Searching
He was bored.
Now that he had been rejected, nothing was good enough. Until he found her.
Looking into his crystal balls was the only thing that amused him. He would search the entire world for someone that interested him. It had to be someone different, someone unlike the last one. One not so special day he came across her, sitting quietly in her room reading. The book was not even thrilling, passionate or romantic- but simple and quite frankly a little boring. "She's perfect" he thought to himself. He had been warned to stop messing with those earthlings, that he could do severe damage. "Damage" he thought to himself, "all I'm having is a bit of fun". Yes, a bit of fun he said. But on the inside he was lonely, very lonely. He couldn't help it that he was brought into this world to rule this pathetic kingdom full of miserably repulsive creatures. He had no choice in the matter, at least none that he could remember. But that didn't matter now, all that mattered was that he was starving for a human companion. Someone that could put a logical sentence together without drooling. She seemed like someone that could teach him something, someone who was different from the others. She wouldn't refuse him and embarrass him. She knew what it was like to be alone to have no one- but never imagine what it would be like with someone else. He never imagined, he just acted on his feelings. But he knew her, he knew that she would be different.
She was different.
She didn't find refuge in books. She read them because they were interesting. She didn't escape to other lands in her novels. She simply read them for their plots and interesting characters. Some would say she was boring- reading fantasy novels for the plot lines and not the adventure. She didn't long for companions, though when they did come along it made things so much easier. She didn't like sharing her feelings, not even to her parents. Nothing was wrong with her, she was just… different. She floated through life with a perfectly blasé attitude that was totally genuine. She didn't care about much of anything. Except, her inner most desire was for someone to love her. Truly deeply love her for what she is and expect nothing more from her. Everyone who knew her, expected more from her. That was her personality, it kept you guessing and most people want to know answers. She didn't have any to give, and if she did she was not going to. She was never surprised by anything. By all accounts she was boring. But He wanted her, He thought He needed Her.
"Kathryn get your head out of those fucking books and clean the goddamn house" her father yelled into her room. No- she did not read to escape. Her life was as it is and nothing would change that.
"Yes pa" she dropped the book and started cleaning. She had to clean- a dirty house was disgusting and unhealthy. She knew her father would never clean and her mother was always at work. It was her job.
These things ran nonstop through Kathryn's head. It was her logic that kept her going. There was no use feeling sorry for your self.
As she finished cleaning, she picked up her book again- Labyrinth. This was the fifth time she read it since she got it from the library. The character was the most interesting she had ever come across. This king seemed fascinating to her- reading did not inspire much passion in her but this Jareth was different. He seemed to be searching for something- as she was. He was the most unpredictable of characters. So it didn't surprise her when she looked up and found Him standing in her doorway.
She knew it was Him from the way he carried himself. But He's just a character in a book you ask? Kathryn knew better. This book- Labyrinth- written by Sarah Williams was no fairy tale, but a true story. She had known it all along. And now He was here.
"You don't look surprised" He said
"No, should I be?" she answered simply
"I knew you wouldn't be." He said with a grin. As he moved into her room they looked at each other for a moment. There was something similar in their eyes- a hidden glint of a secret longing. Kathryn stood up and nodded. He knew what she meant.
"Close your eyes" he said and the next minute there were in his domain- his castle.
She opened her eyes to find a room- a rather bland room for a King but she loved it. Yet, she was confused- he did not want her to pass through his maze to get to Him. He created no drama. Just the two of them: Jareth the Goblin King and Kathryn.
"You still have no questions?" He broke her thoughts with his soothing voice. He smiled because he knew she didn't.
She surprised him.
"Why do you need me?"
He was caught off guard- no one had ever blindsided him like that before.
"I don't…" he began but something in her eyes made him stop, made him want to tell the truth for once.
"This place, everything around me- I feel so alone. But you, you don't care about being alone. You don't try to escape your problems, you just let them be. I need you to teach me not to be lonely." He lowered his head to the ground, he did not like this new feeling of vulnerability.
She was stunned. For the first time in her entire life, she was stunned. Even as a child she showed no real heightened emotion.
"You want me, Kathryn Miller, to teach you about how I live?"
He simply nodded.
She suddenly felt drawn towards Him, she didn't know what this feeling was but it made her never want to leave Him. She could see the same feeling in his eyes.
After a moment of silence he motioned for her to sit in the chair he had placed next to his own…throne if you will. She sat and looked him square in the eye.
"You can't look at everything so dramatically. Just let things happen and they will be much easier to handle"
He was confused, "But doesn't that make life extremely dull?"
"Dull is in the eye of the beholder. I choose to look at it as serenity"
"But don't you want to find that one person whom you can love so deeply and passionately that everything in your life seems so much more….important?"
"Well…yes...yes, I suppose so"
He was moving closer to her, "So you take what the world gives you and blow it all out of proportion, isn't it more fun that way?"
She had not heard what he said. Those eyes- she had never seen anything like them. She snapped herself out of this trance, and realized he was smiling at her.
"Sorry what did you say?" She said shaking her head.
