CHAPTER ELEVEN:
▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬

For the first time in a while, Adrian felt threatened. David had matured a lot since Adrian and Clara had seen him at their high school prom. Clara was always a little freaked out by him; the knowledge of his long-term crush on her was enough to send her spinning on her heels and walking in the other direction whenever she saw him around.

And then, just as Clara and Adrian had worked everything out, Eros decided to throw a spanner in the works and ruin everything. There was something in that family's genes that made them excellent at interfering in other people's lives.

A soft pattering of raindrops hitting the window could be heard in the tense silence that ensued. The beautiful fragments of rainbows that had previously landed on Clara's hair were replaced with a grey hue from the overcast sky. The weather must have felt the transformation of the atmosphere from lighthearted to strained and stiff and decided to introduce a little pathetic fallacy as it became much more British very quickly indeed.

"Clara Abbott, I haven't seen you in years. It's amazing to see you." David was the first one to break the heavy silence that had filled the room. Eros' nervous habit surfaced as he bit his nails at the realisation that he had messed up. Adrian was worried that David would do something to ruin their relationship, and Clara was just horrified to have to face David again after the little incident in their final year of high school.

"David, what are you doing here?" She spoke up, feeling a little overwhelmed by the whole situation. It appeared that people, or people who are supposed to be mythical beings, whatever you'd call them, just love to meddle in her life.

David began to shift uncomfortably under Adrian's very unimpressed gaze; it was clear that he didn't appreciate his old school friend's presence.

"Uhh, Eros came to me with a proposition, and I went along with it. He didn't mention the fact that you're together. Or married." David's eyes shifted from Clara's left hand to Adrian's and then to the floor.

That was not what David had been expecting at all. He had hoped that Clara would finally be willing to give him a chance. Instead, he was faced with a furious Adrian Kirkman.

Adrian's drastic shift in mood was somewhat amusing to Clara since it was rare to see him that worked up. Much to her chagrin, Adrian's evident jealousy cause an almost painful pounding in her chest, setting off alarm bells inside her RAD plagued mind, threatening to undo all of their hard work.

"Yes, well, it's been nice to see you. Now Eros, if you don't mind, please leave and take David with you," Adrian requested rather curtly. Instinctively, Clara placed a gentle hand on Adrian's arm to show him that she was there, causing her cheeks to flush as Adrian glanced down at her, his gaze softening as he took in her nervous and uncomfortable demeanour.

Adrian could feel his anger somewhat deflate at Clara's touch, highlighting the true impact that she had on him. Taking a deep breath to steady himself, Adrian decided to be a little more civil.

"My apologies. Eros, is there any way that yourself and David could leave without violating a contract?" This time when he spoke, Adrian's voice was a lot calmer than last time, and he tried to force a little smile.

"Well, I'm not sure. My mother and I work independently, hence why I was not aware that she had already met you. She told me about her new favourite couple, but she didn't tell me who they were, well until now. Oh no, she'll be so annoyed with me! I must talk to her and straighten all of this out."

Just as Eros had finished speaking, a fifth presence joined them in the living room, naturally drawing in Clara and Adrian's attention.

"Why am I not surprised that you're here right now?" Clara asked with a little sigh. Everything was about to get even more complicated than it already was, something that Clara didn't believe was possible.

Aphrodite shot a broad smile towards Clara and drew the somewhat unimpressed woman in for a hug. After she made no move to embrace the Goddess back, Adrian sent her a brief glare, prompting a very reluctant Clara to return the hug and give her an awkward pat on the back.

The meddler's attention then moved on to Adrian, who opened his arms to the Goddess to greet her with a warm bear hug. Clara rolled her eyes but smiled nonetheless, her thoughts consumed by how sweet Adrian was.

"It's good to see you," he told her with a soft smile. Not that he liked to admit it, or would dare admit it to Clara, but he felt like he owed a lot to the Goddess. She was the reason that he was with Clara, even if it was just a two-month agreement; Aphrodite was the reason that he could have those two months with her.

"It's wonderful to see you too, Adrian dear." Aphrodite was more than a little thrilled that Adrian appeared to be pleased to see her. An innocent, child-like smile graced her lips as she looked between the couple. However, it soon turned into a stern frown as she glanced at her son.

"Mum-" Eros tried, finding himself cut off by his mother in an instant.

"Don't start young man. I thought I'd warned you to check with me before you do anything!"

"Mum, I'm not young..."

