Finding Eden by Camilla Beavers

to see who said it.
    At some point Sahariel
had managed to change from his very casual blue jeans and shirt to a
black suit and green tie; the same color green as my dress. I look
into his eyes, and just like every other time I do, I feel a tug on
the string that connects us.
    “ Wow, you look
great, honey,” dad hugs me and smiles.
    “ Thanks dad,”
I say and pat his back, my eyes staying on Sahariel.
    “ Shall we head
out?” Dad asks.
    My dad leads the way out
and Sahariel opens the car door for me. I catch his eyes and see a
strange expression glittering in them. Without his colors I can’t
tell what he’s thinking, and through our connection I can’t
sense anything. He closes the door behind me and sits next to me in
the backseat.
    The drive is quiet. Dad
is acting weird. He's usually so reserved around me. Hell I haven't
even had a meal with him in a long time and now we're going out to
dinner. What is going on?
    The restaurant is really
nice. Chandeliers hang from the ceiling and crystal stem wear
glitters from all the table tops. Our waitress leads us to our table
and I can’t help but notice how tense Sahariel is as he walks
beside me.
    “ Eden,” dad
begins after we order our food, “There’s something we
need to talk about.”
    “ Is this about
Julliard?” I ask, “Because I already told Evaughn that I
was accepted.”
    “ About that,”
he says.
    “ I’m still
going, right?”
    “ No,” dad
says, “you’re not going.”
    I stare at him.
    “ What?” I
say.
    People a few tables over
glance at me.
    “ You’re not
going,” he repeats a little quieter, “you can’t go.
You have other things you need to do.”
    “ You’re not
making any sense. What do you mean ‘other things’?”
    “ Well,” my
father looks away from me then and looks at Sahariel, “maybe he
should explain.”
    “ Is this some sort
of arranged marriage?” I ask before Sahariel can say a word.
    “ No it’s
not,” Sahariel says.
    “ Then what is it?”
    “ I told you the
other day, at the carnival, what this is about.”
    I stare at him in
bewilderment. The carnival was the truth? How is that possible?
    “ You actually
believe him?” I look at my dad, hoping he’s not insane.
    “ Of course I
believe him, Eden,” my father says, “I lived it.”
    I just look at him, the
day of the carnival running through my head like a really crappy
rerun film. From Evaughn getting sick, every ones weird behavior to
Sahariel explaining to me that I’m an elf. Now he’s
sitting in front of me, having somehow convinced my father of
everything. But somewhere deep inside, a voice whispers and croons
hopefully that it’s all true.
    “ We need you to
come as soon as possible,” Sahariel sounds very serious.
    “ Why?”
    “ We are without a
leader.”
    “ And that has to do
with me because...?”
    “ Our king was your
grandfather.”
    “ Alright.”
    “ And he only had
one child, who was the next in line for the throne. That was your
mother, and without her here, that leaves you the only one left as a
direct descendant of the royal blood line.”
    “ Are you an elf,
dad?” I feel like I’m losing my mind.
    “ No, honey,”
he says, “your mother was.”
    “ And you’re
an elf?” I look at Sahariel.
    “ Yes, I am.”
    “ Are you royalty?”
    “ No,” he
shakes his head, “not royalty, just a royal guard.”
    “ Hmm,” I look
down at my lap, “why now?”
    “ Our king was
assassinated.”
    “ What if I say no?”
I ask the all too complicated question too simply.
    “ I hope you don’t,”
he looks at me almost as if he’s begging.
    “ That’s not
what I asked,” I say, “what if I say no?”
    Sahariel just looks at me
for a long time. He’s torn. I know he wants me to say yes, but
doesn’t want to force me.
    “ Then we will have
to have someone else assume the throne,” he says quietly.
    Our waitress walks up
with our food and I find myself without an appetite. I ball the cloth
napkin up in