May 13, 2023

Iris

I leaned my arms on the kitchen island, twisting my ring in my fingers as I blankly stared at the marble countertop. We were all here for Queen's sake but as Syn and she talked upstairs, everyone was left here to socialize and catch up. Everyone except me that is.

Introduce yourself.

That nagging thought was a persistent one but my legs refused to go anywhere besides this very spot. I had met Cain's father only once before today and it wasn't truly an introduction. He just happened to be in the palace during one of the balls Cain made me attend with him. The man was a stone wall and quite frankly he was intimidating to me. I mean, he was the first man on Earth.

He was a creature purely created in God's image whereas my kind was created purely for entertainment, manipulation, and art. I wasn't funny, could barely be tricked into anything...anymore. And I hardly considered myself to be beautiful despite my husband's thoughts so that crossed out art as well. I was just me. A fairy without wings. He couldn't have thought I was good enough for his son. I was sure that was why he never truly made a formal introduction.

My mind continued to fill with self-deprecating thoughts and I sighed. If Cain could hear the things I was thinking about myself...I shivered as I thought of his reaction, but my body slightly warmed as I let the thought float through my mind. Knowing him he'd spank the insecurities out of my body, which was enticing...but they always came back. My sadness returned at the thought and I blew out an exasperated breath.

I felt familiar hands snake around my waist and a firm body press against my behind. "What are you doing?" His deep voice hummed as he rested his chin on my hair.

"Just...standing here, I guess," I said shyly, trying my best to avoid the eyes of anyone that may have been looking in our direction.

"Standing here doing what?"

"Just standing, babe." I sighed, turning in his arms to look up at him. He looked down at me curiously, moving his hands to the countertop on either side of me, trapping me between them. "You should go back to your-"

"Standing here doing what, Iris?" He flexed his arms, lowering his face to mine and I took a shaky breath. We'd been married for months now, but there was no one else that set my nerves on fire as he did. He tilted his head to the side, his eyes looking deeper into mine, and bit the inside of my cheek. "You may not change colors anymore," he teased, "but you're still as easy to read, if not more. I was talking to everyone over there, but I could only focus on you and what was going on in that infuriating mind of yours."

"I promise everything is okay," I insisted. "Don't worry."

He sighed before rolling his eyes and looking away from me. When he looked back, his expression was replaced with complete and utter seriousness. "Do you want to know one of the many reasons I love you?"

"Hmm."

"With everyone around me, I have to decipher whether or not they're being honest with me. But with you, it's different. With you, your eyes..." He took my chin into his hand, forcing me to meet his eyes. His thumb gently touched my lips as his eyes fell on them and I held my breath. "...your mouth, your skin...your body. They tell me all the secrets that pretty ass voice of yours won't," he said smoothly. "So I'll ask one more time, love. Please don't piss me off..."

I held back a smile at his "threat" and I glanced around the kitchen and living room before looking back at him. "Okay, I just feel-"

"Cain!" We both turned toward the living room at the sound of the voice and saw Abel walking down the steps with a sleepy Saint in his arms rubbing his eyes. "He's asking for you."

He made his way over to us, passing the group of people in the living room deep in conversation. Cain smiled at Saint, extending his arms and Saint practically sprung out of Abel's hold.

"Damn," Abel muttered.

"Well look at that," he said with a taunting smile. "Someone else that prefers me to you."

"Enjoy it," Abel shot back over his shoulder as he walked away. "It's a rare thing."

Cain grumbled next to me, rolling his eyes in annoyance and I smiled. There was no one- not even me, that could get under his skin as his brother did. It was a millennium-long sibling rivalry but deep down they both knew they'd do another for one another. Even if they'd never admit it.

We both watched as Abel returned to the group in the living room all smiles as if he'd known all of them all of his life. He shot a smug look at Cain before plopping himself on the couch and Cain spoke up. "I should kill him, huh?" Cain asked Saint in a baby voice, poking at his small stomach. "You don't need two uncles, do you?"

"You want to kill him, again?" Xoe chimed in with a small laugh, grabbing a water bottle from the fridge beside us. "If history is any indication, that didn't exactly go as planned the first time, Cain." We both looked at her in shock, forgetting she was there and she looked between us awkwardly. "It was a Bible joke..." she said. "Because their names are Cain...and Abel..."

