Alpha of Dahael

Chapter 5 - Feels Like Home

Sayde greeted the owners who were chatting in the lounge and they offered her some cookies, a slice of freshly baked chocolate cake and a cup of tea to take to her room.

She wanted to hug them tightly but opted to thank them instead enthusiastically. Their kindness was a reminder of what she’d lost a sense of belonging, of family. She quickly went to her room and closed the door, sighing to herself as she placed the gift on the table.

She looked at the lack of contacts on her phone and the unopened work emails in her inbox, letting out a long, frustrated sigh. Once, she’d had a circle of friends, but her reclusive nature and constant moves had whittled that down to nothing. Now, her phone felt like a relic of a life she no longer had.

'Guess it's time to get to work,' she said to herself as she sat herself comfortably

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He watched as she drove away, carefree and unburdened, and smiled to himself. When could he ever be like that? He walked towards the building to speak to the secretary for giving him the wrong code. A tiny sparkle caught his eye and he stooped over to pick it up, it looked like the thing hanging from Sayde's pocket.

He supposed he could thank the secretary for making the mistake and making him run into such a fire-spirited girl. His heart skipped a beat and furrowed his brow, a small thought flittered through his mind before disappearing into nothingness. " Mate?"

He chuckled to himself at the mere suggestion. He nearly dropped it as he felt a sudden temperature spike like a pulse, he inspected the necklace before shaking his head in confusion. He didn't know if it was all in his head but shoved the necklace into his pocket for safekeeping.

After talking with the secretary who turned out to be quite a sweetheart, he was now lying comfortably in his new apartment, temporary shelter you may say. His first order of business was finding the person who could fix his problem. He sighed and stared at the walls in boredom.

'Well might as well,' he said to himself as he quickly got up and headed to the bathroom to take a quick shower. He might as well see what this area was like, his mind flickered back to the young lady of that morning.

'Maybe if he had gotten into the city earlier he might have gotten to know her.' Her mind wandered to the way her eyes lit up when she laughed, the danger in her eyes when she thought he was suspicious. Her gentle smile was so warm, it felt like he’d felt the sun for the first time. There was something about her—something that tugged at a part of him he couldn’t quite name. He shook his head, pushing the thought aside. She was a stranger, after all.

She seemed sweet and light and free-spirited, the confidence she exuded was something he wished he could embody. He let out a small groan as the warm water cascaded down his body. He felt a twitch, he closed his eyes and turned the water to cold, the icy spray biting at his skin. The shock of it cleared his mind, washing away the lingering thoughts of the fiery girl he’d met that morning. He lingered under the spray, letting the cold seep into his bones until he felt grounded again. He wasn't about to rub one out to a stranger he met barely 24 hrs ago.

He spent an extra minute taking in the iceiness of the water before he stepped out of the shower and dried himself with his towel. He dried his hair and pulled on a t-shirt and a pair of jean shorts. Nothing could go wrong with a simple casual outfit to go to a bar or something.

Locking his door he walked towards the elevator and punched in his code number. The elevator immediately opened and he made his way to the parking lot towards his car.

Pretty soon he was on the brightly lit stretch of road following the GPS to a well-known bar in town. After making a few rounds and finally finding parking he made his way to the dimly lit semi-classy-looking bar. The bar was dimly lit, the air thick with the scent of whiskey and polished wood. Soft jazz played in the background, the notes blending with the low hum of conversation. He made his way to the bar and said, "I'd like to start with something simple Miss," he squinted at the name tag in the dim lighting, "Rose."

"Might I introduce you to our whiskey selection sir?" she said pointing at the variety of bottles on the shelf behind her. He gave her a dimpled smile before saying, "I trust you darling, so I'll let you choose okay?"

He turns his back to her and surveys the room observantly.

"You drink sir," she said beaming at what may become her favourite customer of the evening. "If you need anything else please feel free to signal to me and I'll be right with you."

"Thank you, Miss Rose, I appreciate it." Audeion took a sip of his drink, the smooth blend of whiskey and coconut water warming his chest as he surveyed the room. He took another sip and flashed the bartender a happy grin before taking a stroll around the place, as the night went on the music changed, going from Jazz to some light afro lofi beat.

