Stina's Story

Chapter three ❤️

I've already done my chores, so I head straight to my room to inspect the object Dex had handed to me earlier. It's a small leaping crystal. I figure he might want me to meet him somewhere to explain things.
I hold the crystal up to the light and leap away.
I'm an idiot, I tell myself. Why would I use a random crystal to leap away to some unknown place?!
I appear inside a small room made of smooth wood. I inspect the room, turning in a slow circle. There's a cushioned bench attached to one fourth of the room, a fireplace surrounded by cabinets, a single window. I look through it and scream, falling backwards.
Outside of the window is a man, scarred beyond recognition, staring blankly ahead.
I fall back into someone's arms.
"He's harmless!" I hear Dex shout. He steadies me and turns me away from the window. "He's kinda creepy, but he won't hurt you. We're not sure if he's even alive at this point."
I stare at him as he crosses the room and draws the curtains. "Okay, so now that I've been terrified out of my wits. What do you want?!" I'm not able to keep all the hysteria out of my voice.
"I'm sorry, I meant to come here before you saw him. As for what I want," he plops onto the bench and folds his legs under him. "I want to know who you really are, all acts you put on for your mother aside."
I forget to breathe again.
I walk shakily to the section of bench next to him and sit beside him.
"I don't know," I respond.
"Well I actually know," he says. "This might sound creepy, but I can read you really well, and I can tell that the mean things you say hurt you as much as they hurt the other person. You're nothing like your mother are you?"
I burst into tears and hysterical laughter. I bury my face in my hands and Dex puts his arm around my shoulders until I can calm down.
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have dropped that all on you," he whispers.
I sniff and look up at him. His arm is still around me and I lean back into it. "I don't care, just the fact that someone has noticed means more than anything."
He smiles and my breath catches a bit. I stare at him and he stares back at me.
After a minute, he asks, "what just happened?"
I know it's stupid, but it's like I'm no longer in control of my hands, I reach up and brush my fingertips to his cheek. I can sense his emotions spiking, but I refuse to let my hopes soar too high... until he reaches up and places his hand over mine.
He laughs quietly. "I was hoping to just stop the family feud, I suppose this is one way to do that."
"I've loved you since I met you." I can't believe I just said that.
He smiles wide enough to show his dimples, but then the smile fades. "I... think I love you, but the only other time I thought I loved someone it wasn't really real. This feels more real than that though."
"There's no way this is happening," I whisper shaking my head.
He laughs again and places a hand on my cheek, pulling my face towards his.
Needless to say, I've never kissed anyone before. Dex cradles my face in his hands and I place both hands on his chest. His lips are warm moving against mine. He pulls his face away and takes a deep, shaky breath. I lay my head on his shoulder, trembling.
For a while neither of us speak, then I have to say, "my parents can't know, not yet at any rate."
"I figured not," he says, wrapping his arms around me and holding me to him. "How about we can tell one person each."
"Alright," I pull away. "I'd better get back home before my dad wonders where I am."
"Okay." He stood up and walked with me to the center of the room.
Before I held up my home crystal, he gave me one more quick kiss on the corner of my mouth. I smiled at him, then held up my crystal to the light and glittered away, for once having hope that I might escape my fate to always be a Heks.