Succulents on The Window Sill

One might ask how Corinne ended up in her best friend's boyfriend's bed, wearing nothing but his college football shirt, with his arms wrapped protectively around her. To explain: Corinne wouldn't know where to start. "It's a family thing," she thought aloud as she wriggled free from Zach and made for the bathroom. Most families had Christmas traditions where they played Monopoly all afternoon or visited the same campsite for a week every summer, despite how much they hated camping. Corinne's family was a little...different. They had emigrated from France during the 1930's along with the majority of their quint little village. Quint was rather a nice term to describe it though. There was a good reason why only a few families of descendants still kept in touch with the community that they had fought so hard to maintain over the years and through the generations. The community had a rather traditional outlook on life, which was fine if said traditions were more...conventional. They weren't though, and the fact that Corinne was stood brushing her teeth in a bathroom that was not her own was proof of that. She had anticipated feeling dirty after the night she had just had. Tears had been expected, along with screams and punches to Zach as she cursed at him for not being able to overpower her. To overpower both of their desires as they had taken over. He'd been as weak as Corinne. At six-foot tall, built of as much muscle as he could gain in these past few weeks, she had expected better of him. "Corinne, I think the effects of the potion might still be running through me." The bathroom door pushed open from where Corinne had left it ajar, and with ruffled hair and squinting eyes, Zach entered. "Sure it's not just morning wood?" It should be embarrassing to talk to him like this, but it wasn't. He came up behind her, so close that she could feel the heat of his body as it acted like a furnace in the cold morning air. She could see his reflection in the mirror as he wiped the sleep from his eyes, before watching Corinne's own mirrored image as she spat out the last mouthful of toothpaste. "How sexy." "I'm not here to be your eye candy, Zach." Corinne wiped her mouth on a nearby towel she prayed was clean. "Nah, you're just here to have my babies and keep this damn cult alive." His tone was bitter. For that reason alone, Corinne knew the potion was indeed wearing off, if not now completely gone from his system. She turned towards the bath, climbing into it and tugging across the shower curtain, before ridding herself of Zach's shirt. It was tossed over the top of the curtain rail, and Corinne could only hope that it didn't land anywhere dirty, like down the toilet. A sudden sound of water hitting water told her something else was going down the toilet though, and she couldn't help but screw her nose up at it. "Zach, seriously?" "What? I need to pee." "Can't you wait, or do it elsewhere?" "You honestly want me to walk around the rest of the house in just my boxers?" "I'm just glad you're wearing boxers..." Whatever Zach said in reply was drowned out by Corinne turning on the shower. It was hot, with a pressure that relaxed muscles she didn't know she had been holding. There was an underlying stress that she could feel, but it seemed to be covered in a layer of something. It reminded her of an anaesthetic, a chemical calm. It was down to those damn succulents on the window sill. Her mum had insisted on her taking them with her, a stupid accessory when armed with nothing else but a simple overnight bag. Who needed a tray of plants for one night away? No matter how much her mum tried to play innocent, Corinne knew she had placed a charm on them. Whatever it was though, it was working. Once she got her hair damp, Corinne looked around the edges of the bath to see what shampoos were available. There was only one bottle sitting in the corner against the tiles. Corinne picked it up, glancing at the label. It was a shower gel and shampoo all in one. It didn't promise to create sleek shiny hair like Corinne's usual brands did. Nor did it claim to hydrate and moisture her body. It didn't really promise to do anything. If this was what Zach used, this bland bottle, then how had his hair felt so silky soft in her fingers last night, his body so warm and soft against her own? Corinne shook the memories from her mind. She placed the bottle back down before stepping back from under the water to listen if Zach was still in the bathroom with her or not. Water could be heard running, along with the brushing of teeth, and the spitting off the toothpaste. "Zach?" "Hm?" He spat again. "Can you go into the bedroom and grab me some things from my bag?" "Like?" The water from the sink turned off, and a second later Corinne could see a nearby movement through the thin shower curtain. He was standing close by, so she lowered her voice from its shout, knowing he could now hear her over the water. "Um, shampoo please, and conditioner too. Oh and shower gel of course. I then need something to wash with, so bring my shower net thing, and my comb just in case my