[Mandy POV]
[Buzz][Buzz][Buzz][Buzz][Buzz]
I am definitely not a morning person, but this was a big day.
Prying my eyes open, I saw my ceiling above me as the alarm clock continued ringing. But what woke me up was a moist, child finger entering my ear as my little sister gave me a wet willy.
"Augh!" I sat up, capping my ear. "You little twerp!" I called out to Zoe as she scurried out of my room.
Fastidious, I slipped on my slippers and went to the half-bath connected to my bedroom to clean out my ear.
"Little brat," I muttered as I adjusted my hair. "I'm not going to let Zoe spoil my day; this is the day I turn 14."
Optimistic, I left the bathroom and walked downstairs, yawning. I looked to the kitchen and saw Mom was having her morning cups of coffee.
"Morning Mom, is Mother back yet?" Mother usually works late and can come home late at night, but usually back before we would wake up.
My question was answered when Mother appeared from the puff in front of me and fired a confetti canyon and toy party horn. "Happy Birthday, Mandy!" She dropped the props and hugged me. "How is my little girl? Turning 14 fey years old."
People think she's cold and detached at first, but she's always warm and embarrassing to her girls. "Thanks, Mother." I brushed the confetti off before, having escaped my attention, noticing a tall man with dark skin and a Dwarf woman with blonde hair. "Mother, who are they?"
"As you're going to be starting high school soon, I decided to give you your first helot." Among Kenley society, slave ownership was a popular trend to show status. "This is Aiden Ortega, I am confident he will be a dutiful underling."
The man she pointed at looked intimidating, his height and build showed he was very strong, but the gaze in his eyes looked scared and easily fragile. My mother handed me another present, a small, gold necklace with a heart pendant. I happily accepted, then she spoke to the man.
"Aiden, from now on, my daughter, Mandevilla, will be your primary master. Is that understood?" She ordered.
"Understood." His voice was weak but soothing to hear.
"Good. Dwarf, you fix breakfast while I show Aiden to his quarters." She walked off as he followed.
"Bye," I said nervously. "Welcome home."
He turned around without speaking. It was awkward meeting him, but I do hope he likes it here.
Breakfast was delicious; the dwarf Rose is a talented cook but not very talkative. We talked during breakfast about school starting next month; and if I got everything ready for classes. After eating, I got ready to start my day. I cleaned myself in the shower, did my hair in double buns, brushed and flossed my teeth, applied some light make-up, changed into a white blouse, blue jeans, and my favorite pink flats. To celebrate my birthday, my parents took me on a shopping spree.
We went to all of my favorite clothing stores like Romano, Darcy, and Charles Vivien. My moms want to make sure that I can make a good impression at my new school. For lunch, we rested in the outlet mall food court. As I ate, mom and mother went to the toy store after Zoe threw a tantrum; I tried to eat, but my thoughts went to Aiden, I watched him sitting on the court fountain guarding our bags.
He's been following us all morning without any food. Sad for him, I got him some water to keep hydrated.
"Here." I offered him, the boy confused. "It's water, you look thirsty."
He nervously accepted. "Thank you, Madam."
That made me laugh. "Don't call me that, it makes me sound like my mother. Just call me by name." We're going to have to spend a lot of time together; formality would be too stuffy.
He paused, uncertainty on his face. "Thank you, Mandevilla."
"The only people who call me that are my parents when they're upset or my teachers, call me 'Mandy'."
He giggled. "Okay, Mandy." My guess was correct; he chugged the water, then looked at me. "Mandy, may I ask a question."
"You just did." That made us both laugh. "Just ask me."
He hesitated. "Mandy, what did Daelee mean by 'fey years'?"
That was a good question. Races who are unfamiliar with us don't know much about fey biology, but I figured he would have been informed by Mother about such things. "You've never heard of that? Fey don't age the same way humans and other non-fey beings age. Think of it as 1 fey year to 4 human years."
"1:4?" He seemed to be intelligent. "That would make you 56 years old!" Classic human response, but always hilarious.
"You're so funny." If there is one great thing about him, he can always make me laugh. "You're going to fit in well."
