The Sacrificial Bunny

Blue bell's magic

Durian Cothe

I bought Blue bells the second time I hung out here with Andrea here. I remembered the way his eyes lit up everytime he took a scope of their ice cream…good old days.

I shook my head, shaking away the jittery feeling.

I wasn't here for good old memories. I was on a mission to save my family's legacy from plunging into pure chaos right in the faces of everyone we have stepped on. And sweet Andrea might just be the missing piece to my conquest.

You see, the cycle of a reign was coming to a staggering end. My father was ill and the cult chiefs were getting worried. All three of my siblings, including myself fell into a secret competition for his throne at the top of the cult.

As whoever gained power of the Luarian staff, gained control over the wealth chain and enormous power that belonged to the One percent of the world's most influential Monarchs.

The red moon was on the horizon and it was only a few more months before it was time to make the necessary sacrificial ritual.

My entire attention shifted fully to the outside world when I noticed Andrea nonchalantly walk in with a huge black hoodie and matching black short. My eyes caught a dark shade close to his ankle boots, it resembled a tattoo but I didn't catch what it was before he slid into the stool opposite me.

He looked a bit nervous, biting on his lower lip like he always did in uncomfortable situations. His eyes darted around, from mine to his immediate surroundings.

A smile broke on my lips. A slice of me genuinely missed this man. That came as a surprise to me as caring for anything outside myself was alien to me.

“It's good to see your pretty face again, Drea.”

He didn't look like he believed my words.

“Sure. Likewise—” his eyes widened. “Not like you are pretty too. I mean, yeah, you're gorgeous. But you are—”

“I missed you too.” I smiled at him.

He shook his head, looking down at the table. I saw the edge of his lips lift up before his eyes were back on me. It wasn't a smile. He was trying to keep himself together the whole time.

“I have one question, Durian. Why?” Andrea thick eyebrows knitted closer into a slight frown. His brown eyes are solid, filled with intensity from years of buried rage.

“You have to be more specific than that, Drea—”

“Don't freaking call me Drea. Don't do that! Don't try to act clueless either. You lost that privilege years ago!” He snapped, yet still managed to keep his voice under control.

A young female waiter strolled into our dense bubble, oblivious to the tension around her.

She had her eyes mostly on Andrea as she proceeded to interrupt. “Sorry, are you here together or are you waiting for someone—”

I read her tag calmly. “Prisca.”

She turned to me. Smiling.

“Please, get us two bowls of blueberry ice-cream with dark chocolate chips and extra cream,” I ordered.

You could see the gears moving behind her eyes as she processed my order. “And no. We are all you have here.”

“Okay. Coming right up.” She exited with her awkward smile.

“We might have to keep our voices down if we want to stay here a little longer,” I suggested to him, pulling my blazer closer to my torso.

Andrea glared at me with visible annoyance. His jaw ticked with fiery eyes. He got up from the stool.

“You. They. All these…” He waved around the shop, “can kiss my olive ass.” Andrea spat at me.

He was going to leave when I held onto his arm. Bringing him back into a sitting position.

“I left for so many reasons.” I started. His attention was drawn to me swiftly.

“First confession, I was there for a semester program and nothing more—”

Andrea scoffed. “That's not news, I found out from your homophobic roommate eventually. Just like I found out about the other ‘white lies’.”

“I didn't tell you because I was selfish and didn't want to hurt you, but I long realized it was selfish of me and I am sorry for that.” I tried to sound as genuine as possible.

He looked like he was going to speak, only to look away. “What else?” He mumbled.

“Secondly, I did try to reach you, and come back, but—and this might sound crazy—I was adopted on my sudden flight home.”

That brought some concern to his eyes. He gasped, a shock frozen expression on his face.

“Kidnapped?” he gasped in disbelief.

“I believe that's what adopted means in that context.” I tried to ease the tension.

He rolled his eyes, sympathizing with me. “I'm sorry.”

“You have always had an extraordinary experience when it comes to life.” Andrea admitted. I couldn't tell whether he believed me or not but there was a glint in his eyes that made me go on.

