I woke up early, half because I wanted to talk to Morgan, and half
because the springs on the bed were digging into my back. Stupid hotel
beds. I showered and dressed and then took out the piece of paper with
Morgan's number on it.
Then phone rang about six times before anyone picked it up. Then I heard Morgan's muffled, tired voice "Mpf?" she said.
"Hi. Morgan? This is Genevieve, from yesterday, at Practical Magick."
"Oh.oh, hi."
"Hi. Well I was just wondering if you would wanted to go somewhere and talk. I don't really know where. I've never been here before. Do you know of any good places??" I asked her
"Oh yeah. We can go to the tea shop. Do you know where that is at all?"
"No, I don't. I'm sorry."
"Oh that's ok," she said. "I'll pick you up at like--say.noon? Is that alright?"
"Oh yeah. That's fine," I said but was disappointed because I had woken up all early for nothing.
"What hotel are you staying at?" she asked me.
"The Holiday Inn. It's on West Road."
"Ok, got it. I'll be there at noon."
"Ok. Thanks Morgan. I'll see you then. Bye."
"Bye," she said unenthusiastically.
So there I was. Alone in my hotel room. It was only eight thirty, so I had awhile before I went out with Morgan. I decided to go walking around the town, hoping to find a place that serves breakfast. I walked the crowded streets not knowing where I was headed or where I would end up. As I looked from place to place, and walked from street to street, a person caught my eye. He was tall, and lean, and was wearing a long wool coat, just like Hunter wore yesterday. Oh, Goddess, I thought to myself, Please let it be him. I walked up to the man and tapped him on the shoulder. He turned around and faced me and when I saw that this man's eyes were blue, I knew it wasn't Hunter. I would have definitely know if it was Hunter by his marvelous green eyes that can search a soul. The man stared at me with a confused look on his face. I blushed, embarrassed because I didn't know him and had just tapped his shoulder for no reason. Think fast, I thought to myself. "Nice weather we're having isn't it?" I asked him. His gaze went from me to the sky which was covered in dark gray clouds. He looked back at me in a state of bewilderment, and that's when I took off running.
I looked back to make sure he wasn't following me or something (I know--I'm paranoid) and accidentally ran right into someone. I was too mortified to look up, so I kept my gaze on the ground as I started to walk away.
"Well, isn't this a coincidence," I heard behind me and stopped cold. I knew that accent. It was English. Oh, Goddess, I thought. Its got to be him! I turned around and standing right before me was Hunter. Thank you, I thought enthusiastically. "It's Genevieve, right?"
"Yes," I said, halfway in a trance from the way he said my name. I must have been staring at him because he gave me an odd look, so I came back to reality immediately and said, "Hi, Hunter. Uh--What are you doing out so early?"
"I'm actually looking for some breakfast. My father hasn't gone to the grocery store in a while so I figured I would eat out this morning," he replied.
"Oh wow, that's strange. Was looking for a place to eat, too," I said, thanking the Goddess about one hundred times in my head.
"Well, there's no use eating alone, so would you like to join me?"
I nodded in both disbelief and agreement.
We walked into a restaurant and sat down. I couldn't stop smiling. I felt like the luckiest girl alive right then.
"So, where are you from?" he asked me.
"New York," I said to him.
"Oh, that's nice. I've had some bad experiences there."
"Oh, really. Why? What happened?"
"Well, Morgan and I had a run-in with Amyranth. They tried to steal her power and Ciaran let me go and gave me the power to save her because he realized that Morgan was his daughter. Do you hear a lot about Amyranth?" he asked me. I stared at him for a couple of seconds and thought to myself. I couldn't tell him I was a part of Amyranth. I knew he was a Seeker for the council. He'd probably have me stripped of my magick if I said I had anything to do with them so I knew I would have to lie. That's basically what this whole mission is about. Lying to people. Great.
"I hear about them, but nothing bad like what they did to you or anything." I couldn't believe I was lying to Hunter. It hurt me. I don't know why. I always thought I was a pretty good liar but I felt so horrible after lying to him. What is it about you, Hunter Niall? What is it about you that makes me crazy? I thought to myself.
There was a moment of silence and he looked around the restaurant anxiously. I just looked at him, studying his features. He was perfect. His beautiful green eyes, flawless cheekbones, his gorgeous ideally shaped lips that I longed to feel on mine: All of these things made up his face. The face that I longed to touch and kiss and love.
Then I wondered about Morgan. I wanted to know about their relationship. I wanted to know if he loved her. So I brought it up. "So, you and Morgan. How long have you two been together?"
"Oh, we've been together for about 3 months. It doesn't seem like long, but with everything we've been through together and all of the pain we've suffered, it seems like I've been with her forever," he blushed and smiled to himself.
"How nice," I lied. "Are you guys serious or anything?"
"I'd say so. I can honestly say that I love her. I have ever since I met her. It was quite odd frankly. I mean, to tell you the truth, if I was to just see her on the street I don't think I'd be able to tell right away that she was my muirn beatha dan but," he let out a sigh, "I just know it's her. We were meant to be together."
