Page 33 of 12 Days

“But the question is, what kind of woman do you think that you are? One who can be honest with herself about what she wants, what she desires, what she yearns for? One who can begin to see that she doesn't need to be chained down with taboo, and what society considers normal? One who is happy?”

She is looking at me, and I feel her gaze pass right through me, down to the depths of my soul.

Maybe it was that I was flirting too close to honesty with her or challenging her the way that I was once challenged. Either way, I'm not used to this. Usually, I’m the one who gives this stare to others.

She holds me motionless with her eyes, and I wonder if she knows I can't look away from her. It feels scary, but...good. I want her to see me, to truly see the real me.

As if it was just a tease, she looks down again, saddened by a thought. “Yeah, but who knows if I would have done anything at all without the perfume?”

It breaks my heart to see her upset. “But, that’s just it. It's not the perfume that made you do it. Sure, it may have helped to bring some of those feelings to surface, but make no mistake; those feelings are yours.”

“I don't think you understand. Just because someone has these feelings doesn't mean it's okay to act on them. If they are buried beneath the surface, it’s for a good reason. If the person isn’t letting them out, it's because they shouldn't be let out.”

“You don’t have the right to make someone think it’s okay to act out however they feel, that there are no consequences to their actions, or that the consequences are not important,” she continues. “That's just not the world that we live in!”

“Alyssa, do you regret what you’ve done?”

My heart races, waiting for her answer. I didn't realize how much I wanted her to say no to that question before I asked it.

She looks at each of us again, eyes finally settling on me. I try hard not to let it show how much her stare is affecting me.

“No,” she finally says, and it's all I can do not to audibly let out a sigh of relief.

I watch her watching us, and I can see it there, in her eyes, with each breathy heave of her beautiful chest, just beneath the surface.

That desire.

That raw passion.

She wants to take each of us in this room, right now, given the opportunity. But left to her own devices, she will never act on it. She will never give in to her passions.

The fear of judgement will hold her back.

I can't leave her like this. I won't. I...feel too much for her now.

When this started, she was somewhat of an objective, but now she has become so much more to me. She is my prey and my huntress all in one. I want her, and I want her to want me.

I need her to.

Looking at her, I can tell that she feels it, too. I know that it’s in there, but I have to find a way to help her let it out.

---