The next chapter is up! Enjoy :)
The weeks continued drifting by.
After that night when Adar told her the whole truth about himself, a part of him still would've thought she'd be a little afraid or cautious around him. Instead, it appears they are continuing to actually grow closer to each other.
Mia didn't seem to judge him in any way for his turbulent past as the ruthless leader of the Uruks.
She understood that in the very beginning, he didn't have much of a choice when it came to his life. If anything, it was stolen from him, and he was forced to serve under those that have taken it from him. While hearing his story was heart wrenching, she couldn't help but feel anger too, towards those that had hurt him.
Everything that has happened to him, it made her glad he was given a second chance to start over with this brand-new life because if anyone deserved it, it was him.
It was now nearing the end of April. Easter was just about here. Which made her remember that she needs to explain to him all the holidays they celebrate here on Earth. Funny, how much she had been trying to teach him about Earth and their society, and she completely forgot about the holidays.
During this time, Mia was finishing up her Saturday morning ballet class.
She had the girls doing their last-minute jumping drills before ending the class. They were doing jete' jumps from one side of the room to the other and doing a good job.
"Great job ladies! Keep that energy flowing!" Mia called out as she stood in front of the mirror watching them run and jump in a straight line from one side to the other.
"Try to straighten those legs a little more when you extend your legs out mid jump, Evelyn." She instructed one of them.
On the next jump, the nine-year-old girl did as instruct and made sure they were straighter as she jumped and extended them.
"Great, much better! You got it!" Mia comments.
Adar was sitting on the couch, reading one of the books from her office.
Every now and then his gaze would flicker to Mia and the class as they practiced. She really was a good instructor and was very good at guiding them through each step and very patient when there was one step they would struggle with.
It was then he heard a beeping sound coming from one of the cubbies off to the side. Being here long enough he knew what it was, and he shifted his gaze to one dirty blonde hair little girl.
"Jordyn, you're beeping." He told her when she made it to the side of the room he was on after jumping.
She paused, looked over, and nodded.
Then the small girl started approaching the cubbies by the couch he was sitting on. She was huffing and puffing a little from the exertion of jumping about so much.
"Was it two beeps or multiple?" She asked him.
"Multiple, you're low." He informed her.
Jordyn went into the cubby and pulled out her water bottle and took a few sips. Before placing it back down to unzip her bag and pull out her Dexcom to check her numbers.
"Not surprised if it's a little low, I probably burned off a lot of sugar from these last few drills." She says, unlocking the iPhone and checking.
When the numbers popped up, it said fifty-four. So, she was low. Her numbers are supposed to be anywhere between seventy and two-hundred fifty.
"I think I need to finger stick." She says.
"Alright, let's get the things out then." He told, her while placing his book down.
Mia would usually have to come over during the class to give Jordyn a finger stick if her numbers were extremely high or low and pending on what the class was doing, sometimes the rest of the girls had to wait.
But since Aerin was down there from time to time, Jordyn actually showed him how to do it. This way, Mia didn't have to pause the class and come over to do it herself.
It wasn't difficult at all learning how to administer the stick and take a tiny blood sample from it to get a more accurate reading on her numbers. So, he learned it pretty quickly when she showed him how it works.
She gave him the open kit and he started pulling out the things needed. He prepped the glucometer and put a ketone test strip in it and put the lancet (tiny needle) into the injection pen. Then he pulled out a small antiseptic wipe.
"Alright, which finger we doing this time?" He asked her.
Jordyn just gave him a mischievous grin.
"My favorite." She replied, holding out one of her middle fingers to him.
He chuckled a little at that, having learned what the 'Middle Finger' here meant and knew she was just being silly now.
"Why did I even ask?" He says, with an amused smirk.
Then he wiped off her finger with the sterile wipe. He gently pinched the tip of her finger, prepping it. Before carefully placing the injection pen over it. Then he pressed the button on the side, and the spring-loaded needle was activated. She barely flinched as the sharp little needle pierced the skin.
Afterwards, he gently pinched it, trying to bring enough blood from the open prick. Once there was enough, he placed the test strip over it and collected a tiny sample and they waited for the glucometer reading.
It came back at fifty-eight. So, it really was low.
"Eat a piece of chocolate." He told her.
Jordyn reached into her bag and pulled out her small bag of Hershey Kisses. She pulled one out, unwrapped it and popped it in her mouth.
"How do you feel. Any headaches or feeling really fatigued?" He asked.
"I feel fine. But I'll still sit here. Class will be over any minute anyway." She says.
