22. Giselle
TWENTY-TWO
GISELLE
Hurt People Hurt People
Ben was ignoring my texts.
Well, not ignoring exactly, but he wasn’t as responsive as usual.
He used to message me a few times a day, but lately he’d gone down to once in the morning, once after lunch, and one at night.
Which, sure, maybe still seemed like a lot to some people, but it really wasn’t—especially since these texts were pretty monosyllabic.
And it was making me feel like shit.
I’d never thought Ben was the type to hit it and quit it, but I must have been looking at him through rose-colored glasses, because I definitely felt like I was experiencing a wham-bam-thank-you-ma’am.
Still… it was just so hard for me to believe.
Had I pushed him too far, too fast? I thought I had been so thorough in checking in that he was ready, that he’d wanted it like I had.
I’d even blatantly asked “green”, since we hadn’t really talked about safe words or anything like that.
I’d really made the effort to make sure we were on the same page in every way possible.
So, it had to be that a shapeshifter with a powerful wolf form, incredible strength, and a healing ability who could live more than a hundred years didn’t want to be with someone so fragile and sick.
I’d been good for a night, but obviously he’d quickly realized I was too disabled, too pathetic.
I’d known that someone like him could never truly be interested in me.
Calm down. You know better than to jump to conclusions.
It was difficult not to do that when he wouldn’t text me. I needed to set up a time for us to talk, but every time I did, he made excuses.
As if to prove it to myself, I looked at our message chain, trying to find some clue that I was wrong and everything would be okay.
Giselle: Hey, do you think we could catch a movie this weekend? Benny has been talking a lot about some spy flick? XOXO
Ben: This weekend won’t work.
Giselle: Gotcha! When do you think you’ll have a free moment to get together?
Ben: I’ll have to check my schedule.
He never got back to me until this morning, with his customary text.
Ben: Good morning. Stay safe, stay hydrated, and don’t forget to dropkick a kid if you need to.
It had always made me chuckle, but today I’d just stared at the text while I brushed my teeth and flossed. I had tried to craft the perfect response in my head, but my mind was blank with anxiety, so I’d gone with something simple.
Giselle: Good morning to you, too! What are you up to today?
He never answered.
And it had been like that for a full week since we’d slept together.
God, had I been a fool? The whole scene was set up like he’d just been using me for sex, but that really made no sense.
First off, because the icing out hadn’t been immediate. We’d woken up together, showered together, had breakfast together, and even watched a movie until Natalie dropped off the kids.
And it wasn’t like he’d rushed me home then, either. No, the kids were hungry, so we’d all gone out to eat. We’d had a great time before he took me home. My family had all given me very knowing looks that I pointedly ignored. After all, it couldn’t be the walk of shame if I had none.
Even the next day was fine. He’d texted me the normal morning text, asked what my lesson plans were for the week, told me about a gig he’d picked up before the jamboree but was thinking of canceling it because he didn’t need the distraction to help him settle down.
My pride had glowed at that.
He’d been sweet the rest of the day too, and we’d talked on the phone for ten minutes before I went to bed.
But the next day, as the month turned over and we were that much closer to the end of the school year, I could feel something was off. Nothing like how it was now, but he took longer to reply to my texts, and he was too tired to talk before bed.
The day after that, the freeze began.
“If you stir that any more, you’re gonna put a hole in the mug.”
I came back to myself at the friendly voice. I had indeed been stirring for at least a minute straight, my spoon clanking against the side. That had to have been annoying as fuck.
Francine Delgato didn’t look irritated. No, in fact, the woman looked pleasantly concerned. Jeez, was I that easy to read?
Granted, it was Mademoiselle Delgato, and she did tend to know everything. At least, that’s what it felt like sometimes.
“You all right, my dear? You’re here awful early, and normally you don’t visit the teacher’s room in the morning.”
I opened my mouth to explain before the implication of what she said hit me. “How do you know that?”
She let out a little chuckle, even though I hadn’t said anything funny, and motioned for me to sit with her at one of the two tables.
“When you’ve been here as long as I have, you pick up on things. And several windows in my room face the parking lot, so you get familiar with your coworkers’ schedules when all of those coworkers tend to follow the same daily schedule.”
“Oh.”