hair gets tangly and the shampoo gets stuck in it. Then...hm, bring my body lotion. It'll be easier to put it on in here than anywhere else." At least behind the shower curtain, she had privacy. "Corinne, you've got to be joking, right? I use one bottle and my hands, and you need all that?" Corinne opened her mouth to speak, but Zach cut her off with a sigh. "Fine. If I need to make two trips, don't blame me." She'd never seen him back down from something so quickly before. It had to be those damn succulents. "Can you get me a towel too?" "No. You can stand there and air-dry!" His voice was growing faint, and Corrine knew he had now left her for the bedroom. She stepped back under the hot water, heating herself from the coldness of the room. Zach was back a few minutes later in the shape of an arm pushing its way between curtain and tile. He had his fist around Corinne's shampoo, obviously trying to find the ledge to set it on as he moved it this way and that. She took it from him, flicking open the cap and pouring a little into her palm before lathering up her hair with it. She'd spent ages curling her hair yesterday afternoon, before twisting it up into an elaborate style she had spent days practising. It had been sad to take it down last night, but Corinne had liked the curls she had been left with that bounced around her shoulders. There was something bittersweet about washing them away right now. They felt like the last physical reminder of last night. Now that she was out of her dress, free from the delicate chains that had adorned her neck and hair, sparkling with gems and crystals, her wedding almost felt like a dream that had never happened. Here she was though, stood in her husband's bath showering away the traces of what they had become. A part of Corinne knew she could cry if it wasn't for the charmed succulents stopping her. Zach next passed the conditioner, bumping it into Corinne's knee before finding the ledge to place it upon. This hand darting in and out didn't feel like it belonged to a man that she would now call her husband. As much as she hated the fact that that was pretty much what he was now, compared to the other options available, Corinne knew Zach had been the best catch. She hated how he just so happened to be her best friend's boyfriend. Corinne hadn't told Sara about the wedding, for in Sara's world, it wasn't really a wedding. An evening dinner at a family friend's house, in a basic dark blue summer dress, with an odd ceremony in the centre of their hallway; it wasn't a wedding in most people's book. It wasn't legal though, for Zach was not yet her husband in the eyes of the law. No register had been signed, no vows had been spoken. In the eyes of their community, they were joined though. With the cups that had been passed to them, and the order to drink the thick liquid within, they were joined far greater than any ring or signature could ever bind them. Someday soon she and Zach would be expected to hold a second wedding to make things legal, and Corinne already knew that if it went ahead, it would be a quiet affair. It would be one Sara would not be invited to. The thought of that hurt her more than she had ever thought it too. Sara had been her best friend for years, and as kids they had played weddings together, dreaming of white dresses and handsome princes. Corinne had always played at Sara's bridesmaid, and Sara, Corinne's. Sara had been talking of weddings a lot lately, about what if's and maybes when it came to the future. The groom she had been dreaming of marrying was currently trying to unstick a shower curtain from his elbow as he dropped Corinne's hair comb in the bottom of the bathtub. If it wasn't for the succulents on the window sill, Corinne knew she would have burst into tears at that thought. "Corinne?" "Hm?" "Everything okay, or can you just not hear me over the water in there?" "Uh, why?" "I've asked you twice now if I remembered everything or not." "Oh, yeah, sorry." Corinne had been too deep in her own thoughts to hear him. Zach's voice had been nothing but background noise. She looked around the edge of the tub, noting that everything she had asked for was present, minus the towel. "You're thinking of Sara, aren't you?" "No," she lied, finishing the rinsing of shampoo from her hair. Corinne reached over to help free Zach from the curtain now stuck to the wrist of his other hand. "Hold still." "I am. And good...I can't think about her Corinne, not today." They had a wedding breakfast to attend, a welcoming to the family of sorts. Legally she was still Corinne Vernet, but she was now as much of a Dubois as she would ever be. She knew Zach's family and had done all her life, but there was still a nervousness, a dread, that only the charmed plants on the window sill could keep down. "I just feel so bad." "Corinne." It was a warning. "Zach, I can't help it." Sara was her best friend. She had been there for Corinne through so much. It broke her to turn around and betray Sara like this. "And neither can I, but stop it." Zach's hand found her's, squeezing gently. It was a contrast to the tone in his