Our Forbidden Love 2

20: Starley

Lilliana, Piper, Daddy and I all enter the meeting room together and take our respective seats. I slip into mine beside Whitney and Binah who both greet me with a warm smile. Once everyone is seated Binah takes charge again like she always does.
"Thanks for coming so quickly everyone, I'm aware some of you were in the middle of other things," she says. I'm expecting her to look at me, referring to me caring for Alex, but instead she looks between Piper and Daddy. I look at her, surprised and smiling. I didn't know anyone else knew beside me and them. She hurries along in speaking which makes me think that maybe not everyone here knows and only Binah and I do.
Only him, her, Whitney, you and I know about it, Starley, she says telepathically. I nod.
"We're not here for a regular meeting," she says, leaving the room in silence. "We're here for a trial..." Everyone looks around the circle and tries to work out who we're trialling.
"The trial will stay anonymous at this point in time, though everyone will vote at the end of it," she explains. It's odd, we've never done this before. I'm sort of excited for it, I don't know what's going to happen.
"First, let me explain the situation. There's a mum and a dad both of different children. The children are joined by Fate to be together. The parents feel that they should be together instead, but don't want to ruin the children's existing relationship which is what they're doing anyway." I nod understandingly along with everyone else in the circle, pretending I have no idea who this is referring to.
"Well, it depends who got into a relationship first," says Rhylee and I nod to them in agreement.
"It was the children, by a few months," Binah responds.
"Then their relationship should continue, the parents were too late. What does the children's Fate say?"
"They're going to marry," Binah says, "many Readers have seen visions of their wedding day becoming clearer and more colourful day by day."
Everyone nods.
"What kind of relationship are the parents looking for?" asks Hailey.
"They hope to fill a broken heart," Binah answers. "They just need someone to love."
"Surely they can love each other by only being friends, can't they?" I ask.
"Yes, you would think so," says Binah.
"I agree with Starley," says Whitney. "The love doesn't have to be romantic and sexual." Lilliana, Hailey, Binah and Rhylee nod to us in agreement.

Binah begins the vote and majority of people vote for the children's love to stay intact.
"Thank you for coming, I'll tell the mother and father what has been decided," Binah says, dismissing us. "Sorry, Starley and Walter can you please stay back a second?"
I nod, eagerly, happy to have gotten my way with Alex. No one in the Government suspects this meeting has anything to do with the trial, which I'm glad of. I ignore the looks that Piper and Daddy give each other as they're separated. They knew it was wrong in the first place, I don't know why they're upset now.
"So, you both know who that was about-" Binah begins but she's interrupted. I've never seen Daddy so angry.
"What the actual hell was that Binah? 'The trial will stay anonymous'? Why did you need the Government for that?! Couldn't you have just talked to Piper and I separately?"
Surprisingly, Binah doesn't look scared or intimidated like I would've. Instead she calmly says, "it was affecting other people's performance on the Government, Walter." I see her head subtly jerk in my direction.
"My performance?" I ask.
"Your merfolk energy was in absolute shreds until we just held that trial," says Binah turning towards me more.
"My what?"
"Your energy. The control you have over your magic. When you saw the Reverse Reading vision it just tore your energy up and that's why you kept seeing that same vision. You were affected by Weedy's dark magic," she pauses to point to the bandages on my arm, "and then you saw that vision..."
"So part of me Reverse Reading was dark magic and the other half was my destroyed energy?"
"Yes, essentially," Binah answers. She turns back to Daddy. "So that's why I did it infront of the Government. You guys can go."
I thank her for her time but Daddy storms straight out of the room without saying anything. I decide to go back to Alex's room and see how he's feeling.

I knock on his door and I hear his call of 'come in'. I open the door and swim inside before closing the door behind me. My eyes look straight to the bed but it's empty.
"Over here," he calls. He's up out of the bed towards the far side of the room. "It was getting boring in the bed and I figured I was fine to get up."
I shrug and laugh, swimming over to him. I throw my arms around his neck and he wraps his around my waist pulling me close to his body.
"I'm so glad you're okay," I say against his neck and in response he pulls me closer to his body.
"I am too, baby. Something weird happened though," he says.
"What happened?" I ask. We break out of the hug though not completely. My arms are still around his neck and his hands are on my waist.
"I was seeing like, all our worst moments. When you got kidnapped, when Weedy attacked you and then I saw myself asleep and you beside me."
"I don't know what that is. Normally I'd say ask Piper about it, but I really want to avoid any unnecessary communication with her."
"Another break in to the Records Room?" he asks and I smile and nod.
"Whatever it takes," I say. "We're all in."
"We're all in," he repeats and we hug again, his arms and hands pulling me closer to his body.