“And I suppose a bit of it is fairy magic.” We laughed, but then her words hit me.
Wait, she was joking, right?
“Oh, don’t give me that look, my dear. We’re alone here, and you can’t tell me that finding out fairies exist is more shocking than shifters.”
Was I dreaming? I had to be dreaming.
“F-fairy?” I sputtered.
“Through and through. This is my third time on the carousel teaching in this town, can you believe it? Every time I feel like retiring, I realize another one of my kind would have to come here and work as a wayfarer, and honestly, they would be rubbish at it.”
“Those are all words…” I murmured, and I took a big gulp of my coffee. “Three what now? And wayfarer?”
If I really was dreaming, I might as well go with it, right?
“Ah, right, sorry for using the lingo on you. I haven’t had another paranormal companion here in about thirty years.
Granted, you’re not paranormal. More… paranormal adjacent.
” Her kind eyes landed on me. “You’re human through and through, but you are an exceptional member of your species, I hope you know. ”
“I…” I blinked at her while my brain tried to catch up.
I was in the middle of having a breakdown because the man I was in love with was ghosting me, and now the eldest member of our faculty was telling me she was a fairy.
“Wait, are you why Ben thought I was a fairy at first? Did your, like, scent or aura rub off on me?”
“He thought you were a fairy?” She laughed again with genuine delight.
“Now that you mention it, you do have the stereotypical features, and I suppose it’s possible that yes, being in my proximity in my territory rubbed off on you a bit.
” She clapped her hands, and I gave her a confused smile.
“Oh, it would be lovely if you were one of us, because you would be an amazing wayfarer, but you aren’t.
I investigate and examine everyone here quite thoroughly, and you are wholly and delightfully human in every way. ”
She shook her head. “Fairy! Really! That’s a compliment-and-a-half, if I do say so myself.”
“You mentioned wayfarer again.”
It was a strange distraction from the turmoil in me, but it was a distraction nonetheless as I continued to mechanically drink my coffee.
“Yes, I suppose I did.” She took a sip of her herbal tea. “There aren’t many of my kind left, and we usually stay hidden, even from other magical beings. But the thing about being hidden is that it’s hard to find each other—funny that, right?
“So my job, as a wayfarer, is to aid any fairies traveling through my territory who are looking for one of our communities. They are few and far between, and expertly hidden in obscure places across the globe.
“Also, very rarely, a child with fairy blood comes into power, and it’s my job to counsel them, teach them how to get by in the world, and also to reach our communities if they so wish it. That’s how I can safely say you’re not one of our kind. If you were, I would be able to tell. It’s my job.”
“I see…”
There really was an entire world right below my nose, wasn’t there? How many other shifters or magical creatures were there in my school? Was the gym teacher really Frankenstein’s monster? Was the lunch lady secretly a manananggal? One of the water fountains forged from the Holy Grail?
“Why are you telling me this?”
“Because, my dear, I’ve been watching you quite a bit since you’re so new here, and I got the feeling that today you needed a little reminder that you’re not alone. There are creepies and crawlies, and beautiful things around every corner. It can be exciting as much as it can be nightmarish.”
Oh. She thought I was struggling with the existence of shifters rather than something as banal as a breakup.
God, were Ben and I really breaking up? We’d just gotten started! He’d made a huge stride and everything seemed so perfect…
“Thank you,” I said, and although I was intrigued by her existence, it didn’t lift my mood. “I’d love to talk to you more about that sometime, but?—”
“Yes, I know, you need to get to your class and mentally prepare for your day. You go and do that, dearie! And remember…” She held a finger to her lips. “The whole fairy thing is a secret. Even from your shifter friends.”
“Understood.”
Who knew how long we’d still be “friends” anyway.
In my classroom, I flopped down in my chair, trying to digest both the recent development as well as the turmoil going on from Ben. As crazy as it sounded, my mind sorted the fairy thing into the to-be-worried-about-later category, and instead focused on Ben. Because of course.
I wished I could just ask Benny, but no way in hell was I bringing a child into my personal issues. So, I resolved to hold my tongue and pretend everything was all right.
At least I tried to, until he pushed another kid over while I took my turn monitoring at recess.
“Benny! Hands to yourself!” I called, hurrying over to the other kid. Thankfully, Mickey was just fine, albeit a little confused.