by Lola Gabriel
A soft breeze grazed her cheek, and she opened her eyes slowly, carefully. Everything was quiet around her, even the wings of the dragon gliding gracefully in the air. She raised her head and looked around her. She let out an awestruck gasp at her surroundings while her heart continued to pound in her chest. They were flying above the clouds, and it was quiet and ethereal.
The moment felt surreal, and although Adley was terrified, she felt liberated. A feeling she had never truly felt before, and now it carried her on the shoulders of a dragon, flying above the clouds, making her feel invincible. She wasn’t afraid. anymore, and she wouldn’t allow her fears and insecurities to weigh her down any longer. She slowly loosened her grip on the horns in front of her and bravely stretched out her trembling arms to her sides. She took a deep breath and tilted her head back slightly.
The cool breeze on her face and the feeling of being completely free overwhelmed her, but also invigorated her, filling her with hope and promise, and she knew that everything would be okay. Better than okay.
A sudden jerk under her made her grab the horns again, and the dragon let out a throaty screech.
“What’s going on?” she asked, again expecting an answer from him. Could he hear her? Could he understand her, or was there some kind of secret dragon language to communicate with him when he was like this? She shook her head at how crazy she sounded, but then again, riding on the back of a dragon seemed pretty high up on the list of crazy.
The beast swooped down. Adley felt her stomach turn upside down at the sudden drop, and she held on for dear life again. Just before they hit the water, the beast stopped abruptly and nudged Adley off his neck and back onto the boat. She scrambled to her feet as she watched the beast slide down into the water, and she leaned over the edge of the boat. Right before her eyes, the beast decreased in size, lost its scales, and took on a human form. Oryn’s face appeared through the pale scales, and his arms were once again his own.
Adley’s breathing was ragged as she watched him swim towards the boat and pull himself out of the water. He swung himself over the railing of the boat and grabbed a nearby towel, wrapping it around him. Adley waited for him to read her reaction, but instead, Oryn pulled up the anchor, rushed to the control panel, and started the engine.
“We have to go,” he spoke in a hoarse voice.
“What’s going on?”
“Someone’s coming,” he grumbled. The engine roared to life, drowning out all Adley’s questions, and fear began to set in once again.
When they reached the boathouse, Adley quickly jumped out of the boat and headed to the wooden stairs leading back to the house. She didn’t wait for Oryn, but within a minute, he stood behind her, and she turned around.
“You…”
Oryn glanced at her, still wearing the towel wrapped around his hips, but he didn’t say anything, as if he wanted her to say the words because he couldn’t.
Was that what he had meant? Was he not allowed to tell her about him being a dragon? Could he only show her what he was because he wasn’t allowed to say it out loud? What would happen if he did? Would the other dragons come and take him away? Would he then be a fugitive dragon?
Oh, my god, Adley. You’re going crazy.
“You’re a…”
Oryn nodded. “You can say it.”
“I don’t know if I want to, because that’s what is going to make it real,” she stuttered, catching her breath.
“It is real,” he whispered. “You saw it for yourself.”
“I need to leave.” She whirled around, going up the wooden stairs.
“Adley, wait,” Oryn spoke gently and followed her up the stairs. Adley picked up the pace, crossing the backyard, but Oryn reached for her hand and spun her around.
“Please, let go of me,” she begged.
“I’m not going to hurt you, Adley. I just want us to talk about this,” he stated.
“I can’t talk to you about this right now. It’ll sound too crazy. I feel completely overwhelmed and terrified and…”
“It’s going to be okay,” he said and reached for her face, but she pulled away.
“I really have to go,” she insisted, tears forming in her eyes. “I am so sorry.”
She turned away from him, crossed the backyard, and pushed through the side gate going to the front of the house and the driveway where her car stood. She climbed inside and started the engine right away. The gate opened automatically, and she sped off. Her heart still pounded painfully in her chest. She couldn’t believe what she had just witnessed. She knew that Oryn wasn’t like any other guy she had dated, but she didn’t think that in a million years he was hiding the fact that he was a dragon. He hid it so well from her, so what else was he hiding?
The drive to her house was short, and within ten minutes, she barged in through her front door and locked it behind her. Dropping her keys on the kitchen counter, she walked to her couch and fell down on it. She stared out in front of her, feeling as though she was in a trance. The entire afternoon had been so surreal, and the extremity of the whole situation had just started to hit her. Overwhelmed by the emotions bubbling up inside her, she suddenly burst out into tears. Gasping for air, she grabbed a scatter pillow and clutched it tightly against her chest. Her mind was in a complete whirl, and despite feeling betrayed and lied to, she was heartbroken and afraid. Afraid of what Oryn may have to say for himself, afraid that she would still love him regardless of what he was, afraid that he might be the end of her. She didn’t want to feel like that again.
What if he accidentally hurt her when he was a dragon?
Oh, my god, Adley! Would you listen to yourself? The guy is a fucking dragon!
She was overlooking the fact that Oryn was a dragon. A real-live, actual dragon.