People were swaying gently taking in the atmosphere, catching up with their friends or making new ones.

Someone stepped back, bumping into him and nearly spilling his drink. "Hey sorry man, I tripped."

"No biggie, all is well," Audeion said, taking another sip and attempting to walk away.

"Wait! Aude?" the voice said in recognition, "it's me, Aaron."

Audeion turned and gave him an eleven over, vaguely remembering the face.

"My dad came to visit your dad at the merger meeting and we got to check out your vehicle collection at the back, at the merger pack two years ago?" Aaron said trying to fill in the gaps of Audeion's memory of him.

"Huh, it's been that long hasn't it, let me buy you a drink." He made his way to the bar with Aaron in tow.

He signalled to the bartender and she made her way over to his side of the bar, "Miss Rose, my friend here is offering to buy me a drink, so here's my glass."

"Same thing sir?"

"Yes, ma'am that would be lovely."

Audeion turned to Aaron and gave him a good look over, in better lighting he could make out the familiar face.

"Are you here for business or pleasure Mr. Dahael," Aaron said formally. Audeion laughed and shook his head, "Mr Dahael is my father, please call me Audeion or Aude for short."

"A little bit of both at the moment," he said, retrieving his drink from Rose and thanking her. "I heard that I could get something here so I'm here."

"Your wish is my command," he said with a chuckle. "I know here like the back of my hand it's been a year since we moved here."

Audeion acknowledged absentmindedly as he became deep in thought, slowly nursing his drink.

"What's your number so I can keep in contact with you during my stay here?" Aaron quickly reached out and entered his number into the phone.

Audeion nodded and slipped the phone back into his pocket while continuing to have his drink. "Is there any place we can have fun here?"

"Ya, there's a place down the street called L'aconite. We can hang around. It's a bit of a neutral ground type establishment."

He looked towards the door and back at Audeion, "We can head out if you wish."

Audeion quickly downed his drink and said goodbye to the nice bartender giving her a tip as he did so.

"I'll wait for you then follow if you don't wanna ride with me."

"Not a problem, give me a minute," Aaron said as he jogged over to his car. He had an old school bluebird type car which he kept in mint condition while driving every day. Knowing Aaron that car was nowhere close to street legal though.

He chuckled as Aaron drove passed him slowly while his engine rumbled impatiently, he revved his vehicle too and before you knew it they were packed at the other bar, laughing in the parking lot like old friends.

"Do I even want to know what’s under that hood?" Audeion asked, clapping Aaron on the back with a grin. Aaron laughed, "For the sake of both of our innocence let's pretend that everything under there is normal."

They walked into the semi-packed bar filled with the scent of flavoured smoke and alcohol. "Gonna get something to drink then check it out," Aaron half yelled at Audeion.

Audeion nodded while he checked out the place. It was a nice bar, the aesthetic pleasing to the eye, the lights were dimmed but there was enough lighting that you could see in front of you but dark enough to have privacy. He waited as Aaron came back with a beer and they clinked their bottles together and strolled through the club as people moved out of their way. His father was well known in the community and sometimes he had his perks.

They made their way over to the private area where they discussed things that had happened over the years and why Audeion was currently in this district. A few drinks down the line, Aaron watched as one of the women tried and failed at getting Audeion's attention from her.

As the night got later, Audeion called it a night and drove back to his apartment thinking of his day tomorrow. Aaron wanted to drive with him to ensure his safety, but Audeion reminded him that it was safer for him to travel around without garnering attention by himself than with a chaperone. As he drove back to his apartment, the moon hung low in the sky, casting long shadows across the road. A faint rustling sound came from the trees lining the street, but it was gone before he could be sure. The night felt alive, as if watching him, and a shiver ran down his spine despite the warmth of the car.

People knew of his father, but being in his father's shadow had its pros and cons, one of them being not everyone immediately recognized him since he took on more of his mother's features than his dad.

With what he was searching for, it would be better not to draw attention to himself. After all, it was a race against time for him.