Only Fire

Chapter 18

Snow fell in large chunks around me, dancing like frozen flower petals. I snuggled deeper into the warmth of Zane's jacket to hide away from the bitter cold. I lifted the yellow umbrella higher above me, keeping the icy flakes away from my skin. 

The atmosphere was beautiful and thinking about tonight, my emotions matched it. My body wanted to express what I was feeling, but the pain was not worth five seconds of twirling happily in the dazzling snow.

Lost in anticipation for tonight, the walk felt only a few minutes compared to the thirty it normally took. I stepped into the little cafe, removed my orange beanie, and got rid of the extra snow. Warmth embraced me like the snuggles from a furry cat and I welcomed it.

The coffee shop was always busy in the mornings, full of humans filling their bodies with artificial adrenaline. They sipped on the brown liquid without ever knowing that monsters sat just a few seats away from them.

I stood there in the center of the room, searching for the fairy. Luckily, most humanity was busy on their laptops or engrossed in the books opened in front of them to notice my awkwardness.

I found Elfred in a back corner with two steaming cups of coffee sitting in front of him. He was staring at the wall, waiting for whatever conversation I was going to throw his way. The world around him was as oblivious as he was to the world.

I slid into the booth across from Elfred, but he didn't seem to notice me as he never took his eyes off of the plain tan wall.

"Hey," I said.

Silence. I tapped on the table, and he finally turned his head toward me.

"Oh, hey! You must have snuck in here."

"No, not really. I spoke to you, but you seemed to be lost in your own thoughts."

"Hmm, I'm sorry. I have a lot going on right now... Oh, here," he said, passing me one of the heated cups of coffee. The hot liquid flowed smoothly down my throat, warming this cold human entrapment.

"Mmmm," I moaned.

"That good, huh?" he laughed raising a blonde eyebrow in my direction. I didn't realize the moan had slipped from my mouth until it was too late.

"Yeah, I guess so." I giggled trying to cover up my embarrassment. 

His finger slid around the smooth rim of the mug as if he contemplated the next words he wanted to say. Was he frightened of this conversation?

"Let's cut to the chase. What do you want to talk to me about?" he said with a deep sigh. 

That pause wasn't long enough. I wanted to at least enjoy my drink before I made him angry. Was I honestly ready to have this conversation with him? I didn't know the answer to that question, but I was soon to find out. If Lucy still had her memories, he needed to tell us and the only way to know for sure would be to ask him that question myself.

"Does Lucy know?"

"Know what?" Apparently, I was going to have to be blunt.

"Does she still have her memories, Elfred?" 

Silence. There was a long pause as I looked at him. Abruptly, he shifted his gaze from me to the wall, as if envisioning a window that overlooked a picturesque scene of snowflakes dancing down, while he attempted to unravel his tangled thoughts.

"Elfred?" 

No answer. He continued to stare. By this point I knew the answer that was coming. If he didn't answer me right away, he would try to figure out a way to escape or the best way to break the news to me.