{Bonus Chapter} - Elias

{Elias Aycure} -- Back Story:

When I was 11 I won my first national spelling bee. I brought home my first medal and trophy that day.

"Spell succedaneum." the judge spoke through the microphone. The hairs at the back of my neck stood up. I was so close to winning but here's a word that I never came across to study. I don't want to lose.

"Definition?" I asked into the microphone. The judge looked down at the paper and spoke into the mic: "noun, a substitute."

I took a deep breath and spelled: "S-U-C-C-E-D-A-N-E-U-M." my heart pounded with anticipation.

"Ladies and gentleman, the winner of this year's annual spelling bee: Elias Aycure." the judge walked up to give me my medal and trophy. Applause and cheers filled the room. The only woman that stood out in that crowd was my mother. I had brought tears of joy to her eyes. I smiled brightly to her.

That's a memory I will never forget. Winning my first spelling bee. I was always the nerd throughout my schooldays. Everyone asked me for the answers to their homework. That seemed to be the only thing people wanted from me. I was always rejected from a girl that I liked. The only people that didn't reject me was my friends but even then I didn't have much friends either. But I didn't let that stop me from doing anything else. My father always told me to focus on school and that'll thank him for telling to me to do so then thank myself for listening to me. I believed him.

For a while. My high school senior year changed me. Something different happened when I woke up a monthbefore my senior year started. My confidence skyrocketted, I was more in shape. Everything, apperance-wise, changed that summer. I looked in the mirror and I saw a different Elias. When school started, everyone seemed to notice that I was different as well.

As a sport, I joined that basketball team. I was a little on the short side but I played well. Never was I once told to sit out and be a benchwarmer. More people that started to look towards my way. Girls batted their eyes but I payed no attention, cause I had always wanted one girl. Her name was Naomi. She was so beautiful. I never wanted wanted a girl so badly before. She seemed to notice too.

She approached me one day and ever since that day in high school, she introduced me to another life. A life that most kids don't know. She was bad for me. She coaxed me into smoking, drugs, partying... and it worked. I did anything to keep her, I didn't know any better. My father failed to teach me that. She then took something I wanted to save for marriage. She hypnotized me into doing things I didn't want to do.

A week later after that she broke up with me, the life she brought me into was stripped from me. I was glad, I didn't want that life to be a part of me anymore but what I had already done was already done. I made a promise to myself that I'll never take advantage of a woman's heart like how Naomi took advantage of mine.

Later when I graduated high school, then graduated college, the promised I made was kept. Until I met Kara. I neglected her a couple of times. I made her think it was because I was stressed but that wasn't the case. I was still afraid. Afraid that she'd be like Naomi, but she showed me, proved me wrong and that was when I fell in love with Kara completely. I took care of her, healed her shattered heart and she showed me how to trust again. How to love and accecpt someone as whole.

I accecpted and loved Kara. I trusted her. Then I married her.

~ End of Bonus Chapter ~