I looked at myself in the mirror, my eyes blank as my mind continued to try to puzzle things together. Alaisdair, the Council, the King, Demetri, the Courts, me. Nothing about this situation made much sense. It was as if several of the most essential pieces had been removed from the box before I started putting them together, making the end result unidentifiable.
My jaw clenched and my brow came together in a picture of frustration as I looked my back at myself.
Knowing how much I loathed dresses, Alec had brought me a suit the night before. When I had tried it on, I was surprised to find how perfectly it fit, hugging all the right curves and flaring out exactly where it needed to. I didn't think much of it at first, Alec was on the thinner side even with his muscles and I tended to fill out whatever I wore, but when he brought out a pair of shiny black shoes in my exact size, I knew he had got it all especially for me.
I had brought my eyes up to his and tilted my head in question, lifting a shoe with a 'we so do not wear the same size in shoes' look.
He simply shrugged and said, "I couldn't let you show up in jeans and a t-shirt, I just couldn't. It was more for my benefit than yours, if you think about it."
From the look on his face, it was clear he expected me to argue with him but I let it go after a hug and maybe smothering him with a couple dozen obnoxious kisses.
My face relaxed at the memory and a small smile quirked my mouth.
I let my eyes travel down from my face to the outfit I adored. The jet black jacket of the suit was the only thing I wore on my torso, leaving a good amount of creamy pale skin and cleavage showing, making me consider a bra for the second time before shrugging off the thought. It was a risk, one wrong move and it would be a disaster, but I was never a person who did anything safely.
Whatever happens, happens. Ya' know?
I felt something drip down my top lip and I wiped it away, thinking I had a runny nose. I reached to grab a tissue and froze at the sight of the scarlet red blood painted across the back of my hand, cold dread stabbing me in my chest. I looked up at my reflection with wide eyes and let out a shaky breath. My heart raced in my chest as the sight of blood smeared across of my face, dripping down my chin met me. I turned on the faucet with shaky hands and cupped my hands under the water, letting it gather in my palms. Leaning over the sink, I watched drops of my crimson blood turn into a diluted pink in the water as they washed down the drain, my head feeling lighter as the seconds passed.
I washed my face with water until it was clean of blood and quickly plugged my nose with tissues, trying to slow my panicked breathing. My limbs trembled from the adrenaline of fear that coursed through me as I lowered myself onto the floor. I settled my head in between my knees and gasped through the raw terror that seized my heart.
I felt it in my gut, the instinctual feeling that I didn't have much time left. Everything hurt lately; my skin, my muscles, my bones. Everything. And if it didn't hurt, it ached, a dulled symptom of what was happening.
Demetri's promise rang in my ears and I clung to it even as a the most prominent part of me warned the more desperate, hopeful side of me not to get my hopes up for something that wasn't guaranteed.
Desperation for hope won out, swatting away the annoying, cynical thoughts that crowded it like an annoying buzz in it's ear. I couldn't think about the negative right now, so I would settle for plugging my ears and singing a optimistic tune, ignoring the weary part of me that sat back, shaking her head at my willful ignorance.
Gradually, my breathing evened out and my heart slowed, allowing me to pick myself up on unsteady legs. My nose stopped bleeding sometime during my episode of panic, allowing relief to fill my lungs as I leaned forward on the bathroom counter top with my hands, head hanging down as I collected myself.
The sound of my door opening and slamming closed met me and I straightened, startled by the noisy entrance. Alec called out for me to 'get my ass there' and I hurriedly tugged the tissue from my nose, wiping a few spot of blood I hadn't noticed on my chest. I tossed the cloth in the sink and made my way out, smoothing out my cloths, trying to appear as if I hadn't just been freaking out over possibly dying.
No biggie.
"Echo, come on. I have something for you and if you don't get out here soon, I can't promise it'll still be here," Alec called just as I stepped out of the bathroom.
He turned, holding two silver wine glasses. "Oh, good."
He wore a loose white dress shirt unbuttoned down to the subtle beginning of his abs, making him look casually hot while simultaneously maintaining a sense of class. He paired it with simple black slacks, which fit him like a second skin, and a pair of brown leather ankle boots, it's small heel making him even taller. His hair fell into deliberately messy waves that pulled the whole look together.
His knowing eyes, lined with black makeup, met my eyes with a cocky lift of a brow.
"You look hot," I said simply, continuing to unapologetically check him out.
