Elemental

Chapter Seven

I sat alone on a tree stump waiting for Ash, the cool wind whipped my hair around my face as tiny little bluebirds cheeped in the branches above. I heard his footsteps crunching the leaves behind me, softly  treading tracks behind him. I felt his eyes on my back, watching me.

"You can sit if you like." I said softly. 

"Yeah, sure cool." He took a seat directly opposite me. I looked down afraid of his reaction to my eyes. "You said we needed to talk?"

"So, I've been going through some stuff recently, well, for a day, but I just don't know what's really going on with anything."

"What stuff are you going through El? I'm sure I can help you sort it out?" He placed his hand on my knee settling me immediately.

"You really don't want to know." I looked up at him, "I just, I know I need you." My voice became distressed and the wind whipped around my hair.

"Ella, I really do like you, but I don't want to make your life complicated. I'm sorry, but I can't say I'll be your friend, when we both know I want more." He rose to his feet and started to walk away.

"I'm scared Ash." He stopped and turned round to me. I stood straight, and walked right up to him. "I'm scared you won't like what I am."

"What you are, is perfect." He placed his fingers below my chin and looked into my eyes. "Ella, everything about you is perfect." Then he leant down and hugged me tightly. He whispered softly in my ear, "I don't care who it is you think you are, I just know I can't live without you." Then he looked straight into my eyes, his cool breath gently caressed my skin, making the hairs on my neck stand up. He got closer to me, and slowly, his soft lips brushed mine, igniting my insides. I felt as if all of my troubles lifted from my shoulders. His hand moved down from my face to the small of my back, the touch of his hand was strong and warm; I had my arms around his neck as he pulled me closer, lengthening this pure bliss, the wind softly whipped around us. He let go stepping away from me. "Um, I'm real sorry about that."

I laughed slightly, "Don't be." I smiled at him, and he gave me a half smile. I sat on the mossy log, and he took a seat at the edge of the log, distancing himself from me. "Did you really mean it?"

"Did I mean what?" He looked down at his hands clasped together.

"That you don't care what I am?" He looked up, meeting my eyes.

"Ella, I promise you, I don't care. I'll be here for you, no matter what." He hesitated. "Always."

A few seconds passed, the birds chirped high in the branches above. "What happens now?" I cut through the silence.

"Whatever you want to happen. It's up to you. No pressure." He looked up at me his green eyes glistening.

"Well, I'm not really a pro on this boyfriend/girlfriend thing!" I laughed.

"Nor am I really..." He said softly.

"What? I bet you've had thousands of girlfriends. I mean, look at you!" Shocked at his confession I frowned.

"I could say the same about you. I haven't really found a girl I really wanted to be with. I mean, sure, I've had girlfriends, but they lasted a month at the most." He watched me anticipating my reaction.

I sighed softly, "at least they notice you."

"You get noticed Ella. Everyone I know talks about you, and wonders why it is you're single. I do too! You're smart, funny, beautiful. What's not to like?" 

"Whatever." I glanced at the watch on my left wrist, "I should get going, dinner'll be ready soon." I smiled and rose to my feet.

"I'll walk you?" He rose too, I took his hand and nodded. We walked through the forest to the opening, and down the straight. "So like, are we, you know together, or?"

"I guess we are?" I looked down blushing red. Ash chuckled beside me. 

"Well, that's more than I expected." I looked up confused. "I was expecting you to rejects me and push me in front of a car." I burst out laughing,and he joined in. We reached my front door.

"Well, I guess I'll see you Monday then?" He nodded and leant in, softly kissing my lips, then he walked down the path and away.

I unlocked the door and stepped in, I headed to the kitchen to make food when I found my mother sat at the kitcen table. She was dressed in a pair of tailored trousers and a white shirt. She held a pink mug full of coffee in her hands, and was staring down at it. As I crossed the room to the fridge, I felt her eyes on me. "Afternoon mum." I said softly. "I thought you worked until eight?" I turned to face her.

"Take a seat." She nodded towards the empty seat across from her, I sat down without a word. "We need to talk."

"What about?" We never spoke anymore, and we rarely saw each other.

"You're getting to an age now Ella, where you--"

"No." I cut her off. "I do not want to have the sex talk with you."

Her eyes widened, "that's not where I'm going with this."

"Oh, um, carry on then..." I blushed with embarrassment.

"You're going to start experiencing changes," wait, what? "I don't know exactly what they are, or how to explain it, but I know it's inevitable for you. The same way it was for your father, and your brother." 

"I don't understand?"

"Lets start with them." She she took a deep breath. "When they died, I told everyone it was in a car accident. It wasn't. Don't get mad okay, I did it to protect you and everyone else." I clenched my teeth, hurt that she had lied about the death of my own father, and my only brother. "They were different. Special."

"Special how?" I cut in.

"They had certain talents." They were like me. "The same way you will." I nodded at her to continue. "They, um, could control things. Like the weaher, and the wind and things like that." I licked my lips, waiting for the worst part. "There are others as well. Fire, Earth, Water. Your father, spent his life searching for answers, and trying to unite the elements as one. But they did not want to comply, they wanted power. There was a war, just like there was at the start of creation. Your father and your brother were killed in an elemental war Ella." I felt the air knocked out of me. Everything I know, every thing I knew had been evaporated.

"T-they were, m-m-murdered?" I stuttered the words out slowly.

"In some way, I guess they were." 

"Why didn't you tell me?" I shouted at her, standing, my chair flying back. 

"I wasn't allowed to, until you reached a cerain age. You're at that age now, where you'll pass through the change, and you need to know what you are." I nodded. "Your father left you this," she took out a book from her bag and passed it to me. "I'll fix you up some food if you'd like?" She stood up and opened the fridge, "pizza?"

"Yeah, that sounds good." I stared down at the book which rested in my hands. "I'm gonna go and look at this upstairs."

"I'll call you down when the pizza's ready." She smiled softly.

I headed up the stairs and into my room, hollow.