voice. "We've talked about this. We don't need to go over the same lines again and again. We know what we need to do, all we can do, so let's shut up and do it." It was stupid words to say when his hand was in hers, holding her like a loving husband held his wife. Corinne just sighed. He let go of her hand, sliding back behind the curtain and away from the bath. Corinne picked up the conditioner and continued with her shower. ----- Corinne came down the staircase and entered the Dubois' dining room, just to be met with a cry of cheers. Zach's parents were there, along with his younger brother. His grandparents joined them, as did a cluster of faces Corinne didn't know. She could pick out a few aunts and uncles from the crowd, and his cousin Mallory who was only a few years younger than Corinne, as for the rest though, they were complete strangers. A man came up to her and shook her hand, before leaning in to kiss her cheek. Over the chatter of the room, Corinne couldn't catch his name, nor that of the lady who came up behind him to welcome her in the same way. Suddenly Zach was at her heels, his hand on her elbow as he steered her through the chaos to the breakfast laid upon the table. It was a traditional French breakfast, with a few local foods occupying them that had wormed their way into the feast. It looked wonderful, and Corinne was starving, but she felt her stomach twist and turn as the reality of it all hit her. With the charms her mum had placed on the plants upstairs, it was easy when there to keep her feelings at bay. Down here she was at a distance from them, and she could feel every inch of it. "You look like you're going to be sick." Zach's voice was soft, but his worry was obvious. He'd shown it last night, and he was showing it now; the protectiveness towards Corinne had already started to grow inside of him. The potion had done what it had meant to, and there was no escaping it. The thought of that made Corinne feel even worse. They'd tried hard the night before to fight the growing lust. Zach had even locked himself inside of the bathroom to keep the plan that they had agreed upon from being ruined. It had been no use though, not when he was like a magnet Corinne was drawn to. She could almost feel herself being pulled across the floor to whimper outside the bathroom door at him. He'd put on music to drown her out, he'd listed off every gory wound he'd ever suffered from in a bid to lower their arousals, it had been no use though. In the end, he had taken her right there on the floor, the upper half of their bodies in the bedroom whilst the rest lay on the bathroom's tiled floor. It had started out rough, so much so that Zach insisted she took over and lead. What Corinne's body was able to cope with, and what it craved were two different things though. As gentle and slow as they tried to be, the potion wasn't having any of it. She'd grabbed at the door frame, using it as leverage to bounce back against Zach far harder than her body could take. She'd been sore when she had woke that morning, thankful for the bed they had eventually moved to, as it's warmth mixed with Zach's almost made it okay. She hated how he made her feel that little bit better, more comfortable and relaxed. It wasn't just because they were in this together, it was the potion locking them together as one. He took a seat beside Corinne at the head of the breakfast table, smiling politely as his family gathered around. He appeared to be so calm, so okay with all of this what with his pleasantries and practised words. It wasn't until breakfast was over, and they were climbing the stairs back to his room did Zach seem to crack. "When are you leaving?" "Soon as." "Good." Corinne glanced at him as he pushed open his bedroom door. Zach's shoulders were slumped, his brows furrowed in a permanent frown. He had done everything he could to make this as comfortable as possible for them both, she knew that, but now Corinne could see his energy slipping. "How about I give you my number and get going? That way we can text each other with any important news that it would be suspicious for us not to know." "Yeah. Whatever." His knees hit the end of the bed, and he fell back, arms coming up to cover his face from Corinne's eyes. "You okay?" The protectiveness growing inside of her too forced her to ask. "I just need to sleep I guess. Did you see how much more of that s**t was in my cup than yours?" Corinne shrugged, crouching down to push the clothes Zach had pulled out of her overnight bag when trying to find her shower products, back in again. "I guess. You are a lot bigger than me though." "I'm a twenty-one-year-old man, do I really need an extra dose of viagra to get it up? It was unnecessary." "That stuff was way stronger than any viagra." "Oh, do you have experience or something?" He sounded sharp. Corinne let it go, knowing he was likely just exhausted from this entire situation. "No, but come on Zach, you think viagra would have us clawing the door down to get to each other?" "Damn, that reminds me, I need to fix that handle." He lifted one arm from his eyes to glance across at it, and