Kiss of Death - 6. The Luminescent Building Part 2

Leo P.O.V

The soft, consecutive thud of our feet against the grassy earth becomes rhythmic, almost blending into the somber upbeat nature of the wildlife around us. From afar, they continue about what would be assumed to be their nightly routines, yet quite obviously lending a curious eye to the strangers who have entered their abode. With time I've come to gain a sense of familiarity with this place, but I can't be sure. It's not like I had deja vu moment or anything funny like that no. It reminds me of my younger years. Like any other child, I had taken to art sketching pictures with my little pack of crayons. I wasn't very good but my parents humored me. They were authors and I vividly remember us coming up with wild and fantastical stories about the places that I drew. That was how I spent the greater part of my childhood and adolescence. I was home schooled for the most part so it was difficult for them to get used to me being away for extended periods of time. I remember one time my mom was so scared of leaving me alone that when I had my very first sleepover at the age of 17, which was when they allowed me to got to public school, she made special arrangements with the kid's mother to allow her to stay over too. So, you can imagine their reactions when I started college. Needless to say, I lost the cool new kid cred and found it difficult to make any friends afterwards. Strangely enough, while most kids would resent their parents for being 'too clingy; overly protective; or controlling, I could never blame them. I preferred it just the three of us anyway. We were really close. Growing up, I was sick and would often have to suffer frequent trips to the hospital, so we spent a lot of time together, more than the average person would consider healthy. Truth be told, there wasn't any time to be social or have friends so it never bothered me that I didn't have any to begin with. Although, in light of recent events and meeting Azrael, did I ever know them at all?

With each step we take, tangerine melts in into vapid darkness. Then all at once everything goes eerily silent. The vegetation loses its ethereal glow. It's difficult to make out anything any more as the only way of light now is that of a waning crescent. Azrael seems unaffected by the stygian landscape so I try to follow him to the best of ability. The ground is uneven, filled with several earthy cavities. With my new found friend, Night Blindness in tow, it becomes difficult to traverse. As I trip, I unintentionally grab Azrael's wrist. He stumbles slightly but makes no move to remove my hand. He instead helps me up, looks at what I presume is my face.

He whispers “You falling hard for me, huh?”

“Could I have a side of nachos with that cheese?” I retort.

“Sure. You could even have a french kiss for dessert.” I don't need sight to know he's wearing a sleazy grin.

“Gross. Does it bring you joy being a nuance? I thought your dramatic oath prevented you from being a low budget Casanova.”

“Nope. I can't seduce you with my hands but I can with my words.”

“Are you serious? I thought this was a weird quirk of yours but now I'm not so sure. Do you want to know what I think?”

“I'm assuming that's a rhetorical question so go ahead.”

“Okay, hotshot. I assume you also know that I'm majoring in psych but I don't need it to see just how textbook you are. You come across as someone who uses humor and sex to shield themselves from their real problems in addition to the pretense of charm as a self-defense mechanism. You're afraid of letting anyone see the real you. It is evident that there is a lot more to you from our conversation by the camp-fire. I just want you to know that I'm not going to judge you if you decide to open up to me.”

“Nice try Sigmund Freud. Maybe I am, maybe I'm not or maybe I'm just an asshole that can't keep it in his pants. The only thing missing from your performance is a receding hairline, beard and a disconcerting obsession with sexually deprived children. Yes, I know it's is an oversimplification. I knew the guy. He hated music so we didn't really get along. In all honesty, I don't care what you think. My job is to protect you. Nothing more. Nothing less.”

“ Didn't know that included racy flirtations.”

“Sometimes I can't help it. You're way too cute and easy to get all worked up. At least it's better than having you be a bland Bella Swan the whole time. You don't always have to be so high strung. Try to loosen up a bit. I'll even give you a popper if you need it.” he states giving me a playful nudge.

“That's rich coming from a glorified gigolo. Personally I'm not one to use sexually enhancing stimulants.”

“ I was just kidding. Besides, I didn't know you were so well versed in the sex industry.”

“Yeah. Well don't get any ideas.”

“Too late.”

“What do I do with you?”

“ I can't think of fair few things...”

“And with that, I think it's time to be on our merry way,” I state trudging ahead, tripping yet again, landing in a hole.

“ Can't see. Can you?” he snickers.

“How did you know?” I ask in a sarcastic tone.

“You're in a ditch.”

“Thank you captain obvious,” I exclaim throwing my hands up in the air .

“You know...” he says, sticking out his hand “ You can always hold onto me till you can differentiate between a ditch and a path."

“There's a path?”

“No... but you wouldn't know that.”

“ Funny. Just shut up and give me your hand already.”

“Dominant. I like it,” he remarks. I sigh heavily allowing him to take my hand in his. It's a lot softer than I anticipated. To be fair... I'm not really sure what I expected. I just hope we can get out of these damned woods.