Candy Karma Chapter Two

Chapter Two
   
   I can’t be seriously liking this guy! “Let me think about it……” I said. “Ok!” replied Karma, smiling. I can’t..no, I won’t, be let down again. Karma left the room, and I climbed out the window. Goodbye; I can’t put you in danger, Karma. My brother would surely kill him if he found out about him housing me. I ran down the block. It was snowing, and I had no idea where I was. And then I saw them waiting for me. The other Mews, my old friend “Bubblegum” in the very front. She ran up and side-kicked me in the stomach. “That’s what you get for betraying the Mews! Affiliating with the aliens!!” I coughed, and blood came out of my mouth. “You make me sick! I can’t believe you!” yelled my old friend.

Karma’s POV

   I was asleep on the couch in my living room. I had just offered to protect the pretty little Mew whose brother was slowly killing off my race. Yeah, probably not the wisest decision.

   Suddenly, I was awoken by a scream. I raced outside to where the cry had come from, and saw Candy lying in the snow, one arm crossing over her chest. A little bit of blood trickled out of her parted lips. “Candy!” I yelled in shock. I ran over to her. “Is anything broken?!” she groaned at this. “Yes……” “Why is there blood on you?” Candy winced. “Bit my tongue.” I gently touched her body to find the breaks. Some ribs were cracked. “You’ll be ok.” I whispered. Carefully, I picked her up in my arms. She was light, maybe 115 pounds. I walked down the street, about five blocks, then turned left.

After a good twenty minutes of walking, I reached the hospital. And then I realized something. I had flipping ears! Plus, I wasn’t wearing a real shirt. Hey, in alien culture, wearing lots of clothes in considered lying about what your body looks like. Plus, Candy had cat ears and a tail. This was going to be tricky. I asked Candy what to do. She had been asleep again, so she slowly stirred and blinked drowsily up at me.

   “I da na, pretend we’re cosplayers?”she mumbled. “Maybe that would work for you, but everyone sees the aliens as hostile!” I hissed. Candy squinted her eyes. “I’m wearing a tank top. Wrap my shirt around yo head.” she said, sounding drunk. She drowsily took off her shirt and put it awkwardly around my head like a turban. I guess I’m perverted, but I couldn’t help myself. I leaned close to Candy’s face and darted out my tongue, brushing her ear. Well, that sure woke her up.
   
“Pervert! Creeper! Weirdo!” she thrashed in my arms. “Shall we go in?” I asked. She glared up at me. So delicate. “How old are you?” she demanded out of the blue. I was a little surprised at her question. “Uh, gee, I don’t know. Maybe seventeen or eighteen?” Candy pouted. “I’m only sixteen.” Oh. Maybe I’m a cougar, then. She’d calmed down a little, so her ears and tail had disappeared. We walked into the hospital, and Candy was checked in. I carried her into the elevator, still holding Candy and wearing that ridiculous turban.

   The music in the elevator was playing, “Mirrors” be Justin Timberlake, which was strange, because, you know, it was an elevator. It was….really awkward. How come before I told her my age, she was ok? Maybe she liked me? We just met! I looked at her and caught her staring at me. We both blushed and looked away. I felt guilty about her getting hurt, because I had known that the other Mews would try and hurt her if she affiliated with me. I should have watched her more carefully. My thoughts were out of control. How would I pay for trip? I would probably just use the alien's bank account. Did they even have a bank account?  

My thoughts were cut off when the elevator stopped and the door opened. A little girl and her mom walked in as we left. The girl looked happy, even though she had a big cast on her arm. She stared at my with huge eyes. "Why are you wearing a shirt on your head?" she asked. Candy laughed. It sounded like a chipmunk, which made me laugh. The girl laughed too, and then her mom was laughing and I ran out of the elevator so the door wouldn't squish us. I brought Candy to her room and lay her on the white bed. She was conked out again, and I was almost tempted to draw a mustache on her. Or a goatee. No, never mind, the drool from her mouth would smudge it.

