Selcouth

I waved my hands around, twisting my fingers to control the light that filled the apartment. The light shut off just as Roman walked in. I sat back, putting my hands at my sides and mentally thanking myself for making it dark. My face was tomato red.

Romance turned on the light and frowned, his frown barely seen through the darkness. “Huh, guess it’s time to change the light. I’ll have to call the maintenance guy for the building. We’re in darkness tonight.” He put his stuff down on the counter, lighting some candles with a flame.

I pushed hair behind my ear, looking at the flames. My brain wandered to the idea of being able to control the flame.

I focused my eyes and mind on the power, pinching my fingers together. The flame went out, a small stream of smoke arising.

Roman looked at the candle. “Huh, must be windy.” He lit the candle again, checking the windows. “Or maybe the apartment is haunted.” He chuckled to himself and sat on the couch, next to me.

“Haunted?”

“Ghosts? Ever heard of them?”

I shook my head, looking at my hands. Was I a ghost?

He laid back. “Ghosts are dead people. You can’t usually see them. They can move things and control things without being seen.”

I smiled a bit. I was surely alive and visible. I was not a ghost.

“But I don’t believe in ghosts. All that supernatural stuff seems crazy.”

I looked at him, squinting a bit to see his figure. “What do you mean?”

“Ghosts, angels, demons. I don’t believe it. I believe it’s just a bunch of bullshit people makeup to make themselves feel better. They want to pin evil on something other than themselves. They want to believe they’ll go somewhere good someday when we die. Or they want to believe their loved ones are still around. It’s people making excuses.” He put his arms behind his head.

“You don’t believe in...an afterlife?”

“Nope. Do you?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know what I believe. I guess my mind is open to anything. I barely know about this world. Anything is possible...” I eyed my hands, making sure to keep my powers on the down-low. I was just desperate to know more about them and what else I could do.

I looked at the little animal, tilting my head as it ran by me. I reached out and heard, “No, don’t touch it!”

I pulled back and looked at Roman as he came out of the store, holding bags. “What’s wrong with it? Are animals not safe?” I frowned, asking him.

He motioned for me to follow him back to the car. “Animals are, but not all kinds. That’s a rat that’s wild. Wild rats are usually diseased and you don’t need more issues that you already have.”

I stopped walking, taking a deep breath. “You think I have issues.”

He looked at me, setting the bags in the back seat and closing the door. “You have health issues. You’re underweight and getting used to fresh air and the sunlight. It’s a work in progress but you have some issues we are fixing.”

For a moment, I felt stupid. How could I really get upset over his words? Of course, he meant I had health issues. Even I couldn’t deny that.

I glanced at someone leaning against a building behind Roman. My nerves stood up on all ends. I could not look away from the haunting eyes that watched me.

“Zel?”

I looked at Roman, shaking my head. “I’m sorry.” I got in the car and sat there, folding my hands in my lap.

“Rapunzel?”

I turned to him again, not saying a word.

He gestured to his seatbelt, clicking it. “Don’t forget to stay alive. Are you alright? You seem to be elsewhere.”

I put my seatbelt on, nodding a bit. “I’m fine.”

He choked. “Oh, shit, who have you been talking to?”

“What do you mean?”

“You’re fine? Girls say that when they’re not fine. Who the hell taught you that?”

“Nobody. I don’t have real friends.”

He started the car, driving out into the road. “So you just know it. That answers that question. That whole phrase is innate to all women I suppose.”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s born within you. You already know how to use it without being taught. It’s a natural instinct.” He glanced at me.

The rest of the ride home was silent.

My mind kept wandering back to that big man. He was watching me wherever I went. I didn’t understand why he was watching me. Did he know? No. How could know? Only Mother Gothel knew and she was dead. Right?

We got back to the apartment and I used my hands to discretely screw the light bulb in and turn on the light.

Roman looked up and nodded. “Oh hey, the maintenance guy fixed it. Took him forever.” He put the bags down. “I got some different things for you. I thought maybe you could get a little bit of your own personality to decorate with.” He pulled out something.

I pocked it up, admiring it. “What is it?”

“They’re lights. Girls like to hang them up in their rooms or whatever. Since you don’t have your own room here, I thought I could give you half of mine. You’ll be staying here for a while until I can find you a solution.” He took more objects from the bags.

“Solution?” I looked at his hands, watching him put them to use.

He stopped unbagging and looked over at me. “Yes, solution. I’m helping you get your footing. Your health will be normal eventually and I will help you find a job and find your own place. You won’t live here forever.”

“Why not?”

“Rapunzel, you’re a young woman. I know that you’re afraid of the real world but it’s not scary. You have me teaching you survival. Someday I might meet a nice woman and settle down. I might want to have sex and you shouldn’t listen to that.” He pointed at me.

