Haunted
Have you ever felt like you were in a completely hopeless situation? Like you tried everything in your power, exhausted all of your means, to get where you wanted to be, but you were still left simply watching your hopes and dreams pass you by? This is what has become of Tristan’s life. He is in an unfamiliar world where he knows no one. Well, he knows one person. The love of his life is here. Yet he is forced to watch as day after day she walks around in the casing of the person that he knows and loves. He watches her laugh and smile and carry on like everything is perfect and content in the world.
However, everything is not okay. He had her, she was his. Through no fault of his own, he lost her. Of course most men say they didn’t do anything to lose their women, and usually it is just denial, but in this case, it is true. He really had done nothing, yet he has still lost everything that’s ever meant anything to him. That’s the problem though, he hasn’t lost it completely, but sometimes he wishes he had.
He can’t help but wonder if it would hurt less if she was just gone or if he actually left. But he’s still in her life, just as her friend. She still comes to him with her problems; he pretends that he’s okay with the situation and helps her figure out her issues. Somehow she doesn’t see that it kills him inside every time she does this and he would never dream of telling her.
He feels haunted. After all those months, he had the impression that he knew her, that he had her figured out. But here he sits, alone, as he watches a complete stranger walk around in his true love’s body. He watches as she tramples over his heart daily. He watches the ghost of who she used to be, who they were, follow her around constantly. It is taunting of what once was, what should still be, but what isn’t anymore. What he desires the most, yet what he can no longer have.
Haunted. That is Tristan’s life now. These are the thoughts that keep him up at night. These are the things that he can’t get out of his head. The reason he has no time alone. He can’t even keep track of time anymore. He isn’t entirely sure how long he’s been here. As of now, it seems like an eternity.
He sits against a tree with pink firework leaves blooming from it. The blue flowers on the ground around him look like butterflies and he finds himself wondering if they would actually turn into butterflies and fly away if he were to sit still long enough. He has seen Jarreth and Calandra sit here many times, he’s watched as they enjoy their picnics and tease each other about nonsense. Even though he sits here alone now, he can still see the memories of them play out right in front of him as if they were here.
He closes his eyes against the thoughts and the images that have haunted him since the cave and show no sign of letting up anytime soon. He needs a distraction. He knows nothing will heal him from losing Calandra, but if he can at least find something to take the edge off of the pain, things would at least be a bit more bearable. Unfortunately, he can’t think of anything capable of distracting him from such a pain. He catches a glimpse of someone walking toward him. At first he ignores it, until the sweet scent of honeysuckle catches his nose and causes him to look back up.
Long brown curls frame her exquisite face. She is tall and slender, and wears a white dress that flows along her figure while it drifts with the wind that surrounds her. He doesn’t feel a breeze where he sits, but there is wind that picks up her dress and makes it flap around her ankles as she seemingly glides toward him. Her smile as she approaches is intoxicating. It combines with the smell of honeysuckle, a reminder of innocent childhood days, and he is completely enthralled by the new being that draws near him.
He doesn’t realize he’s staring until she reaches him, but he finds himself unable to stop. Gawk is probably a better word for what he is doing. She looks down for a moment before she joins him in the grass. She holds one hand out toward him. Her long nails are painted a light pink shade that reminds him of Calandra’s lips.
“Trinity,” she says melodically and her smile widens.
He has to close his eyes against the thought of Calandra and pushes it away as he puts his hand in hers. She grips it tightly as they shake hands. Despite his eyes being closed, he can feel that her eyes are on him. He brings himself out of his thoughts and pulls his gaze up to meet hers.
“Tristan,” he says, quieter than he intended.
Their hands drop from each other’s. She sits across from him and she puts her hands behind her, leaning back into them to support herself as she lets the soft pink light of the sunset light her semi-transparent skin.
“Nice day, isn’t it?” she asks as she closes her eyes and takes a deep breath of the air around her in.
Tristan shrugs.
“You know, your face is far too appealing to show such sorrow.” She opens her eyes momentarily and glances over at him before she turns back to the sky and closes her eyes once more.
To his surprise, the comment makes an annoyance build up in him. Like he needs this girl trying to flatter him along with everything else he has going on in his head. It doesn’t matter how pretty she is or how sweet she smells, he is simply not in the mood for compliments, or company for that matter. He is in the mood to sulk. But just as he decides to get up and find another place to melt into his sorrows, his attitude changes completely.
Trinity lifts her arms off the ground and sits up straight. She takes in a deep breath and the air twists around her, it picks up her curls and makes them float mid-air but they still frame her face. She hums a soft tune as she places one hand on the grass directly under her shoulders. The moment her hand touches the ground, everything changes.
Tristan suddenly doesn’t care about his pain anymore, he only cares about her. She is intoxicatingly beautiful and her smell is completely enthralling. The thoughts in his head finally dissipate and the images that have haunted him for weeks now are gone. For the first time since the cave, a real smile comes across his face. This isn’t one of the fake smiles that he has been putting on for Calandra. It is a real, sincere smile. He feels uplifted. His heart is light and free again. He is happy and pain free.
He doesn’t know how she had made it happen and he immediately decides he doesn’t really care, he can breathe freely in the absence of the pain. That realization sets off another, but he knows that he can’t allow it to stop. He can’t feel the pain again. He needs this, he deserves to feel happy again. He turns and looks at her in exasperation from the being freed of his haunting of emotions.
“You’re welcome,” she says before he has a chance to say anything.
“Who are you?” he asks.
“I told you already,” she chuckles, “Trinity.”
“That’s not what I meant,” he scoffs.
Trinity stands up, and for a second Tristan swears he catches a glimpse of small light blue wings just above her shoulder blades. He shakes his head to clear the image from his mind.
“Come with me and I will explain everything you want to know and more.” She smiles in a way that turns her statement into a dare. “I know all about the prophecy, I can tell you everything that you need to get her back.” She turns and in one swift movement starts to walk away. Her hand gestures behind her back inviting him to follow after her. He starts to get up, but stops himself momentarily to make himself wonder what he is doing exactly.
However, now that he no longer sees the baby blue wings descending from her back, he can’t think of a reason to stop himself. He is far too captivated to turn back now. She has taken the pain that has plagued him for weeks and she has a way for him to get Calandra back and away from the devils she’s been surrounding herself with. That’s all that he hears and his excitement manages to block out all the other warnings surrounding Trinity. He stands and runs to close the distance she has already created. He doesn’t know who she is, where she is taking him, what she is, or why exactly he is following her. All he knows is at the moment, he doesn’t have a choice. He feels like he has to find out, and finding out means following her, wherever that may lead.
About the Author
Lainy Lane is a 27-year-old mother of 2 beautiful girls, one of which is now the family guardian angel. She has a wonderful husband that is a large part of the reason she is where she is today. She has always had an obsession with fantasy worlds. When she was younger, she always said that Peter Pan would be the perfect man because when things got rough, he could whisk you away to Neverland, where all your problems would simply disappear. As she grew up, she learned the harsh reality that life can be cruel, and no world (even fantasy ones) is completely without issues and that was when her love for writing really grew. She has always written in some form or fashion, starting out with poetry and song lyrics. She’s always had a story in her head and voices talking to her. Thanks to lots of motivation from her husband, a wonderful laptop with a word processor, more hours than she could ever count, lots of sweat, blood, and tears, and blessings from the Lord God Almighty, she has finally managed to watch her dreams become a reality.
Coming Soon
Hollow of Treason, Book 2 in The Euphoria Series
September 22
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