It Wasn't Meant To Turn Out Like This

Brian sat in the darkness of his SUV once he’d parked in his driveway and turned the ignition off. He clenched his fists, the only thing keeping him from slamming his head against the steering wheel being the surefire honking that would ensue as his head depressed the horn on his vehicle. He felt frustrated and agitated, mostly with himself. Mayza was gone. Nothing would ever change that. Why couldn’t he just accept that one fucking fact?

He’d just returned home from a date. He hadn’t gone on one for a while, and when he met a cute girl at the store, he couldn’t help but ask her to dinner. Naturally, she had concurred. He’d developed the perfect system to reeling women in; he was almost like a Venus flytrap, attracting them and then snapping down around them so that they had no escape. He rarely needed to put it into action; most women simply pushed themselves at him and he just did the talking.

The dinner was pleasant, as was the woman, whose name was Marie. She was nice and sweet and beautiful, and she could also hold an intelligent conversation with somebody. She had everything Brian could ever want or need in a girlfriend, but as the night wore on, Brian realized he couldn’t visualize dating her. He tried to be optimistic, but all he could think was pessimistic thoughts, such as, “We’ll never work out.” or “I’ll break up with her on the third date like all the others.”

Brian soon began to hate the idea of dating Marie. She was a nice girl, but she was a nice girl for someone else and not him. Brian finally told her, explaining everything to her as he had done so many times before. And Marie, being the true sweetheart she was, smiled kindly at him, patted his arm soothingly, and told him she understood. He did not need to feel guilty; the dinner was enjoyable and she liked meeting new people. Brian had taken her home, and despite her many reassurances that she wasn’t mad or upset, he still felt like a douche as he drove away.

Brian knew it was utter foolishness, the way he kept acting. He simply wouldn’t allow his brain to focus on any other girl than Mayza. None of the women he dated ever even began to compare to what Mayza had been to him. Mayza and Brian hadn’t even dated, for Christ’s sake. But still, his feelings could not be helped and would not change. It seemed as though he would be doomed to this cycle over and over again for the rest of his life.

With a sigh, he climbed from the vehicle and headed into his house. Perhaps, after a good night’s sleep, he could get his head on straight and forget what Mayza had been to him.

!!!!!

The ringing of Brian’s doorbell dragged him from his slumber later that night—or early the next morning, whichever way you wish to view it. He rolled over and glared at his alarm clock. It read 2:43 AM. He sure as hell hoped the person at the door had something really important to say, or they wouldn’t be returning home unscathed.

Brian shuffled downstairs, dodging Pinkly as she ran around him excitedly, obviously having realized someone was at the door. Brian wished he could share her enthusiasm. He reached the front door and didn’t even fake a smile before reluctantly pulling it open.

He could only stare at the person standing on his doorstep. She didn’t speak; she only stared back at him with the same look of curiosity Brian had. Only hers was shot clear through with complete devastation hidden beneath the surface.

Mayza looked like she’d been crying but forced herself to stop. Her hot pink eyes glistened with unshed tears, and the skin around her eyes was red where she’d obviously been rubbing her face.

“M-Mayza?” Brian stuttered, suddenly more awake than if he’d just drank a gallon of coffee. “Come in, come in.”

Mayza glided silently past him. Brian closed the front door and followed her over to the couch, where the two of them sat down. Mayza appeared to be in a trance almost; her eyes had suddenly taken on a blank expression, contrasting with the curious expression still stalled on her beautiful face.

To be quite honest, she looked like she’d just stepped from the seventh circle of Hell. Her skin was smudged with thick layers of dirt and soot; her tears had carved tracks on her cheeks through the grime. She wore normal fairy garb, but it was ripped and tattered in several places and just as dirty as her skin. In her violet hair, Brian could make out what looked like pieces of rubble clinging to her curls.

“What happened?” Brian asked, reaching out and grasping both of Mayza’s hands in his. “How did you come back?”

Mayza didn’t look at Brian for the longest time. She studied his knee, her expression still stalled somewhere between blankness and curiosity. Neither emotion seemed to be the right one she felt. Finally, after several silent minutes, Mayza raised her gaze to Brian’s face. Her eyes and face flooded with emotion, all of them negative. She looked horrified, solemn, depressed, heartbroken, and completely devastated, all at once.

“Mayza...?” Brian asked uncertainly, releasing one of her hands and raising his hand to her face. He curled his hand over one side of her face, rubbing her cheek gently with his thumb. The dirt on her cheek smeared back and forth across the clear trail made by her tears.

“I...have no where else to go,” Mayza whispered after several more moments. Her lip quivered.

She burst into sobs, the tears breaking free from their restraints and running without shame down her face. She threw herself against Brian’s chest, pressing her face into his bare chest and transferring a lot of the soot and dirt across to his skin from her face. Neither of them noticed as Brian wrapped his arms back around Mayza’s trembling body and rubbed her back soothingly.