"Back atcha', red," he said, walking over to me to hand me a drink. "Here, drink up."
I took the drink and lifted it to my nose. The almost perfume-like smell hit me hard in overwhelmingly intoxicating waves, an unusual sweetness that made my mouth water softening the smell significantly.
Alec watched me with amused eyes and lifted his own drink up before taking a sip.
"What is it?" I asked, hesitant to drink something that I might not be able to handle. I wasn't a shifter, but Alec didn't know that. He could handle it, but what if I couldn't?
"Allure, it's a drink some mage made trying to induce the feeling of love back in the day. A failed love potions of sorts. Instead, he created an incredible drink that is very popular in the Courts. As soon as I found out they had some delivered for the event I went to the kitchen to sneak a cup for both of us."
I bit my lip and stared at the drink, tempted to say fuck it and take a sip.
"What does it do?" I asked instead.
"It's like heaven on your tongue and a dose of euphoria to your brain. It sort of makes everything light and intense at the same time. Just don't drink more than a cup and you'll be fine," he said before closing his eyes to take another sip, letting it sit in his mouth for a second longer than before.
"What would happen if someone drank too much?" I asked, fidgeting with the cup resting in my hands, it's presence persuading me to have a taste.
He cringed at the thought. "Oooh, yeah. That can get scary. If you don't watch how much you're drinking, it can take you somewhere... dark. I've heard it described as being disconnected from the world around you and disappearing into your mind. And not the good part of your mind, no, it's the part that you tend to avoid."
I nodded and breathed in, accidentally taking in the divine aroma. The ghost of it's taste grazed my tongue and I swallowed roughly.
Seeing my unsure expression, he continued in a reassuring tone, "Echo, moderation is key. As long as you don't guzzle an entire bottle, you'll be fine. Hell, even humans can handle it in moderation."
I relaxed at that, only hesitating a few moments before slowly lifted the drink to my lips. The cool drink met my lips as I breathed in. I tipped the cup eagerly and the Allure washed over my tongue. The burst of flavor drew a small moan from me as I sunk down to sit on my bed. The strange mixture of honey and lavender overwhelmed my taste buds in a wonderful way.
Alec nodded and smiled. "Like an orgasm for your mouth, right?"
I let out a happy laugh and lifting my fingers to my mouth, touching my lips as they tingled. I nodded slowly as the pleasant coolness turned to warmth in stomach, a fluttering sensation heightening the sensation.
"Just wait, it really hits after you after a good ten minutes," he said, watching me like you would someone who just ate an edible for the first time.
Taking in my appearance, his mood seemed to change. "So," he said, pausing to take another sip, "You going to tell me why you smell like blood?"
I lifted the drink up, taking a drink to buy time, the small sip almost causing me to forget what we were talking about.
I cleared my throat and shrugged in what I hoped looked to be a casual gesture. "Nose bleed. I get them from time to time."
He studied me, his doubt clear on his face as he did.
I looked away, trying to find something to avert the attention away from me. My eyes zeroed in on a bag of makeup and I pasted on a wary smile.
"What's that for?" I asked, nodding to the clear bag stuffed with various beauty products, most of which I couldn't identify. My experience of makeup started with eyeliner and ended with mascara. Anything more and it turned into a disaster that had me looking like an amateur clown.
He rolled his eyes at my not so subtle change in topics and picked up the bag with a smile twisting at his lips, his eyes warning me of what he had in mind.
I started shaking my head but he held up a finger, silencing my protests before I had the chance to voice them.
"I reserve the right to emotionally blackmail you into getting dolled up with me for tonight. Now, I haven't had to pull the heartbreak card yet, but I am fully prepared to be that friend. I don't want to, but I will," he said, his expression telling me he wasn't messing around.
I stared, my eyes glued to his in silence before I sighed in resignation.
If I didn't know him, I would have thought he was unfazed by Alaisdair leaving. But I did know him, so I saw the moments where his eyes fell to the floor as a dull desolation washed over him. I heard it when his upbeat voice felt a little too forced. I saw the flash of sadness in his eyes when something reminded him of Alaisdair. The disinterest I felt from him when I talked about a particularly attractive person I knew he had been drooling over before Alaisdair showed up. He was always good at recovering quickly, but not before I had picked up the small moments that let me know he wasn't as okay as he'd like me to believe.
"Okay," I said, not able to deny such a simple request. It was one night of going all out. How bad could it be?