𝙱𝚎𝚝𝚛𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚍 𝚃𝚘 𝚆𝚊𝚛

Chapter 7: *Flashback*

  Calder was coming home today. He had to go back to camp for another two weeks to finish his training. I waited on my door steps tapping my bare foot on the stone pavement. It was getting dark and I was starting to worry he would never come. Until I saw a tall, built figure walking towards the house. He seemed like a shadow compared to the sunset, but I could tell exactly who it was. My heart skipped a beat with every step he took. I leaped up and starting running towards him, ignoring the small shoots of pain running up my feet from the stray pebbles on the road. I'd missed him so much. Being apart made things feel so difficult. When he was gone all motivation was swept from me, and right now, all the motivation I had missed seemed to all come back and push me to run towards him. As I got closer, I could tell something wasn't right. I slowed slightly as I approached him. He wasn't smiling. He wasn't giddy or happy, or even sad or angry. He was just... stone. my smile faded a little when he reached me. His eyes were cold, which was ironic since his elemental power was the complete opposite of that. His stature was strong and he reeked of power and dominance. I put on a fake smile and hugged him tightly. 

        "I missed you, Calder." He didn't say anything back. In fact, he didn't do anything. He didn't even bother to hug me back, and I grew scared. Pulling away to look up at him, he looked at me with menacing eyes and a cold-blooded sneer. "C-Calder?"

        "We need to leave." Is all he said. I looked at him with confusion. 

        "Leave? Leave where? What's going on?" I asked putting a hand on his cheek. He swatted my hand away, and immediately my heart split in two. "Calder..."

        "I said we need to leave." He wasn't asking me. He was telling me. And I didn't like it. I put on a brave face.

        "What the hell is going on? What have they done to you?"

        "Bliss, we don't have time for this! We don't belong here. We're different." He put a hand on the back of my cheek. I could feel his cold fingers on the back of my neck. Even with the intimate expression of touching me, he still remained emotionally out of reach. "We can go somewhere and start a new kingdom. Make our own destiny. Create our own empire, our own rules." I shook my head in fear. What had gotten into him? 

        "Calder... you know I love you, but..." I hesitated, afraid of what he might do. "My place is here... this is my home. My family is here, my friends-"

        "You'll have me, and I'll have you," Suddenly, his hand started to warm up. He was getting angry. "And that's all that matters." I flinched at his heating hand on my neck. I tried not to pay too much attention to it.

        "Even if I did go with you, you'd want everything we did to be your way. You hate that I'm independent-"

        "Because men should be the only protectors, Bliss!" Tears formed in my eyes. I couldn't tell if it was because of the burning pain or the fact that he was yelling at me. 

        "But I've been taught to take care of myself," I said trying to force myself out of his grasp. My neck was on fire. "Calder, you're hurting me!" His eyes widened and he let go of my neck, realizing he'd lost control of his temper and his powers. I grazed my fingers on my neck and could feel my skin blistering and flaking. It hurt like hell. I couldn't stop the tears from streaming down my face. 

        "Bliss... I didn't mean to... I'm so sorry baby." He tried reaching for me but I jerked away. 

        "No. Don't touch me," I threatened through uncontrollable sobs. "You've become someone I don't know. You're scaring me, Calder." His eyes blazed with fury now. I thought he'd blow up in flames, come at me, yell at me, something. But instead, he ran. He ran into the forest and never came back out. I waited for him on my doorsteps every day hoping that one day he would come out and say he loved me, come back and tell me he was sorry. But he never did...