Those things didn’t exist, or at least, not to her. Her heart dropped as she thought about what else could exist in this world that she thought didn’t. Witches, vampires, werewolves? Fairies, mermaids?
She didn’t know what to do or to think anymore, and she simply stayed on the couch until the sun went down. She ignored the texts and messages coming through her phone, although she knew that they were all from Oryn. She didn’t want to talk to him at that moment, but she knew she had to. She had to know what he had kept a secret from her, what he didn’t or couldn’t tell her.
Adley loved him, there was no doubt about it, but the fact that he could turn into a dragon was a little more than what she had bargained for. She didn’t want a complicated situation, not again. Things had been going so well with Oryn, and she was finally happy. She deserved to be happy, and he made her feel that way.
Why did she feel like giving all that up just because of a minor—which was not minor at all to her—detail he had omitted?
Adley realized that it was really difficult for Oryn to keep something like this a secret, especially from her, and she understood why he had done it. If he had told her the truth, she would have probably thought that he was crazy and laughed at him. She would have left his house and never called him again.
She sat upright on the couch, wiped her eyes, and glanced at her phone. The screen still flashed every now and again, and she reached for it. Oryn’s handsome face flashed on the screen, and she took a deep breath. She slid her finger across the screen and answered the call. “Hello.”
“Adley, are you okay?”
“I’m fine.”
“Listen, I need to talk to you about this afternoon. I know it was overwhelming, and I must have scared the shit out of you—”
“You did.”
“Can I see you, please?” he pleaded.
“Not today. I just need some quiet time to process what happened today,” she answered quietly.
“Don’t you think it would be better if I was with you? You might have questions,” he suggested.
“Oh, I definitely have questions. I just want to process, on my own. Okay?”
“You’re not going to disappear, are you? Or do something stu
pid?” he asked.
“No. I won’t go driving anywhere drunk, ever again.”
“I’m so sorry, Adley.”
“I have to go.”
“I love you.”
“Bye, Oryn,” she whispered and ended the call. A tear ran down her cheek as she placed her phone back on the table in front of her and lay back down on the couch.
9
It was quiet in his office, yet Oryn was agitated. It had been three days, and he had heard nothing from Adley. He understood that it had been nothing less than terrifying and traumatic for her to see him turn into a dragon and to fly thousands of feet in the air on his neck, but how long did she need to process things? He had tried calling her so many times in the past three days, until he had realized that he wasn’t doing himself, or her, any favors. She needed some space to think and breathe, even though it was a difficult thing for him to fathom. He wanted to be with her, hold her hand as he told her everything about himself, again. He wanted to tell her the real story about his scar, and about their Bonding and the Curse. He wanted to tell her that he would do everything in his power to keep her safe, and that he would never do anything to hurt her. If only she would let him.
His office door opened, and Naomi entered, holding a cup of coffee. Ever since their little altercation in his office, things had also been a little tense between them. They didn’t talk as much as they had before, and both of them seemed wary of the other.
“I brought you some coffee, just the way you like it,” Naomi stated, placing it down before him.
“How long will it take for the poison to kill me?” he muttered.
“A few minutes,” she shrugged nonchalantly and closed the door behind her. “I’m not trying to kill you.”
“You’re not?” He raised an unconvinced eyebrow at her.
“No, I’m not. Contrary to what you believe, I don’t want you dead,” she replied.
“Then what do you want with me?” he asked.
“Nothing. I just want you to be careful.”
“Does this have to do with Adley being a human, or the wolves who are coming to find me?”
“No, this has to do with Adley.”
“She knows, Naomi.”
“What?” Naomi gasped. “You told her?”
“I didn’t,” he answered curtly.
“Then how…?” Naomi’s eyes widened, and she sighed. “You showed her, didn’t you?”
“I did.”
“And what did she say?”
“I don’t know. We haven’t talked yet. She’s avoiding my calls. She told me that she needed some time to process everything. How long does it take someone to come to terms with the fact that dragons exist?”
“Jesus, Oryn! The poor girl watched her perfect and seemingly normal boyfriend turn into a fucking dragon! Don’t you think she deserves a little patience from you? To you and me, this life may be normal, but to her, it’s not.”
“I am still trying to figure you out. A fairy?”
“No, I’m not. And I’m not a wolf, either.”
“Are you going to come clean, or do I have to drag it out of you?” he smirked.
“I see what you did there,” she chuckled and winked at him. “But I am bound by a vow of silence, and I couldn’t tell you even if I tried.”
“That tells me only one thing. There’s magic involved,” Oryn said, and he sat back in his chair. “I wouldn’t have pegged you for a witch, not in a million years.”
“Why? Am I too feisty?”
“Something like that.”
“Listen, Oryn.” Naomi approached the desk. “I’m sorry about the other day. I didn’t want to seem threatening or anything like that. I got anxious about Adley getting so close to you, knowing she’s a human. The last time a human got close to people like us, bad things happened, and I’m not saying Adley is like those people, but she might know people like that. I don’t want any of the Gifted dying because of something I could have prevented.”
