Chapter 73
(Innoccene's POV)
"What's wrong with me?! Why can't you only... be with me? You told me you fell in love with me at first sight. What changed since then?!" I reminded Markis who scoffed while cleaning up empty bottles, beer cans, and take-out boxes (for once). He continued moving through the room making it more presentable, even opening the windows. "Markis!" I screamed and he turned to me and yelled back saying,
"I was lying! You're not that stupid, are you? There's no way you haven't realized it by now! Yeah, I lied to you. You got caught up in the middle of a family feud... my bad. You know how to get home you can leave anytime you want."... My heartache so I made my way to him and hugged him from behind,
"I'm sorry... I shouldn't have yelled at you... I'm sorry..." He sighed. His body was warm, I felt like I was hugging a heated blanket. Markis always feels warm and comfortable. My parents never hugged me, they weren't mean either but it never felt like my presence mattered. We never ate together or talked... the only time they bothered to speak to me was to scold me about my grades and now that I've dropped out of school... they've practically disowned me. The last time I returned home they told me not to come back...
Markis turned to me, staying locked in my embrace, kissed me tenderly, and then he put his fingers under my chin saying,
"If you're sorry... do me a favor. Don't come out of your room tonight... I'm having a special guest and don't want to be interrupted." My instinct was to say no, but I was so mesmerized by his kiss that I would have slit my own throat if he asked me to. That night I kept my promise but I did peek out of my room once to see who the guest was, and saw Markis passionately kissing someone with long teal hair on the couch. This is who he cleaned the living room for. Even though I only watched for a few seconds, I could tell the way he touched this person was leagues more affectionate than anything I'd experienced from him. The heartbreak I felt was enough to jolt me awake... It wasn't just a dream, but I wish I could dismiss it as such. It was a memory. When I turned my head I noticed the pretty silver-eyed woman, Aluma, at my bedside. This is what caused me to scream. She jumped onto the bed in response, sat in front of me, and said in a worried voice,
"What's the matter? Did you have a nightmare?!" I bit my lip, thinking, and after a few moments I nodded, she petted my head and said, "I... know how that is. I have one of those almost every night... Do you want to talk about it?" I shook my head no. She stopped petting me and smiled saying, "Since Jey is away, I'm going to be the one restoring you... if you don't mind." I stared at her questioningly, held out my hands, and let her take hold of them. Instantly I felt her energy pouring into me, it was warm and comforting. When Raijian helped me, it burned slightly, like rubbing alcohol, and when his brother helped me, it felt like I was given water for the first time after a long drought... I wonder if these experiences reflect their personalities, if so, I'm sure this Aluma is a kind person. Which is disappointing, I wanted to be able to hate her... because when looking back she's the root of all my issues. "It feels like you should be all better by tomorrow... we'll stop here because I'm feeling tired... There's another human downstairs, she prepared breakfast if you're hungry." She stated with a yawn.
"Thank you..." I whimpered out. She laughed and waved goodbye before leaving me in the room alone.
(Lisa's POV)
"Ahh!!♥... Valin... I can't take anymore!" I moaned out as he went down on me, holding my thighs apart and refusing to listen to my pleas. After orgasming once again I was in such a daze, and my body felt fuzzy and numb. At that point Valin finally stopped, carried me to the bathroom, and placed me into the tub, filling it with hot water, bubbles, salt, and scented oils. The last thing I remember was him kissing me on my cheek and saying,
"I'll return to you as soon as I can." I was too tired to say much back, but I mumbled out,
"I'll be waiting." before closing my eyes and drifting off for a while. About 30 minutes later a woman with long black hair came into the bathroom and helped me out of the tub. She assisted me in drying off, putting on a robe, and then led me back to Valin's room. The bedding had been changed. His credit card was on the bedside table with a sticky note that read "For Lisa." He's not even here and still insists on making sure I'm taken care of. I laid down and cuddled up in his comforter, it smelled like his favorite detergent, which made the fact that he was gone finally hit me, so I shed a few tears before falling back asleep. When I woke up I went to the grocery store so I could buy ingredients to make breakfast for Aluma as a thank you, for helping me get out of the tub. I chose chocolate chip waffles, eggs, and bacon because it's simple to prepare.
"That smells nice," Aluma commented while walking into the kitchen and sitting at the bar. She was wearing a long white transparent nightgown and red lingerie. A brown-haired girl was timidly trailing after her. The girl was wearing a baggy White T-shirt and Brown sweatpants.
"Yeah, it's not much... I like strawberry syrup but I got maple too in case you don't like that." Aluma tilted her head.
"Strawberry??.... Maple??" She looked puzzled. Has she never had Strawberries before? I prepared her plate first and she picked up a piece of bacon with her hand and took a bite, "Oh it's salty and crispy!" She shouted in astonishment. She picked up the eggs with her fingers, it was odd seeing someone who looked so dignified, eating with her hands. The brown-haired girl picked up a fork and handed it to her, then she demonstrated using the butter knife to cut a piece of waffle, pick it up with a fork, and then eat it. "Oh! Thank you, Innoccence." Aluma said, taking the cues well and using the silverware. "This is great! What's it called?" she asked, after taking a bite of her own waffle.
"Waffles..." I answered. I poured some of the strawberry syrup onto the corner of her plate and said, "Try dipping it in that." She did as told and as soon as the flavors hit her tongue her eyes lit up.
"Delicious! Wow, it's so sweet!" It makes me wonder what she's eaten before now. Aluma began mixing her food, trying different combinations, and then squealing for joy. Innoccence doesn't talk much but she has to be a human like me.
"Do you like it?" I asked, in order to get her attention,
"You're pretty... are you an Afarion too?" She asked instead, which made my face heat up,
"What?! I'm just normal!" I shouted out bashfully,
"No, you're like REALLY cute, like I can't imagine an adult woman being cuter than you. You are the max-level of cuteness!" I held my cheeks and turned away from her, is that what she was thinking this whole time?!
"I'm... just a regular girl... b-but back on the subject do you like the food?"
"Duh, if you screwed up eggs and waffles you shouldn't be allowed to cook." ... I guess that's the closest thing to a compliment she's willing to give me. I ordered pasta and bread sticks for dinner then put on a movie that I believed the other girls would enjoy, so we could spend the evening watching it together. If I go home to get my laptop, perhaps I can work here and wait until Valin returns.
(Zaikel's POV)
Vetro's eyes were locked on me now, which didn't help him much because I could move much faster than any eyes could follow but because he was on guard, his skin hardened and my blade could no longer pierce the skin. The moments when I slowed down to attack him were the moments he'd counter me, shooting stone spears in my direction, at times seeming to only be guessing my location, but his instincts were incredible. I leaped out of the way when of one attack which flew only a centimeter away from my face... It makes me wonder if he really can't see me. It's time for me to stop holding back. I stood still so he could see me, and predictably he didn't hesitate to take this chance to swing his big sword at me, aiming directly at my neck. He must have wanted to end this quickly... but I caught the sword with my fingers and shattered it, then scattered the pieces deep into the ground, so he couldn't easily put his weapon together again. While he stood stunned I said,
"Oops... I forgot to tell you, I had an annoying, strict, perfectionist, asshole of an Earth teacher." Then I aimed for the weak points in his defense, just like Valin taught me, using blades of wind. Recalling our lessons gets me so freaking annoyed! But he was a good teacher... And since Vetro is resistant to lightning, I should only use it for speed, and for attacks, I'll focus on the roots of my powers. As I sliced through him Vetro crumbled onto the ground in front of me, and I saw a shift, I'm not sure when he did it but... he swapped places with his clone because the only thing left here was a broken tempered glass statue.