Labyrinth Pt. II

5. New Players

After about 2 hours and an array of outfits, we leave the store with 3 outfits and two pairs of shoes. I have no clue how long he is staying here but I figure he can take them back with him as souvenirs. I was famished and walked us to the closest restaurant. Even though the goblin was in human-esque clothes he still grabbed everyone's attention. To be quite honest he looked like he belonged in a Vogue magazine. He now donned black, boot-cut jeans, a pair of classic maroon boots, and a black button up dress shirt with his sleeves rolled up 3/4. He refused to wear his shirt completely buttoned so I accessorized him with a dark maroon infinity scarf and long gold necklaces. I bought him a thick gold watch and a pair of polarized sunglasses. He was very handsome as a human, as he was when a fae. Despite his lack of magic, his regal glow followed him and demanded the attention of every breathing thing in the room. And boy did he enjoy it. That swagger of his doubled with every female sigh and that cheeky smirk grew with all the glares from every man we passed. By the time we were seated I had a splitting headache.

"I am enjoying my time here!" He was pleased with himself.

"I'm sure you are. You are one to enjoy being the center of attention."

"It comes with it's perks." He grins and leans over the table slightly. "But it seems like the only attention I am not receiving is from you."

"I apologize if my mind is elsewhere. Please keep in mind that I wished never to return to the Labyrinth," I sputtered out. Once again that gaze of his has me slightly unnerved.

"Oh but don't you remember the fun we had!" He releases a throaty chuckle. "The games we played!"

"I was supposed to try and not remember it at all." I mutter to myself as I grab my menu.

"Is that why you thought I wasn't real?" The playful tone left his voice and curiosity replaced it.

"That is a whole other subject. One that has a long story attached to it."

We ordered our food and he leaned back in his chair.

"For you, I have all the time in the world."

Knots formed in my stomach. Where could I start? The crappy childhood? The unforgiving parents? The childhood self-loathing?

"Jareth. It's not a happy story. I don't like talking about it..."

"Keeping things bottled up inside has never done anyone any good."

" I-" I knew he was right. The third psychiatrist told me that my lack of self-expression was unhealthy. The sixth told me that my mental health was at risk and if I kept my feelings trapped inside, I could run the risk of going a bit "crazy". "Your right. Okay, fine." Who else would be a better candidate for telling my story to? I would never see him again after this excursion, he already knew I wasn't insane, he wouldn't judge me for believing in what shouldn't exist. "My next problem is where to begin."

"Start from the very beginning." He leaned forward and rested his forearms on the table. He was really going to listen to my story.

"Well, after I came back from the Labyrinth, I would tell Toby stories of my adventure and how I saved him. When he started to talk, he would tell my stepmother those tales. He thought they were true, like the innocent kid he was. Which made me happy because someone other than myself knew what happened, even if he was only three years old. My stepmother, however, wasn't so thrilled. She would scold him in talking about goblins and faeries as though they were real. She would then yell at me and say that imagination had its place and it wasn't something to share. Yet he would come to me and ask for the stories before bed. So I would tell him not to share them with anyone else. I told him they were our secret. One day his mother caught me spinning my memories in to tales of adventure and she got upset. My father was already distant towards me because he would say I reminded him so much of my mother, which added to my step-mother's hatred. When my stepmom complained to him that I was poisoning Toby, the next week I was dropped off at a local shelter. It was procedure for the children to get assigned physiatrist to help them cope with being abandoned. The lady I was assigned to told me that I could tell her anything. So I did. I told her of you kidnapping Toby, and my rescuing him. I told her of the creatures I'd seen. Do you know what she said? She said she was impressed. She had rarely seen a child who believed in her own lies. After that, I jumped from therapist to therapist because they each said I couldn't be helped and I needed medication. So after therapist number four I decided to pretend our adventure never happened. I played the sad orphaned child who was unwanted and never adopted by another family. I knew I wasn't wanted by anyone. Who wanted a discarded, over imaginative child. So I focused on finishing school and went off to collage. I studied acting, got accepted in several small plays, then made it to the main stages, the biggest shows of all, and recently started teaching. My stepmother contacted me four months ago, via email, and wrote me only one sentence. My father died from a heart attack. Other than that, I haven't seen or heard from my family, nor do I want to." Sometime amidst my life story our food was delivered and Jareth had been quietly eating his burger and fries. He just listened. I had munched on my salad but lost my appetite half way through my speech. Although now, I do feel much better. Getting all that off my chest really helped. It was like a load was lifted. Sort of. Even if this a psychotic break, at least I told someone else my story.