Please vote and comment! Enjoy!

PS: had to search my ass off, but none other than Justin Hartley fits Aiden better. Ignore the fact that he has brown eyes and you have the perfect sexy Aiden!

I was wearing a dress.  Not just any dress but a gown.  Layers of white silk overlapped each other from my breast down to my feet, and every time I moved, the material rippled like disturbed liquid.  Some of the layers were gathered up against my hip, revealing a peek of my legs.  The plunging neckline delineated the curves of my waist, a line of silk deriving from both sides of the neckline to crawl over and around my shoulder, attaching to the rear of the dress and leaving my whole back naked.  My bare left shoulder felt strange; I'd never worn something this revealing.

I felt beautiful, though, like an ancient princess.  My curly hair tickled my lower back, and I turned my attention away from the amazing gown to see that I was not alone.  A tall man stood several metres away from me, so far that I couldn't quite make out his features, but I knew he was watching me.  Unexpected joy jumped into my chest, and I started towards him.

The closer I got, the more I could see him.  He had warm golden hair that sparkled in the sun, and when my eyes shifted to his cyan blue ones, cold familiarity struck me.

Not a man but a boy.  Aiden.  I didn't know who I had expected, but my heart deflated some, disappointed that he was not the person I'd imagined.  I combed my memories for a name, a face to strike the chord that my heart seemed to remember, but the feeling had already passed.

I was about to speak, but his words interrupted me.  "You look beautiful."  Somehow, that wasn't what I'd expected him to say.

I tried to ignore the mischief in his eyes.  "What are you doing here?"

He raised his eyebrows.  He looked just as confused as I was.  "Define here."

I opened my mouth to answer him, but no words came out because I didn't know where we were.  I looked around me for the first time; I had been so caught by joy at seeing someone that mysteriously evaded my memories, that I hadn't noticed anything about our surroundings.

We were in a temple.  It was obvious that it was one of those ancient temples from Greece, the ones where people worshipped the Olympic gods.  Tall white pillars rose on each side of the large room, the floor made of the same white marble that came from Atlantis.  There were no walls except for the one at the end of the room, where a colossal statue stood guard.  It was so big that it missed the domed ceiling by a few metres, and was made of pure black marble.

"Wow."  The whispered word was all I could manage.  I'd seen these types of temples before on TV, where nothing except for ruins remained of the past.  I'd never been in one before, let alone an intact one.

"Yeah, wow," Aiden said.  I looked back at him only to catch him watching me unashamedly, which made me blush.  He focused on my face and grinned boldly.  "You look like a Greek goddess.  You should really dress like that more."

My face was hot, but I felt defensive all of a sudden.  "I didn't choose to look like this.  I just... came here with it."  It struck me then.  "Wait, we can't exactly be in an ancient building, can we?  This has to be a dream."

Aiden was still smiling.  I then noticed what he was wearing.  "You're wearing a dress!"  It was, in truth, a tunic, made of the same material as mine, except that it ended at his knees.  I just said it because I wanted to get his attention off me.

He laughed abruptly.  "I'm not.  And like you said, I didn't get to choose my clothing.  I usually don't."

It took me a few seconds to understand.  "So this is a dream.  The only question is, what are you doing in it?"

He sounded taken aback.  "What?"

"What are you doing in my dream?"

He took a step toward me, another of his bold smiles perking at his pink lips.  Lips that were kissable.  I shook my head and took a cautious step away from him.

"I believe this is my dream, as I created it," he said and took another step closer, which I mimicked by stepping back.  We kept repeating this. "You do know I create dreams, right?"

"N-no," I stammered. "I don't know what you're talking about."

At the next step, my back touched a wall.  I looked up to see I was backed against a pillar.  Aiden closed the distance and cornered me so that I couldn't get space.

"Oh," he said. "Guess you wouldn't."  He placed his hands on both sides of my head and leant forward, his breath tickling my nose.  He was so tall, and my heart was getting all fluttery.

Was he going to hurt me?  The first time I'd seen him, he'd looked like a handsome guy who just liked to be with girls.  But what if it wasn't like that?

He lowered his head so that he could whisper in my ear.  "I walk dreams, Alex.  You should never forget that because what you may think are dreams, could be real.  Like now."

