Mates.
856 Words
The sweet smell of buttery pancakes slowly arose me from my peaceful slumber. Kieran was no longer next to me but I could hear the rustling of dishes in my tiny kitchen. Climbing out of bed I noticed my sweatshirt and shorts in a neat pile on top of my dresser. I quickly rifled through my drawers for a pair of underwear and pulled my sweatshirt and shorts back on. Thank god I looked in the mirror before going into the kitchen. My braids were a mess and I had a tiny drool line from the corner of my lip. I ripped out the rubber bands at the bottom of my braids and ran my fingers through them while tipping my head upside down. Thankfully my hair had a nice wave pattern and didn’t look like a frizzy mess. I wiped off my chin and contemplated the short walk to my kitchen. Briefly I glanced towards the antique frame I had leaned against the lamp on my end table, inside was my favorite picture of me and my sisters before I left home. We all had on hand woven flower crowns and the smile on Poppy’s face was contagious. That day we attempted to recreate every childhood memory we could before I left. The crowns were a part of our most favorite game; Field Fairy Princesses. Yes I know the name is lame and doesn’t really make sense but we were kids so cut us some slack. Being a field fairy princess was our one escape from reality. Poppy was just a baby at the time but we always made sure she was a part of the game. We’d imagine huge castles with hundreds of rooms, huge feasts and parties with hundreds of guests.
Now that we’re grown we know better.
Castles and crowns are only real in fairy tales, just like Prince Charmings. I had to learn that the hard way.
…
Back in reality I could hear my tea kettle starting to scream. As I entered the kitchen I noticed two plates of pancakes and bacon on the island. Kieran looked perfect his white t-shirt was tightly bound to each rippling muscle, I couldn’t help but stare.
“Good afternoon Miss Clover, I hope you don’t mind I took the liberty of making us some late brunch.” His smile showed all of his perfectly straight white teeth.
“Late brunch? What time is it?” I reply realizing I had no idea how long I had slept.
“You were out for a minute there it’s about half past noon.”
“Your kidding?” I smack my forehead and close my eyes.
“I’m so sorry I slept that long you really didn’t have to stay and do all this.”
He turned his back to me and grabbed two tea cups from my glass cabinet,
“There’s nothing to be sorry about, I promised you breakfast so you’re getting breakfast.. the only problem is I couldn’t make you that endless coffee so I found some tea instead.”
He poured the tea into our glasses and sat them in front of our plates.
“I hope you like pancakes..”
“Oooh I’ve never never seen a plate of food I didn’t like..”
Another memory from my childhood floated back into my mind but I pushed it away.
We sat eating and small talking for the next hour or so.. time moved differently when I was with him.
I learned about Kieran’s family and the brother he left to move here. He was vague in his reasons on why he had to leave but he was very clear on the love he had for his sibling. Kieran was only a few years younger than his brother Rory but it sounded as if they were still the best of friends. The admiration Kieran had for Rory lit up a spark in his smile. I can’t imagine why he would want to move so far from him. I couldn’t imagine living more than 20 minutes from Bo, she is my rock. Our little Poppy is off at college and I do my best to call her at least once a week.
When I pressed further to why he left a sadness washed over him. I didn’t want to be the reason for bringing a dark cloud over our morning so I tried a different tactic.
“Do you get to speak to him often?” I pry.
Kieran looked down.
“Not as often as I’d like to.. my dad has him on a sort of a ‘tour’ to find a wife.. I wanted to find my true mate for life.. I couldn’t stay.”
I reached forward to intertwine his hands into mine.
Electricity shot through every nerve ending in my hands. His eyes instantly met mine and I could tell he felt something too.
“Do you feel that too?” I ask genuinely.
“Of course I do Clover.. you’re everything I was waiting for.. you’re my true mate.”
My throat felt dry.
“… mate?”
- Writer
