Demons Run

Demons Run (18) Heat of the Moment

Demons Run (18) Heat of the Moment

"Angel?" Roman asked, sticking his head in through the door some twenty minutes later. "You ready?"

     "Oh, yeah, I am." I gave a smile.

     Any nervousness or discomfort from my little visit with Ezekial and Michael faded away. Roman made me focus on the present again, all that was good and not what was particularly confusing or bad.

     I hopped up from the bed and strolled over to Roman, who was grinning at me. His dimples were were deep, showing themselves to me, and I had to fight the urge to reach right up and pinch his cheeks.

     "What are you staring at, loser?" He asked with a laugh, after an extended period of allowing me to space out as I gazed at his face.

     "Your dimples, freak." I shot back.

     "You like that?" He wiggled his eyebrows, "I have cute butt dimples too."

     "Mmm, I bet." I stifled a laugh and tried to look unimpressed with him.

     "If you behave tonight I might let you see them." He said, opening the door wider and allowing me out of the room.

     Rolling my eyes, I cut the lights and stepped into the hallway. Roman began leading the way and I followed close behind. There were scattered people here and there in the hallways and out on the deck as we walked, but few. For a ship so big, there weren't nearly as many people as I had expected.

     "Are Pain and Panic not coming?" I asked, looking up to him.

     Roman looked a bit choked up at the question, like maybe he hadn't prepared for it. "I figured they were a little too hyper for what I have in mind so I sent them to do midnight limbo in the lounge. It's just us."

     I gave him a curious look, unsure of how to respond. I'd been alone with him before, but it had never been from our own free will. It was then that we reached a series of doors until he opened up the very last door. There was a dark spiral stairway leading upward.

     I paused, "Where are we going, anyway?" 

     "You'll see." He said vaguely. I stared up the stairwell curiously, unmoving. "Come on, it's okay." 

     He reached down and offered his hand for me to take. I stared at it for only a split second before deciding to take it; when his hand touched mine, he began pulling me softly behind him and up the dark staircase. Butterflies released in my gut and I tried not to gasp at his touch. We continued up into the bleak unknown destination, and Roman didn't let go of my hand; he held onto our intertwined fingers and I was glad it was dark, because I couldn't stop the foolish smile on my face. It was such a small gesture, but for Roman, something so small as a touch was meaningful.

     It felt like we walked for forever, turning corners and ascending for much longer than I'd anticipated. By the time Roman stopped me just before we reached the top, my calves were burning. He turned around, standing on just the step above me. I could tell we were almost at the top because around a few more stairs there was a very, very dim glow. My eyes had adjusted to the darkness by this point, and I could see Roman looking down at me. "Alright, close your eyes."

     "Roman—"

     "Close your eyes or I'm not taking you." He said stubbornly. "Do you think I'm gonna push you down the stairs or something?"

     "Maybe." I eyed him warily.

     "You're such a fucking killjoy sometimes, Eve." Roman huffed, "Now close your fucking eyes, because you know I'm not gonna hurt you."