"Truth or dare?" Ema asked Gwen. We were spread out across the room; Ema and Charlotte on one bed Beth and I on the other and Belle and Gwen lay on each other on the floor. There were various snacks on a bedside table we put in the center of the room, the first of which to finish was the popcorn that now littered the floor.
"Dare. Hit me with it," Gwen responded, tossing a few kernels at her cousin. She laughed at the pieces that stuck in Lettie's brown hair.
"Okay. I dare you..." Ema replied, fiddling with a string of twizzlers
"To sing for us!" Beth butted in. "Angelica said you sing like a siren."
"Yeah, it'll make you want to drown yourself to escape it," Gwen scoffed. Lettie threw the popcorn bowl at her shouting liar and made us all burst into laughter.
Gwen's singing prompted a karaoke session filled with amazing to okayish singing and much more terrible but fun dancing. Jaden and Christen popped in to hide from training for a bit and effectively ate all our snacks before being caught and sent to their duties. A few minutes passed before we heard another knock on the door. The girls were laughing and telling stories about my embarrassing moments so I was ever grateful for the interruption.
"I'm not clumsy!" I yelled right before I opened the door and stumbled face-first into a chest. The person held me in place so I wouldn't fall and lightly laughed.
"I knew you'd be excited to see me, but not this excited." I looked up and my ice blue eyes locked with an emerald pair I found so familiar. "May I borrow the birthday girl for a moment?" Corey asked without breaking eye contact, "I don't have much time before I'm off again."
"Take as long as you need," Ema responded, the smirk evident in her voice. I scoffed at her and slammed the door shut on the knowing laughter of my friends.
____---***---____
Corey and I sat on the porch stairs surrounded by nature the way we would when I was a kid. We talked about nothing for what felt like no time and forever until we faded into silence. He fiddled with his bracelet before slipping it off and kissing it. The band of silver beads glowed a faint purple and gold swirls decorated the previously plain spheres. He exhaled slowly before meeting my curious gaze.
I’d never seen Cory struggle to stay composed before and it scared me a little. He was always a beacon of strength and confidence, probably why the council handpicked him to be an advisor. "They need me back by midnight tonight." he muttered, the torpor evident in his voice.
"I get it. The youngest and most adept high advisor has duties to fulfil" I teased. He huffed a laugh and a little smile rested on his face. As he shook his head. "That's not what's bothering you though."
"I wasn't supposed to leave but I had to see you on your birthday. I needed to know if I had the strength to…" his eyes darted around my face before looking in front of us. He glanced at me and just as quickly looked away.
"What is it, Cree?" I asked the concern evident in my voice. "You've never not been able to tell me what's on your mind."
"I don't think I can tell you at this time. I was almost certain I would have the strength to tell you the truth." He fiddled with the beads in his hand. A small purple glow danced on it and if he met my eyes I was sure there would be a darker purple consuming his original greens.
"The truth? What truth? You know you can trust me, Cree."
"This is serious, Angelica." He was standing now, almost ready to begin pacing.
"I am being serious. I'm not a child anymore Corey." I stood too, directly in his path but he refused to meet my gaze.
He shook his head and pressed a palm to his temple. "I thought I was ready. I need more time."
"Corey I-" I reached out to pull his hand away but his sudden movement interrupted any thoughts I had.
Corey took my hand and slipped the band onto my wrist. The beads contracted and one of the beads warped into a pendant, making the bracelet more fitted. Still holding my hand he thumbed the little etchings of emerald vines that snaked around the silver moon.
"I'll tell you soon enough. Just please give me time. All I need is seven more months." I nodded, a little hurt that there was something he wouldn't tell me but trusting him. He rested his head on mine and sighed. "I need you to keep this safe for me in the meantime."
His 5ft9 frame engulfed me in a hug and, although I tried to stay mad, I couldn’t help but sigh at the scent of chamomile and lemon and hug him back. The council took him away often and for long periods of time but I could never get used to saying goodbye to my best friend. He stepped back, his arms still gently around me, but the warmth of the embrace and unspoken promise lingered in the inches of air between us.
"Young Lockne," a voice interrupted and Corey pulled away. The three feet between us dropped cold as my father's husband descended the stairs. "I was told you wouldn't be able to make it." Pops rested a heavy hand on my shoulder, the other outstretched to the assailant.
"Alpha Avan," he greeted and shook his hand. His air of confidence and authority returned as if we hadn't just been in a moment. "I wasn't supposed to be here but I had to deliver her present." The only sign of Corey's intimidation being the quick, guilty glances at me. Avan raised a brow and Corey almost flinched. "It's a moonstone bracelet that I enchanted. I wouldn't be this busy at the council house if I had no morals Avan." Pops laughed and patted him on the back.
"I am quite busy myself so I'll see you when you get back for Christin's ceremony. Or maybe I'll catch you on another surprise visit." The tone in Avan's voice suggested malice but I knew his threats towards the magic wielder were false.
Once pops left, Corey exhaled a laugh. We walked back to the room with our usual lighthearted banter and he stopped me before I opened the door. He twisted a flower crown out of beautiful lilac and jasmine he made with his magic and placed it gently on my head like he used to when I was little. "Happy birthday, Princess" he bowed and left in a flash of the blueish light of the council.
I exhaled in preparation for the teasing that was about to happen.
YOU ARE READING
The Human She Never Was
قصص عامةAngelica Frost: smart, quiet, invisible. At least, that's who she wanted to be, and for the most part, she succeeded. She just wanted to be normal...well, as normal as a human living with werewolves could get. She didn't understand why she immediate...
