Destined Demons

Chapter Forty-Eight | Heart and Feelings and Stuff

"Her name is Mariah," he states, catching me off guard and my gaze goes down to the picture.

"Is?"

His eyes flicker up to me and I understand by the uncomfortable glint in them that him didn't mean to tell me that. I shake my head instantly when he opens his mouth to say something, "You don't have to say anything. Nothing at all," I say and his eyes widen slightly.

"What are you two lovebirds whispering about?" Gabby calls from down the hallway and I take a step away from Noah.

"Nothing!" I state, my voice cracking. Noah doesn't take his eyes off me as I move around him towards the sink and begin washing my hands. "You...You said you needed help?" I ask, glancing back at him.

His dark blue eyes stare deeply into my own before he sets the picture down on the table and walks over to me. I feel all the color drain from my face when he stops right in front of me and continues staring straight through me. His hand reaches up to my cheek and he pushes a strand of my hair behind my ear, and my knees go weak.

He doesn't say anything as his fingertips trace over my ear and down my neck, over my collarbone and down my arm before stopping at my hand and he intertwines our fingers. I inhale a shaky breath and his eyes flicker down to my lips, causing me to pull my bottom lip between my teeth.

My eyes widen slightly when his flash the golden color that has haunted my memory and they flicker back up to mine, almost like he's asking permission to kiss me. I want to say yes, give him some type of signal that might tell him that that's exactly what I want, but then there's Gabby and Ax right down the hall and they are probably listening in on us.

I glance down the hallway for a moment before looking back at Noah, finding him staring at my lips again. My entire body freezes when he raises his free hand to my cheek and tucks a few of his fingers into my hair.

He continues staring at my lips until his eyes slowly raise to mine, and the corner of his lips tilt up into a small smile. Even though it's small, and he's not even smiling with his perfect teeth, it still makes my heart beat a million times faster.

"Noah..?" I whisper, my voice shaking. As soon as his name leaves my lips, his eyes shift back to blue and my breath catches in my throat at how beautiful they are.

"I don't know how I survived without you this past week," he states so softly that I almost didn't hear him. My eyes widen at his words, knowing that they're completely true because I almost died without him too.

I inhale a sharp breath before giving him a small smile, "Me neither."

His thumb rubs over my bottom lip, eliciting a soft gasp from me and his eyes turn back to golden. He continues staring at me intensely and silently, and I wonder what he's thinking about. His calculating blue eyes scan over my face multiple times, flickering back to my eyes every so often.

I watch him in return, scanning over his face so that I can memorize every single detail. If I'm ever to forget him again, I won't because I know exactly what he looks like.

I'll remember the dimple on the left side of his lips, the fast change of color in his eyes, his small ears, his callused hands. I will remember every single detail about him because he is everything to me.