Corinne followed his gaze. The bathroom door handle was hanging limply when surely it should have sat parallel to the floor. "Was that you or I that did that?" If it was her fault, she'd gladly pay for the replacement. "No idea, I was too busy getting your legs spread to take notice." Zach's arm was back over his face. Corinne stuffed the last of her belongings into her bag, before taking a quick scan of the room, eyes landing on the tray of succulents. "What should we do with these?" "They're yours, take them." "What use are they to me though?" In a few days time, she was expected to be moving in here with Zach. Corinne knew her mum would insist she brought them back here with her, so what was the point in taking them home in the first place? "What are they anyway?" Zach sat up on the bed, swinging his legs from the end of it to the side. "Succulents. I'm ninety-nine percent sure mum put a charm on them." "What?" He stood, crossing the room in only a few of his large strides. "Some sort of spell. From how it feels, it must be a calming one, probably to help with our nerves last night." "Well, that's totally not creepy at all." Corinne gave him a look, and he shook his head softly, folding his arms. The frown was still there, like a tension between his eyes that wouldn't go away. "I can just see your mum, stood in the shop chanting some s**t over a tiny plant whilst thinking of me bending her daughter over." Corinne could have laughed at that, but Zach's words only brought back the images of last night when he had done exactly that. It had been their second round. He'd helped her up of the hardwood floor when finished from their first, finding neither of them could even make it to the bed before the lust was back in full force. It had been a wild night, and Corinne found herself yawning at the thought of all the sleep she had missed out on. "Would you mind if I just left them here?" It would only lead to questions she didn't want to answer if she brought them home again. "Sure. They're still working right?" Zach paused for a moment, seeming to search to feel the answer for himself. "I need all the calm I can get right now." "You...look kind of wrecked." His frown was deepening, his eyes taking on a glaze as he placed a hand on the window sill. Corinne could see he was trying to hide it, but he was using it to hold himself up. "I am. I just need to sleep is all." "Alright, I'll leave you my number, then I'll go." All this talk of sleep was making her long for her own bed. Corinne grabbed Zach's phone from where he had left it the night before on the dresser. It was his phone, his property, and she hadn't his permission to touch it, but the link between them was making everything surrounding him feel so casual and familiar. It was the strangest feeling, and it scared Corinne more than she'd like to admit. She flicked on the screen, only to be met with the lock screen, asking her for a passcode. "The code is my birth year." Corinne rolled her eyes at him, just as he began to unbutton the shirt he had just put on an hour or two earlier. "That's hardly safe." "Well, what do you suggest? I have a head like a sieve, I'm lucky that I remember my damn birth year." Corinne quickly typed it in, watching as the screen changed to the familiar home screen. Her eyes were immediately drawn to the photograph in the background that was set as the wallpaper. She recognised the lake and the mountains in the landscape. It was a local hiking spot a few miles outside of town. It was a spot Zach and Sara visited often. Looking at it now only made Corinne's stomach turn back to that sickly twisted sensation. A notification jumped onto the screen. A text from Sara. Corinne didn't open it, didn't even glance at what few words could be revealed by the simple teaser. She went straight to the contacts page, created a new one for herself, before relocking and placing the phone back down again on the dresser. She turned back to Zach, just as he slipped under the covers and back into bed. "I'll probably see you before the weekend to bring some of my stuff over." "Yeah, that's cool. If you've anything heavy I'll help." Corinne shook her head. She planned to spend as much time at home as possible, even if her official residence would be across the road at Zach's. All she needed here was the essentials. With a small wave goodbye, she left him to rest. It had been a whirlwind of twenty-four hours, and more than anything Corinne just wanted it to be over. It wasn't a wish she could have granted though, for she knew that this was only just the beginning. She'd move in with Zach at the weekend, and their married life would begin. There was no running from this, no hiding. Ironically though, this was to be their dirty little secret. Outside of their families and the community, for now, at least, it was to be kept completely unknown. They'd told themselves, and each other, that it might not be easy, but it would be okay. She and Zach were only a few hours in and Corinne already felt as though she almost couldn't breathe. This was to be her life though, and the thought of that scared her silly.