickly becomes a full on make out session.
After he gives me a very thorough tongue massage that is making me and my body weak in the knees, he moves on to my neck and starts sucking and nibbling on it. That is for sure going to leave a mark.
Before long, my body reaches down and grabs a part of Nate's anatomy I haven't been introduced to yet and by what I'm feeling, I am scared to ever have a meeting. If I thought his perfect body was intimidating, his little friend is downright frightening. Past me doesn't seem to mind at all, but I had other ideas about where things were leading.
All I can think is, it is time for me to come out of this specific memory before me and Nate's first sexual encounter happens when I'm not in control of my body. I close my eyes and start concentrating on the Suburban driving down the interstate, which is very hard with Nate's mouth working his way over my body.
When I opened my eyes, thankfully I was back in the vehicle, driving down the road. I wasn't really sure how we weren't crashed in a ditch somewhere, but I was happy to see the SUV still travelling between the white dotted lines on the road. I looked over at Nate and found him staring at me.
"Why did you stop? That ended up being a really fun day," he said with a smirk.
"You actually saw the memory?" I wanted to smack him, just to wipe the look off his face.
It was no wonder he'd shared some vivid dreams of us together shortly after we'd met. If he had lifetimes of memories where we were intimately involved, I was surprised he didn't walk around in his own little dream world all the time.
"I don't think I saw the whole thing, but at one point you were concentrating on me so hard you started projecting the images to me. If you want, I remember the day well and I can share the rest of it with you." He didn't get the sense that I wanted to hit him, because his smile widened and I could see the orange glow that came out sometimes in his eyes.
"No, I had a good reason to pull out of the memory and I think you would even agree with it," I replied.
It was hard to continue the conversation and drive. Our past intimacy was something that was more suitable for a time when we could both concentrate on the conversation. I didn't see any other cars on the road, but I couldn't stare over at Nate to see his full reaction.
"Really? I don't think there's a reason in the world I would agree leaving that specific memory was a good thing. I won't give away any memories, but it was an extremely memorable coming together of our bodies."
I knew better than to ask what he meant. "The fact that I didn't want our first time to be when I wasn't in control of my body is a very strong reason if you ask me. I can feel everything my past life does in the dreams, but that experience is one I'd prefer to be in control of the actions for."
"Okay, you have me there, but seeing that memory
has got me wanting our first time to be on the side of the road in the back of a Suburban. It's going to take me a little while to calm down."
He grabbed one of the last bottles of water and took a big drink. We both could've used the cold water dumped over our heads to cool things down, but cold water would more than likely only bring our little dip in the lake back to life. I really wished I knew how the memories worked, as I was becoming afraid of what triggered them.
"When did you wake up? If you were up before I came back to myself, it must have been scary going down the road. I'm not sure how I managed to keep us on the road."
"Actually, I think from the moment you saw me in the memory I woke up. It was kind of strange because everything was stationary. I could move but nothing else around me was moving. You were in a trance, but thankfully you were projecting so I knew what was happening. Things would've gotten really interesting if I didn't know what was going on."
"Really? Everything was just frozen? That had to be so creepy. I always wondered what went on in the real world when I have a vision, but you didn't say anything about the time in the lunchroom. Was it the same then? You acted so cool and collected that I thought maybe I just turned invisible or something and everyone forgot about me."
"Rest assured that you don't miss anything. It was weird that I wasn't frozen. I don't remember exactly what happened during your trip in the lunchroom, because I was more focused on your nosebleed, but I do think there was a void there for a second. Hopefully we can experiment some more with that. I would like to think I'd be able to wake you if something was happening that put you at risk. I want to make sure you're protected, which I'm sure you know by now."
Nate stretched out as far as his seat would let him. With as large as the vehicle was, he got a decent stretch, but it made me want to stretch too, and I didn't have that luxury while driving.
"You know what is interesting about this vision that differed from the other ones? I actually think I brought this one on. I was concentrating on the other ones I've had and all of a sudden I was somewhere else. This time I was also able to bring myself out of it when I wanted. Maybe I can spend a little time each day going back and remembering things little by little," I said as I pulled into a gas station. The arrow on the gas gauge was getting close to E, and I needed to move my legs around.
"If you want, we can switch drivers, I think I'll be wired for a little while. As far as your suggestion, your note said to take things slow, so I'm not sure about a daily remembering exercise. Maybe we could try a couple times a week and see how you feel." He exited the car without waiting for my reply to his idea, and started hitting buttons on the gas pump.
While he was pumping gas, I got out and stretched.? When feeling was back in all my muscles, I walked over to him and said, "Are you sure it's okay to switch? You've only had a couple hours of sleep and you're the one who will be going to work in the morning."
"Yes, I'm sure. I can drive for at least four hours and then I might have you take the last two, but there's no way I'm going to be able to get back to sleep right now. I suggest you try to get a little sleep in case I need you to take over," he said, giving me a little kiss on my cheek and pushing me towards the passenger side.
I climbed in and settled into the seat. It was still reclined and smelled of Nate, which made me stupidly happy. He had a horrible effect on my senses, if you asked me. When he was done, he jumped in the driver's side and headed us down the highway. After a little while, I did start to feel sleepy and worked to get even more comfortable in the seat. Within minutes, I was fast asleep and the next thing I was aware of was Nate carrying me into the house.
"Shh. Just stay asleep, I'm only taking you into the bedroom," Nate said, navigating through the house. I decided to take his advice, because after the entire road trip and all the walking I was exhausted.
CHAPTER 24
Welcome to Telepathics Anonymous, don't bother introducing yourself