"Murin beatha dan?" I said, my heart breaking in my chest. "Wow, that's big. You know? I mean, are you sure she's your soul mate?" I asked him, hoping that he would show any sign of doubt.
"You know, I think about it all the time and I truly believe that she was meant for me," he said, with an honesty that sent shivers down my spine. If only he felt that way about me, I thought.
In the next moment our food came and we ate. I was so hungry, so I must have looked like a pig to him, but I was upset at the time, and when I get upset I eat like a banshee.
When we were finished, I looked up at him and almost started crying. For some strange reason, when I looked in his eyes, I saw his love for Morgan glowing, like an eternal fire. I begged myself not to cry and fought back tears with everything I had, and luckily, they didn't come.
When we were ready to leave, we both got up and grabbed out coats and walked outside, into the cold morning air. "Where are you headed?" he asked me.
"The Holiday Inn on West Road," I said to him. Please offer to walk me there, please! I thought.
"Oh, well, I have no where to be, so would you like me to walk with you?" he asked me.
I was practically jumping in the air at that moment and a smile so big crossed my face that I barely remembered to respond. "Uh-huh," was the only thing I could say at the time.
We walked together and I was secretly hoping that we would never reach the hotel so that we could stay together just talking and laughing forever. It was really nice. He told me all about his parents and his father and how they battled that dark wave and everything. It was so amazing. He was so brave, and that made me want him even more.
When we reached the hotel we stopped in front of it and looked at each other.
"Well, here we are," he said to break the silence.
"Yeah, I should get going. I'm meeting Morgan at noon to talk and stuff."
"Oh good. You came all the way out here to see her so I'm glad you'll get to talk to her," he said. "She really is amazing."
"Oh, well, thanks for walking with me. I should go," do you wanna come up? I added silently, hoping he would read my mind or something and offer to.
But all he said was, "Yeah, I should too. It was nice seeing you."
"Yeah, nice running into you. Literally," I added softly and he chuckled. "I'm sorry about that. I'm a bit accident prone," I said honestly.
"Oh it's alright," he said. "it's not every day you get run into by a pretty girl. Thank you for joining me for breakfast. I have to get going though, so I'll see you around ok?"
"Ok," I said with a smile from ear to ear. I watched him walk away and wanted to run into his arms and kiss him and just have him hold me in his embrace. He called me pretty, I thought and jumped up and down. Damn you Hunter Niall. You just get better and better! I said to myself as I walked into the hotel and up to my room. It was only ten thirty when I got back to all I could do now was wait.
Then phone rang about six times before anyone picked it up. Then I heard Morgan's muffled, tired voice "Mpf?" she said.
"Hi. Morgan? This is Genevieve, from yesterday, at Practical Magick."
"Oh.oh, hi."
"Hi. Well I was just wondering if you would wanted to go somewhere and talk. I don't really know where. I've never been here before. Do you know of any good places??" I asked her
"Oh yeah. We can go to the tea shop. Do you know where that is at all?"
"No, I don't. I'm sorry."
"Oh that's ok," she said. "I'll pick you up at like--say.noon? Is that alright?"
"Oh yeah. That's fine," I said but was disappointed because I had woken up all early for nothing.
"What hotel are you staying at?" she asked me.
"The Holiday Inn. It's on West Road."
"Ok, got it. I'll be there at noon."
"Ok. Thanks Morgan. I'll see you then. Bye."
"Bye," she said unenthusiastically.
So there I was. Alone in my hotel room. It was only eight thirty, so I had awhile before I went out with Morgan. I decided to go walking around the town, hoping to find a place that serves breakfast. I walked the crowded streets not knowing where I was headed or where I would end up. As I looked from place to place, and walked from street to street, a person caught my eye. He was tall, and lean, and was wearing a long wool coat, just like Hunter wore yesterday. Oh, Goddess, I thought to myself, Please let it be him. I walked up to the man and tapped him on the shoulder. He turned around and faced me and when I saw that this man's eyes were blue, I knew it wasn't Hunter. I would have definitely know if it was Hunter by his marvelous green eyes that can search a soul. The man stared at me with a confused look on his face. I blushed, embarrassed because I didn't know him and had just tapped his shoulder for no reason. Think fast, I thought to myself. "Nice weather we're having isn't it?" I asked him. His gaze went from me to the sky which was covered in dark gray clouds. He looked back at me in a state of bewilderment, and that's when I took off running.
I looked back to make sure he wasn't following me or something (I know--I'm paranoid) and accidentally ran right into someone. I was too mortified to look up, so I kept my gaze on the ground as I started to walk away.
"Well, isn't this a coincidence," I heard behind me and stopped cold. I knew that accent. It was English. Oh, Goddess, I thought. Its got to be him! I turned around and standing right before me was Hunter. Thank you, I thought enthusiastically. "It's Genevieve, right?"