We spoke about my version of my experience, down to my parents' decision to keep me on lock down back in my home country so they could account for my safety.

He turned into a ball of light at the end of our empty ice-cream bowls. We had a lot in common when it came to our pleasures. This was what made him the most memorable of all the forgettable people in the world.

“Let's get out of here.” I suggested to him when the evening edged towards midnight. It was only a few minutes until the shop closed anyway.

“Sure. Where are we headed?” He tilted his head to the side, staring in the direction of the entrance.

“Blouise club. Ever heard of it before?” I asked, knowing very well, there was a high chance he hadn't. It was an exclusive club, and part of the ring of clubs I had exclusive membership to.

He nodded. “Are we talking about that dystopian-looking tower at the top of the city?”

I nodded. “Except you have something to do in the morning...” I mentioned it after noticing his reluctance.

We walked out of Bells, strolling the concrete sidewalk. I allowed the silence to sit between us. We both had our hands in our pockets while we bumped into each other intentionally. We were gradually falling into muscle memory of our past selves.

“I don't have a real job. So I can't afford to be the party animal like I used to be. I left all that behind.” He confessed after we crossed the street. I stopped by my ride. A midnight black dodge charger I owned out of sentiment.

“I guess we all changed, huh….” Andrea shrugged.

He got into the passenger seat and I began driving to our destination, letting him open up to me instead of pressuring him into a response.

“Life changed after you left, you know.” He started, breaking the comfortable silence in the car. “My parents finally disbanded from me in my final year. I lost my first official job after three months from downsizing and have been doing petty jobs to get by ever since.” He shared a tight-lipped smile, looking out his window.

“I'm sorry…” I said, throwing him a side glance.

He wiped at his nostril. “Nah. It's cool.”

Andrea shrugged. “I mean. I learnt a lot during the lows, you know. I'm still learning. I learnt I didn't actually hate any food enough…” He chuckled, but I saw past it. Past the machoism and coping mechanisms, and at the hungry man seeking for a change in his life.

He molded himself into the perfect target without me having to try too hard like the last time.

We arrived at Blouise Tower. I made no attempt to leave the car first. The blue neon lights from the large ‘Blouise Tower’ sign in front of us reflected past the tinted glass.

He sighed in between our silence. “I can't believe I am sitting next to you again.” Andrea voiced out loud.

“How did you even find me?” He suddenly turned to me.

I reached for his face slowly while I used the time to think.

I facepalmed internally for not thinking ahead about it. I edged for the side of his face tentatively. He didn't pull back like I thought he would.

I recounted a version of the last three days.

“I was actually in your store three days in a row.”

“No way!” Andrea exclaimed. I snickered at his reaction. “How the hell did I not see you?”

“Because I didn't get caught like I did on my third time. Or maybe I wanted to get caught.”

“Or turns out you actually forgot about me, which is why I had to come in three times before you noticed me…” I laughed afterwards to take the edge off the story.

I was literally confessing to stalking him for three days straight.

He grinned, holding my attention comfortably. I felt relief as his brown orbs mesmerized me all over again. I couldn't hold back the urge. For old time's sake.

“Can I kiss you?”

My grip on the side of his face itched. He edged closer into my caress willingly, sealing his lips with mine.

Those full lips tasted exactly how I remembered them. Plump, soft and hungry. With a heavy dose of sweetness from the desert. I pulled him closer to taste every inch of his blueberry flavored lips, feeling his grip on my chest.

Andrea pulled back, a blue furnace of lust scorched in the depths of his eyes as I gazed down at his naive soul.

“f**k. You got bigger.” He squeezed greedily at my chest muscle repeatedly, sending waves of pleasure down my groin.

I bit back my own moan. This car couldn't contain our deranged lust.

“Tell you what, I have a room up there.” I pointed to the top floor of the tower.

“Of course you do.” He muttered against my lips.

I allowed him to lead me into a long kiss. Tasting the sweetness of blueberry ice cream off his lips one more time before pulling away to lay my trap.

“Wanna play bunnies in heat like old times?”