9.

Tristan could barely open her eyes, let alone establish where she was. There was a flashing light in what little of her vision remained, she kept trying to reach out to whatever was the cause of the light.

On. Off. Off. On. On. Off. Off. On.

Her breath felt like it was high up in her chest, as if she wasn't able to fully inhale. Something was restricting around her, holding her firmly in place. Even though her head was still spinning and she felt like at any moment she could pass out, Tristan slowly opened one eye to see where the flashing light was coming from.

But when Tristan did, she felt hands guide around her to pull her free from the restricting pressure around her chest, causing her to lose consciousness for a moment. When she came to, her eyes were able to open now, but she wasn't able to decipher what she was looking at or, more importantly, who she was looking at.

"Can you hear me?"

Tristan wanted to shake her head no, even though she could hear the person. She couldn't make sense of anything that was going on.

"We were in an accident, Tristan."

Again, Tristan felt the urge to shake her head as if she wanted to deny that an accident had taken place. She looked to the person, trying to blink away the fog from her vision, as a halo of light came into her view. It circled the head of the person aiding to Tristan, until finally the fog from Tristan's eyes began to lift.

As Tristan blinked away the last of the haze, the beauty of Esme appeared with her long red curls framing her doll-like face. Those deep, dark brown eyes pierced into Tristan in such a way that Tristan had never seen before. No eyes could match those of Esme.

In that moment, the universe seemed to slow down around them. Tristan could see clearly now, the world opening up in front of her as Esme came into view. The light was still pulsing rhythmically behind Esme and yet Tristan could have sworn the light was shining only on Esme. For the first time in her life, Tristan felt like she could see exactly what she needed to see... and that was Esme.

"Holy crap," Tristan mumbled in awe. She tried to pull herself to sit up, but Esme ushered her to stay laying down.

"I think you hit your head," Esme examined, prodding at Tristan's forehead as some blood slipped between her fingers.

Tristan felt woozy, to say the least, but that wasn't on her list of concerns. Frankly, in that very moment, Tristan had no real concerns for anything. She simply wanted to be where she was and, in all honesty, with the company she was currently keeping.

Accident or not, Tristan felt more alive than ever. Call it adrenaline, Tristan didn't see it that way. She saw Esme, her healing powers, and for the first time in her life: Tristan believed in a God.

It was overwhelming to the point that Tristan wanted to cry, feeling the swell of tears in her eyes as she blinked them away. Esme noted this and gently placed one hand beneath Tristan's head as if to act as a barrier between Tristan and the cold, wet cement.

Tristan felt that Esme had been calm in what could otherwise be a traumatic time. Esme had a way of simply being that now bewildered Tristan, as if Tristan was given a new pair of eyes.

Esme paused. She looked down into the lake of Tristan's eyes, thumbing away some of the tears from Tristan's cheeks the best that she could given that Tristan was covered in blood, too.

"We need to get you to a hospital," Esme said.

"No," Tristan sharply replied. "I don't need a hospital."

Esme froze as she waited for Tristan to continue on, but Tristan felt she had to sit up to say what needed to be said. As she did, the blood quickly rushed to and from Tristan's head, making her feel momentarily dizzy. After it passed, Tristan was able to focus on where they were, what had happened, and how the scene was currently laid out.

The car was in the middle of the road, surrounded by trees on either side, with not a soul in sight. Tristan had taken the outskirts of the city where not many people drove through, though she had never seen it this quiet. Maybe it was good that no one else had been on the road when the accident had taken place... except, there had been someone on the road. The figure.

Tristan looked around to see if there was another body in sight, but there was nothing on the road or in the ditches. She was sure that she had seen someone, that was why Esme told her to pay attention.

Tristan stopped looking for the figure. Whoever it was, they must have felt bad and run away. Coward, Tristan thought.

"Tristan, are you okay?" Esme asked, snapping Tristan back to attention.

As soon as Tristan made eye contact with Esme again, she felt herself soften at the sight. This beautiful, miraculous God had bonded herself to Tristan, and Tristan now felt how strong that very bond was. It was like a string from Esme all the way to Tristan, binding them together no matter what. Tristan didn't want to sever the ties to that bond any longer. She could finally see it.

"Esme," Tristan began, clearing her throat. She wiped the tears from her own cheeks, noting the blood on her hands afterwards. "I'm so sorry."

Esme nodded. They didn't say anything for a few seconds, until Tristan continued.

"I don't think you understand why I'm apologizing to you," Tristan said. She saw the light around Esme still, so bright and yet so calming. It was the sun on a warm summer day. "Esme, do you really know how to help me?"

"I can do anything you ask of me."

