For the LJSanta 2008: www/lj-smith ljsanta/2006/
Man of my Dreams
By Aya, For TangledAria.
It was him, wasn't it?!
She frowned, glancing down at her hands, watching one twist and curl with the other. She shouldn't have been surprised. She'd drawn it after all. Her drawings always came true, and this dark, sexy man in particular, had shown up in many of her sketches and watercolors. He was in her dreams, in her fantasies, which were so intense that she'd wake up dripping with sweat. She wanted him, but she was afraid of him.
He wasn't normal, perhaps not even human.
She tried not to stare at him, but he was seductive, breathtaking even. If he were to look at her just once, she'd faint. How girly, of course, but it was what it was. To think she had thrown a fit coming here. She wasn't fond of the opera, but apparently, this was the one thing that her mother insisted on everyone going to.
"How many people will be able to say that they saw an opera in Italy?" her mother asked excitedly. "You'll thank me when you're older," she added, sitting in front of her vanity, applying more of her rouge lipstick.
Until just a few minutes ago, Kaitlyn had been cursing her, but then she'd seen him. For months she had thought she'd been going crazy. Lusting after a man in her drawings, who had later shown up in her dreams? Could you imagine trying to explain to your friends that you were hot for a guy in a drawing? Not that she had many though.
"Darling, have you ever thought about being a transfer student? That old community college you go to doesn't deserve your genius," her mother whispered to her out of the corner of her mouth, trying to steal her attention.
She didn't want to take her eyes from the dark haired man though. He was like sex on a stick. Everything about him made her tingle. His strong athletic build, the gentle curve of his lips, the way his gorgeous eyes seemed to slant down.
Kind of like a cat, at least, from over here, anyhow, Kaitlyn thought.
"And a school in Italy does?" she managed to respond, not wanting her mother to think she was ignoring her.
"But of course! Plus I'd get to visit you during the holidays!"
No! Get out of the way! Kaitlyn thought, clenching her teeth as a busty, blonde haired, very tall, woman blocked her way.
Kaitlyn gave a fake chuckle, standing on her tiptoes to try to see over the giant of a woman. "So, which school in Italy 'deserves' me?"
"All of them are worthy here, but it's more your decision on where you want to go. What are you looking at?"
Kaitlyn shook her head smiling, turning her eyes towards her mother, feeling the heat and embarrassment of being caught practically eye-raping a man. Her mother was a treat, never a dull moment with the woman, and normally Kaitlyn loved to listen to her, but tonight... "Nothing. I thought I saw someone I knew."
People would actually be surprised that she and her mother were just that, mother and daughter, most people thought them to be twins. Both had fair, unflawed skin, wheat blonde, shoulder length hair, and petite builds. Their eyes, however, were completely different, mothers' were blue, Kaitlyn's were a mixture of gray and blue, and something, she couldn't decide what, that made her eyes look eerie.
Her mother gave her a wary glance, and then nodded, accepting her daughters answer, "Firenze Arti Visive Art School."
Kaitlyn looked at her sharply. "What?"
"That's a school most deserving of your talent."
"You're serious?"
She watched her mother sigh. "Kait, I'm getting older, I'm getting tired. I-I could see myself retire here, in fact I've seriously considered it. There's no way I could leave my baby girl, and besides, can you imagine an art school in Italy."
Kaitlyn raised an eyebrow. "You want to move here?" she asked cautiously.
"Well, I wouldn't move for a couple more years, but yes, eventually."
She didn't know what to say. Kaitlyn was already comfortable in her dorm room at her current college and since it was a community one it just so happened to be about a mile away from where her mom was. Her mother going by herself was out of the question, they were too close to be so far away from each other, but it would be tough moving everything. "It's so hot here though," Kaitlyn said.
"Well that's good actually. You know how the cold hurts my bones."
Kaitlyn scratched her wrist, where a golden bracelet rested, ferociously. "Mom, you're making it sound like you're a century old," she scoffed, irritated.
Putting her hands on her hips, she stared at Kaitlyn. "Well, I am half way there."
The 'ha, ha you're old' conversation was something they'd usually joked about, but the look in her mother's eyes allowed her to see the seriousness of the situation. "Well, I think you're perfect and if Italy is where you want to retire, I'll come with you."
Her mother smiled gently and reached over to run her fingers through Kaitlyn's hair. "Thank you, my love," she paused, then glanced around curiously. "When is this going to start?"
"I've no idea. What's it called again?"
"L'Orfeo! It's about a man, whose true love dies, and he goes all the way to the underworld to save her," her mother sighed. "It's so romantic."
