Chapter 2

“I’m going to the store to get Dinner!”

Beryl jerked when she heard Daryl yell from the door.

“Sure, thanks!” She hollered back.

A feeling of unease settled into her stomach.

She hadn’t talked to Daryl since her fairy cousin’s visit and hadn’t been able to explain anything. Daryl had paled when she’d seen Daff’s large, butterfly-like wings and she hadn’t uttered a word.

Beryl sighed as she pulled at the black T-shirt she wore.

There was a lot of explaining she had to do but so many answers she needed herself.

She looked over to see Daff fiddling with her fingers looking extremely uncomfortable.

A wave of sadness swept over Beryl.

As difficult as it was to believe her cousin’s words, Beryl knew they were true.

She reached over to place a reassuring hand on the gorgeous girl’s arm.

“We’ll figure it out, Daff. It’ll be okay.”

Daryl stalked down the stairs before leaving her apartment.

Beryl and her cousin still hadn’t left the kitchen and Daryl was too scared to approach the room.

She huffed as she made her way across the street, blond hair tied up in a quick ponytail.

She had a beautiful toned body thanks to how athletically inclined she was and was a head taller than her friend Beryl.

Walking into the general store across from their apartment, she stepped into the aisle for some pre-packed sandwiches and bottles of water.

She’d get Beryl her favourite chocolate bars and maybe a packet of chips for her cousin.

Did fairies eat chips?

She sighed as she pulled a couple of things off the shelves and threw them into her shopping basket.

Tonight was supposed to be the night they scheduled out their classes for the next week and all the outfits fashion-oriented Beryl would wear to them. Daryl was supposed to see if she could fit in tiny basketball games in the huge court she’d seen on campus.

The blond girl grabbed a microwaveable breakfast tray and put it in the basket with the rest of her purchases before walking to the front to check out.

Remembering the incredible sight of seeing two large wings poking out of a person’s back, she wondered how she wasn’t losing her mind.

Beryl had been staring at her with widened eyes, eyebrows scrunched up in worry.

Daryl waited in line realizing that she was harboring a hidden anger to her friend that didn’t make much sense.

Beryl wasn’t the reason her cousin had large wings and it wasn’t her fault their first night before starting university was not going to plan.

She seemed just as confused and disoriented as Daryl felt.

The pretty blond girl felt the tension leave her body and her shoulders relax after the realization.

She wondered what Beryl was dealing with now or what she was hearing.

Paying the cashier and grabbing her purchases, Daryl strode quickly to the door, deciding to help her best friend with whatever strange activity was going on.

Stepping out into the cold, night air, Daryl looked around.

The street was empty but had a calm, serene feeling to it. All of the night lamps were lit up and a soft mist huddled by the pavements.

She took a quick step forward before feeling her body stop for a moment.

Her feet felt numb and her senses dulled.

She frowned when she felt her arms going limp.

A person walked past her back, their shadow making an appearance in front of her gaze, spreading across the street ahead.

Her eyelids grew heavy and faint feelings of happiness filled her heart before she jerked back to reality.

She sat down on the pavement, trying to understand what had just occurred. Her body was still numb all over and a fear had settled within her chest.

Her heart rate had quickened with all of her senses slowly coming back to focus.

There was a gentle tap on her shoulder that caused her to lash back at the hand.

She steadied a breath before looking up at the tall man who stood behind her, stooped to level with her face.

The cold floor was slowly coming back to the feeling of her senses and the air seemed chilly again.

She looked into the warm brown eyes of a handsome boy. He had a hood over his face and his brows looked furrowed as though in concern.

“Are you alright?”

The last of her senses came back to her when she heard his low voice.

She nodded, swallowing, before she grabbed the bag of purchases that sat on her lap.

The man helped her steady and she rose to her feet. His grip was strong and skin icy cold to the touch.

Daryl felt herself shiver as she let go.

She smiled at the man, swallowing as she felt her knees and feet protest at having been pushed down on so quickly.

“I’m sorry. Just- I don’t know.”

She nodded again, trying to seem alright.

The boy continued to watch, eyes staring into hers.

He had dark wavy hair with a single streak of neon green striking down across his bangs. Still standing taller than her, his head was swayed to one side as he maintained a steady gaze.

“Where’s your house?”

She laughed quickly, not knowing whether or not she could trust him.

He seemed innocent and not like a dangerous stranger but she only shook her head, “It’s quite nearby. I’ll just walk on my own.”

He nodded, still showing no extreme expression, “I’ll watch.”

Daryl raised an eyebrow, “Alright.”

She turned around, still holding on to her purchase, before striding across the empty street.

Reaching the few steps that led into her apartment building, she looked around to see him still standing in front of the store, hands buried in his pockets.

She raised her hand to wave slowly, wondering why she was doing it.

The boy waved back.

Turning around, Daryl walked into her apartment.

Daff sat across from her cousin.

The two sat on the floor of their living room. Beryl looked comfortable in a black T-shirt and white tights. Her silky, brown hair was swept into a ponytail and her face was in soft makeup that looked effortless.

Daff had always been fascinated with her human cousin.

She’d only visited once and their grandparents’ house had been filled to the brim with loud, laughing relatives. That Christmas was a lovely memory Daff never wanted to forget. It was filled with lots of anxiety from her mother that she drink her bottles of honey for the days they were there but for the most part, she had liked being part of a large family that looked out for her as a part of who they were to her.

“Do you remember that Christmas?”

Beryl seemed to come out of deep thought when Daff posed the question.

The fairy watched her cousin smile, “The one when you visited?”

Daff nodded, a little worried that her cousin may not be as excited as she was about their one meeting years ago.

“I do remember. I loved your hair. Did we play a tree-house game? I was devastated the next year when I saw you weren’t visiting. We all were.”

Daff stilled. A swirl of emotions invaded her chest as she felt her eyes slowly tear up.

She had lived years with her father’s family to avoid people seeing her large wings. Every visit to any place with humans required her to prepare herself with hours of sleeping in the sun and consuming bottles of honey.

Her visit to her grandparents’ had been more fun than she’d ever imagined and she’d yearned to go back for years. After a time, she’d decided they may not yearn for her company as she theirs given how busy their own lives seemed.

“Ar-are you crying?”

Daff blinked when she saw Beryl’s shocked face.

“Ah, sorry,” Daff laughed wiping away the lone tear that had run down her cheek, “I was just thinking about the old times.”

Beryl had crawled over and sat on her knees as she watched the pink-haired girl.

“I’m actually alright.”

“Oh, sorry.”

Daff looked up to see Beryl’s roommate who’d just walked into the apartment.

She looked surprised, still gripping on to her bag of purchases.

Beryl laughed and motioned for her friend to join them on the floor.

Daff frowned.

The scent of a Half-Myth hung around Daryl’s clothes.