Author Note: I'd like to thank Metalgrl29 for the wonderful review. I really appreciate all the encouragement. I've been listening to a lot of music and there have been so many new ideas forming in my head, so I hope you are all prepared for that; so onto the new chapter, enjoy and let me know what you think.
Chapter 4:
Walking into work the next day, Ayva felt like things were going to go very well for her. Becky's visit last night was more than enough to think positive again. Her assignment was complete and ready to turn into her boss the second she got to her desk. She weaved through all the cubicles in attempts to get to her work station at the far end of the room. "Morning, Ayva!" Paige greeted warmly.
"Hey, how are you. I haven't seen you in a while." Ayva asked stopping at the edge of her friend's desk.
"I'm doing a lot better. Hand is all healed up and I should be able to go out on assignments again soon."
Paige was her only friend at work. All the others seemed to avoid her like the plague or out of jealousy because she had been promoted to field photographer in less than six months after achieving the job at the magazine. Three months prior to the promotion, Paige had been in a car accident that shattered her hand in a few different places. "It's good to see you back here. You've missed quite a bit."
"I've heard you got a promotion, can't say I'm surprised. You are really good."
"Thank you. I appreciate that."
Giving her friend a gentle squeeze on the arm, she continued on towards her own desk. The light colored oak was covered by three different pencil cups, a flat screen computer, and a three shelf bin at the corner for organization of all the paperwork she dealt with. As she sat down, several different emotions rolled across her skin. It took her breath away for a moment before her body adjusted to the conflicting feelings. "She's so fake." A voice stated.
Ayva looked around the room to find the person who had said such a thing; but the only thing she got was odd looks and rolling of eyes. "Stop staring, geez." Another voice sounded. Whipping her head around, her eyes met that of the man who she replaced as the top field photographer. His harsh gaze with filled resentment. "I don't understand what makes your work better than mine."
Closing her eyes, she desperately tried to silence the voices in her head. There was something seriously wrong with her now. There was no way in hell she was hearing other peoples private thoughts. "God, she is so weird." Her neighbor's voice entered her mind.
Squinting hard, tears brimmed her lashes. A sudden feeling pressure was felt inside her head that was begging to be released. Instinctively, she pushed down upon that pressure and the light bulb inside her overhead lamp shattered into pieces. Looking down at the shards of glass on her desk, her head felt so much better and the voices stopped coming. "What am I going to do now? I don't understand any of this..." She mentally thought to herself.
She knew that she couldn't be at work in the state mind she was in either. Gathering her things back up, her feet carried her straight to her boss's office. Her knuckles gently knocked against the wood of the door frame, alerting him to her presence. "Come on in Ayva. What can I do for you?" He asked cheerfully.
"Two things actually."
"Okay, what's up?"
Ayva lay her completed assignment down on his desk. The nature photos were neatly tucked inside a protective case, so as not to get ruined by outside materials. His chocolate eyes gazed down at the item in front of him. "From what I'm seeing this is perfect and exactly what we need to complete the article."
"I'm glad. They weren't easy to come by."
"What is the other thing you needed to say?"
"I think I need a couple days off."
He raised an eyebrow at her questioningly. She knew that she shouldn't be asking for something like this; but if she didn't sort out whatever was going on with her, it wasn't going to turn out very well at all. "Is there a particular reason you're asking?" He asked curiously.
"It's kind of personal..."
"Alright then. I think you deserve a few days off. You've been working so hard over the last few months and have never complained about anything. Take a week."
"Thank you so much, Seth. I promise when I come back, I will be even better than before."
"I'll hold you to that, Ayva..."
With a smile, she left the office and continued on out of the building completely. She ignored every negative thought her co-workers had about her and every harsh glare or rolling of eyes. Things would be different when she got back. They had to be or everything she'd ever worked for would be gone in the blink of eyes, just like her marriage to Damien.
"Finn..." A whispered groan escaped.
He enjoyed hearing Aluxia cry out his name. Though he knew it was wrong, it didn't matter. In those moments in time when they were together, the world seemed to fade around him. Kissing her lips one last time before she reached her peak of ecstasy, he could feel her body tremble. A smug grin appeared on his lips in the effort. Crying out his name again, she achieved what she desperately wanted. The red in her eyes took over the entire color pigments that were originally hazel.
"You are quite skilled young one." She complimented as he rolled off to lay next to her.
Finn didn't say a thing. She was his queen and already mated to the King of all Demons. If he knew of her affairs, he'd loose his life instantly. Somehow, it didn't even matter. All that mattered was making her happy, despite all the wrong she made him do. "You know this will have to stop once the king returns."
"I know."
Even after mindlessly saying those words, he never meant them. He felt the Kind didn't deserve someone as beautiful as Aluxia. It was then that he vowed to fight for her. He wanted to make her his and rule by her side.