Candy's POV

        I was running. Karma was behind me, and the other Mews were chasing us. They had their weapons (the New York Mews had real, killing weapons to use against the aliens), and they were swinging them back and forth like a deadly pendulum. Bubblegum had her axe that kept swinging dangerously close to Karma's head. Blood covered him, and a wound from his chest was dripping the black liquid down his front. He coughed, and midnight blood came out of his mouth.
       "You can't keep running forever." said Bubblegum in a singsong voice. Suddenly, Karma tripped and fell on the ground. He reached out to me. "Candy....." he moaned. Bubblegum caught up to him and brought the axe blade down on Karma's outstretched arm. He screamed as his arm was severed from his bloody body. I was paralyzed, unable to help him. The axe was brought down again and again, until Karma was just a bunch of pieces in a pool of blood. "Can......dy......" he whispered. And then he died, eyes opened and everything. That's when I woke up.

      Karma was dead, I was sure of it. But there he was in front of me. Maybe an angel? "Karma....." I said, tears slipping down my cheeks. I reached out to hug him and felt his warm body. He felt so.....alive. I knew by now that it had been a dream, but Karma felt so...solid. Like I could lie in his arms and nothing would ever hurt me again. "Karma." I said again, choking on tears. "It's ok, it was just a dream." he whispered, holding me. What was my problem? I barely knew this guy! I cringed. Hugging him had been a mistake. "Ouch." I said. By now, I was embarrassed for crying and hugging Karma. "It will be fine." said Karma, smiling. "It's just a several fractured ribs. You'll be released in a couple of weeks." Silly Karma. He leaned close to my face, breathing softly in my ear. And then he darted out his pointed tongue out again.

"Agh!! Stop that!!" I was blushing even more than before. Karma laughed. The truth is, I had liked it. And Karma knew it. "Idiot, idiot, IDIOT!!!!!!" I said, pushing him away. Suddenly Karma was serious. "I'll protect you." he said. I smiled at him. "I can live with that."       By the time I was released, I was considerably better friends with Karma. I learned that he had brothers and sisters back where he came from. People that loved him. I found out that his tongue was pointed so he could speak the alien language easier. I also discovered that alien blood contained obsidian; that's why it's black. I learned that the silky ribbons that were like tails helped him fly, but weren't attached to like a limb. I learned that he had a fetish for "pale skin" and "dark eyes"; also for "bunnies", whatever that meant. He's very quiet and soft-spoken, but he's a little perverted. He likes licking people's ears; it's a little creepy. Waking up to find his tongue your ear can be a traumatic experience. Or cute. One of those. A laugh from Karma is a rare treat, one that I treasure. He loves watching ASDF and anime with me.  
 
    His favorite song is "Where Have You Been", which is weird, because that's how I feel about him. When we went back to the house after I was released, I was doing laundry when I caught myself singing, "Where have you been all my life? I've been everywhere, man, looking for someone...Someone who can please me, love me all night long..." That's when Karma walked in. "Could you hand me my socks?"  he asked. I blushed violently. "Am I interrupting something?" he asked.
"No...I was just singing."
"I know. I heard." Karma tilted his head to the side, grinning.
"It's not that bad, right?" I asked, blushing.
"No..." said Karma. "You sing better than me." he said, smiling. Come to think of it, I had never heard Karma sing before.
"Let's  go out to karaoke and see if you're lying or not." I covered my mouth immediately. What was I saying? Karma dug out the IPhone that he had bought with the alien bank fund. I had taught him how to use it, a long and tedious task. "Ka-ra-o-ke? If I can find one, then sure." "Like....a date?" I ventured.

"If you want it to be." shrugged Karma. I blushed deeper red. "Wait a sec, I found one. Let's go." "Shouldn't I.... get ready first?" Karma looked me up and down. "Look fine to me." He grabbed my wrist and pulled me outside. Karma put his arm around my waist and jumped into the air. Before then, I'd never flown with him before. There was something about it. It was like magic. The city below looked like Google Earth. The lights shone like some kind of advanced electrical fireflies.