"Fair enough." He said.
"Are you and Miss Mia doing anything for Easter tomorrow?" The little girl asked.
Adar tried not to give her a funny look.
"Easter?" He asked.
"Yeah, you know. Where you paint eggs and put them out for the Easter Bunny to hide? Then go look for an Easter Basket he hides that is filled with goodies?" She pointed out.
Instead of telling her he didn't know what she was talking about, he pretended to know what she meant.
"Oh, I'm not sure yet. Mia has yet to tell me the plans for it." He stated.
"Maybe you'll get a lot of chocolate. My friend say they usually get a lot of candy like chocolate and small toys in their baskets." Jordyn says.
"And you get a lot of these things too?" He asked.
The girl shook her head.
"No, I'm Jewish. I don't celebrate Easter. I celebrate Passover. That was last weekend. But everyone else here in class celebrates Easter, including Miss Mia, that's why I asked what you guys were doing." She replied.
Now he really was curious. Once class ended, he wanted to inquire what this Easter and Passover was all about because Mia had yet to tell him about these topics.
It was only another three minutes, before the class finally ended. All the girls came wandering over, each one grabbed their water bottles and guzzled down some water.
"Hey Aerin, since you come down here watching Aunt Mia teach us, how come you don't join the class and learn ballet?" Robin asked as she walked over to him with her water bottle.
An amused grin appeared on his face.
"I'm sorry to say, I don't think I'm as graceful as all you young ladies are. I might end up tripping over my feet trying to execute a move." He joked.
"He's also much bigger than us. So, if he falls on one of us, he'll squish us." Delaney teased.
The other girls giggled a little at that.
"No, if anything I'' most likely either fall flat on my bottom or fall forward on my face. Not to mention, I don't think anyone here wants to see someone like me prancing about in a bright pink leotard or tutu. Might be best to spare everyone here that nightmare." He continued joking.
The girls laughed at that, painting a mental image in their minds of a grown man in a large pink tutu and matching leotard and ballet slippers as he clumsily dances around the floor.
"Though it be both very interesting and hilarious to see and I would definitely record that on my iPhone if he ever did such a thing." Mia joked as she came over.
"Don't forget to post it on YouTube if you do, Miss Mia." Charlotte says.
"Yeah but show us first before you do." Keagan stated.
"I think Aerin should also wear bright pink ribbons in his hair to match the outfit." Dylan added.
"And use them to tie his hair up in pigtails since his hair is long enough." Penny snickered.
"I'd say you all are making it difficult for me not to run away right now." Adar teased.
"Nah, you can't outrun us, we'd catch you." Robyn says.
"I think when we do catch him, we should put makeup on him too." Evelyn said, with a smirk.
"I have some makeup at home I can bring in for that." Jordyn added, getting in on the fun.
"Are you not going to help me in the least?" He asks Mia.
"Nope, even if they decide to jump you, I won't lend a hand." The young woman teased.
"What ever happened to mercy?" He stated, with a small sigh.
"Aww, don't worry Aerin. We won't try to squeeze you into a tutu. We promise." Robin tells him.
"That mischievous little smirk says otherwise, child." Adar said.
The girl just shrugs her shoulders, giving him an innocent look.
"Alright guys, let's start packing our stuff and heading upstairs. I'm sure your parents are already here." Mia stated, with an amused tone.
All eight of them went to grab their things out of the cubbies. Then they all started to head towards the stairs.
"I think we should add nail polish in for him. I got this new sparkly pink nail polish at home we could use." Dylan whispers to the others as they walk by.
Adar clearly heard it though and couldn't help but shake his head with an amused grin.
He soon got up and followed everyone else upstairs.
Once they made it to the top, all the kids crossed the living room and made their way to the front door. They all peered out the screen door looking for their parents' cars parked out front. When they saw them. All the kids shuffled out the door and walked over to the cars and got in.
The only one remaining was her niece, Robin.
Once all the other cars left, the only one behind was her brother's car. He came out to greet them.
"Hey, guys." He says, as he walks up to them.
"Hi, daddy!" Robin replied, as she walked over and wrapped her little arms around his waist in a hug.
"Hey, pumpkin." He says, as he gave her a gentle hug back, before shifting his gaze back to his sister.
"How'd everything go?" He asked her.
"Great, as always. Where's Tess and Camden?" She asked.
"She took him shopping for some new sneakers. And I still need to grab some last-minute things for Easter tomorrow." John replied.
Mia's eyes lit up in amusement. Her brother having to grab things last minute; typical.