"Ohhh." Cain and I said in false surprise. For a moment I thought she found out the truth, but she didn't. I liked Xoe, a lot. She was a great friend and I never once felt uncomfortable around her, but we weren't quite ready to tell her who we truly were- what we truly were. She'd run, and we liked her too much for that to happen. Besides, how could we know she wouldn't tell everyone? I doubted she would, but for her safety, we didn't want to risk it.

"That's funny because...yeah," Cain said to her before looking down at me. "We will continue our conversation later?"

"Okay." I nodded. He kissed me on the cheek and I smiled before he carried Saint away and headed toward everyone in the living room.

"Was it really not that funny?" Xoe winced as she made her way to my side. "Or does he just not like me?"

"It was funny," I assured her with a small smile.

Her shoulders sunk in relief and she smiled back before looking toward everyone else chatting away. "It's just kind of strange, isn't it?"

"What is?"

"Their names being Cain and Abel is one thing...but that guy right there is their dad, right?" She asked as she pointed at Adam who was leaning against the stairwell, looking deep in thought.

"Yes," I said carefully, trying to gauge what point she was trying to make before she made it.

"His name is Adam," she said with a small giggle. "Don't tell me their mother's name is Eve."

"Uh," I let out a nervous breath, rubbing my sweaty palms against my jeans. I was the absolutely wrong person to leave with someone as inquisitive as Xoe. I couldn't lie to save my own life. "I don't know, I've never met her." It was the truth. I had never met her...thankfully. There was no one in existence I wanted to cuss out more than her.

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that," she sympathized. I'm not. She leaned against the kitchen counter beside me and rested her chin on her palm. We sat in a comfortable silence, two outsiders people watching and I let myself finally relax. Even though our situations weren't the same, it felt nice having someone else that was as much out of place if not more than I was.

"It's okay." I waved my hand.

"Hmm." She smiled before glancing at me and wiggling her brows. "So what's next for you guys?"

"What's next?"

"Yeah." She shrugged with a teasing smile. "Any babies...?"

"Oh!" My eyes widened in surprise and I laughed, trying my best to cover my awkwardness at the topic. "No, no..."

"Aww, really?" She pouted. "You two would make the best parents ever, you love kids!"

"I know, but-"

"Look at him, girl." She gestures toward Cain and I followed her line of sight. He was sitting on the floor with Saint in his arms while the triples crawled all over him like he was some sort of jungle gym. My heart ached at the sight and I bit the inside of my cheek in thought.

I had wanted kids for as long as I could remember. And my grandfather always wanted great grandkids...but life doesn't always give you what you want. It gives you what you need, and I needed Cain. He happened to be a package that didn't include children in our future, and I was okay with that.

"...he'd be an amazing father," she continued. "And don't get me started on you, Iris. You're the most nurturing and patient person I've ever-"

"It's not that," I interjected. When I realized I had interrupted, my cheeks heated and I gave her an apologetic smile. I didn't want to be rude, but I couldn't take listening to how amazing Cain would be as a father. I knew he would. But it just couldn't happen for us. Knowing that and having someone tell me the "what ifs" I thought about daily were heartbreaking enough.

"I'm sorry. I'm not trying to overstep," she said.

"You're not," I promised. "It's just that...we can't have kids." Her smile fell and before she was able to say anything else, I spoke up again. "We've tried, trust me. It's just not something that's in the cards for us and that's okay."

She gave me a sad smile before wrapping her arms around me and rubbing my back. "I'm sorry for pressing."

"You didn't know," I replied, dismissing her apology and trying my hardest not to cry. I was fine just talking, but when someone hugged me when I was emotional...it was basically an invitation to let the waterworks flow. I held back though. The last thing I needed right now was for Cain to come over and-

"What's going on?"

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Author Notes
Awww Iris babyyyy🥹❤️

Hayyy y'all it's been a minute💅 how are y'all doin😌 I missed y'all mfs lmao. But we back in business baybee.
This is our first Iris chapter in the book😙 I hope y'all missed her as much as I did. Also, not she got caught-

✨Lmk your thoughts✨