The Savelli Family

White lie

Sofie’s POV

My brothers disappeared near immediately when we arrived but I didn’t care, going to find my friends instead. Louisa, however, kept looking around for them, or more Siro to be exact. I grabbed her hand, dragging her along behind me as we found our friends.

James, Will and Rhi were waiting for us. When we reached them, Rhi brought me into a tight hug “finally! Thought you weren’t coming” she said a little too loudly into my ear. As we pulled away, I took a moment to allow the ringing to stop before I tapped her cheek, teasing “miss me already? Only saw me yesterday”. “Yes, but that was before I knew Percy Black wants to ask you out. Tonight.” She said, whispering yelling in excitement. I smiled softly as I sighed “I’ve told you before Rhi, I don’t like him....” I started but Rhi wasn’t having it “who doesn’t like a god like him?!” she yelled. “Me” I said plainly, giving her a knowing look. I smiled softly at her before turning to Will and James, giving them each a hug before they caught me up on the party so far.

We enjoyed the party together, dancing and drinking before it was all ruined in the moment Percy approached me. He was beautiful, there was no doubt about that, a very beautiful.... human. The biggest problem with attending a mixed high school was my were side made me beautiful, whilst my fairy side brightened my aura to attract them to me, to trust me. All weres are made to be beautiful, but it was the unseelie side of me that made humans innately trust me. It sounds like a nice gift but it was more of a curse. Humans trusted the unseelie to make our jobs easier. To make our mischievous deeds or worse easier.... as if they stood a chance to begin with.

As he approached me I sighed, his kind smile brought me nothing but sadness. If only he knew how fake his feelings were, how little power he had over them. “Hey Sof” he said confidently. I smiled softly back at him, trying to think of the kindest way to do this. “Would you like to dance?” he asked, smirking as if my answer was already determined. I paused, still not knowing how to do this without hurting him. As he stared back at me he began to look confused and I knew I was taking to long to reply. I panicked and linked Louisa “tell him I have a boyfriend”. She looked back confused as I pleaded “please, please just do this for me”. I looked back at Percy and his beautiful hopeful face as I replied simply “I can’t”. “She has a boyfriend”, Louisa added quietly beside me. I was glad she gave him a little white lie to soften the blow when I couldn’t. I nodded a small smile back to him “I’m sorry”. He shrugged but I could see the slight embarrassment at his earlier confidence. “Not you’re fault, I shoulda known. I hope we can be friends though”. I smiled honestly then, “I would like that too”. He nodded back with a smile before taking his leave. As I turned back to Louisa I thanked her but then when I looked at Rhi I could see her shock. “What.... why..... why would you say no?!” she whispered. I rolled my eyes as I crossed my arms over my chest “I already told you, why wouldn’t you believe me?”. “I... I did believe you. But theory compared to real life... well, I thought when he actually asked you would see sense! His stunning Sof.... stunning!” she said, a hand on each of my arms, shaking me softly. I stepped away from her grasp and closed my eyes, taking a deep breath before I looked back at her. “ Can we please just drop it now?”. She groaned before nodding. “ Yes... Yes, I’m sorry. If you don’t like him, that should be more than enough of a reason to say no. I’m just so shocked that any one wouldn’t like such a god”. We stood silently for a moment before Will offered me a shot. I took it gladly “thanks” I said before I downed it quickly. Eventually, I came to enjoy myself again but just as it had begun, it ended. Squirt linking me “we have to go home now. And try not to bring Louisa, we will just have to lose her back at the house so she may as well stay and enjoy herself”. I was confused but knew better than to question him.

As we walked towards my parents' apartment, I could sense the tension now building in my body. Squirt refused to fill me in on the drive home, only saying everyone was fine but we were needed back home. As I opened the door, I found Seth softly arguing with dad. “We need to leave.... now!” Dad whispered. “And go where?” Seth whispered back “no where is safe, the safest thing to do is stay here. If we leave, it will look as if we are running, making us even more of a target to them”. “They didn’t seem too concerned with us, they may just check in to ensure our truth and then move on” Siro added. I could see my dad's mind ticking over, his eyes wide with indecision. My mum simply sat down at the table, looking between her sons and mate. Squirt must have known what was going on as he calmly sat down beside her, his arm wrapping around her shoulders and squeezing her gently. “What’s going on?” I asked sternly. Leaving no doubt, I wasn’t going to be satisfied until I was answered honestly and in full. They looked between each other before my father nodded so slightly I nearly missed it, only sparing a moment before he was back deep in thought. Seth filled me in on what had happened that night, his little conversation with a Seelie god. I was almost too shocked to reply, but I also needed my opinion to be heard, “I want to stay”, I said, looking into my father’s eyes, hopefully conveying my certainty. Squirt added “so do I” but his voice was much more firm than my previous whisper. We sat silently as my dad thought it over before my mum stood slowly and looked lovingly towards him “so do I”. My dad’s brow furrowed as he then stepped towards her, taking her hands in his. “But...” he started, but she interrupted, “ are not threatening, simply curious as anyone would be.... we have built a life here Gray, I refuse to run from it, abandon it, when there isn’t even a threat to run from”. He looked back at her, as if thinking it over, but I had already sighed my relief, he had never denied mum anything. He was wrapped around her finger but she never abused the privilege, hardly asking or giving her opinion on anything, knowing he would surpass his own thoughts or wants to put her happiness above all else. She kissed him softly and then he nodded, “ We will stay. But if anything changes...” he trailed off. We all knew what he was about to say, that his decision was not final and held the caveat for it to change without notice or discussion if he saw the need for it to.