"Nice to see some things never change. Still doing everything last minute." Mia teased.
He snorted, "Yeah, what else is new? I forgot to pick up some wine and a couple things for the Easter baskets. Go figure."
"Lemme guess, Mom called you and said, 'Don't forget the Cabernet Sauvignon'." She said, continuing teasing him.
"Pretty much. At least the restaurant we are going to this time allows you to bring your own booze." He told her.
"Better make sure you keep the bottle at the other end of the table away from mom then. Otherwise, dad will give us an earful about having listen to her babble on and giving him a headache on the car ride home." She replied, with an amused grin.
"At the same time, that was always the most amusing things about them. But yeah, just need to run a couple quick errands. Thankfully, I shouldn't be too long." John tells her.
"Well, have fun with that. I've been so wrapped up in writing and the ballet classes I hardly had time to pick up anything for tomorrow. So, you're at least much better off than me." Mia stated.
"It's fine. No one is expecting everyone to bring something." Her brother assured her.
Then his gaze shifted to Adar, who was standing next to his sister.
"You want to come with us? Like I told her, I won't be long. Just need to grab a couple things." He said.
Mia's gaze flickered between her brother and Adar. A part of her was both surprised and concerned on why her brother would want her friend to accompany him to run a couple simple errands.
Adar was a bit surprised too. While he has met her brother a small handful of times already and has talked to him a little whenever he came to drop off and pick up his daughter from ballet, their conversations never really went past a simple 'hello' and 'how are you doing?'.
John did find it strange that whenever he went to his sister's home as of late, he was always there.
Mia eventually admitted that he was currently residing in the home, renting out the guestroom. Though, he can't say he bought into that explanation.
He knew his sister well enough that since her assault, she was usually very leery and a bit uncomfortable around men she didn't know.
So, it seemed awfully strange to him that she went from hardly leaving the house at the beginning after the assault, to this. It was not even a year ago when she finally started leaving the confines of this home to do simple daily tasks. Before then, either he or his wife were picking up groceries or other essentials for her and dropping them at the house.
From what he can see though, is that she doesn't appear to be uncomfortable around this new housemate and has even told him a couple times that they have become friends, because of this, he kind of wants to know more about this man.
"Alright." Adar replied.
Mia's gaze flickered to him briefly, almost like she was surprised he agreed to her brother's offer.
"Great, like I said, we won't be too long. Half hour tops." John says.
"That is fine. Don't really have anything planned today. So, take your time." Adar told him.
Afterwards, he followed her brother to his car.
He looked briefly over his shoulder back to Mia, who had somewhat of an anxious look on her face. But he gave her a small, reassuring smile, as if secretly telling her that everything will be fine.
This will be his first time alone with someone without her there. He wasn't worried or concerned in the least though, because he knew eventually, that he'd be engaging with her family at some point or another.
He recalls the time, her mother had called her and inquired about the 'new man' within her home. Apparently, the older woman asked Mia all kinds of questions about him. There were times, she could hardly keep up with the line of questioning but still tried answering them as best as she could.
Adar could also tell by the phone conversation was the reason both her mother and her father were asking her all kinds of questions was out of concern for her. They wanted to make sure that this man can be trusted and not do anything to harm her. It stems from their fear of what happened to her with the previous man she was with.
He didn't blame them. After all, he knew what it was like to be a parent and hold concerns for his own offspring in one sense or another. It was clear, they just wanted her to be safe.
He got into the passenger seat of the car. While John got into the driver's seat and Robin hopped into the back and buckled herself in.
Her iPad and headphones were still on the backseat not far from her. So, Robin grabbed them and started fiddling with the iPad, turning it on and plugging in her headphones.
While she was preoccupied with that, John eventually started talking with Adar as they drove down the road.
"So, how do you like your stay here so far?" John asks him.
"I like it just fine. It's a nice area and Mia's lovely." Adar replied.
"Yes, and yet, I still find it surprising that she decided to take up a tenant and rent out the guestroom to them. Especially, since she never mentioned before about having plans in doing so. She was always used to having her own space and living alone." He stated.
Already, the former Dark Elf was wondering where this was going.
"Perhaps. But then being alone isn't always easy either. After a while, it does get to you." Adar says.
During his time down in the dungeon beneath Utumno, he was kept alone in a cell for a very long time, with hardly any contact with anyone. Except for the occasional beatings and torture that is. This was before they shoved his companion in with him.
Still, he never forgot what that feeling was like. Feeling isolated and not allowed to have contact with anyone except for the captors. It was just another tactical way of breaking him.
