Not One Of Us

Back in the room, Eddus was lying on the bed, trying in vain to rest. He would close his eyes, but his mind raced, and he could do nothing to calm it.

There was a light tap at the door, followed by a short pause and the click of it unlocking. He jumped to his feet as the door opened slightly.

“Excuse me. You have a visitor,” a voice from outside told him.

Eddus said nothing, stunned at both the idea of a visitor, as well as it being announced in so courteous a manner. He stood watching the door, not knowing what to do or expect.

The door remained unmoved, and after a short moment of silence, the voice spoke again.

“May I admit them?”

Again, Eddus remained silent, staring blankly at the door for a moment before it occurred to him that he needed to answer.

“Well... uh, of course, yes.”

The door opened a bit more. Backing through it, speaking in hushed tones to someone outside of it, the being’s wings did not quite come near to touching the underside of the doorframe. The door closed and clicked locked. The visitor paused for a moment and then slowly turned around.

“Abbi!” Eddus rushed to her, hugging her, his arms around her waist and lower back. She returned his embrace, holding tightly to his neck. For several moments, neither said anything as they held one another.

Abbi then shoved Eddus’ chest, pushing him away from her.

“Why?” She glared at him, a look of bewilderment behind her anger. “Why?”

Abbi wore a simple, strapless black dress that came to just below her knees. Her hair was in a tight bun at her neck, as it usually was. Eddus shook his head, unable to speak. He stood gazing at her in amazement, bordering on disbelief. She looked exactly as he remembered her. He’d committed to memory every detail, every feature, except one...

“You,” he managed.

• • •

Eddus faced Abbi. He was sitting in the chair in the corner. Abbi sat in front of him on the chair that had been at the table. She’d helped him to sit when he’d stumbled, almost falling. For several minutes, he lay back in the chair, his expression blank. Abbi had pulled the other chair in front of him and sat patiently until the colour had come back to his face. He blinked a few times before making eye contact with her. She stroked the side of his jaw with her fingers.

“Eddie?”

“You,” he said, “you have wings.”

It was Abbi’s turn to be taken aback. The corner of her mouth curled as she watched as Eddus slowly came back to reality, stifling her urge to laugh.

“What do you think?” Abbi asked, turning her head slightly, glancing at her shoulder.

“I- I like them,” Eddus stammered, blinking in surprise, still in shock. He looked at her wings, then back at her. “You’re beautiful. They- They’re beautiful! You’re wings...”

Eddus took a deep breath, then pursed his lips.

“You know, over half of us here have wings.” Shaking her head, Abbi chuckled softly. She looked down at her lap.

A look of alarm washed over her, and she withdrew her hand, raising her head quickly.

“Is this why you came? To see these?” She glanced again toward her shoulder and then scowled at him.

“No, Abbi. ”

“I would have shown you, Eddus. I would have found a way to-”

“That’s not the reason.” Eddus cut her off, but couldn’t seem to find the words to continue.

“Are you ok?” Abbi asked him, suddenly. Her scowl was replaced by a look of concern. “What happened to you when you came into the ring?”

“I’m all right.” Placing a hand on her shoulder, Eddus managed to smile at her. “It was a little disorienting. One of the people present when I came in was a member of the guard. I’m not sure what he saved me from when he took me away from the rest of the crowd there, but he brought me here.”

“Have you been in here ever since then?” Abbi asked.

“Well, no, I was taken to some sort of courtroom.”

“So you’ve already been before the queen?”

“I didn’t see a queen, but there were three judges, I think,” Eddus told her. “And there were a lot of people watching in the seats behind me.”

“What did they do to you?”

Eddus shook his head, not sure what of she meant.

“They didn’t do anything to me. They just asked me a lot of questions.”

“Did they ask you your name?” Abbi sounded panicked.

“No, they already knew my name. I told Dain my name when he brought me here,” Eddus said.

He explained to her that Dain was the guard of whom he’d spoken, and relayed the conversation that they’d had during their walk to the cell, where Eddus had waited until he was fetched and taken to be questioned.

“What did you tell him?”

“What do you mean?”

“This is important, Eddus. It’s so important. Exactly what did you tell this Dain when he asked for your name?”

“I gave him my name. Ed.” Shaking his head, Eddus could not decipher the worry that Abbi displayed.

“You’re sure you said Ed?”

“Yes.”

“Not Eddus?” Her voice lowered as she spoke his name.

“I’m sure.”

