Meet Me in the Middle Ground

Chapter One

"I think... not."

For some reason, she had been unable to keep the hesitance out of her voice, although she was fairly certain Chris was far more important. Maybe, tomorrow he would have walked by their food stand again to buy their products and she would have mustered the courage to ask him out herself this time, so they would have watched the parade and dance some more and do many more fun things, other than standing on a tower and missing out on all of that. "You see, I have finally found someone I really want to spend my time with. I don't know what I'm feeling, but I'm sure it's something beautiful-" What was she saying now...? "I'm so happy, so much you can't understand-" She cupped her cheeks, near singsonging now and shut your mouth Nina! "S-so could you-... uhm..."

Where was she going with this?

The warmness of her jowls and the fuzzy feeling in her chest repositioned her on tracks: refuse his impositions by embarrassing herself, right.

Azazel, in the meantime, had directed her a quizzical look of disdain, lips slightly pronounced.

"What... are you being serious right now?"

"I am serious!" Why wouldn't she be? The scowl on the demon's face considerably deepened, as well as the shadows sharpening his pale facial features. "Sorry, shouldn't have told you those things, you obviously aren't interested. Bye!"

She turned, raising her hand to wave goodbye and cutting off any impediment separating her from going to bed and seeing Chris again in her dreams – silly silly Nina! After just one evening together those amber eyes of his were already all over her mind, with their glints of amusement and their golden shine reflecting the lights from the adorned streetlamps.

Her right wrist was captured by Azazel's fingers, long nails briefly punctured the skin uncovered by her band.

"You are not going anywhere until you promise me you'll be there."

Nina turned around, eyes slightly widened.

"H-hey, I already told you—"

"I don't care about that bullshit. You are going to be there, your stupidity be damned."

Anger flashed in her chest but was extinguished as soon as it emerged. She was more-than-annoyed now, a bit frightened by his aggressive manners, though not excessively and not to the point of freezing on the spot. They were alone in this deserted, sparsely illuminated street, the silence was thick and not reassuring, yet she wasn't afraid. Some minor part of her wondered why, for the first time, she was also feeling anything but flustered, although she was in the presence of an attractive – scratch that, handsome – guy.

"That's not how it works, Azazel," She said, keeping her tone chirpy, slacking the grip on her wrist by taking a step back toward him. "You must first tell me what exactly I am promising to do."

And maybe calm down a little.

A dozen of emotions passed through Azazel's twitching, hooded eyes.

"I don't have to do such thing, if you would just...!"

"Then we're done!" She interrupted him, freeing her wrist. "Don't put yourself into a mess again, or Mugaro will worry."

"We are not remotely done, you—"

"Azazel."

A third voice insinuated itself between them, the voice of a young male right behind Azazel.