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As the bitter taste of fizzleberry wine made its way down Oralie’s throat, it all fully hit her what’s really happening. She was actually truly getting married for the rest of her life. For the past six months since resigning she’s been going out with this man named Lucien Magnus. Oralie didn’t really like him but he came with perks. As she reached for the newspaper sitting on the opposite end of the table fully expecting to see the headlines of “Former Councillor Getting Married!” Her heart rate sped up.
Oralie read in bold letters on the top page “Former Councillor Kenric Found Three Days Ago Alive In Abandoned Neverseen Hideout”. As she began to scan the page a sudden knock echoed throughout her empty house. The reasonable part of her mind knew it must be her soon to be husband, but the back of her mind told her it was someone else, and just that thought alone was making her heart race.
As she opened the door she closed her eyes for a brief moment and took a deep breath. When she opened her eyes she was greeted with those familiar blue green eyes that haunted her every night when she closed her eyes. “Hey Ora” Kenric said, boring straight into her eyes. Her mouth widened as she gasped then the world black.
The next thing she knew she was lying on her couch. Oralie looked up to find that red fiery hair she could recognize from anywhere sitting above her head. Kenric was hunched over with his elbows on his knees simply just looking at her. Her mind surely must’ve shattered. As she looked at him almost in disbelief he started walking towards her to sit next to her and asked her in a concerned tone she can feel it without even touching him “You okay?”
“This can’t be real” she muttered to herself as she sat upright still looking at Kenric feeling her forehead crease by the second.
“It’s hard to believe so I didn’t think it was real at first either.” He said softly to himself almost as a whisper.
“Are you okay? How did you get here?” Oralie said with her mouth moving faster than her mind completely ignoring Kenric’s question for her.
”I’m doing as fine as I can Ora, and I asked Sophie to drop me off here since I just got better.” He said, sounding like a long sigh.
”I was just reading the newspaper saying you were found just three days ago” She said in disbelief.
”Speaking of the newspaper,” Kenric started “I didn’t know someone was getting married!” Kenric said in a snarky sarcastic tone with a smile filled with nothing but bitterness with the comment obviously being directed to her. Oralie realized she never got to finish reading the full newspaper as she wasn’t aware of this second article about her wedding.
”Look Kenric, I don’t even know myself.” She said looking away from him at her wedding band sitting on a side table by her couch to avoid his gaze. Kenric must’ve caught her looking at it too as he turned his head to face that horrible symbol of her marriage tomorrow.
”What do you mean you ‘don’t even know’, for goodness sakes you’re getting married tomorrow to some guy named Lucien Magnus! Oralie, who even is this guy, I’ve never heard you ever talk about him once in your life.” Kenric said darting his eyes right back to her she could feel the rage and his concern for her radiating from him.
At that moment she could feel tears welling up in her eyes. Here was her dear Kenric still alive the night before she was getting married, and all she can do is watch as he pleads to know why she was marrying her life a way to some man she barely knew herself.
”I’m doing it for Sophie.” She said in the softest voice the words disappeared as quick as they came.
”What do you mean you’re doing this for Sophie?”
”Lucien is a matchmaker, and just so happened to be on my match list. He asked me out a month after I resigned so I went with nothing to lose. He kept asking so I kept going. Eventually I wanted to break it off with him, he wasn’t happy about it as he knew that it would bring his status down breaking up with a former Councillor. Instead he made a deal with me. If we married he would do a favor for me as a matchmaker. I asked him to give Sophie her match lists since she was never able to get any and it allowed me to do something for her after reshaping our world. Him thinking I’m just a sensitive empath, didn’t think much of it.”
All Kenric could do was stare at her with an expression even she as an empath couldn‘t interpret. All she knew was that this look mixed with hurt, loss, and something more would haunt her for the rest of her life.
”Why are you trying to get Sophie match lists?”
”I think you know Kenric. You already know I’m her biological mother!” She said manically hearing the words echo throughout her empty house.
”Did you open your cache?” Kenric asked in such a soft deep tone it made her heart break all over again.
”Yes, and yours. Turns out you have a knack for just wiping your mind or my mind when something goes wrong.” Right after she said that she could feel her head pounding against her skull like she was about to pass out again.
“Look Oralie,” Kenric said with a sigh looking at her with sincerity “I’m sorry I had to do that to you. You didn’t deserve that, but I couldn’t bear to see you carry yet another burden of you knowing I knew your secret.”
Oralie could feel tears brimming in her eyes as she looked at him with tears brimming in his eyes and she knew that if Kenric had tears in his eyes she would surely break down any second.
”The thing is, I understand why you did it, and all it did was make me miss you even more.” She admitted looking at him trying to soak the look of him still expecting him to disappear and this just be a dream in her head. “Sophie has been mad with me for the past couple years as she’s been unmatchable because no one is allowed to know who her biological parents are.”
”Prime sources Oralie if anything this would just make Sophie even more mad.” Kenric told her blatantly with a more tense tone.
”How?”
”I don’t know, maybe this whole marriage in general goes against anything Sophie would stand for. Especially as she already hates the match system.”
”Well then she doesn’t have to know!” Oralie said straightening her back as she felt too dizzy to stand.
”You know she’ll find out somehow,” Kenric said softer “Just like she finds everything out whether it be me still being alive, or you as her biological mother."
