Aurel

sixteen

"Yeah, his pretty boy face. You know and I know that Jasper's entirely too naïve. She's a good little church girl who has never had a serious boyfriend. What if she falls for him too fast and it bites her in the ass?" Stacey sighed and for once could agree with her sister that she worried for Jasper. But, Jasper was grown. Good and grown.

"I get what you're saying. And, like you, I just wanna make sure that Jasper's heart is protected and cherished. But the way you're going about this isn't cool. It's disrespectful to Jazzy. She's not a child, she's an adult. And, our girl is more than intelligent enough to make her own decisions." At that, Sarah's mouth frowned. She wanted to argue, wanted to go in there anyway. But, she knew when she was crossing a line. She knew Jasper would be pissed if she discovered them. Growling under her breath, she turned back and started to head back toward the car.

"Let her make her own mistakes. We can't protect her all the time, even though I know we both want to. Let her have this moment and just be ready to be there for her should it go south. That's all we can do."

"Fine."

***

Dark. Heat. You could feel the fires burning on your flesh. Trickle of water. The sound of birds. Flowers. Spring. Lost for a moment, a hand slid across her stomach. Warm and heavy, it pulled her body back against a firmer more solid body. Once lost, now she had been pulled back to the tangible. The sound of a pomegranate torn open and seeds fell from above them. Seeds she felt like she could touch.

"You ate the seeds. They were pleasing to you. And you stayed." The voice of a man surrounded the entire room and she could hear the awed breath from other people.

The roars of thunder and clouds, the smell of smoke. And piercing through, the scent of flowers. Persephone.

A loud clang made her jump and she reached for that hand that held her, gripping the fingers.

"You stole her, Hades. Return to me my daughter," The sensory details raised the hair on her arms as the lights swirled and images floated past them, through them, warmth and more heat passing through.

"She stays of her own will, Demeter." The room went completely black, except for a doorway that appeared, seeming so far from them. Encased in light. The illuminated path. The way to truth.

In the dark, the humans struggled to see but he could see perfectly. Body hot from being in a room with so many others, he ushered her forward toward the door. Letting go of her midsection, he opted to take her hand and lead her, hand keeping her close to his body. As they passed through, more humans finally started to make their way through the exhibit. And so, the next phase of it would continue.

***

Overloaded with stimuli, she closed her eyes and let him lead them out of the building, and the excited chatter and laughter from other people made her smile. Having her eyes closed, she felt him stop and that prompted her to open them.

They were here, at his car. He'd taken his jacket off and placed it around her shoulders, as the night had grown cool.

She couldn't read his expression as he grabbed hold of the lapels on his jacket.

Pulling them closed, he offered a small smile.

"Did you enjoy yourself?"

"Oh heck yes! It was...just wow. I'm still trying to process everything."

"It was good for me too. I enjoyed it immensely."

"It felt so real..."

"It did," Feeling her cheeks grow warm, she watched him gaze glance down at her lips and he let go of her, creating distance.