Page 10 of Make Me Bee-lieve

I leap out of bed, slide my feet into my slippers, and hurry over to the double glass doors that lead to my personal balcony. When I step outside, I gasp at the canopy of stars hanging overhead. I’ve never seen so many of them before. Back when we were in the guild gardens, there was so much light pollution from all the nearby buildings that it was impossible to see anything. But now? Now I’m treated to a spectacle of lights that leave me breathless.

A man wearing a beekeeping outfit approaches the hive and sits down in a chair in front of my balcony. He won’t be able to see me—the glamour magic we have warding the entire hive will make sure of that, so I can watch him in peace. He rests his elbows on his knees as he stares straight ahead. I wish I could see his face. It’s always bothered me that I could never make out the humans’ eyes beneath their hideous costumes. If only they understood we would never sting them, not as the regular bees would, then perhaps they’d have no need to gas us, either.

“So, I hope you’ll forgive me, because I have no clue what I’m doing.” The man clears his throat. “Okay, maybe not entirely true. I just watched ten hours worth of beekeeping lessons online.”

I have no idea what that means, but I’m no less intrigued, and lean against the railing to listen.

“My brother put me up to this, you know. Just so you know who to blame in case things go ass-up.”

I snicker. Oh, he’s kind of funny.

“But I promise to take care of you to the best of my ability. The last thing I want is for my brother’s shitty judgment to affect any of you little guys.”

Blinking, I wonder if this human knows that none of us are, in fact, guys? We’re all female. Every single one of us. Well, except for Florian, of course. He is as male as they come, but I don’t count him in our number, as I rarely think about him at all unless he’s making an idiot of himself. Which, I suppose, is actually quite frequently.

“Jules told me there’s a new queen in here, so uh. Hello, Your Majesty.” The human dips his head respectfully and does a playful little flourish. I can’t help the rising heat that spreads across my cheeks. “I hope to serve you well.”

Sighing, I rest my head on my arms as I continue to stare at the human as he speaks. He has a lovely voice. Soft, yet strong and firm, with just a hint of huskiness that sends a thrill through my heart in a way nothing—no one—ever has before. Certainly not Florian. Yes, yes, I’ll sleep with him because I have to, but it’s not like I’ll enjoy myself. And then he will die the minute he’s finished so I can lay my eggs and restart the cycle of life in the colony as expected.

But if I had someone to lie with who had a voice like that? Oh, I could see myself enjoying the process. Yes, indeed.

“I’m sure you will,” I reply, knowing full well the human cannot hear me. Then I emit a dreamy sigh and loll my head back and forth, listening as he spins a tale about his life in Sugardove City. “I’m sure you will,” I murmur again.

That night, I drift off into the most pleasant, peaceful slumber I’ve had in a long time.

CALVIN

Bee ownership—or rather, beekeeping—isn’t as stressful as I thought it would be. I wasn’t sure about Elvis moving an entire hive over to my apartment’s rooftop garden, but after getting permission from my landlord, who practically screamed with delight when I told her, it seems everything is going just fine, so long as I give her free jars of honey occasionally. It’s not as difficult as my day job, at least, which means it might make for a decent enough hobby.

Jules left me several books and favorite channels she watches online, but also gave me her number just in case anything gets too difficult. Yesterday evening replays in my mind as I stare at the hive, my arms crossed in front of my chest.

“We need some iced tea or something. I’ve worked up a sweat,” Jules said. The three of us sat in a few lounger chairs in front of the hive, exhausted but satisfied from a job well done.

Elvis laughed. “Yeah. Could do, but my mom’s the one who makes the killer iced tea. Calvin over here just buys the boxed powder shit from the store, so don’t ask him for any.”

Jules rolled her eyes and swatted my brother on the knee. “At least give your brother two seconds before taking the piss out of him again.”

“I’ll take good care of it,” I said, and Jules smiled.

“I know you will,” she said, a twinkle gleaming in her eye.

“And if you don’t, you’ll never hear the end of it,” my brother interjected with a playful chuckle. “But seriously though. Don’t fuck up my bees. I’ve been working on this for weeks and I’m weirdly attached at this point.”

No pressure or anything.

I leaned forward in my chair and shot him a grin. “I promise as your older brother that I will do my best not to let anything bad happen to your bees.”

Now, I’m staring down at the hive and wondering what I should do with it now. Opening it up to check on the little guys is only going to irritate them. But how do I know if things are going well?

I decide to sit down beside the large box in one of the garden chairs and pick up a book from the stack Jules left behind.

“Beekeeping 101: A Beginner’s Journey,” I read out loud, then drop my voice to an almost whisper. “Bonus … hive inspection checklist included. Exactly what we need, I think.”

“Who are you talking to?” The voice behind me makes me jump with a yelp. When I whirl around, my eyebrows creep into my hairline as the blond man from the other day pins me with a sardonic smile and crosses his arms in front of his chest. I hate being caught off-guard, especially by someone who has been so suspicious.

He takes a step forward and asks, “What’s in the box?”

“Gwenyth Paltrow’s head,” I fire back with an eye-roll. Shit, I have no idea why I just said that. Kyle continues to stare at me without so much as a twitch of his lips.

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