Reality(1 in series) ~Completed~

Chapter Fourteen

I didn’t have to wait long before Zadra and I were notified that I was to be taken downstairs and to the ballroom, which was another thing that surprised me. My father must be really going all out to make all these Tethran’s feel at home.

Zadra and I shared a look, and I sighed, “Well, off to my death.”

Shaking her head at me, Zadra replied “Don’t think like that. You’ll be fine. Plus, if you ever need to escape, I’ll be around.” Winking, Zadra led me out of my room, and down to the ballroom.

 The room was crowded with masked people already, with nothing to give their identity away but their skin color or hair color, and even then, I couldn’t tell who anyone was. Which meant they couldn’t tell who I was.

I smiled, seeing eyes swivel my way, taking in my appearance. I felt good, I felt beautiful. I was an anomaly, and for once it wasn’t a bad thing. But I was also out of place.

I walked deeper into the room, pushing myself through the people that towered over me. Luckily, I wasn’t the only short person at this particular ball, it seemed my father had pulled many strings, and there seemed to be beings from at least ten different planets. Possibly more, since the further I got, the more I saw.

The music hadn’t started yet, and I wondered why. I prowled the room, looking for a glimpse of my father, and wasn’t paying attention to where I was going and ended up running into a man.

He was older, and wore a full-faced mask, but his eyes were a rainbow of reflections. I recognized those eyes.

“You!”

The man nodded, “Me, you look beautiful Jaylee.”

I shook my head, “Thank you, but can you tell me who you are?”

He shook his head before replying, “You already know me.” I huffed, ready to reply when he added, “You better find your seat, the foods to be out soon.”

Then the frustrating stranger walked away and disappeared into the crowd, which I noticed was shifting to the middle of the room.

I walked with the people around me, and saw the tables. Tables everywhere. I moaned in anger, this ball was going to forever.

I walked around, noticing there weren’t many seats left, before I found one at a table with what looked to be Tethrans.

I nodded my head at them and slipped into my seat, I was by far the shortest, and stood out like a sore thumb. I didn’t know what I was supposed to do, so I sat silently, watching the room around me as the people sat.

There were only a few empty seats left when a group of men walked in. They dispersed, and one made his way to the table I had sat at. He was the final to sit down, and then the food was brought.

  I ate quietly, listening in on the conversations going on around me in different languages, giggling at jokes, and smiling behind my hand at a few crude conversations.

“This girl is different,” one of the Tethrans at my table stated, and I tried not to look at them, since they didn’t know I knew their language.

“I agree, maybe there is something wrong in her brain?” another replied, looking my way crookedly.

The last man to sit down at the table sighed, and it rolled up my spine, “Or maybe she understands everything going on around her?” his voice was deep and soothing. I could fall asleep to it.

I frowned, and looked at him, taking in his reflective muddy brown eyes. He had close cut brown hair, and strong facial features. Like all Tethran men, he was built and would tower over me if we were to stand side by side. His born Tethran marks spread over his left arm, which was left bare by the leather vest he had chosen to worn.