1049 Chapter 34- Talia – Staying at a Friend’s Part 2 (VOLUME 6)

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Talia

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I followed Sereia’s dads, Ocean and Makai, into the living room of their home. That was where I saw the other two girls waiting for me. Ada with her blond hair and kind face. And Sereia with her stunning beauty and blue hair. I still wasn’t sure if she dyed her hair or if she naturally had blue hair. Either way, it didn’t really matter. She was my friend, and she was allowed to look however she wanted. I didn’t control the way that anyone looked.

“Talia!” The two of them squealed when they saw me.

“I am glad that you are here.” Sereia hugged me because she was the first to reach me.

“Thank you for letting me stay.” I smiled at her. “I don’t get to go many places like this, I am sure that you can understand that. And thank you, Mr. and Mr. Waters.” I turned to face her dads as I spoke.

“That’s too confusing.” Makai waved his hand and laughed. “Just call us by our names. It’s easier that way. So, I am Makai, and that is Ocean. And while you are here, Talia, you are like family. We believe in treating all kids like family. It’s the best way to make them feel welcome at our home.”

“That’s pretty cool.” I smiled at him happily. “Thank you.”

…..

“Think nothing of it.” Ocean came closer. “Now, you girls have pretty much the run of the house. Makai and I will be here to cook for you and do whatever else you need us to, but for the most part we will leave you three alone.”

“I don’t want people doing things for me.” I looked at Ocean and Makai with sad eyes. “People do everything for me at home. Here I want to be treated like a normal person. I don’t want to be treated like a princess here. If that is OK.”

“Whatever you say.” Makai smiled and put his arm around my shoulder. “Here, you will just be Talia and nothing more. Still, if you do need something, we are here for you. The same as we would be for our own kids.”

“Thanks.”

“Alright, you three get the party started. We will start dinner. Don’t worry, pizza is still on the menu, as well as a plethora of other good things.” Ocean was dragging his husband away from the party. “And there is quite an impressive movie collection, so you can watch anything that you want.”

“Thanks.” Ada and I called after them.

“This is going to be fun.” Ada added as we went to sit in the living room.

As the party got started, we put a movie on in the background. Sereia’s dads had an impressive collection of movies of every genre possible, but there were a lot more romantic comedies than anything else. Apparently, Ocean had a thing for them. He even liked them back before he knew that he was gay. That was kind of cool, and I wanted to know more about their story.

Sereia told us all about her family as we did each other’s nails. She told me how her dads had met and all the things that had happened to them. And she even told me that Ocean was the one that was pregnant with her brothers. And finally, I had learned that Sereia had a Siren mother, and that Makai wasn’t related to her at all, but she did have part of his name as her middle name, which was Kai.

Apparently, when Ocean went to meet his birth mother, having been adopted by humans, he was attacked by the Sirens and raped. They gave him an aphrodisiac and forced themselves on him. Only one managed it though, and her name was Ula. She got pregnant and that was where Sereia came from. Ocean and Makai loved her though, and they never even considered not taking care of her. She was actually three days younger than her brothers, but everyone knew them as triplets because it was hard to explain to most people.

It was an interesting story, and I told her how my uncles had both been pregnant as well. They each had twins and they were like two sets of twins split between the two dads. It was all pretty cool, thinking about how magic worked for same sex couples like this. It had to be pretty special for them as well.

Throughout the start of the party, the three of us had finished doing our finger and toenails. By the time we were done, Sereia’s dads had made dinner and were bringing it to us in the living room. We washed our hands, having worked with chemicals, and then started to eat.

The food was beyond amazing. They had made pizza, as they said that they were going to, but that was just a small part of it. They also made a really good beef burgundy with mashed potatoes, general tso’s chicken with rice, and crispy wonton tacos. The food was really, really, really good. And I admit that I ate way more than I should have. No one judged me about it though, since we were all shifters and all ate just as much.

They had made dessert as well. Cakes, pies, cookies, and homemade donuts. They were all so delicious, and paired with ice cream. By the time that we were all done eating, we were so stuffed that we couldn’t move. We needed to sit there and wait for several minutes before we could do anything. During that time we just watched the movie and talked.

The subject turned to boys, and since I was the only one with a boyfriend, they wanted to know how things were going between Arthur and me.

“Come on, Talia, you’ve got to tell us.” Ada was egging me on. “How far have you gone? Is he a good kisser? Is he sweet? Do you love him?”

“Yeah, we need deets, Talia.” Sereia was grinning at me.

“Well, we haven’t gone that far yet. I mean, I can’t get too much alone time with him. We’ve kissed, and he is the only boy that I have ever kissed, so I don’t know if he is a good kisser or not. He’s OK, I guess. As for sweet, I don’t really know.”