"That is true...especially when you're used to being around a lot of people beforehand." John replied.
Adar was silent for a moment, as he silently analyzed the other man.
"I understand your concern. Mia had told me what had happened to her only a couple years past. But I assure you, I would never hurt her." He said.
John was quite surprised to hear this. Normally, his sister was very closed off from sharing that terrible part of her life with anyone. Hell, it took a very long time for her to open up about it with her therapists and confide in her closest friend about it. Let alone her family.
The fact that she told this man whom she only known for a couple months about it was shocking to say the least.
"Then...you are aware of the struggles she deals with." John stated.
"I am. And I'm sorry that has happened to her. But it is also clear, that she is very strong and resilient and has come a very long way since then. Now, it is clear, she just wants to move forward with her life and in doing so, she is doing things she enjoys most, teaching ballet and writing stories. I have seen firsthand that both these things give her piece of mind and happiness. Enough so that it is helping her heal and move past the pain." Adar tells him.
The other man sighs, "I just wanted to be sure we're on the same page here. I know my sister is tough and resilient as you said. But I also know her heart and trust in others has always been very fragile at best since the assault. She obviously, seems to trust you. Otherwise, I doubt she'd open her home to you. I just want to be sure that trust isn't misplaced."
"It's not. I understand you don't know me very well and that it may be asking a lot. But you can trust me when I say that I wouldn't betray this trust and friendship we have built up within the last couple months." He said with certainty.
John was silent for a few moments, before replying.
"Alright. I'll hold you to it then." He told Adar.
They weren't driving for much longer, when they pulled into the parking lot of a large local convenience store.
They got out of the car, and they all headed inside. Once they got in, Robin was quick to wanting to look at this small selection of books on ponies. Her father told her she could, but to not wander far from the area while he went to go get a couple bottles of wine for tomorrow.
Adar looked around the large store. He never been to this place before with Mia. Still, he started wandering about looking at the variety of different things they had to offer.
After a few minutes, he found himself near the back of the store and saw one section that appeared to sell various flowers of sorts. It piqued his curiosity, and he went over to look at what they had.
They had a nice selection of different types of flowers.
He slowly looked through the few rows until a selection of roses caught his eye. Adar walked over and started looking through them. He knew one of Mia's favorite flowers were roses. She had told him this at least once before. She liked them and she really liked hibiscus flowers.
While he did see pictures of such flowers before on her laptop when she showed him, he didn't see that type of flower here.
He stopped and eyed a large bunch of red roses. Most of them had yet to fully open and bloom but they were still lovely nonetheless and had him thinking.
About a minute went by, before a middle-aged woman walked over with a smile and started to address him.
"Hello there, were you looking to buy some?" She asked.
His gaze shifted from the flowers to the saleswoman.
"Yes, may I have a few of these roses right here, please?" He requested politely.
"No problem." She replied.
Then the woman carefully grabbed about six of the red roses and pulled them out of the plastic holder that was filled with some water.
She then brought them over to a table and picked out this pretty floral printed paper and started to carefully wrap the roses within it. Afterwards, she handed the bouquet of roses to him.
"Thank you, how much?" He asked.
"Ten dollars." She replied.
Mia had taught him enough about the currency system here. She even lent him around forty dollars to have.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out the two twenties that were folded over and pulled one out to give to the lady. She took it and placed it in the cash register, before giving him a ten-dollar bill back.
"Enjoy." She says, with a polite smile.
"Thank you." He replied.
Afterwards, Adar walked away with the flowers in hand.
He went back to the area that he saw John go over to. Only to find him walking away from the aisle filled with booze and headed for him with a bottle of wine in each hand.
The young man paused before him and his gaze flickered to the roses that Adar had in his hand.
"Easter gift for her." Was all Adar told him.
John gave him a small smile.
"And I'm sure she will love them. Seeing as roses are one of her favorites." He replied.
Not a few moments later, Robin came bounding over with a book in her hands.
"Daddy, I found a book I like." She says, with a bright smile.
"Alright, but just the one book and nothing else." Her father said.
"Ok." The small girl replied.
Afterwards, John walked down at least one more aisle, picking up a couple more Easter candies to put into the Easter baskets for the kids. Then they went to the checkout counter to pay for the items before leaving.
John chatted with Adar a little bit on the way back to Mia's.
The conversation was mainly about his job as a Professor in Mathematics at Atlantic Cape Community College. Telling him about the various courses he teaches and that he really enjoyed it. If not for the fact that this college was much closer to home than the last one, he previously worked at.
