Lord Liverchester

Chapter 20

Sleeping that night felt like falling into Heaven. I was sure I had died, my body free of all pain and only feeling warmth. With Dorian's arms wrapped around me, his heart beating in my ear, protected by a heavy shell of blankets, I felt like nothing could hurt me. Neither of us knew when we fell asleep, waking up to sunlight trying to peek through thick red curtains. Dorian was serious about wanting privacy, so he covered all the windows with multiple layers of sheets and curtains. I woke up first, looking around the room with my head still laying on Dorian's chest. It was a decent sized room with high ceilings, all the walls painted red. It was like any other room in Dorian's house, dark, with things hanging on the walls. Any woodwork was stained dark, including the furniture. The closet was a few feet away from the foot of the bed, a dark space with large sliding doors. Beside the closet entrance was a chest of drawers, on top of which were wine bottles, candles, jewelry, and fur. A white fringed shawl was draped over the whole thing, its fringe hanging down over the drawers. I figured that would be annoying, getting in the way all the time. Opening a drawer to find anything would have been nearly impossible. I picked my head up to look at what I hadn't yet seen. There was a shelf that covered a whole wall, split up into three sections, with 12 individual spaces in total. Each possible space was filled up, holding things of all kinds. There were books, more wine bottles, animal heads, things in jars, knives on full display, and even kids' toys. I stared for a long time, trying to take in all I could without moving. It wasn't long before I saw an alligator staring back at me. It was dead, but I still got a chill. I wiggled around and tried to cover my head, but the blankets were stuck under Dorian's body. I was afraid of disturbing him, so I stayed still, looking up at the high ceiling. There were cobwebs hanging in the corners and the white ceiling was cracking. There were cracks in the walls too, but the red paint hid them for the most part. The windows were unlike any I had ever seen, reaching from near the ceiling to close to the floor, secured to the wall by thick wood. The glass was frosted from what I could see in a gap behind a curtain. I watched the curtain move back and forth with a breeze I couldn't feel, safe from any cold air as I was wrapped in the blankets so tightly. I was practically glued to Dorian's body, but there was nowhere else I would rather be. I looked down at his sleeping face, compelled to smile because he looked so peaceful and happy. I could see his eyes flittering behind his eyelids as he was deep in a dream. Then his hand twitched, just the smallest movement in his fingers. I quickly looked away, not wanting to alarm him if he woke up. He came out of sleep slowly while I focused elsewhere. I felt his body wake up one part at a time; by no means did he wake up all at once. I closed my eyes and listened to his breathing change, speeding up when his chest woke up. I turned my head just as he opened his eyes, the dim light still making his dark eyes shine. I kissed him good morning, tightening my grip around his middle. He blinked slowly and smiled, running his hand through my hair and down my back. His movements were tired, still off in another world. He said nothing, but he growled his signature growl, stretching his legs and spine, all of his bones cracking and making awful sounds. He was unbothered by the sounds, sighing in soft relief at the alleviation of pain. I pressed my palms against his chest firmly as he shifted, rolling onto his side. He adjusted himself more, wiggling around a lot but making sure he didn't squish me. Once again his body settled and his eyes closed, nearly falling asleep again. I looked over his shoulder at the shelves, still interested what was on them. A lot of it looked important, perhaps hiding a lot of secrets and stories. It hadn't been touched in years by the looks of it, mostly covered in a thick layer of dust. I briefly wondered what most of the stuff was, if he would ever tell me the stories. He heard my wondering, preparing an answer. He opened one eye and shifted again, rubbing it with the back of his hand.

"Maybe someday," he answered. "There's a lot to be told. You'll find out sooner or later, I'm sure."

There was more after that but he coughed, the interruption cutting off an unfinished thought. He sighed deeply and stretched again, reaching his hands outward to grab onto his pillow. His body settled again but he kept his eyes open from that point on, not drifting back to sleep despite looking like he wanted to. I nuzzled into his chest stronger than ever, my nose accidentally buried in his chest hair. I hadn't managed to fully undress him the night before, but his white undershirt didn't fully cover him by design. He smelled so good, a scent that had imprinted itself into my memory as purely what he smelled like. I breathed it in for a while, falling into him as he ran his paws through my hair and over my shoulders repeatedly. There was a deep rumble in his chest, a sound that started in his throat and ended up traveling through his whole body. I brushed it off as more growls at first but there was a melody to it. He was humming softly, a sweet sound. It was a new melody, one that was coming to him in real time. I liked it and the words that came with it. They didn't hold much meaning yet, still in the early stages and using a lot of work. He tapped all his fingers on my shoulder, looking past me as he mimicked playing piano and saw the notes in his head. He went over them more than once, making sure he didn't lose what he heard. The longer he went at it, the more serious his words became. He was lost in his head, forgetting the world. His eyes glazed over, staring at the wall or the lamp on the bedside table. I watched his face as he figured it out, his expression serious and determined. He was off in his own world for a long time, nowhere near anything real. Whatever he heard captivated him, whisking him away to a far away place and taking over all of his senses. It let him go slowly, releasing him when he finally had a grip on the song he was building. It eventually got him out of bed, but he was finally back to reality. He pulled me along excitedly, leaving the warm bed and all its comfort behind. I looked back at it once, wondering if we would be back there again at night. Dorian's hand was warm in mine, sweaty and twitching eagerly. The nearest piano was the one from the night before, and my violin was still resting on top of it. Dorian's eyes flashed white with the excitement that was still growing. He played the new song for me properly, adding in the fragments of words and sentences he was hearing. It was a beautiful song, lyrics about people finding each other after years of being apart but nothing's really changed. I smiled, able to relate, of course. He instructed me on how to play what he heard from the violins, making it easy to understand. I did as I was told, and in no time the two of us were playing something wonderful. I watched him, admiring his skills that never wavered. Even after hearing and seeing him do this so many times, it still amazed me. His talents were beyond words.