The Other Side

Elinora

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My whole body burned with desire with little more than a brush of his lips on my cheek. He wanted me to say it out loud. I had formed my conclusion, but I remained too embarrassed to tell him.

I felt so silly, letting him affect me in this way. I should be absolutely panicking right now. There are only two ways to view this unraveling of my reality. One, I am in a house full of individuals who can change into animals and cast spells. Or two, I am in a house full of individuals who wholeheartedly believe they can change into animals and cast spells. Either one should make me run for the hills, but neither scared me.

Yet, instead of solving the great mystery of why I feel so relaxed in this time of groundbreaking revelations, I was frustrated over a boy.

If I couldn't feel his uncontestable love, I would call it a crush. Even now, toying with my naivete, his eyes were light with a challenge, but his emotions swirled around us in waves of longing and excitement.

He wanted me. Hell, I couldn't explain it, but I wanted him, too. There wasn't a thought in my head that didn't in some way lead back to him. I was absolutely overcome by the way he awoke me. Every cell in my body responded to his fingers on my cheek, and he knew it. I didn't know anything about this boy. Holly and Zin seem to trust him, but all I knew of him was how he made me feel.

Without realizing it, I guess I had brought my hand to the same cheek where his lips had left a tingling imprint of his kiss. I don't know how long I had been zoned out this way, but I snapped my hands clasped behind me, standing up straighter. I felt my cheeks heat up, so I started my escape.

Why had I asked for the truth? I don't even know what answer I expected. The balcony was shrinking us together, and I couldn't handle the proximity. Maybe I was holding my breath, and the lack of oxygen to my brain made me looney. I wanted proof of shifters and magic, but conveniently I couldn't have it. So, instead, I launched full throttle into unveiling my reciprocation of his emotions. He loved every second of watching me squirm.

Well, I wasn't going to give him the satisfaction.

I slid sideways towards the balcony door, eyeing his mischievous smirk. I cleared my throat, knowing a deep blush still stained my cheeks, "Well, I think I am going to go find the party. Just update Holly and Zin on how I'm doing so they know I'm okay. Maybe take a shot or three. I don't know, maybe four if I'm feeling real crazy."

My hand found the door handle as Alec asked, "So, you don't want proof?"

I all but lunged for the door to his bedroom, adding a quick answer, "Like you said, it should be with my best friends. We'll get right on the planning for that. Invest in some morphine or something."

I sped my way out into the hall. I could barely hear him joke with a snicker from behind me, "Where are you going? I thought you were allured by me?"

Oh, why?! What had possessed me at that moment? It was the fact that he said he couldn't be the one to bring me immense pain, even indirectly. I felt his love, but the way he voiced how much he cared for me solidified it in a way that forced my hand. All I wanted was to hear him call me his out load. I am not an object; I will not be owned. But I wanted, so desperately, to be his. Without him stating it, I knew I was already. I would not be the one to say it. The idea had always seemed so intimate when I read about it. I was embarrassed to embrace a part of the world I had so long assumed fantasy.

This is all so absurd! The two sides of my intuition battled, deciding if I should bail or put on my big girl panties and face the music.

The music erupted as I pushed my way into the ballroom, glancing around for my friends. Catching a glimpse of Holly, I barrelled through the crowd, hoping Alec wouldn't catch up with me.

A lot had happened tonight, but the one thing I absolutely wouldn't acknowledge was the kiss I received from Alec.

I lept into a group hug between Holly and Zin.

"Woah!" Zindra wrapped an arm around me.

"We were starting to think maybe you really had ditched us," Holly mumbled into the space we made in our embrace.

"No," I humphed, "but I definitely thought about it."

We all laughed at that, enjoying this moment of togetherness.

"Alright," I said, breaking out of the hug. "We either need to get the hell out of here, or I need a couple shots!"

"Now that's the Nora I've been waiting for!" Zin voiced her approval, "Let me introduce you to the bar. Drink now, process, and ask questions later."

"Wait, Elli, did Alec ever find you?" Holly questioned, knowingly eyeing me.

I rolled my eyes, "Yeah, he just checked in on me. We talked about the Four and the war or whatever. I asked for proof, but--"

Holly's cackle interrupted my response, "Called it. I knew you would want proof!"

"Yeah, well, turns out I can't see any of you shift. What a coincidence, right?"

"As long as you don't mind the sound and feeling of bones breaking, I'll shift right here and now," Zin joined, knowing I wouldn't want something like that, if it were even possible, to happen at a party like this.