“How is that? I mean, you would know more than most people, wouldn’t you?” Sereia sounded confused as she asked me to explain in more detail. “What is happening with you two?” She seemed to think that there was more going on between us.

“Well, he is sweet sometimes. Usually when it is just the two of us. If there is anyone else around, anyone at all, he is jealous. Even when you two are around, he gets so jealous.”

“Really? He doesn’t act like it.” Ada looked surprised.

“He can hide it pretty well, but remember, I am a wolf. I can smell it on him.” I explained to them how I knew he was jealous. “At first, I just ignored it. I thought that he just wanted to have more time with me, but it’s gotten worse. I mean, you remember the Halloween party, right?”

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“Oh yeah, I remember that. He thought that my brothers were after you. I mean, Storm is gay, and Saylor isn’t really interested in anyone at the moment. He says that he will find his mate whenever he or she is revealed to him. He doesn’t want to be with anyone else until then.”

“Yeah, but he was so jealous of them because they are good looking guys. He thought that I was going to leave him instantly for them. It was so annoying.”

“You need to have a talk with him about this, Talia.” Sereia said seriously. “If it is making you this unhappy, then you need to say something to him about it. I mean, you shouldn’t be in a relationship that seems like a chore. It’s not like you’re mated or anything. You’re too young for that.”

“I know. But there is more to it.” I shook my head as if I was trying to put the thought out of my mind.

“What?” The two of them asked at the same time.

“Well, he seems to think that we are mates, and that we will know for sure when we are eighteen. He told me that I can’t break up with him because we need to be together when I turn eighteen. He is older than me by a year, so he says he will know sooner.”

“Oh, hell no.” Sereia shook her head and narrowed her eyes at me. “He did not say that to you.”

“Yes, he did.” I nodded at her.

“You know what that sounds like to me?” She put her hands on her hips as she rose to her feet to loom over me. “It sounds like he is trying to force you into being his mate. It’s like he is trying to brainwash you into thinking that there won’t ever be another possible mate for you. That doesn’t sit right with me at all.” She looked so offended and hurt on my behalf that I didn’t know what to think.

“You really think he is trying to do that?” I asked her.

“I agree with her, Talia. How come you didn’t tell me sooner? This is wrong. If he is meant to be your mate, then you will know whether you are dating at the time or not. I think that he is trying to force a connection with the royal family, no matter how it happens. And I would never sleep with him if I were you. He might get you pregnant on purpose so that he and his family can be considered royals because of the baby.”

“Really? Y..you really think he wants to do that?”

I was at a loss as I listened to what Sereia had to say. I didn’t think that Arthur would go that far, but I knew that he wanted to be with me forever. Was it me that he wanted though? Or was it the connection to the power that my family had? Now that I thought about it, I wasn’t sure how I was able to overlook what he was doing for so long.

We hadn’t been together for that long, yet Arthur was trying to treat me like I was his and nobody else’s. He was trying to act like I was going to be his forever and that he was going to be in power at some point. He even told me several times that I should stop training to take over the underworld and that I should take over for my mom instead. I told him that wasn’t an option though, and he did get upset about it.

“I..I think that you are right.” The more that I thought about it, the more that it all seemed to make sense to me. “I think that he is more interested in the power than in me.”

“I don’t know for sure, Talia, but that’s how it seems to me.” Sereia sat in front of me and took my hands in hers, it was a comforting gesture and was actually helping me. “If I were you, I would start to talk about things with him, serious things. And if you keep getting these uneasy feelings, then you need to break up with him. You’re not his property, Talia. You’re a princess and he shouldn’t have access to your power if he won’t respect you.”

“Yeah, you’re right.” I nodded at her. “Thank you so much, Sereia. And you as well, Ada. I didn’t want to see it before, but you two saw it so clearly. I will talk to him as soon as I can.”

“That’s good, Talia. We’re here for you. What else are friends for?” Ada put her hand over top of Sereia’s and held both of ours. I felt the love that they had for me in that moment and I was happy to have them here in my life. They were truly good friends.

For a moment I was just a little stunned. I wasn’t used to having moments like this. I had friends, that was true, but I never got this close with them. And I had not told anyone what was going on with me. I didn’t know how they would take it, and that really made me feel anxious. Now, though, I could see that my friends were on my side and just wanted me to be safe.

I felt something in my heart then, a sort of thrumming that I had never felt before. These two girls were my friends, and even though I just met Sereia I loved them both. They were the best friends that I could ask for, and I knew that I didn’t want to be without them. I hoped that they would be with me forever. I wanted to be able to see them as my friends and sisters of my heart now, ten years from now, even a hundred years from now. And I hoped that none of this would ever change between us.