Imperious.

Part XXVI: Tom

© 2014 XxNotTonightXx.

All Rights Reserved

Author's Note: Please vote and comment, it helps. I accidentally posted the chapter early and then unpublished it because I wanted to continue the consistent Friday updates, maybe I'll change it to Wednesdays. I'm not sure yet. Enjoy.

Pages: 102 -  104

T O M - 

I know she's here with me, even if I don't see or hear her. And I don't have to see or hear her because I can smell her signature coconut body wash a mile away and I can feel her stare. Only Emilia can make me feel like I'm suddenly on a showcase, open and vulnerable to her disposal, ready to spill all my secrets just to have her attention on me for a little bit longer.

And for a moment, knowing that she's here calms me. It makes me forget about the pain that's demanding to be felt for a moment or two, but then the disquieting feeling returns and I'm confronted with the memories of the meeting and how things ended because of me. If I hadn't let my anger get in the way, I wouldn't have ruined a meeting Jace spent so long putting together. Emilia probably would've gotten answers only he could give her but no, I had to get in the way and now, who knows what she thinks of me.

What if she doesn't want me anymore? The thought makes me cringe and the headache returns at full force, making me want to pant, only it's to painful to move my mouth, much less open it. It's like a heartbeat - my headache, I mean. Every beat to my head forces pain to sprout all throughout me. I don't want to move anymore, I don't want to be awake. I just want to sleep, anything to not feel this pain anymore. And if it's not the headache then it's my face, moving my jaw in the slightest makes me flinch. It's sore, and moving it is like reopening a newly stitched gunshot wound, blood curlingly painful.

Groaning, I attempt to open my eyes but I find that to be another challenge in itself. Licking my lips, I try to open my eyes again, but to no avail; I'm already weak and weary .

But as soon as I'm ready to just stay still and admit my defeat, I hear her inhale deeply, as if she's taken off guard about something and suddenly, everything that seemed so challenging and painful to do isn't so painful and hard anymore.

I expected white to be the only thing I see, like last time, but as my eyes open and grow accustomed to the beaming light, navy blue paint greets me and so does Emilia. She sits in a brown, recliner chair but she's not relaxing. She's sitting up straight, her hands patiently folded in her lap. As she stares at me, slowly, she blinks.

"Emilia." I say trying to sound as normal as I possibly can but I can't, not with the throbbing sensation in my head and by my jaw.

"Tom." She breathes out and I see relief flood through her eyes. I clench my teeth together. Hopefully this means she isn't mad at me.

"Hey." She says again and it sounds so foreign coming from her. It's too casual.

I want to speak but I don't know what to say, so I just stare at her. I stare at her because I'm sorry and because I don't have it in me to be able to tell her just how much I regret messing up her meeting.

We just stay that way, staring at each other, me in guilt and her in I don't know what. Is she thinking about whether keeping me around is worth it? I wouldn't be surprised if she was. I've yelled at her, caused major changes in her pack and messed up a very important meeting; that's enough strikes against me.

"Say something." She says quietly and I look back to her instantly.

"Something." I say seriously but I can't stop the small curving on my lips as she laughs quietly.