Mirror Lake 2 The Journey to Save the Magic

I held my precious butterfly in my arms, trying to reassure her she would be alright at the same time trying to convince myself of the same thing.

How was I supposed to leave her like this?

It wasn’t like I wanted to leave her anyway. I wanted to stay with her and let the world just sort itself out on its own.

Eventually Ethan and Becky came into the restroom.

Becky had tears running down her face. “I made you sick! I’m so sorry,” she blubbered.

“No, Becks! The cake was amazing! You know how I've been feeling a little unwell the last few days. Maybe I just picked up the stomach flu or something! Save me a piece and put it in the freezer and in a few days when I feel better I will have it then!” Mel insisted, giving Becky a hug.

I couldn’t have been prouder of my mate. She comforted Becky all the while she was the one feeling sick.

“I have an idea! Why don’t Becky and I tag along with you guys on your trip! Then I won’t have to miss you and be sick at the same time!” suggested Melissa.

She already knows my answer to this. I’ve told her at least a hundred times in three days!

“It’s too dangerous!” I tried to convince her again.

She may be a princess, but she is as stubborn as a mule!

“Hey Beck,” Ethan suddenly says. “Do me a favor and make sure to take Lissa to the doctor tomorrow. I’ll get you her number, but she needs to be seen. I don’t want her to get worse!”

Becky beams at Ethan with adoration in her smile. “I can do that!” she promised.

“Okay, then. Hey Nate, it’s about time to pack up now right?” he said, giving me a look that showed how reluctant he was to leave the girls.

“Yeah, we will pack up and after dinner we can have one last planning meeting to make sure we have everything we need and where we are going,” I suggested.

Ethan nodded, pulling Becky with him out of the restroom.

Mel gave me the saddest eyes I’ve ever seen.

“Don’t leave me…” she chokes.

And my heart just shattered into a million pieces.

I gather her into my arms and carry her back up to our bedroom and lay her on the bed.

I hold on to her like I will never see her again. She isn’t the only one who is having a problem with this. I know it’s my job to go out there and free all those trapped under the domes created by demon magic, but that didn’t mean I was ready to leave her.

I kiss her tenderly and pull her close to my body.

“Baby, we aren’t leaving until the morning. I still have one more night to hold you, and then we will be gone for only a couple weeks! A month tops. Then I will come home to you and never let you out of my arms again!” I promised. And it was a promise I had every intention of keeping. If we could get to all the domes in less than a week, I would happily come back sooner… But something was telling me it wasn’t going to be that easy.

She clung to me, pulling my body closer to hers.

“But that’s so long! I don’t know if I can last that long without you,” she whined.

I knew exactly how she felt too. I could feel her emotions, just like she could feel mine. They mirrored each other.

When the tears started rolling down her face, I cracked! I sobbed into her shoulder and held her tight. I didn’t want to leave my butterfly. Her emotions were turning me into an emotional wreck!

“Don’t cry, baby! I’m right here!” I choked out.

Then I did the only thing I could think of, and that was to slam my mouth on hers and kiss her until her tears ran out. She kissed me back with a desperation that matched my own soul. I needed her, and she needed me.

I made love to my butterfly until she passed out from bliss.

I watched her sleep. Just seeing her breathe calmed me. She was safe and by my side.

But eventually I had to get up and grab my bag. I stuffed it full of my clothes, extra boots, my pocket knife, my toiletries, and of course my magic compass.

Ethan had a map we were planning on using. The GPS on the phones won’t always work in the areas surrounded my black magic, so we figured it would be safer to carry a paper one.

Once I had it all packed into my bag, I leaned down and kissed Melissa in her sleep.

She moved over to cuddle me, making the sweetest noises I’ve ever heard when she was searching for my lips.

What am I supposed to do? I’ve gotta go talk to Ethan and get all our plans finalized.

With a heavy sigh, I reluctantly pulled my face away from hers and watched as she snuggled back into the pillow.

Then I slowly made my way to the door. This really shouldn’t be this hard! I’m just going down stairs to talk to Ethan and have a bite to eat before I come and hold her in my arms for the last night…

That last thought nearly killed me! I would definitely be coming back and never leaving her EVER again!

By the time I made it down stairs, Sam had already made dinner for everybody and Ethan and Becky were sitting at the dining table waiting for me.

Candi had put up balloons and streamers all over and created a dance floor for a party that wasn’t going to happen now. It was unfortunate. I was really looking forward to dancing with my mate tonight. Perhaps Ethan and Becky will make use of it later. However…

It seemed Melissa wasn’t the only one who was emotional. Becky also had twin tears running down her face, and was trying to convince Ethan that if he couldn’t stay at least let them both come with us.

Poor guy was at a loss. He was as bad as I was! The only difference in our situations was, while I was mated Melissa now; Ethan had to wait for Becky. She had just turned 16 at the end of camp, so he had to wait.

I cleared my throat.

“I’m sorry Becky, but I’m gonna tell you the same thing I’ve told Mel at least one hundred times; it’s too dangerous for you and Melissa to come. I would rather sacrifice us being apart from you, so you can stay at home and be safe, than risk you two coming with us and something terrible happening! I would never forgive myself if one of you ended up in the hospital!” I told her sincerely.

“Nate’s right, sweetheart! I can’t even think of what I would do if anyone hurt even a single hair on your head!” agreed Ethan.

He gave her a reassuring squeeze and then looked back at me.

“Where is Lissa?” he asked.

“Let’s just say Becky wasn’t the only one having a hard time with this. Mel’s asleep. I’m really worried about her! I don’t want to leave her in this condition, but on the other hand, so many people are trapped in the domes and need to come out. If there was anyone else to do it, I would hand over the responsibility instantly,” I sighed.

Ethan nodded his head.

“Come have a seat and we can eat,” he said.

We sat around eating a pot roast and I honestly didn’t know if I’d had anything so good in years. We discussed our plan and time of departure, since we had been planning this for so long, there wasn’t much that needed going over.

Once I was finished, I excused myself so they could spend some time together and I ran back into the room.

I quickly undressed and got into the covers, and pulled her into my body. I needed to feel as much as her as possible if I wasn't going to be feeling her for a while.

I kissed her fiercely and when she opened her eyes I could only say “I need you now!”

She must have agreed because she pulled me into her body and let me take her.