The mother and son duo's use of very modern language and names came as a notable surprise to both Clara and Adrian. On the other hand, it soon became evident that David was less calm at Aphrodite's very sudden appearance.

Even though the couple, plus David, knew that they should definitely leave Aphrodite and Eros to talk in private, they couldn't bring themselves to move. It was as if they had been super glued on the spot; their attention transfixed on the arguing family. Besides, their conversation would no doubt dictate their futures. What was it with Aphrodite and her manipulation of fate?

After a very extensive conversation, Aphrodite turned to address the three onlookers.

"I apologise for my son's mistakes. He will be grounded for a hundred years."

"A hundred years? Meh, I've been grounded for longer," Eros responded with a nonchalant shrug.

"Woah, excuse me, hold on a moment. A hundred years? That sounds a little harsh." Adrian was living up to Clara's image of him; he was sweet and thoughtful, even to Eros, someone who brought yet more disruption to their lives.

"Oh, Adrian, do not worry about me, a hundred years is a mere fraction of my lifetime."

Well, that explained his complete disregard for his punishment, Clara supposed. However, she was more concerned with knowing what was going to happen to herself and Adrian. This very new and unpredictable situation caused fear to bubble up inside of her, the feeling of dread becoming all too familiar to her. That, well not perhaps that very situation, but the disruption and uncertainty were why she never liked being close to anyone. It would have been very easy for Adrian to leave her. She truly believed that it would be better to be alone, then Adrian came and changed everything and made everything even more unclear.

"Please do not worry, I have discussed Eros' planned arrangement for Clara and David, it appears that it was just his own desire to pair them up and not a binding contract like mine was. Eros is still young; he has little impulse control, you see. He missed out one crucial step, which by the way, we will need to talk about young man, so he skipped over the contact part. This would have made his actions illegal if he had been successful."

Small smiles appeared on both Clara and Adrian's lips, finding themselves amused at their mother and son duo's comical and charming manner of interacting. Eros, a being who was a few hundred-years-old, was treated as a young boy, and it was more than a little entertaining.

"David, I apologise for my mistake. I wasn't aware that Clara had been paired with Adrian. I had been aware of your long-term crush on her, and I believed her to be alone, so I wanted to help. I was too eager, and I forgot to take it to the Judge."

"For clarity, the Judge is the being with the highest authority to rule on all of our decisions. She is the one that I spoke to regarding your contract," she added while looking between Adrian and Clara.

"My mother, David, and I will leave immediately. I do apologise for my mistake. I will be sure to research more thoroughly next time." Eros seemed very laid-back, so laid-back in fact, he pulled out the packet of strawberry laces and began to suck them from the packet like spaghetti. A very delighted Aphrodite grinned hurried towards her son and copied his actions.

"Well, this feels familiar," Clara muttered under her breath, just loud enough for Adrian to hear and chuckle in response.

"I'm sorry about this, David," Adrian apologised with a small, genuine smile. Both Clara and Eros nodded in agreement; however, Eros' apology was somewhat tarnished by the wobble of the strawberry lace that was hanging out of his mouth.

After further apologies and discussions between Aphrodite and Eros, they prepared to leave.

"Well, this has been... so strange, but perhaps a little fun too. I'm glad to see that you are happy, Clara. Sorry for this mess." David avoided looking the couple in the eye as nervousness got the better of him.

With that, courtesy of Aphrodite and her desire to let Clara and Adrian talk, Eros, Aphrodite, and David disappeared.

"That was interesting," Clara spoke with a small sigh, her habit of fiddling with her sleeve remaining unbroken. As per routine, Adrian pulled her hand away from her sleeve with a gentle touch and held it in his own, giving her a toothy grin to cheer her up a little.

"It was, but it did reveal the extent of my feelings for you." Adrian's smile softened, and he rested his forehead against Clara's before leaning in to give her a tender kiss.

▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬

Three weeks had passed since Eros' disruption, and Adrian's feelings had grown further. The same went for Clara, something that was beyond terrifying for her. It was as if there was a constant deafening alarm inside of her head that tried to warn her away from Adrian and any of the feelings she felt for him, and it was so hard for her to tell if the warning or her feelings were stronger.

A soft snore broke Adrian out of his thoughts, instead, drawing his attention to the woman asleep in his arms. He softly ran his fingers up and down her bare arm as he pulled her in closer.

Adrian was so distracted by the still unfamiliar feeling of Clara in his arms that he didn't realise her shift in breathing, signalling that she was awake.

"I love you."