"So, if I asked you to just be yourself, would you do it?" Tristan persisted.

"I'm always myself," Esme smiled a little as she said it.

Tristan acknowledged this, but she wasn't satisfied.

"Okay, fine. If I asked you to not use your powers on me, those same powers you use to manipulate Twila and the teachers and for Gods sakes, even Hasson --- would you be able to do that for me?" Tristan asked.

"Are you saying that you want me to not use any powers at all?" Esme questioned. She was slightly intrigued by Tristan's changed character.

"No, not exactly. I was hoping that... well, you'd help me," Tristan muttered, a little ashamed to admit the words. The second she looked closer at Esme, her fears melted away. The sensation was overwhelming. Even though it took all the strength in her body to do so, Tristan placed her hand on Esme's. "Esme, I don't know why you are here right now or how any of this happened. But, I want to believe in you."

Esme smiled as she looked away, unable to meet Tristan's gaze.

"You're sure?" Esme asked.

Tristan, so sure of what she wanted, found herself in a state of excitement that she had never felt before. She wanted to believe in Esme. Tristan reached up to turn Esme's face gently towards hers so that they could look at one another.

Esme knew that Tristan wasn't just talking nonsense because of a head injury, that she really meant what she was saying.

"Tristan, you don't have to ask for permission to believe in me," Esme explained softly. "You just need to believe."

Unsure of how to proceed, Tristan gently let go of Esme's face so that she could wipe the remainder of the blood from her own. After she felt she was presentable, Tristan nodded and cleared her throat. She stared at Esme for awhile, waiting for the moment to happen.

Even though they were in the midst of an accident scene, none of that seemed to matter now. Tristan focused her attention solely on Esme, examining her closer. The freckles on Esme's cheeks and nose were so faint and yet made up so much of her skin, they were dotted like stars in the sky. Her lips were a shade of pink so soft that it looked as though she had purposely worn lipstick to achieve the colour. Her eyes, although they were so deep and dark, were also incredibly intricate in shape and size.

Tristan reached out to play with some of Esme's curls, springing one up and down a few times before gently tucking the length of it back behind Esme's ear. Tristan then reached out for one of Esme's freckled hands, noting that her long fingernails were still caked in dirt from digging her way out of her own grave. At that thought, Tristan felt the heartbreak settle in like an old familiar friend.

Without any warning, Tristan felt tears building up in her eyes. She could feel exactly what Esme was feeling. The feeling was overwhelming to Tristan, making her heart flutter.

Esme began to shine brighter the more that Tristan began to cry, her light shining all around so that Tristan was nearly blinded. The warmth of the light wrapped itself around Tristan until she felt the emotions simmer, cooling down with her as the light slowly faded to a soft yellow hue.

"What was that?" Tristan asked, dumbfounded.

"I am your God, Tristan," Esme reminded. She placed her soft milky white palm against the side of Tristan's face, in awe of what was happening. "I will do anything and everything for you."

There was no denying how Tristan felt as her heart opened up to the God before her. This God, whoever she was, had been sent to Tristan for a reason. Tristan no longer saw the need to hide how she felt, especially when she felt the belief running through her veins.

"So please, allow me to heal you if you won't let me take you to the hospital," Esme said.

Esme motioned for Tristan to hold both of her hands, promising her that she wouldn't hurt her. Tristan wanted to trust Esme, but she knew that it was going to take time. After hesitating only for a moment, Tristan placed her hands in Esme's palms. Then, without any warning, Esme clasped her fingers around Tristan's hands, pulling her in so that the two were nearly chest-to-chest, their faces were so close that Tristan had to turn hers.

Tristan tried to pull away, but Esme had a tight hold on her hands and seemed to be able to control her with just this maneuver. Keeping Tristan's now shaking hands down at her side was easy for Esme, she wasn't even breaking a sweat. Whereas Tristan was gritting her teeth like she was in an arm wrestling competition, trying her best to use all of her strength to out muscle Esme.

Finally, Esme let go of Tristan's right hand, the same hand that was injured previously by the sauce can. Tristan's first response was to try to push herself away from Esme, but Esme simply grabbed Tristan by the face with her free hand. At this moment, Tristan and Esme locked eyes, freezing in place. Esme gently opened Tristan's mouth by applying pressure to her jaw in just the right way, until finally Tristan felt something beginning to rise up from the pit of her stomach. It travelled all the way through her body until it reached her throat and up into her mouth until it spilled out like a cloud of hot air, travelling up into the atmosphere as the wind blew it away.

Tristan screamed as loud as she could when she was able to and finally Esme let go of her. Tristan fell back, staring bewildered at Esme.