Adar found the topic to be interesting and asked him which area of mathematics he preferred teaching most.
John informed him that algebra and geometry were a couple of his favorite areas of math. He is currently teaching linear algebra and precalculus courses at the college.
Before long, they were back at Mia's home.
"Thank you for the trip." Adar told him, before opening the passenger side door to leave.
"You're welcome. And I'm sorry if I came off rather standoffish earlier during one of our previous conversations. But as an older brother, it's only natural to be cautious and protective of one's younger sibling. Especially, after what they have been through. I hope you understand." John says.
Adar gave him a brief nod, "I understand completely. And as I stated earlier, you can trust me. The last thing I would ever do, is hurt her."
"Thanks, I appreciate it. It's also nice knowing that she has someone to look out for her too. While it does put me at ease that she has Tundra for security, I also feel a bit better that there is someone else there with her as well." He replied.
"Bye, Aerin!" Robin called out from the back seat.
"Goodbye." He told her.
Then shifted his gaze back to John.
"And I give my word, I will watch over her." Adar said.
The young man briefly nodded, then Adar shut the car door and started walking away.
He approached the front door and opened it. One thing he learned, is that when they were both within the home, she kept it locked, but if he were to go out for a walk along the beach, she'd leave it unlocked for him.
Guess this time was no different.
When he entered the home, he saw her look up from behind the couch. He lightly placed the flowers behind his back when he saw her stand up and round the couch to meet him.
"Hey, how was it? Hope my brother didn't chew your ear off the whole time. I think I may have warned you before that he can be quite the chatterbox. As stated, he gets that from our father." Mia says, with some amusement in her gaze.
"No, if anything he's very pleasant to converse with. He told me a little about his job at the college and he obviously really enjoys it." Adar replied.
"Yeah, not surprising. There are times we barely get through a conversation without his work being brought up. But then, that is typical with many people." Mia stated.
A brief moment of silence past between them, before he pulled his right arm from behind his back and held the small bouquet of roses out in front of him.
Her eyes flickered down to the flowers, before gazing back up at him with a soft smile.
"Aerin, thank you. You...didn't have to do that though." She says, as she took the offered roses.
"I wanted to. After all you have done for me thus far, I felt it was right to at least provide you with a small gift of gratitude." He tells her.
Her smile widened a little more at the thoughtfulness of the gift.
"Again, thank you. This was very sweet. I love them." Mia said.
He returned the smile, "You're welcome."
She lightly leaned in and took a small whiff of the roses. The soft and familiar fragrance met with her and made her smile even more. It reminded her of the time when she would receive flowers from her family and friends after a big performance.
Yet these were just as special, if not more so because it was out of someone's thoughtfulness and kindness for the kind person she simply was and not because of her superior dance talents and performance.
It also made her remember something.
"Come, I actually have something for you too. I bought it the other day when I was out. I figure now would be a good time as any to give it to you. Seeing as you had just given me a gift." She says.
Adar shook his head, "Mia, you don't have to get me anything. You have already provided me with more than enough as it is."
"Nope, this is something I know you can really benefit from that you'll like." Mia tells him.
She then gestures for him to follow her.
The young woman led him out of the living room and down the hallway. She made a right and went into his room and then approached his bed, where she left the gift for him not long after he left with her brother earlier.
Mia picked up the item then turned around and presented it to him.
After watching her work on the piece of tech known as a laptop, he knew right away what it was she was gifting him. It was a laptop.
"This is for you." She said, while handing the flat, lightweight laptop to him.
He slowly took it and eyed it.
It was similar to the one she had. Same size and color.
"I have noticed these last couple months since you been here, that besides reading and learning what I would teach you, that you have come to like researching things. Now, that you have your own laptop you can research as much as you want instead of having to wait to use mine." She informed him.
Adar gave her a soft smile.
"Thank you. It is a nice gift." He replied.
"You're welcome. And when you're ready to use it, I'll show you how to set it up with your own password." Mia says.
"Sounds good, though I do have something I'd like to ask you about." He told her.
"Yeah, what is it?" She asked.
"What exactly is this Easter everyone is going on about?" Adar inquired.
An amused grin appeared on her face.
"Sorry, after being here for a while now, I guess I forgot to tell you about the 'holidays' we tend to celebrate here. Come on, let's head back out to the living room. I'll give you the rundown." She said.
Afterwards, the two of them left his bedroom and headed out to the living room. Bringing up holidays was just a simple reminder that she still had a lot more to teach him about living here. Still, it was a process and one that was worth it.
Until Next Time ;)