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“And one day, you’re going to wonder why you were so anxious to hear another boring, uneventful story from the Life of Logan,” I said back, matching her sass.
“Whatever, my dude. Be that way,” she said as she looped her bag over her shoulder, snagged her car keys that hung from a collection of gaudy keychains, and headed toward the door. “If you change your mind about coming out tonight, shoot me a text. I don’t know what exactly the plan is, but I’ll have my phone on all night if you wanna catch up later.”
“Thanks, dude,” I said as I craned my neck to where she stood. “I’ll see how I feel after sorting through all these emails.”
“Smell ya later,” she said with a peace sign as she left the apartment. I could hear the deadbolt turning as she locked up behind her and the jingle of her excessive keyring decor as she stomped down the stairs in her heels.
Finally, with her little apartment to myself, I placed my laptop on the floor next to me and got up to turn off the overhead lights in the apartment. Ever since leaving the Silver Family Mansion, the darkness felt more comfortable than ever. The words Nox had said to me before we left had wormed their way into my heart, and I repeated them to myself often.
“There are pieces of me in all the darkness in the world.”
I desperately hoped that was true. In the four weeks since I’d pulled away from the mansion, I hadn’t seen any of them even once. The romantic part of me that craved their sudden-but-inevitable return told me they were just enjoying what a life of freedom had to offer. Unfortunately, the logical part of me pointed out that in an entire world of places to roam and explore, little ol’ me might not be so interesting anymore. Sort of like a situation where you flirt with your okay-looking coworker because you’re bored and there’s nothing else to do. I felt in my heart that the possibility was slim, that they really did love me, but the mind has a funny way of honing in on negative thoughts.
I used my phone’s flashlight to navigate the dark living room back to my bean bag chair and sat down with a sigh of comfort. I put my headphones back on over my head and flipped open my laptop, covering myself and the surrounding space with an icy blue glow from the backlight as it cut through the inky dark.
I listened to my music and sank into a trance of concentration, focusing on my laptop screen until a familiar gentle caress ran down the back of my arm.
I snapped my head around and saw nothing. My heart broke the moment I didn’t see Nox standing behind me with his tendrils writhing behind him. The sensation had felt soreal, but I supposed the mind worked in mysterious ways—especially a mind that was suffering from the quiet uncertainty of feeling possibly forgotten about.
Several minutes went by and I fell back into my work. Then, a shadow appeared, darker than the walls surrounding it, and slowly worked its way from the upper corner of the ceiling, all the way down the wall, to behind a bookshelf. I could feel a beloved sense of dread start to settle in as I paused my music and removed my headphones.
“Hello?” I asked, keeping my eyes on the bookshelf. While I didn’t expect to have anyone—or anything—actually respond to me, the sound of my own voice cut through the tension I was feeling.
And the slight rush of giddy excitement.
A wafting of air hit the side of my face, like someone had quickly walked past me, and I turned my head toward it only to see the blank white living room wall beside me.
Nothing.
I bit my lip, my heartbeat galloping crazily, and tried not to get my hopes up. Like I said, the mind worked in mysterious ways. There was no sense torturing myself over whispers of air in the dark. Feeling like a silly, hopeful schoolgirl, I turned my head back to my work and was met with two glowing eyes floating just above my laptop screen.
“What the fuck!?” I screamed, startled even despite my hopeful thoughts, and nearly flung myself backward out of the bean bag chair in surprise.
I could hear a sly chuckle in the darkness as Nox’s shadowy form solidified before me.
“Are youserious,Nox!?” I exclaimed as I slammed my computer shut and set it next to me, my heart a pounding drum beat in my ears. “You scared the shit out of me.” I leaned forward and rested my head on my knees for a moment to catch my breath and quell the flutter of emotion raging inside of me. He washere.
“I suppose there’s a first time for everything,” he quipped as he took a step back and crossed his arms. “It’s good to see you, Logan.”
I took a deep breath, reached over to the lamp sitting on the table beside me, and pulled the string, turning it on. Nox reeled back against the light and blinked his crimson eyes a couple of times. As he did, all I could do was drink in the sight of him.
He looked different from when he’d been in the mansion. Healthy, almost, if that was the proper word. His white hair had grown out a little, or he had illusioned it to do so, and his bangs hung over one eye. He was still sporting all-black, but I couldn’t imagine him ever in anything else. He wore a v-neck t-shirt and slim fitting jeans tucked into boots, and his figure was slightly more built than it had been those months ago. Freedom appeared to be treating him quite well.
“It’s good to see you, too,” I gasped happily, my voice soft with longing. “I wish I’d known you were going to drop in on me. I look like crap, I’m sorry.”
“Never apologize,” Nox insisted as he slunk toward me and offered me his hand. “You lookdelicious.”
I gladly took his hand and rose to meet him, and he immediately pulled me in for an embrace. The familiar scent of him filled my nostrils, and it was like every stress in my life melted away. He smelled like a faint brush fire in the cold of winter. I’d never noticed how identifiable the smell was until I was reintroduced to it after a long hiatus. He tilted my head up with one of his smoky tendrils and leaned in to kiss me. The chill of his lips felt like home, and goosebumps ran merrily down my arms and spine. I ran my fingers up into his shaggy hair and gripped happily as I felt his hands travel down over my backside. I wanted to rip my clothes off and have him take me right there in the living room, but the reality of Blair having keys and potentially walking in on us sent panic through my heart.
“You just missed Blair,” I said, pulling away from him to meet his gaze. I couldn’t help but smile as I stared up at him, completely overjoyed by his presence.
“Yes, I know. I missed her intentionally,” he assured me. “I didn’t think it would be a good idea to pop up while she was around.”
“So, how long have you been stalking me?” I asked with a snide smile.
“I wouldn’t call it ‘stalking,’ Logan. Be reasonable,” he said coolly. “But I meant what I said when I told you parts of me would always be in the darkness. Call me crazy for wanting to check on you once in a while.”
“I won’t call you crazy, but I kind of want to call you an asshole for making me wait this long to see you,” I told him as I moved to the couch to take a seat.