We came back home and ate dinner. Now I'm lying on my bed talking to my besties, Lianas & Smithy, finishing talking about my birthday.
"All in all, it was a great day. I'm just a little sad you guys couldn't see me."
[Sorry, Girl. I needed to train for lacrosse.] Smithy apologized.
[And I needed to visit my Uncle. But you come over tomorrow, and we'll have a little get-together.] Lianas offered.
"Sounds great. Oh, I can also introduce you to Aiden." I forgot to mention him. "He's my helot, my mom got him as a birthday present."
[Aiden? Sounds like someone is going to get busy tonight?] Lianas teased me. [We'll see you tomorrow. Hope he gives you a good birthday.]
"What?" That surprised me.
[Yeah, have a fun night. See ya tomorrow.] Smithy hung up next.
~The next day~
I asked Mom permission to go, and she said yes. I gave Aiden the keys to her convertible, instructed him on how to get to Lianas' house, and he drove us there with no problems. Because we were meeting my friends, I told him to be causal and act normal.
Lianas' house slave Inga, guided us to her room.
"SURPRISE!" Confetti poppers went off, and my besties were wearing party hats as I entered the room. "Since we couldn't attend your actual birthday, we decided to throw a surprise party." Lianas explained as they gave me a hug.
"That is so sweet!" I was touched by the gesture. "Thank you. Oh, this is Aiden." I introduced my birthday present to them as we sat in a circle on the floor. "He's from..." Airheaded, I never learned anything about him besides his name.
"So, Mandy, tell us. What have you and he been up to?" She laughed mischievously.
"Up to?" I thought I told them that over the phone. "I told you, we were shopping yesterday."
"No." Smithy grinned, in on their inside joke. "After we hung up, what did you two get up to?"
My friends always said I was slow on figuring out euphemisms but with previous experience built on years of being friends with them, I figured it out. "You mean..." I was too bashful to say it out loud. "We've... aren't doing that."
"Really?" My friends asked, equally confused. "Girl, you should know why your mom got him." Lianas snickered.
"Yeah, we've all got the talk already. She wanted you to place it into practice," Smithy spoke. "Talk about childish."
My friends were good people, but they could be a little much, so at times like this, I simply stay silent until they get over it.
"Actually, I think she's very mature." I looked to my side, Aiden speaking up for me. "Her parents trust her to have me, and from the few times we've interacted, she's been very kind and fun."
It was odd, I told him to act casual, but I didn't think he'd speak up like that. After my friends finished laughing, we continued with our small party. We had cake, me and Lianas song karaoke, I opened their presents from me, Lianas got me a charm bracelet while Smithy got me a new bag. Lastly, we watched my favorite movies and shared popcorn. After it was over, Smithy left, and Aiden went to get the car while I waited at the door with Lianas.
"Thanks, I had a great time." I appreciated my friends' efforts.
"No sweat, thank you for introducing the new guy." She leaned in to whisper. "Are you sure you won't go after that? Because I won't lie, I might have to give him a go."
"Lianas? I thought you and Lucas were still an item?"
"Mandy, monogamy is for the elderly." Our conversation was cut by Aiden rolling up. "I'll be seeing you, and keep an eye on him."
I hopped in the front seat, still happy about my belated birthday party. "Thank you, Aiden." I looked at him as he drove.
"For what?" He asked me.
"For what you said to them after they implied... you know, thank you for standing up for me."
"Part of my job." He giggled. "They seem like good friends, but there is a difference between liking someone and respecting them."
Aiden is a mystery to me. At first, I thought he was just dumb muscle, but he's shown himself to be a pleasant, considerate, and intelligent man. "Aiden, if you ever have questions, or things you just want to tell me, you can."
"Thanks, Mandy. And... if I may say, you are very lucky to have so many people who care about you. Your parents, your friends; despite the teasing, Zoe; and your help, when I ask them about you they always talk how sweet you are, and I can tell they mean it."
As we drove, I thought about my future, high school, and now I have Aiden. I don't know what my future holds, but I'm grateful he'll be here to help me along the way.
