I awoke to the familiar touch of sunshine slightly warming my face. I smiled and looked around my room. Nothing had changed since I left. Not a thing. But my life had become unrecognizable to me since I was last in this room.
I sighed and closed my eyes. When they opened again, I could see the tiny dust particles floating through the rays of sunshine. Just like little fairies. That's when everything became clear to me. My life had drastically changed, but not for the worse. I didn’t know why I had ran, why I felt I needed a break. My life was extraordinary; I had friends that only exist, to some people, in books and stories. Perhaps I needed to come here to realize that.
I flung the blankets off and hopped out of bed. The smell of breakfast and coffee was already in the air, Tess’s way of welcoming me home. As I threw on a pair of pajama pants and my slippers, I thought of something else. Why hadn't anyone come to get me yet? Or even call? I’d expected Jules to call at least.
Was I was being silly? I’d told them that I needed to be by myself, away from all the magic and craziness. They were just being good friends and giving me what I’d asked for.
"Morning, Tess, coffee smells good," I greeted as I walked around to the kitchen.
"Good morning, pancakes will be ready in a few minutes. Um, one of your friends is here," she said quietly and motioned over at the couch.
"Really, who..." I stopped and stared at him sitting on my couch, definitely the last person I’d imagined they would send. But I was happy to see him, nonetheless.
"Will!" I cried and ran over to him. He stood and hugged me. "What are you doing here?"
"Well, everyone was worried about you. So, I came to check and see if you were okay," he replied. Of course—I needed a break from all the magic so they send sent my only human friend who knew nothing about it. Clever.
"I'm glad you came. Want some breakfast?" I asked.
"Sure, smells awesome! Great house by the way, very Lord of the Rings meets Snow White."
"Thanks, but it’s all Tess. She’s worked really hard on this place. It's even won awards."
"Very cool," Will replied and took a seat next to me at the table. Tess put down our plates, overloaded with syrup-drenched pancakes, and joined us. "So, when are you heading back to the city?"
"Today, school's tomorrow and I have some...things to take care of tonight," I replied, careful not to say too much. It was odd not being able to just tell Will or Tess that I had to check on Max after her kelpie attack and check in with my two vampires who were probably ready to fly through the roof after me.
Will just looked at me curiously and continued to eat his pancakes.
After breakfast, I showed Will around the house and then the garden. We were walking down by one of the old fountains when Will stopped and grabbed my arm.
"Hey. I need to talk to you."
"Sure, what about?"
"I know," he said. "I know everything. Well, everything that Julie and your other roommate decided to tell me."
I just stared at him with pursed lips.
“It’s fine, I’m okay with it,” he assured me confidently.
"Really? Why did they decide to tell you?"
"Well, it was kind of hard to avoid when I walked in on Julie this morning. She was asleep and had dropped her disguise throughout the night."
"Wow,” I whispered in awe. He seemed to be handling this information pretty well. I wonder how Julie had reacted. “What did you do when you saw her like that?"
"Well, at first I was confused. I thought she was wearing some kind of costume. But, as I got closer, I could clearly see that she wasn't. I mean, you can see where her wings are attached and everything, it was so cool!" Will explained enthusiastically.
"Cool?" I repeated. "Wish I took it that well when I found out."
"Yeah, but after you took a minute for yourself you realized it was okay, right?" he asked.
"Yeah, I guess I did."
"I mean, when you love someone, it doesn't matter what they are. The only thing that matters is that they feel comfortable enough to share it with you. When Julie opened her eyes, she didn't even flinch. She just kissed me and said how relieved she was that I finally knew."
"That sounds like Jules. I'm surprised she hadn't told you already."
"Yeah me too, but she told me what happened with Max. And she told me about your boss and her brother."
"Pretty crazy stuff, huh?"
"Yeah, it's totally crazy but really cool. I mean, think about it, Avery. How awesome is it to know these people?" Will pointed out.
I loved how accepting he was of all this. It made it easier for me. Maybe I’d just overreacted before. He was right. There was nothing wrong with being friends with people like Moya and Celadine, or Lattie and Jules. Maybe that's why I’d never bothered to make any other friends, besides Julie. I was meant to be a part of their world.
I flung my arm around Will’s shoulders and kept walking. "It's nice to have another normal person like me in the group, though. Thanks for being so understanding about it all."
"No problem, Ave, that's what friends are for." He smiled and wrapped his arm around my shoulders, too. "But, don't ya think the fact that our friends are fairies and vampires makes us not so normal?"
I thought about it for a second. "Yeah, I guess you're right." We laughed and kept walking through Tess's enchanted garden.
CHAPTER THIRTY FOUR
OPEN ARMS
Iron & Wine Page 40
