I couldn’t read his voice, but something told me he wasn’t entirely happy about that. Neither was I, but honestly, what could we do? We’d succumbed to passion, and now he had to go back to his girlfriend. End of story.

He tipped my head back, and our lips met in a soft, warm kiss. It was brief, only a few moments, but I felt that same, soul-deep connection that had consumed me during sex. He stood up and studied me for a few moments more, as though he might not ever see me again. I felt a little silly lying there naked, but his expression told me he thought I was beautiful.

He left after that, and I stayed in bed, drunk on my own feelings. Aubrey joined me, curling up against my leg.

“Was that how it was supposed to be, Aubrey?” I couldn’t decide. Certainly the sex had been everything I’d ever imagined with Seth. But this afterglow? It was a bit lacking. Nothing about the situation was normal. I had no prior experience to fall back on.

After almost a half hour of staring at nothing and reaching no conclusions, I got out of bed. I was still reeling from what had happened, and my body burned with what Seth and I had done. I usually liked to shower after sex, but not today. I could smell Seth on me, his sweat and even a faint trace of the leather-and-apple cologne he used sometimes. I couldn’t stand to wash him off yet, so I put the old cotton robe back on. Ratty or not, its fabric was soft against my bruised skin.

As I was about to leave my room, I noticed the photo of the medallion on the floor. I picked it up, intending to set it on my nightstand, and froze. There was writing on it.

Inked with a black Sharpie, neat handwriting read: Smoky quartz indicates earth or a oneness with the earth. The symbols on the medallion were circled, with lines drawn out from each one, leading to brief notes: this indicates an affinity for water, a harmonious, blending state; this is similar to the water one, except it’s for the earth; this is a masking symbol, meant to shield the object it protects and keep the seal strong; this one’s strange, indicates blankness or whiteness—maybe white sand or stones?; this is the symbol for tears—combined with the water sign, probably indicates salt water.