Last night, though…
Having Seren here made it feel different.
It still feels different.
Her scent lingers in the air alongside the remnants of our conversation. Her things are here, her very presence making this place feel fuller.
Just having her here has already made it feel more like home.
Sentimental, fanciful thoughts I shouldn’t allow myself even a passing moment to indulge, but I can’t help it as I work to silently stretch the soreness from my muscles.
It’s early, and Seren’s still sleeping peacefully when I rise and dress as quietly as I can.
She’s bundled up in my bed, covers pulled too high for me to see her face, but I can feel her presence, hear her breathing, and there’s nothing in any of the thirteen realms I want more than to stay right here.
Or, better yet, to crawl into bed next to her, make sure she’s warm, curl myself around her and hold her until she wakes.
We’re nowhere near trusting each other or being comfortable enough around each other for that, though it does nothing to stop the fantasy from forming in my mind. I do my best to shove it away as I head for the door.
I’ve got one stop to make this morning before whatever awaits Seren and I as we resume our hunt for the fae queen’s heart. Though I’m loath to leave her, I won’t be long, and I hope she’ll sleep peacefully until I return.
The streets are quiet in the gray of early morning.
My destination is only a short half-mile away, and while most mornings I’d usually walk, I indulge in a portal today knowing it means I’ll be able to return to Seren sooner.
Luckily, it’s early enough that the streets are nearly empty, and I don’t accidentally run into any other demons as I step out of the portal and onto a familiar street corner.
It’s a better neighborhood than the one I live in, but not by much.
The houses and apartment buildings here are better maintained, filled with families, some of whom have lived here for decades. In a quieter end of the city, with streets running up and down gently sloping, tree-lined hills, it only takes another minute to reach my destination.
I knock on a door I’ve walked through thousands of times, and after a few seconds and some muted footsteps coming down the stairs, a familiar voice calls out to me from inside.
“Who is it?”
“It’s me, ma.”
I’m not surprised to find she’s already awake, despite the fact that it’s barely past dawn.
She’s been an early riser since my father was alive, when she’d be up before the sun to make sure he had food to take withhim when he left for whatever he was passing off as a job at the time.
Ma never broke the habit, even though he’s been gone over ten years, and when she swings the door open, she looks like she’s been up for hours. Fully dressed, makeup on, the smell of cooking wafting out from the kitchen.
She smiles broadly. “Callum! Come in, come in.”
The inside of my childhood home hasn’t changed since I left it decades ago. Scuffed wooden floors, worn rugs, walls covered in sun-faded artwork, and shelves filled with various curios and collectibles. The furniture has seen better days and the whole place could use repainting and refinishing, but it’s neat as a pin, as always.
“You’re here so early,” ma says, leading the way to the small sitting area near the front windows and settling into her customary spot. “I hope nothing’s wrong.”
I murmur a non-reply as I sit, too, not able to bring myself to lie to her.
Like I knew she would, she detects the evasion immediately. She looks me up and down, eyes narrowing, and I wonder if she already knows what I’m about to say.
“Out with it then. You never show up this early just to visit.”
I reach into my pocket for a creased piece of paper—the one that was pinned on my door when Seren and I arrived yesterday—and hold it out to her.
“The bills haven’t been paid this month.”