I bit my lip when he straightened, taking a step back to give me personal space.  I believed him.  Somehow, in his attempt to fluster me, I knew he was telling the truth.

"Your affinity," I concluded for him.  He smirked and waggled his eyebrows mockingly.

"Bingo!"

I blinked and then strengthened my spine.  "So, what you're saying is that you walk in other people's dreams, but you don't know exactly where you take their dreams to."

He pursed his lips, and after a moment, he nodded.  "So you're a smart goddess.  I find that very sexy.  However, I don't know why we are here since I didn't initiate a shared dream."

"Then why on earth are you in my dream?"

"Good question.  You see, I can only visit someone's dreams when they're family, up to distant cousins.  And even then, I know where they take me in their dreams." He saw my bewilderment.  He continued quickly. "Each time I visit their dreams, they take me to the same place, the place where we share intent, a precious memory.  So... You tell me, where are we?  I don't recall us sharing memories somewhere in the middle of nowhere."

"How would I know?" I was getting frustrated, both by Aiden's explanations and by the fact that this was real.  He had brought reality with us to a shared dreamscape.  Interesting, yet scary.  Did that mean he could just waltz into one of my dreams and see what was going on?  It was a blush-worthy prospect.

"I did think of you when I fell asleep, though," he blurted out suddenly.  He moved his hands to scrape through his golden-brown hair and then aimed to thrust them into non-existent pockets.  When he realised he didn't have any, he settled for crossing his arms across his broad chest, which made him look even more arrogant.

"So, I don't have a clue how it's possible for me to be here.  Do you?"

I swallowed, my mouth going dry.  His eyes roamed my body, which made me feel a little hot on the inside.  In just a few minutes of officially talking with him, he had managed to make me so self-aware that I had to repress the urge to hide my cleavage.  Instead, I just shook my head while trying to bury my embarrassment.

He nodded as if he expected this.  Maybe he thought I was stupid for not knowing the impossible.

"You can't be related to me because that would make our situation... weird," he mused to himself, sharp eyes fixated on me, his finger curled around his chin.  "This is an opportunity," he said aloud. "Take or lose?"

I ran my hand over my hair and rested it on my nape.  The sandals I wore were comfortable, yet my knees felt weak.  "What opportunity?"

I was afraid I already knew.

"You want to take the opportunity of getting to know each other?  Or do I want the opportunity to ask you to come with me, tomorrow night, to see something truly amazing?"  He didn't give me time to answer. "Nah, I'll take my opportunity if you don't mind."

He suddenly stepped forward, took my hand, and kissed it.  "Wait for me tomorrow night."

Even if I had a right in this, I couldn't do anything but gape.  The edges of my vision began to blur, and soon everything faded into grey—until I woke up to darkness.

Today was finally Tuesday, and I dreaded it forcefully.  As fascinating as the Academy was, I didn't want to go because that meant I would see Aiden.  Not that I had a choice, anyway.

Surprisingly, I wasn't as stiff as I thought I'd be, which was a bonus.  Though that didn't prevent me from groaning when I had to wake up at eight in the morning.

Dream walking with Aiden, I learned, didn't give you much sleep.  At first hour, I could concentrate on what Decennia was saying, but in the middle of her fascinating speech of prominent Athlan lineages, the words meant nothing of interest to me.  It didn't help that Aiden, who'd moved closer from his usual seat, was staring at me the whole time.  Like a teacher would, Decennia repeatedly asked him to pay attention, but her heart wasn't into it because Aiden probably already knew this information.

Shelly couldn't understand why I was so tired, and sometimes she looked suspicious, casting glances between Aiden and me, but I ignored it.  Aiden didn't look too rested, either.

I was walking down the hall towards the dining room with Shelly when I heard him whisper my name.  I paused long enough for Shelly to get a little ahead of me, and then someone grabbed me from behind.  I was so startled that I gave a loud shriek, which was muffled by a masculine hand.  The person picked me up, and the next thing I knew, I was in a closet, with enclosed space and a dusty floor.  Looked like Athlans didn't clean everywhere.

