Avenging Cupids

Chapter 7: Breaking and Entering

“He’s more myself than I am. Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same.” 

― Emily Brontë, Wuthering Heights

Your WHAT!?”

“My brother,” Elle repeated, wringing her hands.  

“Your brother in Baltimore? The one who goes to John Hopkins University?” Willow knew that Elle had a brother named Ashton. She had told her that he lived in Maryland with their relatives. She felt the tearjerking stabs of betrayal pressing against her chest. She didn’t take too well with lies.

"Not exactly. He's my brother that you have always known about but he was never in Baltimore. That was a lie. I'm so sorry Wills."

"If he's your brother," said Willow, jabbing a finger at Alden, "how come his last name isn't Blackwood?"

"I can't tell you that. Not right now."

Willow began to pace the stage again. Alden reached out and grabbed her hand, stopping her in mid-step. “It’s true Willow," he said. Agony was etched all over his face. "I said you’d discover the entire truth eventually. This is just a small fragment of it. The rest is yet to come but not right now. It’s the wrong time, circumstances, and place.”  

“I thought you loved me Elle!” she cried, ignoring Alden. This was between her and Elle.

“Oh I do Wills, you know I do!” 

“Then why don’t you want me dating your brother?”

“That’s not true at all. I do want you with him, I do! It’s all I ever wished for you, for him! But you two can’t ever be together because…because…” Elle trailed off as her cries turned into sobs that shook her body. It was as if she was standing in a centralized earthquake. 

“Sis, don’t kill me but I’ve already told her about Telocvovim,” Alden whispered.

Elle suddenly stopped weeping. She twisted her head a little bit more than sideways and glared at her brother with pure loathing. Willow realized that she wasn’t the only one who was dealing with some inner issues. From the looks of her watered-down quirks, Elle was too. She actually wore jeans and a regular Pink Floyd band shirt. “What have you done Ashton? The Halsteads are going to kill you!”

“Ashton’s not my name anymore. From now on, I’d like to be called Alden if you don’t mind. I had to tell her. It’s the only way her and I could be together, no matter how short-lived. We have already discussed the do's and don'ts. She knows about the Words.”

Willow flinched at the mention of the Words. It was so comical but precarious at the same time. They were three simple words that had the power to bring the apocalypse to her life. She looked up at the carpeted ceiling and squeezed the bridge of her nose; it was something she did to push back a flood of tears. Usually her defense mechanism worked like a dam but this time it only had the strength of a beaver dam.  

Miss Lovett, how do I handle this? How can I fulfill the promise I made if I can't even tell him I love him?

Despite everything, Willow had not yet decided if she believed in Cupids or the Forbidden Words. She thought Cupids were fat babies with rosy cheeks and a few tufts of blonde hair; they were only fairytales—hardly even a myth. Nevertheless, there was something exciting about true love that was forbidden. Nobody could resist breaking the laws of the universe. They were a pair of star-crossed lovers and Willow secretly liked the idea of that.

Like Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, she thought.

Romeo and Juliet shared a once-in-a-lifetime romance. Their tragic deaths added a beautiful element to the play that defined subsequent plays. Willow couldn't help but to relate Alden and herself to the protagonists whose love was the greatest love story ever told. The Capulets and Montagues represented Telocvovim and Willow's world mirrored Juliet's. She wouldn't drive a dagger through her stomach though. Unlike Juliet, Willow would stand her ground and ride out the storm.