The Unveiling

Chapter Eleven

I deftly made sandwiches, separating them for the different children side by side with Sarah. She was actually pretty fun, with a dry sense of humour that you’d miss unless you knew her. 

“So, you coming to the cookout?” she asked, tying up the brown lunch-bag. 

“What cookout?” I asked, raising my brow. 

Her grin was contagious, and I suddenly felt her excitement as if it were my own. 

“It happens every year,” she gushed. “It’s called the ‘Autumn Cookout’, it’s the last official function before the cold sets in.” 

“Wait, you guys have functions?” I asked. 

“Yeah, don’t you?” 

“Not outside base-camp, no,” I answered.

It seemed so normal when I thought about it, and I wondered if functions and gatherings and get-togethers were a privilege in their own right. I mean sure, Shay and I met up with people all the time, but they were often hushed, shambled affairs that could never be described as a function. It made me nostalgic for the years of prom, and first dates that I had missed out on.  We were so busy trying to survive that I guess we forgot to live. 

Her grin grew wider, “You are going to have so much fun,” she squealed, followed by the distinct shuffling of a boot outside the door where Chase was standing guard. I rolled my eyes in response. 

“Okay, can we also just talk about what your hot trainer is doing outside the door while we’re on sandwich duty?” she giggled. 

I laughed in response. “Nothing to talk about,” I shrugged. 

Her hands stopped moving as she turned to me and said, “Wait, nothing’s happened between you two?” her brow furrowed. 

“No Sarah,” I laughed, “nothing’s happened between us.” 

“Why?” she blurted out, and realising her misstep her face burned red with embarrassment.

Laughing made me somehow feel lighter. As if the weight I had been carrying wasn’t quite so overbearing. 

“Why what?” I asked, deciding to not shut her down. I had never been good with female friendships, but I liked Sarah and actually wanted to be her friend. Her rose framed glasses shone in the light, and I felt a warmth - a welcoming - I hadn’t felt in a long time. 

“Why haven’t you two… you know?” her blush growing deeper. 

Grinning I said, “I’m not quite sure what you’re implying there Sarah,” I teased. “Do you mean why haven’t we kissed?” she looked down, “felt each other up?” I swear if she could will the floor to swallow her whole, she would, “or have s*x?” She was blushing from the roots downwards.

I laughed loudly and heard a discreet cough coming from the otherside of the door, a sure sign that Chase had heard every word. 

“You’re mean,” she muttered, her eyes glistening with the joy of a newfound friendship. 

“No I’m not, you’re just a prude,” I said and stuck my tongue out at her. 

“We haven’t hooked up because for one,” I spoke slightly louder than necessary, ensuring that Chase heard every word, “he is a giant asshole who thinks he knows better than everyone else just because he’s Fae.” 

A choking laugh sounded from behind the door, and Sarah grinned in understanding as I winked at her. 

Shit, she was part Fae. “No offense,” I tacked on quickly, “And secondly, he is my trainer and from another realm,” I said seriously, “so that kind of entanglement would only complicate things.” 

“But do you want to?” she threw the same words I had spoken to her a few days earlier, back at me. 

I grinned, and simply shrugged in response, fairly certain that a pair of Fae ears were straining to hear my response. 

The Autumn Cookout was one big community gathering in the park. Picnic benches had been strategically laid out on the grass, and small twinkling lights hung between the low branches of the trees. A bonfire saw an array of people sitting by it, with a young James Dean looking fellow strumming harmoniously on a guitar, a girl with black hair pressed against him singing melodically - a song about bards and dragons and the winning of gold. 

The leaves crunched underfoot as I clutched my hot chocolate and wondered if this is what we - as a world - were missing. I mourned for the girl who never got this. Who never experienced this suburban version of her teens. At nineteen I could still be classified as a teen, but I had lived too much, experienced too much 

A loud cheer resonated from a bunch of guys at the barbecue, grilling meat and patting each other on the back for a job well-done. Mayor Winters wore a knee length woolen coat, a matching winter hat to complete the look. She really was this world’s equivalent Martha Stewart. A small group of people surrounded her, with their requests, grievances and questions. 

I stood on the sidelines and watched Sarah stand at the make-shift bar, as Abros sidled up next to her, showering her with attention. She looked happy and I knew that any guy who would give her a chance, and actually get to know her - well, if she liked them in return, she’d probably go to the ends of the earth for that person. And so, I bubbled with happiness for her as I watched her accept a drink from Abros and follow him to one of the benches. 

Even with all the life teaming around me, I felt alone, and that feeling made me want to step back into the shadows, to simply observe. I glanced up and found Chase staring at me, as he leaned against an opposite tree, likewise in the shadows, on the outskirts of society. Or rather simply on the outskirts of this society because in all honesty he was probably revelled in his realm. 

I held his stare from across the outdoor cookout, absorbing him. If I allowed myself to listen to all those thoughts that I told myself were girly and frivolous, I would admit that he looked good. For once he was dressed casually, in clothes from our realm. I noticed how his jeans enhanced his thighs, clinging to his waist. As my eyes trailed over him, I deftly skipped over his belt buckle region, and he grinned knowingly. 

