Waves of Love

THREE

20 years old

Aquafina gasped at the small house. Her name was on a sign on the door. The house was grey and pink, a perfect match for her. She jumped and cheered at the mini paradise. "Oh thank you, thank you, thank you!" She hugged her parents in a giant group hug. She was officially a water goddess. She had been inducted the day of her birthday and now she could control the weather along side her family. Her uncles, cousins, and grandparents had cheered her on as she accepted the scroll for the right to an official temple. Now all she had to do was find a prophet. And she knew exactly who to choose.

"It is probably that boy she is always stalking. You know falling in love with humans is forbidden Aquafina," her mother had warned. She only nodded with pure glee on her face. Once she was in her new office she quickly scrolled with lightning speed to prince Evan who was sleeping in his office.

Prince Evan recently also had very exciting news. The little prince was finally a crown prince. She remembered the excited prayers he had made to her one night. "I did it! I did it goddess! My heart burns with excitement! I didn't think I would be this happy but I am. I truly am." She cheered with him as he did a mini dance on his balcony.

Aquafina was excited to share her own news and finally she could do it in a proper way. Prophetic dreams were rare and and was a complicated spell that could only be made once every ten years. Most gods take decades to find the perfect prophet but she was sure he would say yes. She stared at his sleeping frame through his office window. His long brown eyelashes fluttered and his pink lips parted at his heavy breath. He indeed was a beautiful man. Aquafina felt her stomach twirl and twist.

She closed her eyes and hummed a slow and hypnotic song. The tune filled the room and poured into his mind. When his soul hummed in response their minds were connected. She spotted his light figure standing at a distance in all white garments. He stared at her dream heaven with confusion. "Hi," she called down to him.

His green eyes locked with hers. He spoke off instinct, "goddess?" She smiled. "Yes, it is me," she beamed. His eyes widened and a happy chuckle escaped his lips. "Wow, I just- wow." She sheepishly pulled a strand of her hair behind her ear as his heated eyes gazed at her with pure adoration. She hoped his happiness to see her was a good sign. She floated down to him. "I have a request for you, Prince Evan." He nodded, "anything."

She smiled. "I was just recently inducted to be an official water goddess. Meaning I can have my own temple." He made a small round of applause for her making her laugh. "Thank you. But that's not all I came to say." He stopped and listened diligently. "Since I need a temple I also need a prophet to build it and run it," she eyed his smiling with curiosity. She wanted to know what he was thinking. "So Prince Evan, I ask, will you be my prophet?"

He paused. "A prophet?" She nodded. He scratched his head nervously, "but goddess I am already in line to be king I don't think it would be wise to add prophet on top of that." She shook her head with a slight chuckle, "on the contrary it is pretty common for kings to be prophets. All you have to do is build the temple and order people to run it. But the benefits out way the burdens." He raised an eyebrow, "what do you mean?"

She created a bubble of water in and reshaped it to models of swimming dolphins. "With your prayers I am able to directly intervene with your world more than I already do," she sheepishly chuckled. "You will also be able to cast blessings, meaning those people will be under a partial divine protections. Not to mention as a prophet your influence as a prince will far exceeded your brothers' sense you will have complete divine protection."

He pondered his options thoroughly. She was grateful he was truly thinking about it and not jumping in half prepared. Many prophets regret their decision later and abandon their gods. But she knew Evan would never do that.

"Okay," he stated.

He raised his head to her. "Okay?" She confirmed.

"Okay," he declared.

She beamed, "then congratulations. You are now a prophet of the water goddess Aquafina." A small blue light appeared on his hand then disappeared. What remained was a sigil. It was a sign of their contract. He stared at the blue marking with curiosity. He read the blue letters that were on his hand. "Aquafina," he repeated.

Then he turned to her, "a beautiful name for a beautiful goddess."

•••

25 years old

He was her king and she was his goddess. They ruled together with a pure heart and a curious mind.

A realization had come to Aquafina as she did her tasks with the surrounding worlds. She liked being with Evan. It was far more intense than it was with other humans she interacted with. When she was with Evans she felt seen. Truly and wholly seen. Maybe it was because he was her prophet but they had grown immensely close over the years.

In her mind it had started when he began calling her by her name. That night he had stated, "if I am going to be serving you my whole life I think we should drop the honorifics right goddess Aquafina?" Her heart wasn't prepared for it but when he made up his mind to do something he always did. Even if it meant saying her name at every given time.

"Aquafina aren't the flowers beautiful today?"

"Aquafina the neighboring countries want me to to create more temples for you, isn't that great?"

"Aquafina! Is that you? Did you miss me?"

"Aquafina!" "Aquafina?" "Aquafina."

He had grown so closely attached to her that she couldn't help but feel like their relationship had become far to close too quickly. At this rate she was sure to catch... feelings for him.

Her thumping heart and bright blue blush told her it was too late. She was too far gone.

"Aquafina," a sob called her to him. When his heart shifted he knew she was with him. "Aquafina I don't know why I feel like this," he cried. She wanted to hug him. He was such a crybaby in secret but to his people he was s strong and magnificent man. "They want me to get married," he sobbed.

Her heart froze. "I tried to tell them no but their refused and said I need to keep the 'family blood line running.' So what! Why do I have to settle for a loveless marriage just because the only woman I want is up in the sky!"

Aquafina felt her breath hitch in her throat. "Did I say that out loud?" She nodded slowly. He only laughed to himself, "wow I didn't think this was how I would do it, confess to a god."

Was she still able to breath? Because she felt like she had lost the ability to.

"Aquafina, I don't think there is proper word in both heaven and on earth that can describe the way my heart yearns for you." He touched his chest, "do you feel it? How fast my heart beats when it knows you're listening. I love knowing you're are close. Always protecting me. Always there to listen." He smiled and looked up to his ceiling, "no one knows me the way than you do. But you choose me despite how cowardly I can be. You saved my life, not just that but you've changed my life for the better and I love you for that."

He smiled, "I love you."

Aquafina stared at her empty office. Her work load had shrank sense she was getting so many prayers from Evan's world. She knew on the he would die she would live countless more centuries after. But she knew her heart had grown attached to this sweet boy who loved to cry in the rain.

She closed her eyes and clapped her hands. She astral projection but only he could see and hear her as her prophet. He quickly stood up at the familiar sight of her.

"Aquafina," he acknowledged. She leaned up to him and kissed him. It was a faint kiss but he could still feel it. His eyes were wide with surprise. "I love you too," she whispered in response.