String of Fate

Chapter Forty Nine

"Stace, I don't need to know his life story." I laughed, stopping her before she did give me his life story because I knew she would. She loved telling stories, especially about other people. I would end up knowing everything about him that she knew, just so the two of us were on the same page. I thought for a moment about what I could do. I didn't have any other plans and it would be good to hang out with her. "Fine. I'll come with you guys tomorrow. Are you using Morse Code with your string?"

"No, it's called the Knock Code." Stacey explained, letting go of her string quickly. I had noticed recently that the two of them would sit in class and pull their string. "Sam and I learned it together just to be able to communicate easier in classes without getting caught. Anyway, he shouldn't be long because he's on his way."

"That's actually pretty cool and handy. It would save getting caught in classes." I admitted, raising my eyebrows. It actually was a handy trick. Then, I noticed something new on the floor that I hadn't seen before. I glanced around the room – a new string had appeared, so, of course, I had to find out who was at both ends of it. I managed to spot both of them and I was truly surprised. "Well, I never would have expected that pairing."

"What pairing?" Stacey questioned, leaning in to me. She always loved finding out when a new string appeared between our classmates. She tried looking around as if she was able to see the string as well, but sadly that was just my gift. "Grace, who is the latest unexpected couple now?"

"You know James, the regular target of Connor's bullying?" I asked. She nodded, looking around for the two of them. "Well, James and Connor are connected by the red string."

"They actually seem to kind of suit each other." Stacey noticed. I nodded in agreement as she turned back to the door. She smiled more brightly. I knew that Sam was here. I glanced between Connor and James. Neither of them had seemed to notice their strings, but I betted that it would be explosive when it happened.

That evening, Stacy stayed over mine and we watched a couple of movies. During most of the time, we actually spent the time chatting about Sam and his cousin. Stacey said that she was looking forward to meeting him, but she said that she was glad that she wasn't going to be alone. I had to admit that it was a fun evening and it actually took my mind of my string. I thought that it would be the first time that I had had my mind taken off my string since my birthday.

It was roughly eleven am the next morning that I was meeting Stacey, Sam, and his cousin outside the main entrance to the shopping centre. I was the last one to get there – and I immediately recognized Sam's cousin – the guy that was at the end of my string. I couldn't help but look at his hand – trying to find the second string, but this time I could only see one. Had my ability actually gone? I checked that Stacey and Sam still had their strings.

"How is that even possible? I saw your string lead to someone else." I told him, looking at him with confusion. I didn't realise that it was possible to lose a string. I also wished that I had known who Sam's cousin was before coming here because I really would have declined the invitation. The guy had had a second string, and he hadn't even bothered to find me in a month. Now that I was seeing him again, I could only see the one string, but that didn't excuse the fact that, for the past month, he hadn't even bothered trying to find me if I was indeed his only string. I didn't even know what to think about the whole situation.

"Grace, what are you talking about?" Stacey asked, looking between me and Sam's cousin. Then, she seemed to realise what I had said. "Wait, Robert was the guy at the end of your string? You told me that you saw a second string that led to someone else."

"When could you have seen that? I've never had a second string. It's always just been the one." Robert spoke, looking around at us with confusion. As far as he was concerned, he had never met me or Stacey, so, he really must have been confused. Robert was actually a really nice name. He had a nice voice, too. They both seemed to suit him really well. Then, he turned to me. "Wait, how could you even see a second string? I thought people could only see their string?"

"They can, usually, but I've always had the ability to see strings when they appear between everyone." I explained to him. I tucked a strand of my hair behind my ears out of habit. I hated feeling like I was put on the spot. "I saw it the day our strings appeared. I'd followed it to the town centre at lunch time and saw your second string connect to the blonde girl that you were talking with. She had her arm linked through yours and everything."

"That? That was for the play. We're the leads. That string was for the performance. The blonde girl is my co-star. We were practicing at leaving it on just so we got used to it being there. Our director made us do it. There is nothing, and never can be, anything between me and her." Robert told me quickly. It was as if he needed to tell me the truth. He reached out to grab my hands and pull them to his lips, kissing them. His eyes pierced me. "My real string only connects to you. There is only you. I love you, Grace."

"I love you, too, Robert." I answered. Then, Robert bent down to kiss me.