Kaitlyn frowned. "Orfeo is not romantic! Pluto clearly tells him not to turn around if he wants to bring his wife out of death, but he shows his weakness in doing just that. "
The light smack on her arm came once more. "Why did you have to ruin it? More importantly how do you know about it?" her mother asked, clucking her tongue.
"Sorry, and school," she said. "But didn't you already know what was going to happen? Didn't you read up on it before buying these extremely expensive tickets?"
"That's beside the point. What I don't understand is why you think it isn't romantic. He loved her enough to go to the underworld for her."
"But not enough to listen," Kaitlyn snapped.
"That doesn't make sense…oh look, we're going in!"
Kaitlyn frowned and applauded her mother on not only the topic change, but the fact that she'd taken her attention away from him. How could she have forgotten about the mysterious stranger? She lifted her eyes to see if she could find the gorgeous man of her dreams and drawings, but saw nothing. She managed to search a few more minutes while everyone was loading in, but with no luck, she turned towards her mother, halting her before she could get any further into the dimly lit theatre
"Mom, I'm going to run to the restroom," Kaitlyn whispered.
"You're going to miss it."
Kaitlyn grinned. "I'm sure I'll survive, anyhow it's better to miss some of the beginning than the middle."
Her mother harrumphed and folded her arms across her chest showing her dislike over the comment. Smiling, Kaitlyn motioned for her mom to find her seat, and just as she turned to walk out the lights in the theatre dimmed more. She quickly walked back out and inhaled sharply when the object of her obsession stood just before her.
"There you are," came his deep voice. "I've been looking for you," he spoke softly, surprisingly close to her ear. "Follow me," he whispered
I needed to go with him. The thought was so forceful she could have sworn it wasn't her own.
Follow me.
She heard his voice again, but his lips didn't move. Did they?
Follow me, Kaitlyn!
"Okay," she breathed.
So, she followed him, with butterflies in her stomach, and clammy palms. He paused in front of the doorway, reaching his hand out towards her. Slowly she took it, allowing him to guide her through the doors.
They swung open, causing a gust of wind to ruffle her curled, loose hair. "Do I know you?" she asked, almost breathless.
He turned his intense, almost obsidian eyes towards her, his black hair ruffled in the light breeze, which only added to his allure. "Of course you know me."
Kaitlyn felt strange, like she was in a trance, like she was sleeping, but aware of what was happening, and she responded, "Course, course."
He pulled her away from the front doors and backed her up against the side of the building, bracing his arms on either side of her, blocking her in between him and the wall. She shivered as he breathed something into her ear. Two words, and with each one his lips brush against the lobe of her ear.
Kaitlyn shivered, giving a kittenish grunt as she felt him press his lower body into her, his hands wandering from there position against the wall and burrowing into her hair, tipping her neck slightly to the side.
"Y-you're starving?"
Had she heard right?
His eyes flashed with hunger, "Famished."
She gasped in surprise as she felt the warm wetness of his tongue slide up the column of her neck. "What are you-"
"Shh."
Her eyes widened and a small squeal escaped as she felt two piercing stings enter her neck. She tried to form words, to speak them, but only strangled gasps came out. Her knees collapsed and she felt him grunt at the suddenness of her dead weight, swiftly holding her to him so she wouldn't be on the ground.
Then suddenly it stopped. He pulled away and she could see confusion flickering in his eyes. He let his hand fall against her face, pushed it through her hair once more, and clutched the back of her head bringing her forehead to his. It was a simple movement, but she felt something being pulled from her, some type of energy, but all the while he was staring at her as if he'd found something precious.
"What are you-"
"You're the woman of my dreams," he whispered, his eyes steadily focused.
"You mean in. The woman in your dreams?" she asked hesitantly.
"I'm pretty sure I meant what I said the first time." This would have sounded harsh if being read, but the way he said it made her swallow with nervousness. His tone was soft, seductive, and relayed the possibilities the night could hold for them. "Definitely, OF my dreams," he reiterated.
Kaitlyn shifted her eyes down, sinking her teeth into her bottom lip, and sighed. "Well I guess that works out perfectly then."
He cocked his head to the side, forcing hers to do the same since their foreheads still touched, "How so?"
She smiled sheepishly, "Because, you're the man of my dreams."
He smirk was slow as if he was processing each word carefully, and when he finally realized fully what she said, his smirk turned into a dazzling smile that almost killed her it was so beautiful.
"I'm Gabriel."
"Kaitlyn."
++Finished++