Temptation

2

This party my friends threw for me is a little underwhelming. Sure we danced and had drinks, but it all feels so... immature. I only just turned 18, but I already feel too old for all of this. I was in the military base testing for world-changing gifts just a few hours prior. Most never enter the grounds, let alone become a priority there.

Noa and I have been relaxing on this couch at the quiet end of the club for a few minutes now. People are so self-centered that they haven't even come looking. I just get a happy birthday from anyone passing by. Noa also feels a little out of place here. She got her gift to relive pain back in January. Her family is full of healers, so hers wasn't a huge shock. It's pretty neat though. Any time I have a headache or a sore body she can't touch the irritated spot and make it disappear. The problem is still there but she alleviates any discomfort.

"What have you tested so far?" she asks.

I give her a few cool sounding ones, though she seems to have something else on her mind.

"What about seduction?"

Paranoid, I quickly look around for anyone who might have heard. Thankfully nothing catches my eye.

"Don't throw that around so loudly..." I request.

"Sorry. You should still test for it though."

I sigh, "I know, but how?"

"Well what does the manual say?"

I open my smaller screen and search the list. The table is pretty simple to understand. It has the gift's name, what the gift does, and how to test for the gift. When I get to the seduction row, I read it aloud.

"To test for the seduction gift, command someone to do something sexual. i.e. 'Kiss me'."

"Alright, so ask me to kiss you," Noa says nonchalantly.

I give her a displeased look, "You're kidding."

"Do we have to be horny or something?"

I check the manual again, "No..."

"Then just do it. It's not like you are one anyways," She scoffs.

"So why the hell do we have to test for it?!"

"For fun? I don't know!! Why are you so scared of it??" she asks with a raised voice.

We argue about it until I finally cave.

"OKAY, JUST FUCKING KISS ME!!" I yell.

In almost an instant her expression changes from pissed to playful. Suddenly her pale face comes forward, and her pink lips land on mine. She's kissing me, and she's not holding back. I try to pull away but she just keeps persisting. Eventually I push her away and get a second to breathe.

"S-Stop!" I command.

Her aggression halts. Soon after, it appears as if she falls out of a trance. Now her playful mood has turned to fright.

I just did that.

Once again I look around the room for witnesses. When I find none, I grab her wrist and drag her to the bathroom. After checking all of the stalls I lock the door.

"W-What the fuck was that?!!?!" she exclaims.

I pace around the room with my hands in my hair.

"No... No. Nonono. That wasn't real, you faked it!" I laugh to myself.

When I finally cool off enough to stop, I look at her. I can't deny the pure fear I see in those deep blue eyes.

"The second you said it, all I could think about was you. I needed to give you what you wanted. It was just like any other mind fuckery I've had before, except this was different. I desired kissing you," she explains.

I want to scream at her. I want to get another explanation out of her by any means possible... but I know I won't get another answer. This is the truth.

I lean onto the stall door, defeated.

"What do I tell Vito, or my father even?" I ask.

She doesn't have an answer.

This gift is honestly badass as fuck, and I don't think I deserve it... but the world? They will shun me. I'll be a witch they avoid to stay free of my spells. I was almost murdered after someone assumed I was a seductress. How big will the target on my back be now that I am one?

"Y-you can't tell anyone," I choke, "not until I figure something out," I instruct Noa.

She nods, "I won't."

She waits with me while I cry. This frustration is nothing I've ever dealt with before. I am the "perfect, beautiful, selfless" daughter of a rich, well known family in the eyes of the city. People love and respect me. I've never thought I was worthy enough for the adoration but I appreciated it. Now that I have my gift, I'm nothing but a freak. Nothing has really changed about me yet I will never be accepted for who I am now. One title will change anyone's opinion of me in minutes. I actually love this fucking gift, even though nobody else will, and that is what stings the most. I've never needed my father's approval, but Vito's? My gift would never even harm my family on a personal level... yet their image is what they care about most. Not me, not my aspirations or my truly remarkable ability. Their loyalty resides with their reputation, and they will prevent damage to it with any means possible.

Eventually I stand up and look at myself. I may be distraught but behind all of the ruined makeup is just me. My pink outfit is the same that it was just ten minutes ago, and the low bun I keep my fawn hair in every day is still just as elegant. I'm the same person I was, but the second I reveal my gift I will be someone entirely new, hated for what I can't control.

After cleaning up my face, Noa and I leave the bathroom and head straight for the door. People crowd me and  swarm me with a mix of praise containing compliments and birthday wishes. I'm able to fake a smile back while each interaction drifts out of my memory the second they enter. The music is dampened and the faces around me blend into one entity. One crowd I have to push past just to stay sane. It was hard, but we made it. Finally we take the hyper loop back home and call it a night.

When I get into my front door I look at the time. 1:28 A.M... I wasn't expected back home until 2. Vito is in the living room watching something on his large screen. He's in a blue t-shirt and his favorite sweats. It took him a second to even see me walking over to him. After sitting next to him he takes a minute to carefully examine my situation. He can sense my stress.

"Is everything okay?" he asks.

"The party was just... a lot."

He notices the spot of streaked mascara that I missed.

I look away from him and around the dark living room. It's so empty... Nothing about it feels like it should be in a home. The couches are comfortable but they lack any character.

"Do you want to talk about it...?" he asks out of no where.

I turn to him and let the tears I was holding fall. I want to tell him, yet I just shake my head. He could easily persuade me to tell him, though, he would never do that. His gift is one that can be easily abused.

I lay down onto the pillow in his lap and get comfortable. He holds onto my shoulder and just lets me cry.

A memory from when we were kids flashes into my mind. He was 13, and I was 9... I had just lost my favorite teddy bear, so I couldn't stop crying. He sat here just like this and let my cry on his lap, comforting me for as long as I needed. We were two young souls then. Maybe he wasn't as naive as I was but we were both still whimsical. Now we are adults. We don't get to have teddy bears or imaginations. We are stuck with responsibility and cold reality. I cry myself to sleep but crying at this age isn't some immature response to something you don't like.

It's pain.