Butterfly and Flame - Alina and Evan

Slipping Away

Christian watched his grandmother lean back into her chair and sigh. Clearly he had struck a nerve. He knew he was onto something but what it was still eluded him. She looked up at him saying "do you remember that I gave you a package to be opened in the event you couldn't convince Evan to return?" He nodes his head in agreement. "It's only part of a very long story that when told will change your opinion of me as well as your loyalties. It doesn't just involve our family but another's as well". He watched her as she looked past him, beyond their current conversation almost as if she was looking back into a past she wanted to forget. He stood and walked over to her and knelt at her side, "grand....there isn't anything you could tell me that would cause me to abandon you or be disloyal. I can see that this secret pains you greatly. If your not sure....." She placed her hand in his and looked into his eyes deeply and said "it's time. I'm running out of time and you have to know. They both have to know. After that, well.....I'll finally give it to God. He can sort it out. I've been running from him long enough. I'm tired Christian....oh so tired". He saw her then differently than he had before. She was suddenly an old woman. Time had been very kind to her, but she was ill and whatever was consuming her mentally had also changed her physically. "I'm listening whenever your ready". Ashley Alina Marooquin Malek had finally collided with her past as the present itself had contrived to force her hand.

Evan stood on the balcony of the third floor living area and took in the beauty of the Bosphorus and the crisp night air. It had been a hell of a few days. Somewhere inside the house the woman he had fallen so madly in love with had decided that their relationship needed to slow down because she herself had to sort her feelings out. The lunch had gone well but when he walked into the garden after her and touched her shoulders hoping to hug her she instead stiffened and moved away. He was trying his best to see it from her point of view but it seemed that she was determined to push him away. He watched her pace back and forth staring out beyond the garden toward the sea. Finally she turned and asked to talk. The look on her face told him everything he didn't want to hear. She told him that she needed to stand on her own two feet and confront her own demons in order to be a partner to anyone else in life. He had felt her trepidation and her sadness but as he stood their listening and absorbing what she was saying he realized that what he had feared his entire life was happening to him right now. The one thing he wanted most of all, to be united with someone who saw life the way he did and loved him for who he was and not his money; was slipping through his hands. He had dared to put his heart out there and the result was this. He knew he loved her. He had no doubts but she was filled with them. He knew that what she had gone through had changed the vivacious and artistic beauty in a way that even she was coming to terms with. She was vulnerable and weary and although she was safe with him, felt safe with him and had loved him with her body; she was also trapped in a vicious circle of recriminations, fear and anxiety. He was just one more thing for her to have to deal with. Knowing that taking her away from the situation was by far the best thing he could have done for her, he was now her guardian. What he wanted to do was run, leave and forget it all. It would be incredibly painful to be in the same room with her and not touch her, not hold her and definitely not make love to her. The conversation was hours ago and she had immediately retreated to her room. Now on the third floor balcony he stood wondering how to do what she needed but not let her go completely. Suddenly he felt as a lithe body brushed against his naked ankles and looked down to see who it was "King George?....did your new mistress let you out?" He picked up the large angora and it easily rested on his shoulder lightly digging his nails into Evans bare skin. "You know she needs you! You bring her comfort." The cat who was purring up a storm stopped and looked beyond the room raising its head and meowed as if someone was entering the room. As Evan looked up he saw Alina walk in wearing a flowing paisley printed skirt that fell to her calves and a crisp white tank top that showed so much skin he groaned inside. He had no choice but to honor her wishes even though it would kill him every step of the way. He could only hope that in the end she would be safe from Kyle, he would eventually be found and jailed; freed from the torment that were her memories and anxieties and perhaps even live their love. However if after seeing her safe and home again she still didn't know how she felt, he would leave her and he would stay away. At some point he needed to protect the crumpled and tortured heart that still managed to beat in his chest.