Desire - Part 1: Pick your Poison {1/?}

Genre: slice-of-life, fantasy. Not romance. I repeat, this isn't a romance novel.

Summary: Rael is just a child the first time he encounters the odd woman freeloading in his father’s state. Up to his coming-of-age ceremony, he still hasn’t get a straight answer as to why her living quarters are located in the fountain, of all places.

Rael hadn’t meant to go to that place.

He wasn’t looking for trouble, but then again, he never was and still ended being his fault. Every. Single. Time.

Rael just needed a break. He was feeling too overwhelmed by everyone’s expectations, an occurrence that had increased over years; today was being particularly awful and to say he wasn’t ready to drop on his knees, begging for a day out of the spotlight– a day away from everything and everyone, for mercy, would be big fat lie.

The only thing he pretended to do was finding a lonely place so he could cry, release some stress and then make a beeline for one of his many afternoon lessons.

It would’ve been easy, could he lock himself in his chambers, shielding from the outside world for a little while. Sadly, Rael couldn’t afford such a luxury. Deidre hated when he whined, after all, and Rael didn’t think as if he could take his twin lashing out at him. At least not today, when his own emotional baggage seemed to be catching up with him.

Amidst distress, his mind had evoked a foggy recollection of the place, the warning that came up with it all but forgotten. To him, a sanctuary had just presented itself when he most needed it, meaning Rael didn’t waste time following the same route his eyes traced from afar whenever he had enough spare time to: a) remember the place existed whatsoever, b) self-assure himself that his parents, in fact, didn’t possess mind-reading skills before allowing himself to wonder.

But these were just excuses, weren’t they? Rael was bound to be blamed for his own foolishness, for his lack of self-control. In retrospective, he had no way to win and therefore, his actions only gave his parents and brother an actual reason to be angry at him.

First time for everything.

Like a coward, he fled and ended huddling behind a column near the fountain, hidden from the views of the main house windows. Bracing his legs close to his chest, Rael buried his face on his knees and wept; hoping the symphony of water falling masked his pathetic cacophony made of ugly sniffling, choking and sobbing noises. He stayed like that for a while.

“Thought I heard the sound of a broken heart.”

Startled, Rael looked up only to find a pair of sapphires staring back at him.

Screeching like a banshee, he found himself cornered while trying to get away from the unknown woman, who limited to eye him with a rather mischievous glint in her eyes. She was looking comfortable on her spot, body leant on the fountain edge, head resting on her forearms and seemingly unbothered by her damp hair sticking to her fair skin.

Rael only came out of his stupor when noticing the last fact.

“W-who are you?!” He couldn’t help but wonder who she was and why was she taking a swim in the fountain, of all places. Which were, in his opinion, valid questions to have and that he, in fact, had the right to ask.

After all, they were in his father’s lawn, and Rael hadn’t seen that woman around in the short span of his nine-years of life. Not even once.

His memory may have not been the best, but he hardly would’ve forgotten about encountering someone so off-worldly beautiful. Rael wasn’t even being nice about it, or at least he didn’t attempt to flatter; from his point of view, describing someone whose moist skin shone like a moonstone as anything but beautiful, was downright impossible.

“Apologies, did I scare you?” She even had a beautiful voice to match; it almost kept him from noticing the fact she didn’t sound apologetic, at all.

Keyword: almost.

“You didn’t answer my question.” Rael said, defensively. Because of course that he would engage in a conversation with the unidentified woman, rather than making a run back to alert the servants about an intruder.

He was just that stupid, it seemed. Strange danger? Never heard of it.

“And?” Her question may have sounded innocent, but her challenging look couldn’t be mistaken.

And like most challenges thrown at him, Rael did his best to handle it.

“H-hey, I asked first!” … only to fail miserably.

Like each time he tried to stand up for himself, he became a stuttering mess and couldn’t help but shrink under another person’s gaze. It was a fact of the universe, almost like an afterthought of God himself: roses are red, Rael shakes like a leaf.

“Well, I asked second.” The woman rebuked, a mirthful smirk adorning her peachy lips. Doubtlessly she mocked the weakling before her. “Besides, if you haven’t figured it out, it means you’re a fun one. I haven’t had fun in ages, so please forgive me for skipping over things that will spoil my only source of entertainment.”

Well, at least someone thinks I’m useful. He thought, somewhat bitterly, but kept his mouth shut. Perhaps if he didn’t answer she would grow bored and leave him alone. It rarely worked with Deidre, but one could only hope.

The woman stared. He stared back.

Rael endured her unnerving gaze, suppressing the urge to squirm that grew with each passing second her eyes lingered over his form.

Finally, she sighed and slowly rose up both hands. Whether or not it was meant to appease him, Rael didn’t now, nor did he care in that particular moment. After minutes of passing silence, she sighed again and changed her posture, looking oddly regal for someone so rude.

“Go home, boy.” The water twirled as her body turned around, her dress following the movement gracefully. “If you’re smart enough, you will never come back.”

“I am home.” It’s you who somehow trespassed the boundaries of the house! Rael didn’t dare say, but hoped his eyes got the message across.

The mysterious lady glanced over him one last time. The smile had returned, but this time it didn’t reach her eyes.

“Are you now?”

Before he could ask what she meant, the woman was gone.