"Shh.  I have to talk to you, and I can't do so in public." I relaxed slightly when I heard the familiar honey voice, only to tense up again.  The vague image of Josh stripping me in the school bathroom ran through my mind.

Aiden released me, and I turned around only to accidentally bump my head into his chest.  I felt tiny then, even with my long legs lifted with little-heeled shoes—I'd borrowed them from Shelly.

Aiden put a finger to his lips and then whispered, "You're not going to scream, are you?  Man, I'd hoped you'd donned that dress, but never mind."

We were so close I could feel the heat of his strong body, and I shivered.  Too much like the bathroom...

"What did you want in my dream?  What do you want with me now?" I blurted, annoyed. "Haven't you toyed with me enough already?"

He simpered, which looked kind of sexy.  "No, I haven't.  But not in the toying way that you're thinking of.  Seriously, you should get a replica of that dress, it fits you."

I slapped him.  So hard that my hand burned.  Shit if I knew why, but my body seemed to move on its own.  When my mind finally caught up, I gasped, wide awake now, and clapped my burning hand over my mouth.  "Oh, my... I'm so sorry!"

He had his hand under his jaw, stroking it while he wiggled it side to side.  "You really had some practice with the humans, huh?  I like you, Alex."

"Oh, my freaking soul!" I groaned and had the impulse to slap him again.  Maybe I'd slapped him so hard his brain died.  Annoyed, I turned to leave.  Just when my hand touched the doorknob, he grabbed it and pressed me against the door.  I couldn't exactly move, which I guess was the point.

"I pulled you in here to reschedule my opportunity.  Wait for me until further notice."

He pulled away, opened the door, and was gone.  I hated when he did that!

Shelly was looking for me.  I stepped out of the dusty closet and found her around a corner, frowning with her hands resting on her ample hips.

"Where were you?  Never mind, we're already missing most of the break.  Come on, I'm hungry!"

My brain spun.  Didn't she want to know where I'd been?  My blood froze.  Did she know?  Did she suspect me meeting Aiden?  Damn, I had to screw up everything; I'd never been good at lying.

Roxy was already eating when we went to our table, and she ignored us when we took the two seats in front of her.  The waitress, a different one now, came by and took our orders, and we all settled into an awkward silence.

I scrambled for something to say to break the silence but came up with nothing.  Minutes passed without any of us speaking.  Our food arrived, and I dug in just to have an excuse not to talk.

So imagine how shocked I was when Roxy, in a rather pleasant tone, spoke.  "So, Aiden... Mia's gonna claw your intestines out when she finds out."

I sucked in a breath and had to fight to keep my face composed.  Shelly didn't say anything; in fact, it looked as if she didn't hear a thing about what was going on around her.

Roxy placed the heels of her palms on the table and leant forward.  "Aiden is good with the whole cheating thing, but even Mia has begun to suspect her boyfriend toying with her friends." She shrugged and smiled happily.  I wasn't fooled. "Fortunately for you, you aren't one of her friends, so she is less likely to kill you.  Though rumours are such ugly things around here, don't you think?"

"What rumours?" I had to ask.  People couldn't possibly have seen Aiden pulling me into the closet, could they?  Roxy answered my fear.

"Oh, something vague related to a door closing behind a guy with gold-brown hair and a girl with Jewel-less skin.  It couldn't possibly be you, right?  Though there were some whispers of him having his eye on you."  She picked at her nails, appearing to be discussing fashion and hot boys.  "Congratulations, you get to score some drama, but boys are toys too, you know.  You shouldn't be so uptight about it."

"Roxy." Just one word and it came from Shelly.  Roxy clamped down what she was about to say next and turned her sugar-coated voice on her.  "What's that, honey bee?  Standing up for the Hybrid, it seems." She leered. "You have better taste than that.  And Alex, do watch your back because I see two pairs of eyes targeting you."

Roxy took one last bite of her salad, finished her glass of salt water, and pushed out of her chair.  She waved her small finger at me, winked, and went to talk to a group sitting on the other side of the room, a group where two people were watching me.  One, Aiden, looked away when he saw me looking in his direction, but the other one, Mia, kept glaring openly at me.

Mia released me from her evil eye when Roxy said something to her, looking surprised.  I turned away from them, feeling tears prickling my eyes, and heard Roxy's shrill giggle, another giggle joining in.