Finn awoke with a gasp of air. Sweat rolled down his face and dripped down upon his bare chest. He cursed himself for even thinking about her. That was a past he wanted to forget about, not only because she had used him to get things she wanted; but because he had been such a fool to believe that she could love him in return.
After taking a quick shower, he dressed and walked into the kitchen for his morning cup of coffee. When he saw there wasn't any made, he looked at the time and realized that it was a little after noon. It wasn't like him to sleep in that much, especially when he had things that he needed to accomplish. "I see you finally woke up." Becky stated emerging from the basement.
"Yeah, I didn't realize that it was this late already..."
"I was beginning to worry about you."
He let out a soft chuckle at her expense, which earned him a punch in the arm. Rubbing the tender spot carefully, he looked at her and smiled. No matter what happened, he knew that she'd always have his back. "No, seriously...you never sleep later than eight. What's up?" She asked opening the refrigerator door for a bottle of water.
"My dreams are turning into my memories now."
"Aluxia?"
"Yeah..."
Becky wanted to help him to forget all about her; but he refused to forget. Stating that he needed to remember it all to prevent himself from making the same mistakes. Sitting down at the table, she pulled out her phone from the back pocket of her jeans. "Ayva took time off work. Something happened that she couldn't even tell me about. My guess is that her powers are developing quicker than I first thought. Finn, I'm worried about her."
"I will talk with her today and maybe I can get inside her head, learn a few things about what's been happening to her."
With that said, he walked out of the kitchen and out of the house entirely. He figured that he'd drive today instead of using his traditional method of travel. Turning the key in the ignition, he instantly could feel her presence nearby. Looking out the windshield, he could see her walking down the sidewalk with her arms crossed over her chest. As if she was hugging herself.
Finn shut the car off and got out. He swiftly stepped up onto the sidewalk and leaned up against the vehicle. Ayva lifted her head up briefly. Their eyes met, allowing him to feel her fear. That disgusting bitter taste he hated so much. "What brings you to this side of town?" He asked with a smile.
"Walking to get my mind off things." She answered stopping a few feet away from him.
"Do you want to talk about it?"
"I doubt you'd believe me, even if I told you."
"Try me. I'm pretty open minded."
She studied him a moment, hoping to get a confirmation that he was indeed telling the truth. His emotions were a conflicting jumble that not even she could mentally sort out. There was guilt mixed with desire and hope. A sudden feeling of trust washed over her, allowing her to relax in his company; but she questioned the idea of trusting him with the things that were happening to her. "You don't have to tell me anything you don't want. I'll just listen to whatever you want to tell me." He assured her.
"Thank you..."
"Do you want to walk or drive?"
Ayva decided that walking to her favorite place in the world would be the best option. The flower clearing in the park's wood line had always been her sanctuary and it would continue to be until it no longer did what it was supposed to do. The walk there was spent in silence; but it didn't stop Finn from trying to get inside her head.
Flashes of the deer fawn laying upon her lap seeped into his mind along with the conversation she held with the animal. It skipped ahead to what he believed was earlier today's events. Her co-workers harsh thoughts and the overload that shattered a light bulb into pieces. Now he understood why she was falling deep into herself and wasn't able to trust Becky with the new development.
When she stopped walking, he almost didn't notice and almost ran into her. The flower clearing was surrounding him from all sides. It was the same place she befriended the baby deer. The sweet smell of the flowers waved under his nose. Ayva stood firm in place before sitting down right in the middle without caring about getting dirty. "This is my favorite place in the world. It was my escape after Damien was killed."
"I can see why. It's beautiful."
She fell silent again. He had no doubt that she was struggling with all the new changes; but what surprised him, was the feeling of need. He wanted to help her, guide her through all the pain and confusion. Her long hair moved across her back the second the warm breeze blew through. "God Ayva, I wish I knew how to help you..." He thought mentally not realizing that she heard every word of it.
"How would you help me?" She asked.
"I didn't say anything out loud. How did you know what I was thinking?"
"For the same reason I can feel others emotions and talk to animals. Today I found out I can now hear peoples thoughts whether I want to hear them or not. I don't know why I'm telling you this; but I feel like I can trust you."
Finn was a little taken aback by her sudden bold admitting of her secrets. He didn't want to disappoint her by saying the wrong thing. He didn't want her to run away from him. Sitting down next to her, he faced her fear stricken face. There were tears threatening to fall from her lashes if she blinked just once. "You can trust me. You aren't the only one in the world with gifts." He stated hoping that she'd believe him.
"I'm not?"
"No."
He held up his hand. He mentally willed a tigerlilly to part from the ground. It floated in the air, hovering just above her open hands. Blinking, it dropped directly into her possession. Her blue eyes widened the second the velvety petals touched her skin. It only brought on more questions. Who else had powers like hers in the world? How many? Why did she even have them in the first place? "Slow down with the questions." He laughed hearing ever single one of them inside his own mind.