I put the lights down. “Sex? You’re going to have sex with someone?”

“Someday, of course. Sex is great. When I find a good woman, I wanna be with her in every way possible. I’ve had sex before. I’m going to have it again when I find someone.” He folded up the bags and put them in a cabinet below the counter.

I wasn’t too sure as to why I was so shocked by this. I barely understood sex myself. “You’ve had sex?”

Roman sat on a stool and leaned on the counter with his elbow. “I have. I’d be lying if I said I haven’t but I have. It wasn’t all that great. The first times are nothing special. It’s awkward and weird. You’re inexperienced so you don’t know how to really move. You only have TV knowledge. You want to make sure you get the right hole since women have three. But more than anything, you want to make sure she’s satisfied. If she isn’t, you’ve failed at your job.”

“I want to satisfy a woman?” I sat on a stool next to him.

He chuckled. “Well, I do. I don’t know about you. Depends on what you might like. You probably aren’t sure yet. Don’t worry. You have plenty of time later to figure out your sexuality.”

“How will I know?” I moved my gaze to the floor.

“You’ll know. You’ll know if you want a penis or a vagina. I feel like I’m teaching middle school health class.”

I looked at my body. “Will anyone even want me like this?”

“Of course. There are people in this world who don’t need boobs to be happy with a woman. You’ll find them. They definitely exist.” He sorted through all of the objects on the counter.

“How will I know if I want them?”

He pushed some objects my way. “There are these things in us, called hormones. These hormones tell us a lot. You’ll look at someone. You’ll want to kiss them and touch them. Sometimes you want to see them naked and have sex. You want to be with them. You can’t stop staring at them.”

I looked at him, eyeing his face. That’s how I felt around Roman. I wanted to kiss him and touch him. Did he know? “And that’s how you know you want them?”

“That’s how you know you are attracted to them. You want to date them.” He finished sorting. “But you’ve got a lot to learn before that happens. You still barely know what sex is.”

“That’s because I was locked up for eighteen years. Mother didn’t teach me a lot. I never knew you could do something like that with another human.” Human. There was that word again. I wasn’t even human.

“It’s how the world works.” He shrugged his shoulders.

I shivered, looking at the items. “What are these?”

“These are for you to decorate your side with. I got you a few outfits to start with. I got you some other things. It’ll just help you find your interests and express yourself.” He pointed to objects. “Some girly things and some other things, like plants and whatnot. Maybe you can garden while you’re home alone.”

“Garden?” I grabbed the packets. “How?”

“I’ll teach you.” He smiled. He stood up and grabbed a pot, filling it with dirt. “You put the seeds in the dirt, making sure to bury them. Not too many though or your pot gets crowded. They need room. Make sure to water your pot every day. Not too much. Don’t drown the flowers. But don’t let them starve either. The water keeps them alive.” He filled the pot with some water. “And most importantly, put it in the sun. Give the flowers some sunlight. Like other living organisms, flowers need vitamin D. So water them daily and make sure they get their sunlight.”

I looked at the pot. “And when do they grow?” I grabbed it, using both hands to hold it. I looked in the dirt, trying to find the seeds.

“They take a while. Months. It’s a slow process.” He put the flower pot in the window sill.

We took my things to his room. He began moving his stuff to one side, giving me room to make my own space. He helped me hang the lights, turning them on. I smiled, watching them. “They look so pretty.”

“They do.” He looked at the bed. “We’ll have to share. You need a bed to sleep in if you’re going to get good rest for your health. If it makes you feel better, I’ll sleep on the couch or the floor.”

I shook my head and turned to him. “No, that’s fine.”

“Good. I really did not want to give up my bed that I bought and paid for.” He smoothed out the comforter.

We finished decorating my side. There were some fake plants and lights, and even some books for me to read. He wanted to teach me to read, and I wanted to teach myself.

Roman grabbed a towel from the closet. “I’ll be back. I need a shower.”

I nodded, grabbing my hair with both hands. I was learning how to bathe myself. I knew Roman wasn’t comfortable seeing me naked. I wasn’t comfortable with that either. I had to learn that all on my own.

I walked over to the window, looking outside at the busy streets below. It was getting dark. Roman was taking the night shift again tonight and he would be leaving soon. After the events and the stalker, I was staying in until I knew how to use my powers for defense.

My eye caught a glimpse of a big man looking up in this direction. I gasped, stepping back and losing balance. I fell on my butt, grabbing my chest. He was watching me. What did this mean? Was I in danger? Of course, I was. Why else would a man watch me when he had no good reason to?

I officially had a stalker and I needed to learn self-defense if I was going to live. These could be the very people Mother Gothel warned me about.