Elani
I opened my eyes to Ales’ kisses. He was kissing my shoulder as he rubbed my belly. Feeling his large hand over my growing middle gave me warmth all over my body. I smiled, knowing he was going to be the best father ever to this child of ours. I didn’t doubt that he would not only provide but also protect our baby girl. I turned to face him as he shifted continuing to rub my belly.
“We’re here,” he said to me.
Fear and excitement caused my body to cease all movements. I hadn’t been back here since I killed myself over Achilles’ body. I knew it was different, and half of what I knew as home wasn’t going to be here, but I was still filled with fear.
Ales turned my head to face him. He softly kissed me, making me relax, and causing my fear to dissipate a bit. He let go, and I pouted.
“My love…” He began. “You are not here alone. I share your fear and excitement, as well. I am just as fearful as you are about stepping off this jet and looking at what our home has become. That’s why we aren’t headed there first.”
“We aren’t?”
“Nope.” He kissed me again then pulled away. “We are in Maldives right now. I want you to enjoy yourself before we end up seeing what our home changed into. Let us enjoy ourselves, truly enjoy ourselves, okay?”
“Whatever you wish, my liege.” I smiled at him.
***
Ales was right! We truly enjoyed ourselves in Maldives. From the white sandy beaches, the turquoise lagoons, to the best part which was the snorkeling. I wouldn’t even complain that we stayed on the over the water bungalows. I had never seen anything like this island. It was truly beautiful to see how much everything was so breathtaking. I wasn’t sure what I fell more in love with, Ales or Maldives itself. We stayed there for four days, then Ales surprised me when we got on the jet and we were flown over to Santorini.
I never knew love like I did in Santorini. We tried about every restaurant and acted just like tourists. I couldn’t even tell which town this was from my time; it was beautiful. The galleries increased my love for paintings, and I fell in love with my home once more. We stayed in Santorini for four more days. Ales was always sun-kissed, but now you could tell he was always out in the sun exploring with me. Everything was perfect until we stepped foot in Athens. Our anxiety was on a whole new high, but I knew we were both hiding it from each other.
We went straight to Delphi. Neither of us spoke as we looked over at the theater. We just stood there, hand in hand, looking at how different our home had become. The large stadium stood there, but everyone called them ‘the ruins’. I took a deep breath as we took in the sights before us. We continued without speaking a word, feeling like our world would crumble if either of us made it known that this was our new reality.
The next sighting made me tear up. When we stepped foot into the sanctuary of Apollo, I almost sobbed there out loud, but I kept it all inside. It was in the center of Delphi. I remembered going there and praying to the gods; I especially loved Apollo. I loved everything about his godliness, but seeing that sight made me want to bow down and cry my heart out for our home that was now destroyed.
Everything was gone, and we were the only remains of that past. The people around us didn’t know anything as they took pictures of their vacations or their adventures, but we knew about this place. Achilles took me there once. It was where he told me he loved me.
“It’s all gone, love.” I finally broke the silence, not able to stand it any longer.
I finally looked up at Ales as he just stared at everything in silence.
“I’m sorry,” he said to me.
“We shouldn’t have come. I’m sorry for making us come here.” A tear fell past my eyes, and I wiped it away quickly.
Ales turned me to face him. I looked up at him as his eyes held no emotion.
“I’m glad we came,” he confessed.
“You are?” I was surprised at this.
“Yes, I am. If we didn’t come here, then we wouldn’t have realized something.”
“What’s that?” I wondered.
“We wouldn’t have realized how much we have survived and how much the gods bestowed their blessings on us. We could’ve been this. We could’ve been the ruins. Instead, we are standing here looking over what used to be our home but no longer is, and I’m okay with that. I really am. We can build our own home, not just for us but for our girl that’s coming and many more after that.”
I chuckled, loving how he always knew what to say in these times.
“I love you, Achilles.” His eyebrows shot up, and I shrugged my shoulders. “It only seems right. We are here, and I want to call you by the name you had when I first fell in love with you. Now, let’s go home. I can’t be here anymore.”
He pulled me in for a hug, and I felt his chest vibrate as he laughed.
“Anything for my Queen and my little princess.”
“Speaking of princesses… I have a suggestion for a name. How do you like Alana-Thea? For our baby girl?”
“Where’s the Thea from?”
“Your mom. I cut her name short and added an A at the end. What do you think?”
He pulled away from our embrace and kissed my forehead.
“I really love it. Alana-Thea Petra. I love her and you. Let’s go get her home ready for her,” he said with a smile on his face.
‘Yes, my liege,” I said, stepping on top of his feet and standing on the tip of my toes to kiss him.
Ales laughed as he kissed me back.