Chapter Four – Dawn

I blinked as the sunshine hit my eyes. It was too bright. My mouth was dry and foul tasting, a mixture of alcohol and cigars. I tried opening my eyes but the lids refused to cooperate, I raised myself slowly to sitting position sighing heavily; my head felt like I had someone pounding it with a jackhammer. I lent forward groaning as I placed my head in my hands; trying to recall the hellish evening before this hang  over kicked in. Remnants came flooding back, but not enough to make sense of. I shook my head slightly hoping it would wake me but then cursed myself for making such a foolish mistake. I attempted to open my eyes again and this time I succeeded; squinting at the window as my eyesight adjusted to the brightness. It was only a few seconds later as I looked about the near empty room - aside from the bed and chest of drawers - that I recognised it as Lucian’s bedroom. I stood up quickly panicking as I realised that I was in my underwear. Great! I thought to myself, this is exactly what I needed! Come here and make a fool of myself BEFORE being rejected and dumped on his bed in my undies! Wank!

I was most likely jumping to conclusions but I could hardly help it when more than half of the memories of the previous night kept evading me…I picked my clothes off the floor and hastily began putting them back on. Starting with my black jeans, which were beginning to feel a little tight and then my black chemise top. I couldn’t find my brown corduroy jacket or shoes anywhere, so I decided that I must’ve left them elsewhere in the apartment. I took a deep breath preparing myself to face him and slowly opened the door before peering round the corner. I could hear hushed voices coming from the sitting room but I couldn’t make out what they were saying. I recognised Lucian but there was another man with him. I breathed a sigh of relief, I was thankful for two things at the moment. Firstly I was glad that it wasn’t Liliana, I wasn’t prepared to put up with her and secondly if he had company it meant that we didn’t have to talk about whatever it was that happened. I made my way as slowly as possible towards the sitting room, my heart beginning to pound like an echo to the pounding in my head.

“I don’t know how she’ll take it-“

I stood in the doorway staring at them. I recognised Lucian immediately but it took me a little longer to place the man next to him. Lucian looked at the floor in embarrassment at having been caught talking about me behind my back. After a long pause of complete and utter silence the man with the shoulder length grey hair stood up, ambled towards me and extended his hand. He was slightly shorter than me; I frowned at him as he pushed his hand towards me urging me to take it.

“Hello Aurora…I’m Dragos…do you remember me?”

It came flooding back to me in an instant and I instinctively took a step back. I remembered him mentioning my father and he knew who I was without me having to tell him. I looked over at Lucian to see his reaction but he kept motioning with his head for me to shake Dragos’s hand; so I gave in and took it in mine before grumpily mumbling “Yes I remember.”

We stood there for a moment unsure of what to do next. My mind was too tired to question him. Lucian cleared his throat loudly causing us all to look at him startled. I shuffled my feet on his hard wooden flooring becoming increasingly uncomfortable by the second.

“Shall we all sit?” I turned to Lucian who was motioning with his hand to the empty space on sofa next to him. I hesitantly walked towards him and sat as far away from him as I could; he looked at me quizzically. His eyes burrowing into mine, I looked away from him too afraid that he may suddenly realise how I feel about him. The pain was still there, so to distract myself I looked over at Dragos and asked “Who are you?”

“Before I explain…you must promise me not to interrupt and only ask questions when I am finished.”

I considered what he said for a moment before nodding my head in agreement.

“Like I said last night…I am a friend of your father’s. We grew up together. As time went by…he became involved…or shall I say aware, that things in this world were not as they seem. After meeting your mother he was involved in a car crash just a few months before you were born…and died.”

“So why do you keep saying that you ARE a friend of my father’s?”

“Like I said Aurora, I will explain everything to you but I require your patience…and understanding as I realise that at some point during my telling of this story you may think that I am quite mad.”

He looked at me with his icy blue eyes awaiting my answer as I pondered what he meant by the end of that sentence. What could he possibly tell me that would make me think that he was insane? I sat there tensed, confused and after careful deliberation I came to the decision that I could indeed let him explain uninterrupted.