Southern Magic Ch. 02

"Now that we have that cleared up, re-introductions are in order. I'm Derek and I didn't catch your name."

The stranger held out his hand and replied, "I'm Jonathan Arlington but my friend's call me Nate. It's a pleasure to meet you, Derek."

Handsome with Southern charm, how am I supposed to resist this man? Now I had to think of a way to keep him here without my parents knowing of my magical mess. I decided that Jonathan, or Nate as he preferred to be called, would now be a transfer student that needed a place to stay. My parents, Will and Cassandra, would never turn away a stray. They were both doctors by day, and may have used their gifts to better the prognosis of their patients from time to time. I turned to Jonathan and told him the plan and he readily agreed.

***

It was rainy and miserable outside, as is typical of Seattle weather. Nate stood in the rain after being teleported by Derek clutching a suitcase, full of clothes his size, which the other man had conjured for him. To think that he had only minutes ago been standing in the hot Texas sun and now he was drenched to the bone as the heavens thundered above him while lightning lit up the darkened sky. Magic sure was overwhelming.

Though displaced and disorientated, Nate felt an overwhelming sense of calm wash over him. He was free. Free from the burden of taking over the ranch, free of the inevitable loveless marriage that he would be forced into and free of the judgemental stares that would follow him had his sexual orientation been made public. This freedom was bittersweet; though he had no close friends his parents meant the world to him, especially his mother. If Derek was telling the truth about the time they were in his parents were most probably dead, a thought so unimaginable and bizarre.

Nate was brought out of his reverie by a call from the above. He saw Derek poking his head out the window, his blue eyes almost glowing in the darkness.

"Push the button," called Derek.

Nate readied himself internally and rang the doorbell. He would just have to see where life would take him in this new world

***

I rushed downstairs as I heard the bell ring. While Nate was downstairs I explained to my parents that Nate attended a sister culinary institute and was transferred here from Texas for a few weeks (hopefully I'd figure out a way to send him back before then) to experience the city. As expected, they readily agreed to let him stay with us, though they were mildly peeved at the short notice given.

"I got it!" I called as I skid down the passage.

I threw open the door and grinned at Nate.

"Nice to see you again", he said, smilingly.

"Come on in, it's pouring outside," I said.

He looked equally delectable soaked from the rain as he did when he first appeared. His golden hair fell into his eyes leading him to reach up and brush it aside. I guided him to the living room where my family had congregated. I introduced Nate to the family and as he was talking to my parents, uttering the necessary courtesies in his adorable accent, my sister eyed me suspiciously. The look that she gave me said one thing: we are going to talk later. I gave her a hasty smile and then lead Nate to the guest bedroom.

"Well, it looks as though our little ruse has worked for now," I said, sighing and collapsing onto the bed.

Nate sat next to me, still wet from the rain.

"I'm sorry", I said, looking at him. "I honestly had no idea this would happen. I promise that I'm going to try my hardest to make sure you get home."

"Don't worry about it", he said as he put his arm around my shoulder, "I know you didn't do this on purpose. Let's just take this a day at a time. The way I see it the past will always be there."

I'm ashamed to say that I liked his arm around me way too much. It felt like it was meant to be there. I smiled at him, got up and threw him a towel from the wardrobe.

"Come on, you need to get out of those wet clothes and into the shower."

I showed him to the guest bathroom, explained how the shower worked and went back to my room. As I sat at my desk, trying to read, I felt an unfamiliar fluttering in my chest. I knew I was in trouble.

***

Nate emerged from the shower smelling of pine needles and mint from the shower gel he had used. Back home all he has was regular soap and this surpassed the former in all regards. After getting dressed he made his way to Derek's room. He didn't feel like being alone and he wanted to be with Derek. He found him lounging in his desk chair reading. The soft light of desk lamp made his dark hair light up, revealing its bluish hue. Derek smiled at him as he entered. God, he was beautiful.

"Hey," said Nate tentatively.

Derek distracted him more than any other man ever had. He was handsome, appeared intelligent and had the most adorable smile that Nate had ever seen. Everyone else back home, in the current past, was so alike, each man a carbon copy of the next. To a man all that mattered were four things: woman, drinking, agriculture and sports. Derek seemed so different to that which he had previously experienced.

***

I looked up from my book and saw him standing there. Over the years I had read about the stereotypical Southern gentlemen and scoffed at the foolish maidens who fell for them so desperately and suddenly I found myself in their places.

"Hi," I said, smiling at him as he sat down on my bed next to me.

I could smell his clean scent wafting off him. It was invigorating. His hair was still wet from the shower and I could see the flecks of gold twinkling in the light.

"So it looks like I might be here a while," said Nate.

"I know and I'm sorry. I'll try my-"I said, as he cut me off.

"No. No more apologies. It's okay. I just wanted to say that since I'm going to be here a while we should get to know each other better. Tell me more about you"

We spoke for hours until the sun started to rise on the horizon. We spoke about our families, our lives, of magic and of farming. He told me about how he wasn't sure that he wanted to take over his father's ranch, that he might have preferred going to college instead and I told him about my love for cooking and regaled him with tales of the future technology. I never opened up to anyone like this but with him it was so easy to say what was on my mind. Then he went back to his room to get some rest, after promising to teach me how to ride a horse. Thank goodness it was a Saturday, I thought, as I sunk into my pillows.

***

I felt as though I had just fallen asleep when Gwen came thundering into my room, like a raging rhinoceros. She pulled the curtains apart and I was momentarily blinded.

"What time is it," I croaked sleepily.

I reached over for my cellphone. It was 9AM. I had been asleep for all of 4 hours. I was going to kill her.

"Wake up, princess. It's time for you to tell me the full story."

I resigned myself to defeat, sat up in bed and began to recall the events of the past 24 hours.

"So is he gay?" she asked excitedly.

I had just told her that I plucked another human being out of his time and into the future, a human being that was currently living with us and one who I had no idea how to send back home and her first order of business was querying his sexual orientation. That was my sister for you.

"I don't think so but I wish he was," I said honestly.

"Well, let's go do some recon. Lover boy is downstairs having breakfast with the parentals."

That was enough to get me out of bed, into the bathroom and down for breakfast in 15 minutes. Gwen had already gone down when I went to shower and was now sitting next to Nate chatting animatedly like they'd been friends for years. He looked good for someone who had slept for less than 4 hours. I guess that with growing up on a farm he was used to rising early. Or maybe it was just his intrinsic Nate-ness that made him look good no matter what. I went straight for the espresso machine and made myself a cappuccino, nectar of the gods. I felt my vitality returning to me as I sipped the soothing liquid.

After grabbing a plate of food I sat down next to Nate, brushing his arm ever so slightly. There it was again. That annoying fluttering, as if I were host to a swarm of butterflies. I gazed in his direction for any indication that he had felt the same but he just looked and me and smiled, charmingly. The smile that KO's my poor, little heart.

"So, Nate, how are you enjoying Seattle so far?" my dad asked.

"I can honestly say that it's nothing like I have ever seen before," replied Nate, grinning.

I spluttered into my coffee.

"Mom, Dad, is it okay if I take Nate around the city today? Show him all the touristy stuff that they don't have down in the South, like elevators and ferries?"

He shoved me playfully. Again a feeling rushed through by body in the most pleasurable way possible. I think it can be deduced that I am allergic to his touch.

"Sure, son, just don't be home too late, you have class tomorrow."

After that we jumped into my Range Rover, which he was fairly amazed at, and sped off towards our first destination.