"I said no magic on me!" Tristan shouted, slamming her palm down onto the ground. But the second that her right hand hit the cement below, there wasn't any pain where there once was.

Tristan quickly looked at her hand, examining it a few times over. There was no sign of an injury, not even a scar. Where her head was once pulsating softly, it was now clear. The pain she once felt in her body, the same pains teenagers typically get when they are growing, were also gone. For the first time in her seventeen years on earth, Tristan was free from all the pains of life.

Esme sat down on her knees, looking Tristan over closely. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."

"Why did you do that?" Tristan asked. She wasn't pleased about Esme disobeying what Tristan had already asked of her.

"Because I have to keep you safe," Esme stated. "You can't go around hurt from the start. You need to be able to start out on your best foot."

"But what happened to not using your superpowers on me?"

Esme chuckled softly.

"Tristan, I would never use my powers to hurt you or to manipulate you," Esme said. "This much I can promise."

Without even thinking, Tristan sat up from the ground facing Esme, extending her pinky finger towards her. Esme glanced down at Tristan's finger before locking both of theirs together, setting the promise between them.

Tristan looked at the scene around them, noting that it was probably time to call for help. Even though Esme had healed Tristan, they would still have to report the accident and figure out if she had totaled Julian's car once and for all.

As if Esme was trying to read what was going through Tristan's mind, she followed Tristan's gaze to the overturned car that Esme had pulled her out of. Luckily all of the windows to the car were still intact, but the front windshield was beginning to crack and a spiderweb in the glass was forming. Esme hopped up onto her feet and looked around the car for a moment before joining Tristan's side once more.

Without thinking twice, Esme stepped up towards the overturned car, placing her fingers beneath the vehicle until she was able to start pushing it over. Tristan gasped as she watched Esme slowly turn the car onto its side, then onto its wheels once more. The car bounced as it landed, making Tristan cringe.

Esme turned around to look at Tristan for approval, but Tristan was too caught up in how she was going to explain to Julian what happened to his car.

"Can't you heal it like you did me?" Tristan asked, a little foolishly.

Esme shook her head. "No, it doesn't work like that. What are you afraid of?"

"My dad," Tristan replied, shrinking. "This isn't my car yet. Julian is letting me borrow it because one day he's going to give it to me when he decides to upgrade his vehicle. The stipulation was that I needed to treat it like it's already my own, and... well, that isn't going so hot."

Esme eyed the car before turning her attention back to Tristan. "I can help."

Weighing her shoulders from side to side as she contemplated, Tristan finally shook her head. "That's one more rule: No magic on my parents, either."

Esme nodded. She didn't question Tristan's request. Tristan had to be firm about how Esme interacted with her dads, especially given that Julian couldn't know about Esme being a God. Somehow, and Tristan hadn't quite figured out the how yet, she needed to keep Esme a secret.

Stepping up to the car, Tristan eyed the interior to be sure that everything was okay. Besides being all mixed up inside, a few dents in the bumper, and a cracked windshield, it seemed like everything was in working order.

But what Tristan couldn't quite get out of her mind was the figure that she had attempted to swerve around. She couldn't see anyone else in sight.

"Did I hit someone? I swerved because you told me there was someone on the road, right?" Tristan asked.

Esme briefly glanced around to be sure that no one was hurt nearby, but she, too, couldn't see anyone.

"I thought as much," Esme replied. "I saw someone."

"So did I," Tristan added. "But where are they now?"

"Long gone," Esme said. "Maybe it was a deer?"

Tristan shook her head. "It was definitely human."

"Should we look for it, then?"

Tristan eyed her current state then looked over to notice that Esme had torn her dress at some point. Her thigh was exposed as the piece hung beside in a long strand. There wasn't any blood, but Tristan felt bad. She noted that Esme had been wearing the same dress since she showed up at Northrop High. Regardless of what had happened before, Tristan wanted to take care of Esme now.

"No," Tristan broke the silence. "It's probably better if we just go home. I feel fine, but... I'm tired."

"I understand," Esme replied.

Tristan gestured for Esme to get into the car before getting in herself. Sitting behind the steering wheel after an accident should have scared Tristan, instead she felt renewed with Esme, her own God, sitting beside her. For the first time in Tristan's life she felt invigorated.

Much to Tristan's surprise, Julian's car started up with barely a struggle. It seemed most of the damage was superficial. Even the thought of facing Julian about his car didn't scare Tristan anymore, confident that Esme would help in some way.

As they began driving, Tristan and Esme started planning how they would keep Esme a secret from Tristan's parents. The two had nearly a care in the world at that moment, driving as if nothing bad had happened.

Little did they know just who they almost hit.