Cold-hearted love

22. Sage

Age: 8

It was him again. The kid whose brothers funeral I ruined. Elliot. I can practically feel my punishment on my arms. At least it had healed already. Instead of being mad like my parents Elliot laughed.

We were at Daphanie's and Celior's wedding-- the presidents granddaughter and a duke. He was on the table next to mine but I couldn't take my eyes off him in the glow of the dim lights. He was pretty. Really pretty, like perfect. I couldn't see anything wrong with him, physically.

While the bride walked down the isle I jumped down from my seat and ventured out to a secluded area. I signaled Elliot to follow me when he caught my eye, discreetly. I hated weddings, they so boring.

He followed. Elliot had such a serious face but when he needed to it morphed into the most dazzeling expression.

It's been weeks since I've seen him.

"You should get back. They'll look for us", his voice said behind me.

"Don't do that", I said snarky.

"What?"

"Act like you care. I've watched you. I know you don't give a shit". His brows raised in suprise. Just because the media paints me as innocent little kid who dosen't curse dosen't mean I am. 

"You watch me?" Now it's my turn to react. My cheeks heat suddenly but it was cold enough in this particular room I could blame it on the temperature. He chuckles. A sound so musicle I yern for all the ones I missed and wish to hear for the rest of my life.

"I get, I intrigue you. That's why your here. Why I'm here", he shrugs but icy blue eyes narrow in on me. "And just for the record, your right". Another reaction, this one of surprise. He doesn't seem like someone who admits he's wrong.

Just because your right doesn't mean he's admitting he's wrong, Lyla, the monster said.

"I didn't care but I thought you might". He sits down next to me on the cold marble floor. His long legs stretch in his black tux.

But he was also right. I didn't know him. Didn't know why he had such dark eye bags at nine. Didn't know why he laughed at his brohter's funeral. Didn't know why he limped so unoticbly. The only reason I knew was because that's exactly how I hide my limps. I didn't know why there were covered bruises on him.

I didn't like him. I didn't hate him either. But I wanted to. I wanted to know all those things and more. To hear his laugh that sounded so much like the songs I love to listen. I wanted to see and learn all those rare smiles and smiles I saw in the funeral. 

Because I was Intrigued. In a way I've never been before. I've never wanted to know anything more than I needed to about someone but there was just something about Elliot that wasn't normal. 

There was something wild about him. He didn't find my behavior standoffish or off-putting and that was so. . .something. I hadn't felt anything in so long but there was a feeling I didn't want to examine too closely. And I didn't know what it was.

Is this was intruiged means? Is it what the characters in my books mean when they were intruged about something that would surely go wrong? I always thought they were stupid but were they?

Just because you don't think they're not stupid anymore, dosen't mean they aren't stupid, Elijah said.

"How comfortable are with sneaking around?" Elliot suddenly asked, eyes filled with childish mischief of a nine year old. Him acting his age was an odd sight but not entirely in welcome. I could practically see the light bulb over his head.

"Very". This was surely going to get me into so much trouble but mother was going to find a excuse to punish me anyway. Why not let it be worth it this time?

Because your punishment could be worse, he said pointedly.

Shut it, I'm mostly healed, Eli. Let me have this, I plead.

We back into the wedding and instead of going into our seats we dive under the table with the giant cake.

"They haven't put out the plates and spoons yet", I hear myself say for no reason.

"What your favorite flavor?" I ask.

"Red velvet".

"Chocolate". I'm a stubborn person; I've only like chocolate cake so it was the only one I ate. Quality material of course.

Dauphine's cake had all sorts of flavors in it. "How about I eat red velvet and you try chocolate. I've never done it".

"You've never had chocolate cake!"

"I've only ever like red velvet". What kind of stubborn idiot only eats on flavor because it the only thing they like.

Sound familiar? Elijah asked.

No, I answer honestly.

We were in the darker part of the wedding where the light was almost impossible to reach so he cut the cakes and I take the red velvet and he takes the chocolate then dive back under the table.

Wasn't it odd, a boy I barely know convinced me to do something I've never done in less than an hour where my parents never succeed.

But in any case, Lyla, you've never been normal.

The scrumptious red velvet somehow didn't look appealing to me at all compared to my beloved chocolate cake but I tried it and-- oh my, this is delicious.

"This is good. It's my new favorite". He said it in a monotone without a ounce likeness I couldn't help, for some reason be fond of him.

"Likewise".

I smiled at him. A true smile and he gave one back. A new kind of smile. A smile the shown only for me.

We washed our hands and frosting from our faces, went back to our respective seat and caused a scandal smiling secretively at each other.

That day forward red velvet was my favorite. We had gotten into all sorts of mischief together. He was my partner in crime. 

From inside jokes to explosion we were in on it. But even as a kid I knew there were things this beautiful boy was hiding from me. I hid stuff from him too but never something that big.

Sometimes I think back on those days, those days that seemed so unreal. Things that seemed straight-out of books or fairytales. The days before we became gods.

I used to sneak Elliot into the summer house and Everett would stay by the fire and we'd plot together for hours until days later when we couldn't hide him or his parents would start noticing.

We had so many memories that seemed so sweet now, it all blurred together, our time as children. They weren't supposed to be sweet because of things happening all around us but we were the others escape and I suppose that's what attracted us to each other on the very first day of the funeral.

Now looking back on the days leading to my brothers death, our childhood, and godhood I never looked clearly enough to see how much the peace's fit so perfectly together.