"You can hear my thoughts to?"
"Yeah..."
"Then can you answer them?"
"I honestly don't know who all has gifts like yours nor do I know how many people are like you. As far as why you have them...it's a genetic thing. It's passed from one parent or both parents to the child."
His answers were disappointing to her, because she couldn't even ask her parents. Her mother passed away a few years ago and she never knew her father. She shook her head, not wanting to believe any of what was going on. She wanted it to be just a dream and that she could go back to living a normal life. "I'm sorry...I didn't mean to make things harder for you..." He apologized.
"Finn, it's not your fault. It's just this is all so nuts. I've lived twenty-five years without any of this and then all of a sudden its changing.
"Would it help if I offered to try and help you control them better?"
"You'd do that for me?"
Her fearful expression quickly turned into admiration. He could hear her heart skip a beat upon offering to help. He supposed that she didn't expect him to want to help. Boy, was she ever wrong about that. There was so much more to wanting to help her than he was willing to admit to anyone. If the others knew of his feelings, there would be hell to pay. Not just of him; but for her as well. It was just best if no one knew. "Yeah I would."
"Thank you. I still don't understand it all; but I'm glad you do."
Looking at him, she could tell that he was smiling for her sake. He really wasn't feeling happy. He was worried about something. His thoughts were silent. She wondered if he was blocking them from her, which if that was the case, she needed to learn quickly. There were some thoughts she's rather him not know about.
He stood up from the ground and held out his hand for her. She hesitantly took it and was effortlessly brought up to her feet. The tigerlilly was still in the palm of her other hand. She couldn't bring herself to drop it to the ground, so she tucked it behind her ear. The small gesture caused his heart race and his blood to rush in opposite directions. It was slightly different than what he felt with Aluxia; but it was pretty damn similar as far as he was concerned and it scared the hell out of him. "Finn, calm down. She's not going to hurt you." Becky's voice sounded from behind him.
Mentally laughing, he supposed it came as no surprise that she'd spy on them. He had done the same thing to her the previous night. Forcing himself to calm down, he looked directly into Ayva's eyes. The swirl of energy was more prominent now that her powers had awakened, thus making her eyes even more beautiful than they were before. "It suits you...that flower I mean..." He commented.
"I figured I'd keep it. It's the item that gave you the strength to trust me with your secret."
"Come on, I'll walk you home."
Becky smiled when he turned around to start walking out of the clearing. She winked at him in passing. He simply rolled his eyes in return. If he didn't know that his demon father had already been killed before she was even born, he'd swear they really were siblings. She kept a close watch on them as Finn walked Ayva back to her home on the other side of town. Noticing all the stolen glances in Ayva's direction from Finn and vice-versa. If she didn't know any better, she'd say there was a forbidden romance forming behind the scenes.
Standing outside Ayva's front door, Finn contemplated asking her to dinner just as a way to know her better. She unlocked the door and turned back around to face him. She honestly had no idea what to even tell him. So many new things have begun in her life that she couldn't explain; but there was one thing that was for certain, Finn was someone she could trust with it.
"Thanks for everything today." She said refraining from touching his hand, for fear he'd bolt like the last time.
"You're welcome. I'm glad I was able to help. At least for today anyway. I'll be here around four tomorrow, is that okay?"
"Sure. I took the whole week off."
Nodding his head in confirmation, he didn't see her lean into him. Her lips pressed against his cheek tenderly. They were only there for a few seconds; but to him it felt a lot longer than that. His blood pumped feverishly through his veins once more. It sent his heart racing again. "Take care, Finn." She said stepping back away from him to walk into her house, closing the door behind her.
"I never expected her to make the first move." Becky said appearing beside him.
"Shut up. It was just a thank you. It meant nothing." He replied calming himself down from the overabundance of emotions in conflicting turmoil inside himself.
"Keep telling yourself that; but I think you need each other."
Finn just ignored her by shimmering away. Becky wasn't too far behind, appearing a few seconds apart in the living room of their home. Dean looked up from his phone to see them stare at each other, both determined to get their points across. "Dean, please tell your woman that she needs to mind her own business." Finn demanded.
"Finn, don't you dare take that tone with me!" Becky shouted.
"What is the issue? If you don't mind my asking?" Dean asked shoving his phone back into the front pocket of his faded jeans.
"She looks to deep into things that aren't really there." Finn stated before walking away.
Becky bit her bottom lip. She knew that she had said to much. Apologizing would have to wait for now, he would need time to cool before he was approachable. Dean welcomed her into his arms on the couch. He held her, comforting her and never asked for her to explain the argument. She could feel his lips on the top of her head. It was enough for her to calm down enough to explain what happened.