Lift Me Up | A Gabenath Story

Chapter 7: Dream, Denial, Delusion

He was there when she fell from the clouds; and landed in the desert. When he saw her, there was a thunder inside of his heart; there was a wonderful pleasure. They took to the calico road, running from the weather. But instead of choosing to run for shelter, she chose to attract lightning. They stopped and faced each other, letting their hearts soak in the rain.

His gaze was set intensely upon hers. He saw a highway inside of her eyes; there was a buried treasure. And when they got caught in the storm, she started flying a kite. At the end was a key to his heart. She was his lover for life.

He glanced at her perfectly formed lips; rosy pink and delicate as a rose's petals. Their heartbeats fluttered like the thousand flaps of a hummingbird's wings as he pressed his lips onto her own. She tasted just right; sweet like Tennessee honey. They shut their eyes, indulging into the passionate moment. He grazed his fingers along the delicate curves of her hips.

When they broke apart, he looked into her eyes once more. It was not who he expected to see.

Instead of seeing the green eyes of the blonde he married, he only saw the pair of deep blue eyes of a bluenette. In that moment, he saw a reflection of his paradise. And he closed his eyes, leaning in to seal his lips on hers again, dying for another taste.

That was, until he frantically awoke.

Gabriel sat upright on his bed. What the hell had he been dreaming of? He denied the fact that the woman's lips he had savored in his dreams was his assistant's. It couldn't be. The one and only woman he had ever loved was Emilie. Why had he seen Nathalie instead of Emilie? It must have been a mistake on his mind's behalf.

This was not the first time he had dreamed of her. These dreams, in fact, had started after he had seen Nathalie and Jean's kiss.

Every night his mind had been running around her, the thunder in his heart getting louder and louder─ meaning he thought about her every night, more and more.

Heart still beating fast, he got out of his bed to sit in the armchair in his bedroom. Gabriel picked a book off the shelf and read for the rest of the night, too afraid to sleep again. He did not want to risk having the same dream again.

The next morning, Nathalie had woken early to start work. But not as Nathalie─ as Mayura. But before using Mayura, she had to put her plan to work. She had spent the night formulating the plan to seize the miraculous her boss so desperately wanted. Now with the peacock miraculous in her power, she only had to look for a soul in distress. Since there weren't any she knew of, she had to put someone in that state herself.

"Jean, we need to talk . . ."

"Sure, love. I'll meet you at your apartment in ten minutes?"

"Alright, see you then."

"I love you, Nathalie."

"See you, Jean."

─

Nathalie waited for Jean's arrival. She paced around her small kitchen area, biting her bottom lip anxiously. What was she going to do if the plan did not work? In the end, who would end up getting hurt more? Herself? Gabriel? Jean, perhaps?

Nathalie heard a knock at the door. Nathalie's eyes darted at the handle as she slowly clasped it before opening the door. She did not know whether to proceed with her plan or not.

There's no backing out now, she reminded herself, I must do this for Gabriel's happiness.

Nathalie opened the door and found Jean holding a gorgeous flower arrangement. Internally, she hesitated to take them. Although it pained her to admit it, she knew that she was about to hurt him. Very badly.