“This is not on you, okay?” Oryn assured her. “This is on me, and if anything happens, I will deal with it. I don’t expect you to help me—”
“You know I will, Oryn. You’re not just a stupid power-hungry dragon.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
“You should. I don’t just dish them out to anyone,” she scoffed.
Oryn smiled briefly and nodded. “Thank you, Naomi. Really.”
“Your coffee is getting cold,” she said as she quietly left the office.
As Oryn took a sip, his phone rang, and he nearly spilled coffee all over himself trying to reach it.
“Hello?” he answered, hoping it was Adley calling him. His flight to Malaysia was tomorrow morning, and he really wanted to speak to her before he left. There were a lot of things he needed to tell her. Not only about him and his family, but about the wolves who were tracking him down.
“Hey, it’s me.”
“Hey, Lync.”
“Bad news. The pack was spotted on the northern shore of the South Island.”
“They’re moving faster than I thought.”
“We have to do something, Oryn.”
“I can’t. I’m flying to Malaysia tomorrow morning for work.”
“Can’t you postpone it?”
“I can’t.”
“Well, what do we do?”
“I’m only going to be gone a few days, a week at most. Will you hold down the fort until I get back?”
“Sure. What about your girlfriend?”
“I have to figure something out. I’ll call you back.” Oryn disconnected the call and noticed Naomi standing in the doorway.
“Is everything okay?” she asked.
“No, not really,” he replied. “My flight to Malaysia is tomorrow morning, and one of my informants just called to let me know that a wolf pack is on the northern shores of the South Island, heading to Auckland.”
“The pack?”
“Yeah.”
“What are you going to do, Oryn?”
“I have to talk to Adley, as soon as possible,” he responded in a panicked tone. He stood from his chair. “I’m going to head home early, if that’s okay.”
Naomi shrugged. “Hey, you’re the boss.”
“One last thing,” he added as he walked to the door.
“Anything.”
“While I’m away, could you just keep an eye on Adley for me? Take her to dinner or something. Just don’t let anything happen to her.”
“Consider it done, although she thinks I am the biggest bitch alive by now,” Naomi laughed. “But wouldn’t it be easier, and safer, for her to stay with me?”
Oryn turned to her and frowned. “You’re actually suggesting that Adley, who’s a human, stays with you?”
“Why not? I can keep an eye on her for you, and we can bond, just like you wanted,” she smirked.
“Are you sure it’s okay with you?” he asked.
“Yeah, why not? The house gets a little lonely at times, and I could do with some girl talk.”
“I’ll tell her when I see her. I’ll give her the address as well. Just don’t give her vodka,” Oryn warned.
“Yes, sir. Don’t worry about us. We’ll be fine. Have a great trip, and good luck.”
“Thanks.” Oryn gave Naomi a quick hug—which surprised himself more than it surprised her—and quickly left the office.
After Oryn parked his car in the driveway and climbed out, he walked along the pathway to the door. He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Adley sitting on his front steps, a bottle of wine next to her.
When she noticed him, she stood up and took a deep breath. “Hey.”
“Hey. What are you doing here?” he asked.
“I’m done processing on my own, and you were right. You should have been with me then, because I have even more questions than before,” she said.
“And I’ll answer each and every one of them, I promise.”
“And I wanted to see you before you lef
t for your trip. I didn’t want us to be apart and have all these thoughts and feelings that were left unsaid.
Oryn nodded wordlessly and unlocked the front door. They stepped inside, and Adley handed him the bottle.
“I’ll pour us a glass.” After going into the kitchen, opening the bottle, and pouring two glasses, he walked to the living area, where Adley sat on one of the large couches. Oryn approached the couch, placed the two glasses on the table, and sat down beside her. Adley looked at him and tucked her hair behind her ears.
“You’re a dragon. But not all the time.”
“That’s right. I can shift whenever I want,” he confirmed.
“And how long have you been able to do that?”
“My entire life,” he answered, but her expression asked for more details. “I am five thousand years old.”
Her eyes widened slightly. “Y-you don’t look a day over thirty.”
Oryn chuckled and placed his arm across the length of the backrest.
“And your brothers are dragons, too?” she asked.
“Yes. Everyone in my family is a dragon. My father and mother are the Dragon King and Queen. My brothers and I were born within the four elements, and we have abilities specifically designed according to that.”
“And yours is earth, right?”
“Yeah. How did you know?”
“You’re strong and nurturing. You always want to be in control, and the green scales kind of gave it away, too.”
“Right,” he muttered.
“And there are others like you, besides your family?”
“Yeah, just not as many as there used to be. Most of us hide what we are from the others.”
“The others?”
“Vampires, wolf shifters, witches.”
Adley’s face paled, and she took a large sip of wine, of which Oryn didn’t blame her in the least.
“The monsters you thought weren’t real, they exist. But we’re not the monsters you think we are.”
“I don’t think you’re a monster, Oryn. You’re the kindest man I’ve ever met, and as much as this whole thing scares the shit out of me, I love you, and nothing is going to change that. You’re a dragon, so what? You’re my dragon,” Adley responded.