"It's not a sure thing," I argued.

"What do you mean?" Holly asked.

"There's always a chance that I don't shift. That I am actually just human."

"Whatever the case," Zin interjected, "you said you were leaving or we were taking shots, and I don't see you leaving."

I just conceded to the conversation and lowered my head. Zin took my hand and led me through the crowd, Holly following.

We finally happened upon a corner of the ballroom I hadn't noticed earlier, but it looked like a full bar.

Zin smacked the bar top a couple of times, adding a poor English accent, "Jeeves, six shots of tequila if you will, good sir."

The bartender scoffed, "I have a name, Zindra."

"Yeah, we all do, buddy. Now those shots?"

I shook my head, offering him a small smile, "I'm sorry about her. I would say she's not normally this rude, but I'd be lying."

The bartender lined up six glasses and grabbed a bottle of silver tequila. "Yeah, you're telling me. I'm glad she got her own place; she's hard to avoid when she's home."

"Wait, you two know each other?" I inquired.

"Yeah," Zindra stated in a way that said ′obviously.′ "He's my butler, aren't you keeping up?"

"Oh, fuck off, Zindra!" The bartender squawked, "My name is Edgar. Sometimes I volunteer to bartend for Alec when he throws a party. Tonight? I'm regretting it."

Zin made a face of disgust. "Volunteer? As in free labor? Couldn't be me."

"Well," Holly jumped in, "I, for one, am grateful to Edgar and his shot pouring skills. To Edgar, thank you for your free labor!"

Holly downed her first and second shot with ease, but it made me ask Edgar, "Can I get a couple limes?"

"Don't be a pussy!" Zindra yelled, causing a visible cringe from Edgar and me. "If you use the limes, you have to take an extra shot."

"Can I have a lime with the 3rd shot?"

"I mean, sure. You just have to take an extra for being a wimp."

"Alright, Edgar. You heard the woman! Get me three limes and that final shot," I said, "please."

"Only because you said the magic word," Edgar smoothly added with a wink. He handed me a dish with three lime wedges and set the third shot next to the others. "Enjoy."

I grimaced a smile, nodding as he walked down the bar to the next degenerates looking for a way to drown out the world.

"I'll cheers you on the first one, Nora," Zindra began once Edgar was out of earshot. "But I'm downing the other after that. You go too slow for me."

"You're both too slow for me," Holly faked a yawn.

I clinked my first shot with Zin's before gulping its complete contents, following with the lime. I slammed the glass back down, grabbing the second and third, downing the fiery liquid. I soothed my gag reflex with the remaining lime wedges.

Zindra clamped her hands to my shoulders, squeezing, "Oof, rough day, huh?"

"I don't think I've ever seen you shoot tequila like that," Holly added, pride seeping into her voice.

"Our girl has become a woman!" Zin hollered, clearly enjoying my agony.

I didn't usually enjoy being drunk. I liked being in control. Even at my most intoxicated, I hold it together.

But tonight?

Tonight I planned on letting go. I listened to my intuition, allowed my instincts to guide me, but never above a whisper. The voice, my internal compass, the piece inside that burned with empathy. She is my conscience. I rarely let her out. For so long, we have been one and the same. Until tonight, I never considered a shared space between human and...

And what?

This. The world I perceive fractured today, allowing the figments of my imagination to leak through. Werewolves, witches, shifters, hybrids, vampires, gifts, blessings, enchantments, magic. This is why I knocked back a double of tequila like I needed an intervention. I allowed myself to consider that the force guiding me from the inside out is a wolf.

I needed to detach and lose myself by letting go. I held onto the driver's seat for dear life, but tonight, I needed auto-pilot.

I found my words through the fumes of lingering alcohol, nodding to Holly, "That's because I don't shoot tequila like that. If everything else is topsy-turvy, I might as well join it. Trying to hold onto a clear concept of this new world is impossible without a visual aid."

Holly looked worried. "Do you want to ta-"

I cut her off, "Talk about it? No. Not really. This all needs time to settle, and I would drive myself crazy if I attempted to understand everything tonight. I don't normally like drinking, but it's the only thing that will distract me enough until I can sleep on this."

"Well, Holly is designated driver tonight, and the dancefloor is calling my name," Zin said. And before Holly could protest, she dragged me to the center of the ballroom.

Holly joined us in our manic, ridiculous dancing. Choosing to focus on the freedom of this moment, I let the music engulf me, giving in to the beat and the alcohol in my bloodstream.