While we stood there, under the stars, absorbing each other from a distance, I felt a hand rest upon my shoulder. It felt cold, and oily and foreign. I looked up and found Oswald embracing me as if we were somehow friends. The confusion must have shown on my face, as I realised my connection with Chase had been broken. 

“Don’t look so affronted Reya,” Oswald cooed, “How can we possibly get to know each other better if we don’t spend any time with one another?” 

He asked the question as if it were a perfectly rational opinion, as if me not wanting to spend time with him was absolutely absurd. I glanced back towards the tree one last time to find the spot where he had been empty, and allowed myself to be led towards a picnic table where Oswald positioned himself next to me, his hand on my back. I refused to allow myself to examine why exactly I felt disappointed at seeing that empty space where Chase had just stood. 

He swirled his wine within his glass, as if that action would present him in a sophisticated manner, when I thought he was little more than an i***t. 

“So Reya,” he spoke, his voice dropping a notch in a tone that should have been appealing, but I simply found repulsive. 

I saw the way some of the other women looked at him, and I knew that he wasn’t a bad looking guy. In fact, some of those same women were shooting daggers at me, simply because I was sitting with him. And yet, nothing about him gave me butterflies. Nothing about sitting next to him brought anticipation. In fact, I didn’t even feel indifferent, I felt positively repulsed, as if the core being that was me couldn’t stand to be next to him for a moment longer. 

I swallowed down the shudder that ran through my body and plastered a smile on my face and said, “So Oswald…”. 

“How are you enjoying your time here?” he asked, removing his hand from my back and placing it upon my thigh. I shifted uncomfortably, hoping that the outward movement would be enough to get him to remove his hand.

“It has been lovely, thank you,” I answered, dipping my head. Sensing my discomfort, he lifted his hand from my thigh and simply continued the conversation, as if an affront hadn’t been caused. 

“That’s good,” he nodded, as if he too understood that me being here was only temporary, “but where do you see yourself settled?” he asked. 

I blinked back my surprise, “Settled?” 

“Certainly,” he stretched his arms wide, one hand falling across my shoulders, pulling closer towards him, “there is a place for you within the military.” 

I frowned - both at his arm around me, and at his response. 

“Oh, not like that Reya,” he laughed, “You wouldn’t be a grunt within the army, no  a woman of your stature could quite easily lead her own unit.” 

I stilled beneath his arm, as I began to understand what he was saying. 

“Of course you would report to those with more experience, but I’m sure over time even then you could be promoted,” he flashed his pearly white teeth at me and I wondered if his chauvinistic lines actually worked. 

Taking my silence as consent, he continued, “unless of course you wish to settle down - marry or mate - and extend that angelic bloodline of yours.” 

“And I suppose you have a suitor in mind for this process?” I asked, my face void of emotion. 

“Reya, it’s too soon to say, but it would certainly have to be someone powerful - your equal in every sense.” 

“If he were to be my equal he wouldn’t be from the realm, because there is no one like me in this realm.” I stated. 

He shook his head, aggravated with the way the conversation was heading and said, “you misunderstand Reya dear,” he brushed a stray hair behind my ear causing me to still further, “someone equal to you in power.” 

“Like you?” I took a gamble and batted my eyelashes up at him, putting all my effort in creating a doe-like appearance. I had never done it before - honestly, I had never seen the need, and yet here I was batting my lashes at a man. 

He grinned and sighed in relief, “I knew you’d be open to this,” he spoke squeezing my thigh once more. 

“Thank you for making your position clear,” I spoke evenly and removed myself from the table before he could say anything further. 

I needed to get out of here. I needed to get away from Oswald and all the males like him. He wanted me for breeding purposes  - nothing more. Simply to be able to say that his offspring boasted an angelic bloodline. I shuddered at the thought, wondering how I could find even the idea of this one man, so vile.

I rounded the playground and heard a soft whimper, followed by a hushed ‘please’. The voice was feminine and in distress, my feet followed the voice until I found Laurel pressed against the side of a wendy house, her hands pinned by none other than Abros. He was so engrossed in watching her beg and submit that he didn’t even notice my arrival. 

“You want me to deal with this Laurel?” I threw my voice levelly, gaining his attention. I had no idea how I would deal with it. Could I take Abros? Probably not. Certainly not without a good handle on my power. 

His eyes darted towards me as he released her. 

“Hello Angel,” he sneered towards me. 

I ignored him and asked, “Laurel, is everything okay?” 

“Yes Laurel, is everything okay?” he mimicked, asking her the same question. 

“Fine,” she spoke harshly, pulling her hands back towards herself. 

“See?” he spoke towards me, “”just a little foreplay. Us shifters like it rough,” he grinned. 

But as I looked at Laurel rubbing her wrists, her eyes downcast, I wasn’t so sure. 

By the time I got home Chase was already asleep, and I wondered if he had despised the gathering as much as I had.