Here they were arguing like they did all those years ago when they were both on the council. Oralie knew Kenric was right in every point he made no matter how much she tried to deny it to herself. All she could feel was pure honesty and even a hint of his love for her radiating off of him after all this time. But all she could feel was anger not for Kenric but for the fact she’s getting married to someone that isn’t him.
“Oh don’t even get me started Kenric asking Benham for both our match lists without even talking to me!” She exclaimed flailing her arms. She knew it was unfair, she was mad and she was taking it out on her precious Kenric who did nothing to her. But she just couldn’t stop even if she wanted to. It made her want to curl and sob on the floor.
Kenric looked puzzled for a bit and Oralie could feel his confusion without even touching him.
Oralie’s eyes widened as she realized it was a memory in his cache he erased so he wouldn’t know.
Keneric asked the question Oralie knew he would ask as he was curious enough to go to a matchmaker about it “What did the lists say?” He said so silently Oralie barely caught it herself.
”I was number one on your list, and you were number one on mine.” she said just as quietly as he did asking the question.
”I always knew you were that person for me” Kenric said with a tight sad smile on his face. “Do you even want to marry him?”
”It isn’t about me Kenric.”
”I’m also guessing based on your answer earlier you don’t plan on telling Sophie about this plan of yours either.”
All Oralie could do was stare at the floor in silence as she felt slow tears rolling down her cheek.
“Ora, you don’t have to ruin the rest of your life just so Sophie can have a stupid match list that Sophie herself doesn’t even support.”
Oralie looked up at him with tears brimming in her eyes as she admitted silently, “Honestly Kenric, I thought my life was already ruined when you died”
All they could do was sit and look at each other silently knowing there was a space between them that yearned to be filled.
“Look Kenric, I am so sor-“ Oralie started as she got caught off by Kenric mashing his lips into hers.
It happened so quickly, and his strong piling emotions on top of it was the cherry on top to her head blanking out and acting on pure instinct returning the gesture back to him.
When he pulled away all they did was look at each other with wild looks on their faces. The next thing Oralie did was her acting on pure adrenaline and maybe a bit of the alcohol she drank earlier.
Oralie grabbed the collar of Kenric’s shirt to pull them closer and all of a sudden nothing else mattered besides her and the man she truly wanted finally having their moment.
All she could feel was Kenric as he made his hands through her ringlets and as she made her hands through his cropped red hair messing it up. Their kisses slow together like they had all the time in the world. Everything about her and Kenric felt so natural, like she just got home from a long journey and feels safe and secure here with him.
The only thing she could feel was Kenric taking all over her senses in her head. His familiar scent he could never lose no matter how long he’s been gone for, his chest rising and falling with every heavy breath she heard, and even his taste for the first time and most likely the last time.
Oralie could feel Kenric’s emotions through their lips as she felt the coming through like a water fall. She felt his relief when she returned each kiss, unlike in the past when she’s denied and blocked him out every possible moment they could've had together. His desire for her after it’s taken them so long to get here, but yet that tinge of despair that made Oralie double guess what was really going on. When she finally realized why Kenric was still feeling that hint of despair in him. Reality all came back to her.
She is getting married tomorrow. As Kenric made his way down to her neck she caught a glimpse of what was holding her back from going all in with Kenric. She sees her wedding band on her side table and remembers what this horrible marriage is for. It’s for her biological daughter Sophie, that already gave her whole life to fix their world that’s treated her horribly.
Once she got a sense of reality it seemed Kenric picked up on it right after her like she was reading her mind which he possibly could’ve been doing. But she knew Kenric wouldn’t do that to her no matter how stupid she may be acting.
”Did it all come back to you too?” Kenric asked in a soft gentle tone looking deep at her with his eyes that she would never forget no matter how long it’s been.
Oralie couldn’t even reply to his question as tears began to flow out of her eyes. She tried to look away but she was way too late. Kenric had already her face in his gentle hands wiping away her tears.
”I’m going to leave you now Ora.” he cooed quietly to her as he got up from the couch they were both on, leaving an empty space on Oralie’s body where Kenric’s was making a chill go through her spine.
”You can still come to the wedding tomorrow if you want.” Oralie let that horrible sentence out, putting its existence of her having a wedding with anyone besides Kenric into the world. How cruel could she be inviting the man she just passionately kissed, and longed for but isn’t marrying to her wedding. Especially as the man she is marrying isn’t Kenric even though she desperately wanted to marry him.
When she let that sentence out it felt like dumping a pile of bricks out of her mouth. When he heard it he began walking towards her. He was standing so close to her not even an imp could fit between the two of them.
”I’ll go,” he said, feeling the his soft breath hit the top of her head as he was looking down at her as he continued. “I hope you do know though, I’ll be watching you from the back wishing that whoever you are getting married to was me instead.” When she finally had the guts to look up into his deep eyes he had tears rolling down his cheek that made Oralie break down sobbing.
Kenric dipped his head to leave a gentle kiss on her forehead that felt like a seal to an envelope about to be delivered away.
”Don’t cry too much Ora, you still have your wedding to go to tomorrow.” He said to her with a tight smile on his face as he started towards the door. Even when she was going to marry the rest of her life away here he was still joking about it with tears running down his own face.
As she watched him leave outside to light leap away to possibly back to Sophiee’s house she watched.
”I will always love you Kenric.” Oralie said to him knowing no matter who would turn her way, Kenric would always and forever be that person for her.
”Me too Ora.” He replied back looking at her before whisking away into the moonlight.