Relief flooded Abbi’s face, and she looked toward the ceiling, closing her eyes and exhaling a long sigh. She then opened her eyes and leaned in very close.

“That is all you will tell anyone,” she said fiercely. Her voice was just as hushed, and she spoke slowly and deliberately, a pause between each word. “You are Ed, from the human realm, and that is all.”

Eddus shifted his gaze. Her face was right next to his. Her eyes snapped to his, and she raised her brows.

“Don’t give anyone your name,” she said. Her tone softened. She again closed her eyes, pressing her forehead to his. Her hand found his, and she gave it a soft squeeze.

“I won’t,” Eddus said. “But why?”

“Promise me!”

“I promise.” Her words puzzled him, but he was sure there was a reason behind them. There had to be, to make the carefree and playful girl he knew seem so anxious. “I promise.”

For a moment, neither of them said anything. As they sat, leaning against one another, Eddus felt himself start to calm for the first time since he’d entered the pixie ring. He hadn’t exactly found Abbi, but they were together again, and that was all he cared about.

“Why are you here, Eddus Brandt?” Abbi spoke barely above a whisper.

“I had to see you again. I had to know that you were all right.” Eddus spoke before he could even think about the response. The feeling that he wanted to answer her was automatic. It was so strong that he hadn’t hesitated, although this time he did not feel that he’d said more than he intended, as he usually did.

“But why? There’s nothing wrong with me. I’m fine,” Abbi said. She pulled back, looking at him with a puzzled expression. “I promised that you would see me again.”

“You also said that you could be in trouble.” Eddus placed his hand on her forearm. “You said that it could be the last time you ever saw me.”

“What?” Abbi straightened in her chair, eyes wide.

“The day we met in the park. After you showed me... You said that you could be in trouble.”

In her expression, Eddus could see her thinking.

Her brows knitted as she looked down, recalling their time together. She slowly shook her head, then quickly looked up at Eddus, her eyes meeting his.

“No, Eddie...” she said softly, sounding horrified. Her eyes welled, and a tear rolled down her cheek. She shook her head again, lowering her gaze. “No, I was fucking with you- Eddie, I didn’t mean it!”

Taking her hand again, Eddus rose from his seat, pulling her to her feet. He put his arms around her, kissing the top of her head, as she lay it against his chest.

“What do you mean, Abbi? I had to see you. I had to make sure that you weren’t in any trouble.”

“You shouldn’t have come,” she said softly.

“I had to. It’s been months since I’ve seen you. I had to know that you’re all right.”

“I never should have said that to you. Of course, I would have come back to you! I promised I would.” Abbi raised her head, looking at him with a worried expression. Eddus could see the fear in her eyes. “You can’t be here. You’re in danger. You’re not one of us...”

“But you said that I may never see you again.” Eddus brushed her tear-streaked cheek with the back of his fingers.

“I should never have said that. You can’t be in this realm. I never meant for this to happen.” She glanced away and then back. “I told you that you can never disturb a pixie ring.”

“I love you, Abbi.”

“What?”

Eddus looked steadily into Abbi’s bewildered, tear-filled eyes. Taking a deep breath, his heart raced as he held her gaze, and then continued, not giving her time to respond.

“I’m in love with you, Abbi. I don’t know how. I don’t care how. I know it’s crazy, but I think I’ve loved you since the night we met,” he spoke quickly, so that she could not interrupt him. “I couldn’t live with myself if I thought you’d been punished for showing me the pixie ring that day in the park. I couldn’t let it fall only on you.”

For a few moments, neither of them said anything. Abbi stared up at Eddus with a stunned expression, a faraway look in her eyes. She slowly turned her head, shifting her gaze to the closed door.

“I have to go,” she said blankly, as if in a daze. She blinked a few times, a tear rolling down her cheek. Stepping away from him and glancing toward the door, she quickly crossed the room in its direction. Eddus watched her in confusion for a brief moment before hurrying to stop her.

“Abbi, wait!”

She reached the door, tapping on it once with her knuckles before turning to face him, the faraway look still in her gaze.

“You asked me why I’m here,” Eddus told her, “and that’s why. I needed you to know.”

The door opened a fraction.

Abbi closed the short distance between them. She traced his jawline with her fingertips. Standing on her toes, their lips met in a kiss. As she lowered herself back onto her feet, she tilted her head slightly, still looking at him.

“You’re not one of us,” she said softly, turning towards the door. She pushed it open enough to exit it.

Eddus numbly watched the door slowly close and listened to the click as the catch of the lock fell into place.