As they walked toward the exit, Reine was disappointed at having their time together come to an end. She also dreaded having to make excuses as to why she couldn't give him her phone number or see him again.
Well, in case he asked, anyway. She sighed. Maybe she should just invite him up to her room, instead.
"Watch your step, it's slippery," he cautioned, pulling the door open and holding it for her to head out into the cold night.
"Oh, shoot! My scarf—" She reached backwards to get the clothing still inside on the back of the chair. Meanwhile, Gabe was already tugging at the handle to close it properly. In the confusion, Reine caught her hand between the door and its frame.
"Oww!" The pain from her crushed fingers pulsated throughout her entire arm.
Letting go of the door, he rushed to her side. "Oh my God! Are you okay?"
"Yeah, it's nothing." She took a deep breath, ashamed both for the lie and for causing him guilt. "Can you get my scarf, please?"
"No, we need to get you to an emergency room. Your fingers could be broken." His initial shock had dissipated, and common sense was kicking in.
"It's just a bruise. Now can you just please get my scarf? I'm freezing out here." The request was more forceful than she normally would have liked. However, the fear of him noticing the swiftly fading signs of her injury was stronger than Reine's desire for niceties.
Her system was already going into overdrive, and sweat began to roll down her face. Within minutes, her hand would look as good as new. Even someone seemingly open-minded as Gabe would have a hard time not questioning how that was possible.
"Fine, but you're going to have to let me take a look at it once we're back inside." Realizing there was no use for arguing, he walked back through the door that caused this dilemma.
"Sure," she mumbled, already looking for the right moment to put an end to the mess she'd caused. She waited until he got several feet into the coffeehouse before sprinting across the street at the fastest pace the glistening ice would allow. Within seconds, she was inside the hotel.
The receptionist was still on duty, and Reine couldn't risk drawing attention to herself. Slowing down, her wet boots squeaked on the polished, stone floors as she casually walked to the elevator. It opened immediately upon calling, and once inside, she pressed the button for the fifth floor.
The door took too long to move, and she frantically began tapping the button to close. When it finally did, she looked at the flawless skin on her previously bruised and broken hand.
She was now safe, but she'd come too close to revealing that she possessed unnatural healing abilities. It was because of this she also hadn't aged in over half a millennium. Keeping this a secret wasn't for fear of dying — she couldn't do that either. At least not permanently. The only time she'd died, she had reawakened. However, it had come at a very stiff price: forgetting the first twenty-three years of her life.
That was long ago, but she couldn't risk losing what now amounted to centuries' worth of memories. Even if it meant voluntarily forgetting she'd ever met Gabriel Moran.