I didn't want to think.  I tried to imagine white noise in fear of having my thoughts exposed to possible mind readers in the expansive room. Shelly was sitting unnaturally still, not even eating, just staring at the group where Mia and Aiden sat.  I wondered what she was thinking, if she thought I was a piece of shit sitting beside her.

"Do you believe her?" My voice sounded loud to my ears, but I guess it was because I was repressing the frustrated scream building inside of me.  I was already on the bad side of two girls; I didn't need Shelly to be the third girl.

I feared her answer, that she would just get up like Roxy and join Mia in their gossip feast.  The worst of it all was that I realised that Roxy wasn't a liar; Aiden was evidently a player.  I was his next victim, and as much as I wished it wasn't so, I resented him for it.  Why was it always the hot guys who were the shitty ones?

"She doesn't lie, she only likes to sound more theatrical," Shelly whispered as if she, too, was scared to expose anything that could be used against her. "But it's a question I have to ask you.  Is it true?"

There was no hiding it now, not from the only real friend I had on Atlantis.  "Well, it's true that he wanted to talk in private, but I swear, that's all we did.  I don't know why he keeps staring at me!" I sounded winded and scared, and though I felt like it, I sure as hell didn't want them to see how vulnerable I was.

Shelly nodded.  "I believe you."  She paused, shook her head.  "Just promise me you'll stay away from him, to never be alone with him.  He'll wreck your life."

"Did it happen to you?"

She shook her head, but it was more in disbelief.  "Let's just say I've seen a lot of girls hurt by him."

She wouldn't say anything more than that when I prodded, and she led me quietly to second class after brunch. 

Scott was in a good mood when I walked into class.  He smiled at me, but when I didn't smile back, it vanished.  "What's wrong?" he said in greeting.  What, no hello?

"Just tired," I lied.  It wasn't a lie, but it wasn't what had me in such a gloomy mood, either.  I was the first to class, but as it began to fill up, Scott was forced to ignore the matter for the time being.

Aiden sat next to me again, and I could literally feel Mia's burning gaze on me.  As Scott began his lecture with math, Aiden sat back in his chair and whispered when he was sure no one was watching, "What's wrong?"

Jeez, what was wrong with these people!  Was my face that easy to read?

"What is the matter with you?" I muttered aloud, more likely referring to Athlans in general than Aiden.  Not that he'd know that.

"I believe I asked you first." He clamped his mouth shut when Scott's gaze flickered over to us, and continued when the coast was clear. "I feel fine, thank you, but your mood is ruining the atmosphere."

"What atmosphere!" I whispered fiercely, a little too loudly.  The closer students turned and stared, which also brought Scott's attention to us.  Brilliant!

"Is everything alright, Alexandra?" he asked, and I flinched.  These days, whenever I heard my name, I didn't like it.  It brought too much attention.

I couldn't speak.  What would I say, anyway?  I'm fine?  I would be lying, and I was getting paranoid about people knowing when I was.

Unbelievingly, Aiden answered, "She's fine." He grated the word with emphasis.  His tone made everyone focus their entire attention on us.  Please, please stop talking.  "She's just very fascinated with math, is all."

I almost slapped my head on the table, just to die and escape this.  What an idiot!  I was so frustrated and flustered and very, very hot that I had to do something to release it.  Oh, hell...

I pinched Aiden.  I just moved my hand to his leg, and with one, swift movement, I pinched his skin between my forefinger and thumbnail.  I really wished I hadn't.

"Oww!" he exclaimed, and upon realising that everybody was still watching and that he'd refreshed their curiosity, he amended, "Stubbed my toe."

An unexpected urge to giggle rose in me, and I covered it up as a cough, which sounded like a sneeze combined with a snore.

Someone didn't cover his own laugh, and I pursed my lips.

Aiden nudged his knee against mine under the table.  "Not as innocent as you look," he mouthed when I peered carefully at him.  I had to smile, and he winked.

The day after that wasn't so bad after all.

Pic of Greek temple ^^^

Poor Alex, she can't catch a break :C

What do you think of Aiden's ability?

I'd love to hear your thoughts!