PECULIAR (✓)

31. Promotion

Greece. The magical place I could have only dreamed about going, the land with the beautiful history and mythologies. I would be allowed to work with actual artefacts from the museums, maybe do my own exhibition. I was ready to turn down the offer, but it turned out the temporary relocation came with a promotion.

Alettra Reddy, Head Curator.

It's an amazing offer. One I don't think I want to turn down, not only is Greece my dream, but the promotion could lead to better things when I come back. It is five months, though. Five months in a foreign country, where I don't know anyone, can barely understand the language and would be without him. The person who has helped me so much, the person who needs me now more than ever.

Unsure I spend the day with Liz, watching as she rushes around now 3 months pregnant and laughing at her heightened emotions, hoping to get her opinion as she searches for a pram. "Look Alettra, I'm just gonna give you the same advice you gave me, You and Cassie are meant to be. The long distance won't be a problem at all for you guys."

While I know she is right, the thought still gnaws away at me... It would break my heart more, if we naturally drift apart, especially since I could end it now. Less pain that way, for us both. "It's only five months Alettra, nothing can happen that would make you two drift apart."

"Dr Jones also told me the ED outpatient program is a lot better in Greece, they offer more one to one support." I had told Dr Jones about the promotion during our session, hoping for her to tell me I'm not ready to go, but in fact she told me the opposite. At this point, everyone knows except Cass, even my mother knows. She was quite thrilled... Well type of thrilled, which is slightly cracking a grimace smile, and a nod.

In all honesty, if Cassius tells me to stay, I will in a heartbeat. I think I want to stay with him, but it would break my heart to have to talk to him while being so far away. In our relationship, physical touch is every important, I think I would struggle not having him physically by my side. Also, it's not only my recovery period, but more importantly his, Dr Jones even suggested the time apart would do us both good. Work on ourselves, heal separately and then maybe we could be better together.

After spending the day with Liz, I walk into Cass' home, still pondering on how I bring Greece up. While in deep thought, I feel his arms wrap around my waist, and I automatically melt into him. He just holds me for a while, as if sensing my internal distress. Lips I love, lips I dream about tenderly meet my neck. It feels as if his kisses are dissolving the words stuck in my throat.

I'm going to Greece.

"How was your day baby?", he whispers in my ear and my eyes close by their own accord wanting to imprint every feeling in this moment. The feeling of complete comfort and security.

"Cassius, can we talk about something for a moment?", my formal uneasy tone making him unwrap his arms around me, thus breaking the moment. Though he nods, I can see the worry all throughout his body.

As we sit down, I explain the situation not once meeting his eyes. Those blue captivating eyes that always anchor back home. Back to him. I fidget, playing with my hands. Hands that are still cold, boney and pale, due to improper blood circulation. They looked fragile, but I was the opposite. Everything I had gone through proved to me that I'm not fragile. Greece is just another step. A step forward.

Cass' large warm hands grab mine, waking me from my thoughts and I look up to see him smiling. "Congratulations Alettra, you deserve the promotion. You are amazing at your job," he finishes his compliment with a kiss on my forehead. The softness and sincerity in his voice makes me want to cry right there and then. A few tears leak out, and Cassius just smiles at me while brushing them away.

"You, Alettra Reddy, are destined for great things, and this is one of them." I want to scream that he is the best thing in my life and this 'great thing' as he put it would be taking me away from him. I want him, but is that what makes me weak? Does wanting to stay with him mean I'm weak?

Unable to take the thoughts attacking my mind and sanity, I jump into his arms and sob into his neck. "I'm not ready to be away from you, Sweetheart." Cass just pats my back and whispers the same thing I whisper to him during his nightmares. "Everything will be okay."

Pushing my knotted, messy hair back, he looks me in my eyes and asks if there was an outpatient program that I could join while there, or if I had to be wait-listed. I shake my head, "Dr Jones told me that a clinic could take me straight away, and that I would be able to get more help, since I'm still - you know underweight."

That word. Underweight. It was sick how my head still thought of it as a badge of honour, happy that I wasn't an average weight, because that would mean I was not skinny. I still think I'm not despite the usage of that word.

Cassius presses his lips to mine, and tells me the opportunity is too good to pass up, but it is ultimately my choice. Somehow, however, it didn't feel like a choice. I had to go. Whether it was fair to Cass, however, was debatable. Surely he needs me, right?

"Cass, does this mean we stop this. I-I mean you don't like long distance and I think I'll go mad if I could only see and hear you but not feel you, not in a wei-", my rambling gets cut off with another one of Cassius Ardent's mind blowing kisses. He holds my head in his hands forcing my glaze to his eyes, almost like he's silently making a promise.

"We'll work it out Alettra, for now let's just enjoy being together before you leave."

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