We flew for about fifteen minutes. It was deathly cold, but Karma kept me warm. The average temperature for an alien was higher than a human's, about 102-104 degrees. Karma hardly ever got cold, which was nice. Having him as a friend was like having a flying furnace with you. Anyway.....where was I? Oh yes. We landed outside the karaoke joint and walked inside. Karma paid for a one hour session, and we entered the room. Did I mention that Karma was wearing a real shirt for once? (Two, actually, one over his head.) Karma went first. He sang "When I Was Your Man", and he was completely lying about his gorgeous voice. I guess aliens have good voices. I went next. I looked through the songs. I wanted to do a Katy Perry song, but which one? I decided to sing ET. A little cheesy, I know, but it was perfect for the occasion. And the extra-terrestrial boy I was with.

"It's supernatural, extra-terrestrial...." I poured all of my heart and essence into it. I doubt Karma got the hint but it was fun anyway. Karma sang "Thrift Shop" and I think something inside of me died. I sarcastically did "Barbie Girl" to get him back, and then Karma sang "The Monster" by Rihanna. Maybe, I thought, there was a deeper meaning to it. I sang "Call Me Maybe" and did weird hand motions with it. Then Karma picked a song. A familiar melody filled the air. It was "Little Talks" by of Monsters and Men. He sang first, then tossed the mic to me. We did a duet together. To this day, Little Talks is one of my favorite songs because it was the first one we sang together. I glanced at the clock. Only 25 minutes left?! I didn’t want to leave. Karma’s tenor voice was too precious to leave behind in this small room, maybe forever. We sang the rest of the songs duet. These were the songs:
-Just Give Me A Reason
-Stay
-Human
-I’m With You
And then the last one. Karma chose the song. It was “Where Have You Been”, only this time, Karma sang it alone. He put feeling into it, like he really cared about someone. Lucky alien girl who got Karma. Or alien guy. At this point, I wasn’t sure about Karma’s preference.

By then, we were overtime and quietly sneaked out. If you knew me at all, you would know that I fell asleep on the way back. Karma carried me home, his strong arm around my waist firmly. I will always remember that night as my favorite memory with Karma.


Karma’s POV

   That night was easily the best night of my life. After we got home, I tucked Candy in bed. As I gazed at her sleeping form, I realized sadly that, even though I liked her a lot, Candy was so much younger than me. It would be wrong to date her. From now on I would treat her like a little sister. This amazing world she had shown me, with new sights and sounds and experiences was beyond my dull alien senses. I would step out of this world before I got hurt.


Candy’s POV

   I was watching the news when I saw a burning, demolished building. A news lady, trying to look composed with her tear-streaked face, stood in front of the scene. “Empress Ika continues to wreak destruction and the Mews aren’t defending us. If there’s a Mew watching this…..please help us. You’re our only hope.” I knew what I had to do. I had to try to save the world from Empress Ika. Tonight would be a good night to face her.


Karma’s POV

   I had to tell Candy. She deserved to know, we had been living in the same house for a long time now. I ran into her in the hall and stopped her. It was time she knew. I opened my mouth before I could back out. “Candy…...There’s something I need to tell you…” Candy blushed and stepped back in surprise. “W-What?” Now or never.

“Whenever a new empress is crowned, a person is selected to be the key, or kagi. If the kagi is killed, then the empress dies too. The kagi was made in case an empress ever used her powers for evil…..” Candy looked concerned. “Karma….Are you the kagi?” I had to tell her the truth, although I rather wouldn’t have. My voice hesitated, not wanting to expose my secret and Candy’s delicate, raw feelings.
“Yes…” Candy started crying, and her ears popped out because of heightened emotion. She said, flustered, “Karma, don’t give yourself up!” She squeezed her brown-amber eyes shut. “I….I need you..” I reeled in shock. “What?” She repeated her statement. “I...need you.” I felt extremely guilty. I had to give myself up. It was the law. “I’ll...stay..” I said quietly, averting my eyes. “Promise?” asked Candy. I looked into her eyes. I didn’t want to, but I had to lie, or Candy would make sure I didn’t sacrifice myself.
   “I…...promise.”

   That night, I tossed and turned in bed. I had to go do my duty as kagi and die. I peeked into the room where Candy was sleeping. I’m sorry, Candy. I tiptoed in and kissed her forehead. And then I left. I had to face Ika.