Safe in Your Arms

Chapter 22

Tina stared at the man in front of her. The man she had just--

Kissed.

"Mercy Lewis," she murmured.

Before she could react, Newt had spun around, grabbed his wand off the ground, and ran from the room. A moment later, once her mind had processed that he was gone, she ran after him. She reached the top of the stairs just in time to see Newt's door close.

Tina stood in front of his door. Raising her hand, she pressed the palm against the smooth wood and rested her forehead beside it. She brought her free hand up to her lips.

We kissed! He kissed me! I kissed him!

Tina sighed. She tore herself away from the door and slipped into her room. She threw herself face down on the bed and lay there, but she couldn't sleep.

I just kissed Newt! What does this mean? What's going to happen? What about Achilles?

Tina finally drifted off to a peaceful, dreamless sleep. When she woke up, she could see that Nagini was still in her bed. She got to her feet and quickly made her way out of the room. She wasn't ready to talk to people yet. However, when she reached the kitchen, she found Newt.

He turned the moment she entered the room. Their eyes met then they blushed and looked away. Newt went back to preparing breakfast and Tina started setting the table.

Jacob and Nagini appeared in the kitchen as Newt began setting the food on the table. Tina took a seat. Jacob moved to help Newt and Nagini got herself a glass of water. Achilles entered the room.

"Tina," he growled.

Tina scrambled to her feet. "Achilles," she said, trying to sound cheerful.

Achilles towered over her, his arms crossed.

"You cheat on me and act like nothing's happened?"

Tina fought back a gasp. He knows? How does he know?

"Achilles?" she said.

He pushed past Tina and stormed out of the room. She stood in shock for a moment. Then she glanced at Newt, he avoided her gaze. Spinning around, she sprinted out of the room. She reached the front door just as it slammed shut. Yanking it opened, she followed Achilles out of the house.

"Achilles!" she called.

Achilles was walking quickly down the street, pulling on his coat. When she called him, he stopped. He turned slowly.

"What?" he snapped. "Why don't you go back to your little friend?"

"Wha-- What are you talking about?" she stammered.

He took a menacing step forward. "You know what I'm talking about. I saw you last night. You were cheating on me. You kissed him."

"Achilles, that--"

"Now I understand why you didn't want to kiss me and why you've been acting so strange," Achilles interrupted. "You've been cheating on me this whole time!"

He spun on his heels and stormed off.

"No, wait," she called, starting after him. "Achilles, wait. That was nothing. That kiss meant nothing."

Achilles Disapparated. Tina stopped in the middle of the street. She shivered. Her coat was still back in the house and the wind passed easily through her blouse.

"That kiss meant nothing," she repeated quietly. It was a lie. It had meant something to her, she just didn't know what. She raised her hand to wipe away her tears. She was crying again. 

Suddenly, angry, she spun around and marched back to the house. She quickly made her way through the house, down into the basement. She climbed the stairs up to her landing and dropped to the ground.

A few moments later, Nagini appeared on the landing.

"Tina," she said cautiously. "What happened? Why is Tolliver so mad? Why does he think you've cheated on him?"

Tina sighed and got to her feet, pressing her back to the wall. "Something happened last night."

"What?"

"I -- I was trying to leave. I wanted to go find Queenie, but Newt saw me. He was really upset and I was trying to comfort him. The next thing you know he's kissing me."

Nagini gasped quietly.

"And I was kissing him back," Tina continued. "He pulled away and I should have let him go but I didn't. I just kissed him again."

Nagini slowly took a seat the flight of stairs leading up to the Augurey's nest. "Well, how was it?"

Tina sighed, running her hands through her hair. She needed a haircut. Her hair was nearly brushing the collar of her blouse and her bangs were starting to get in her eyes.

"It was -- It was wonderful," she admitted. "I've never been kissed like that before. I've never kissed anyone like that before." She looked out across the basement. "The first kiss was so gentle, but it still felt so . . . so meaningful. I've never felt anything like it." She sighed. "I don't know what to do."

Nagini was quiet for a moment. Then she spoke. "Do you love Newt?"

Tina glanced at her. "I -- I don't know. I think I do." She hesitated. "But I love Achilles." She sat down on the landing, her back against the wall. "I can't love both of them. I mean, I can, but it can't be the same kind of love." She groaned. "And now Achilles thinks I've been cheating on him this whole time when I haven't been."

Nagini got to her feet and approached Tina. She crouched beside her and rested her hand on her shoulder.

"You'll figure things out," she said gently. "Just trust your feelings." She stood up and started down the stairs.

"Nagini, wait," Tina sighed.

The girl stopped and came back up the stairs. "What?"

Tina got to her feet. "Let's teach you something new. I need something to do to distract myself."

They made their way down the stairs and found an empty space where they couldn't hurt anything. They pulled out their wands and Tina began to teach her a handful of spells.

A/N: This is a bit short but I don't have anything else for the chapter. Stay tuned for the next one. There will be DRAMA! I hope you enjoyed. Please vote and comment.

I've got to go down to the woodworking shop now and I probably won't be able to write another chapter today.

Have a good day!

Bye!