"Yes," I said, halfway in a trance from the way he said my name. I must have been staring at him because he gave me an odd look, so I came back to reality immediately and said, "Hi, Hunter. Uh--What are you doing out so early?"
"I'm actually looking for some breakfast. My father hasn't gone to the grocery store in a while so I figured I would eat out this morning," he replied.
"Oh wow, that's strange. Was looking for a place to eat, too," I said, thanking the Goddess about one hundred times in my head.
"Well, there's no use eating alone, so would you like to join me?"
I nodded in both disbelief and agreement.
We walked into a restaurant and sat down. I couldn't stop smiling. I felt like the luckiest girl alive right then.
"So, where are you from?" he asked me.
"New York," I said to him.
"Oh, that's nice. I've had some bad experiences there."
"Oh, really. Why? What happened?"
"Well, Morgan and I had a run-in with Amyranth. They tried to steal her power and Ciaran let me go and gave me the power to save her because he realized that Morgan was his daughter. Do you hear a lot about Amyranth?" he asked me. I stared at him for a couple of seconds and thought to myself. I couldn't tell him I was a part of Amyranth. I knew he was a Seeker for the council. He'd probably have me stripped of my magick if I said I had anything to do with them so I knew I would have to lie. That's basically what this whole mission is about. Lying to people. Great.
"I hear about them, but nothing bad like what they did to you or anything." I couldn't believe I was lying to Hunter. It hurt me. I don't know why. I always thought I was a pretty good liar but I felt so horrible after lying to him. What is it about you, Hunter Niall? What is it about you that makes me crazy? I thought to myself.
There was a moment of silence and he looked around the restaurant anxiously. I just looked at him, studying his features. He was perfect. His beautiful green eyes, flawless cheekbones, his gorgeous ideally shaped lips that I longed to feel on mine: All of these things made up his face. The face that I longed to touch and kiss and love.
Then I wondered about Morgan. I wanted to know about their relationship. I wanted to know if he loved her. So I brought it up. "So, you and Morgan. How long have you two been together?"
"Oh, we've been together for about 3 months. It doesn't seem like long, but with everything we've been through together and all of the pain we've suffered, it seems like I've been with her forever," he blushed and smiled to himself.
"How nice," I lied. "Are you guys serious or anything?"
"I'd say so. I can honestly say that I love her. I have ever since I met her. It was quite odd frankly. I mean, to tell you the truth, if I was to just see her on the street I don't think I'd be able to tell right away that she was my muirn beatha dan but," he let out a sigh, "I just know it's her. We were meant to be together."
"Murin beatha dan?" I said, my heart breaking in my chest. "Wow, that's big. You know? I mean, are you sure she's your soul mate?" I asked him, hoping that he would show any sign of doubt.
"You know, I think about it all the time and I truly believe that she was meant for me," he said, with an honesty that sent shivers down my spine. If only he felt that way about me, I thought.
In the next moment our food came and we ate. I was so hungry, so I must have looked like a pig to him, but I was upset at the time, and when I get upset I eat like a banshee.
When we were finished, I looked up at him and almost started crying. For some strange reason, when I looked in his eyes, I saw his love for Morgan glowing, like an eternal fire. I begged myself not to cry and fought back tears with everything I had, and luckily, they didn't come.
When we were ready to leave, we both got up and grabbed out coats and walked outside, into the cold morning air. "Where are you headed?" he asked me.
"The Holiday Inn on West Road," I said to him. Please offer to walk me there, please! I thought.
"Oh, well, I have no where to be, so would you like me to walk with you?" he asked me.
I was practically jumping in the air at that moment and a smile so big crossed my face that I barely remembered to respond. "Uh-huh," was the only thing I could say at the time.
We walked together and I was secretly hoping that we would never reach the hotel so that we could stay together just talking and laughing forever. It was really nice. He told me all about his parents and his father and how they battled that dark wave and everything. It was so amazing. He was so brave, and that made me want him even more.
When we reached the hotel we stopped in front of it and looked at each other.
"Well, here we are," he said to break the silence.
"Yeah, I should get going. I'm meeting Morgan at noon to talk and stuff."
"Oh good. You came all the way out here to see her so I'm glad you'll get to talk to her," he said. "She really is amazing."
"Oh, well, thanks for walking with me. I should go," do you wanna come up? I added silently, hoping he would read my mind or something and offer to.
But all he said was, "Yeah, I should too. It was nice seeing you."
"Yeah, nice running into you. Literally," I added softly and he chuckled. "I'm sorry about that. I'm a bit accident prone," I said honestly.
"Oh it's alright," he said. "it's not every day you get run into by a pretty girl. Thank you for joining me for breakfast. I have to get going though, so I'll see you around ok?"
"Ok," I said with a smile from ear to ear. I watched him walk away and wanted to run into his arms and kiss him and just have him hold me in his embrace. He called me pretty, I thought and jumped up and down. Damn you Hunter Niall. You just get better and better! I said to myself as I walked into the hotel and up to my room. It was only ten thirty when I got back to all I could do now was wait.