Spiritual Deficiency

Chapter 8

Drake

    Awesome, this would make things easier.

From what I could see I had two choices: to go back to my days before Amarisse where the only things that mattered to me were the Void and my music, or go against everything I'd once believed in and follow my feelings that I had brewing for her. With Amarisse lip locked with Heath, I could see she made that decision for me.

My hand squeezed into a fist and my jaw tensed as I gritted my teeth. I could feel the anger coursing through me and knew I needed to get out of there before I did something I'd regret. What did I expect? That she'd leave the council for me? That was her new life in the very near future, there wasn't time for me to weasel my way in. Amarisse didn't have room in my life, either, I couldn't allow it. This just made everything simpler, albeit more disappointing.

I suppose I deserved it, for telling Shea I'd get close to Amarisse solely for the Void. Even if it was a lie so I wouldn't have more obstacles on the path to getting close to her, maybe it was still wrong. Maybe it was karma for lying to my best friend. To be punished for, even a second, doubting my loyalties and thinking someone may be worth throwing it all away. We hardly knew each other anyways.

Good riddance.

Once I'd reached home, I went straight to my room and collapsed into bed. I'd gone to the lake to see if I may find her there and give her some sort of explanation. I'd even gone without my necklace, since she knew my identity anyways, and show her the risk I was willing to put forth to see her still. To continue creating music together. At least now I wouldn't have to drown in those blue eyes anymore.

I let out a slow breath and tried to put my mind elsewhere, deciding that meditating was my best option for the moment. And then, maybe, I could go see Shea. Getting caught up on the Void's plans seemed like the best stress relief that could be offered to me. I didn't have time to screw around anymore, I needed to get my act together for things that truly mattered.

A low buzz broke my concentration and I reached into my pocket to spot a text from Shea. I hadn't explained to her what happened the night before, so she'd been periodically checking in on me to see if she could get any information out of me. With a sigh, I dialed her number and brought my phone to my ear.

"D," she greeted. "What's going on?"

I chuckled. "I owe you an explanation. Can I use your punching bag in return?"

"Come on over," she chuckled sadly. "The door is unlocked."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The night was refreshing as the only sounds that surrounded me were the low chirps from crickets and the slow moving water ahead of me. I sat perched on our usual rock with my back to the tree, scribbling into my book. I figured I was safe here since I didn't see why she'd return at this point. I had my necklace on in case I ran into someone else, though I doubted I'd have any issues. No one frequented the area.

It was my first time back there in days as I'd spent every waking moment training and absorbing as much information as I could. Amarisse's coronation was soon, meaning we all had our jobs to do. Shea had done well in getting us our way in as the hired help for the event, letting me use my piano skills to blend in. Oren had been experimenting with our necklaces to see if he could disguise us as Water Fae and managed to make it work. His abilities were rather impressive, making me feel like the proud older brother I was supposed to be.

After I'd worn myself out beating Shea's punching bag I finally told her everything that happened. Told her how Amarisse and I kissed and she'd tripped, pulling my necklace from me. Explained how she cried when she saw my aura and realized who I was, and how I did nothing but snatch my necklace and run.