"I think you got the picture" He laughed, "And call me Jareth, Kathryn".
He got up and moved towards the window, surveying his land. She followed and stood next to him.
"This is my world. The world that was given to me. I do not 'let it go' as you say. I create drama in my life because I am bored", His newfound vulnerability was allowing him to open up to Her- something he had never done before.
"You sound like you are rehearsing a speech" She said.
He flinched. He supposed his honesty even sounded fake.
"I can't change your life Jareth, I'm only here to help"
"Don't sell yourself short Kathryn. Now look at these disgusting goblins running about my Labyrinth, they can't offer me any companionship- that is why I look elsewhere."
As she watched the goblins run about She bit her tongue so she wouldn't ask about the Others- like Sarah- no, it wasn't time yet.
After a few minutes she decided to steal a glance at him, but he was already staring intently at her.
"I want to know everything about you," he said seriously.
"Okay, but it won't take that long" She answered, a bit of sarcasm in her voice. He must be rubbing off on her.
They sat on the floor and she talked into the night. She told him everything that had ever happened to her. But He noticed she didn't share Her feelings.
She awoke the next morning with her head resting gently on his chest. As she tried to get up quietly so as not to wake him, She once again found that he was staring at her.
"How long have you been awake?" She asked.
"Only since I found you" He answered.
She blushed and turned away from him.
"What do you want?" He asked her. "Just ask for anything and you'll have it."
She suddenly felt infuriated.
"Do you think that's all I care about? That you can only please me by giving me things that I desire? You honestly think I have so little self-respect that I can only feel complete with material things? We've talked all night and I've told you everything about myself and still you treat me like all the others you've tried to press yourself on! I'm not like them Jareth!"
She didn't know where this anger was coming from, all she knew was that she felt so much better after she said it.
He was confused and hurt. She had let him into her heart and her mind and now he was just trying to repay her. It was the only way he knew how to deal with people. He had already shared some of his real feelings, why couldn't she just let him spoil her like he wanted to spoil all the others?
Then He remembered...she was different. Maybe all she wanted was his company, because that was really all He wanted from her. As he opened his mouth to apologize, she cut him off.
"Why do you just stand there looking at me like that? Are you so horrible that you can't even recognize when you've upset someone? Am I only here to amuse you Jareth?"
He was still stunned. As he was trying to form the words to get her to stop being angry, she went on.
"And what about the Others Jareth? Why did they all hate you? They all rejected you and threw you away because they saw what you were capable of. They saw all the hate disguised as love. You don't love people, you just use them for your own personal messed-up reasons. All of the other girls didn't want you Jareth. You are not God's gift to women and they were all repulsed by you!"
That hurt. He wanted to forget about the Others. He had told himself that They were too young, too immature to see the true him. But He had thought She would be different. No, She was just like all the Others. Immature and irrational. How dare She bring up all the others? After He had let his guard down around her? He wanted her gone. She would only bring pain into his life. He calmed himself a little before he spoke.
"I thought you were different. But you are like the Others. You resort to low tactics just to hurt me when all I wanted is for you to be happy. You've torn me apart, but now it's my turn. I want you to leave and never come back. I never want to see you again because you will only bring pain into my life. I loved you Kathryn, I don't care if we just met. I feel like you are the one I have been searching for. I could have made you happy but you have chosen misery. Good Bye Kathryn."
The next thing she knew Kathryn was back in her room. She didn't know what to think. She wasn't used to this much emotion. She didn't know what came over her when Jareth had simply asked her what she wanted. She didn't want to be hurt by him, her logical brain had taken over. He had hurt so many Others and with that all-so-familiar line, all her logic had come rushing back. Should she have been kinder? He had acted so different towards her up until the split second where he reverted into his old self. She was torn between her feelings and her rationale. She decided not to think about it anymore. He wanted her gone and there was no use brooding over what could have happened. It was done. She didn't know whose fault it was but there was no sense worrying about it.
So She lived her life as if Jareth had never walked into it. School came and left and before she knew it she was a young adult working as a freelance children's author. Though She did not realize it, her encounter with The Goblin King had changed her for good. She did not allow her logic to block all her emotions from coming out anymore. She did not turn overly emotional, but she did not live life with her usual blasé attitude.
One not so special day she returned from a long day at work to her apartment. As she unlocked and opened her door, she suddenly thought of Labyrinth. That book had changed her life- the character of Jareth was a model for many of the heroes she had created in her books. Unpredictable, emotional, but ultimately lonely and looking for something. So, once again, she wasn't surprised to see him standing in the middle of her living room.
He hadn't forgotten about her. He thought about her everyday. They had both had enough time to truly learn and use the lessons they taught each other. They were ready. He loved her, She loved him.
She dropped her bag and walked towards him. She nodded. But before He could say anything, She embraced him and they shared the simplest form of real unadulterated love. A gentle Kiss shared between a man and a woman. They stood in each others arms for hours, not speaking.
But they both swayed to the song that Jareth was singing in Her ear.
The world could have fallen down around them and neither would have moved.
After years of searching, they both finally found what they were looking for. Each Other.