The Monster in my Bed

• Warmth •

It is now the middle of the winter season, christmas is very near, and pure, white, glistening snow littered the ground.

Dark and I walked side by side, our footsteps in sync as we trotted down the sidewalk of the beautiful streets of Granby, the glamorous city we now live in. I gazed at the beautiful warm twinkle lights that decorated the sides of buildings and skyscrapers down the way. Old Hollywood music blared through the streets in a serene and romantic fashion as we walked along, smiling courteously at folk who made eye contact with us.

"There." Dark spoke as he pointed at a nearby café.
"They have that very delicious hot cocoa I mentioned a few days ago." he informed and my eyes lit up, my mouth watered.
"Let's go then!" I chirped as I clinged onto his arm.

We walked into the café, it was so warm and cozy. A nice warm glow radiated throughout the small restaurant.
"Hello! Welcome to Brew&Bae Café. How may I assist you today?" the host greeted as soon as we walked through the threshold.

"Uh- Yes. We would both like to order the Hot Cocoa Lux." he ordered and I nodded along.
"Sure thing! That will be $9.75." she stated and Dark and I both instantly reached for our pockets.

I was in the mindset of paying for my own hot cocoa, however, Dark stopped me with a demanding look.
"I got it." he insisted as he pulled out his wallet, however, his wallet was empty, he materialized more money out of thin air, between his fingertips.

I narrowed my eyes at him and he winked slyly at me.
"Thank you so much!" The host chirped as she accepted the money and opened the cash register.
"Your hot cocoas will be up soon."

We both nodded with a smile before going to sit by a window.
Snow began to fall suddenly. I gazed outside the window admirably, watching as each snowflake gently stuck to the window before melting.

"It's so odd to think that it has almost been a year since you came into my life." I muttered softly, my gaze still fixed onto the snow that was falling outside.

"Yeah. Sort of." Dark replied as he swiped his fingertip along his phone screen as he looked at it.

"Will I ever know your reasoning for coming here?" I asked after a moment of silence passed.
He gave me a calm look before opening his mouth to say those three words I always hated to hear.
"....In due time."

I rolled my eyes as I averted my eyes from the window and onto him.
"You know- You always say that, but-" I started until he interrupted.
"I get you are curious, but you have to just trust in me. You will know soon, but I can't just throw around private information all silly nilly, okay?" he warned, a dark intensity in his eyes told me that I should leave that topic alone for now.
"Okay." I muttered as I looked down at the table, slightly disappointed.
"All you need to know is that, I care about you a lot. Too much, matter of fact." he chuckled, his hand resting atop mine.

"I really like you." he spoke, and I picked up a sincerity in his voice I haven't really heard from anyone before. My heart swelled as I bit my lip in anticipation. My cheeks warmed up as I used my free hand to push a few strands of hair behind my ear.

He giggled when seeing how flustered I became.
"It's fine, if you aren't ready to respond to that right now." he assured and I felt relieved.

"Thank you." I spoke softly as I smiled gently.
"You also mean a lot to me as well." I stated.

"Here you two love birds go!" the host called out as she set down both of our huge mugs of hot cocoa. The mug was as big as our heads, filled with rich hot chocolate, layered with plenty of gooey marshmallows, and topped with a heap of whipped cream and cocoa powder.