“What do you want to do?” I asked, schooling my surprise and suppressing the warmth in my chest.
She grinned suddenly. “Remember when you wanted us to watch that show about Lucifer?”
I had no interest in the show or sitting down staring at people reading lines from a script. “Yes, I remember.”
“We can watch it now.”
I had to see Casmiro. He would be arriving today, and I needed to fill him in on the progress with Kareem and attend a brief signing meeting with—
“If you don’t want to, that’s fine—”
“Let’s watch it,” I said, arranging my shoes back by the side of the bed.
She got to her feet, tilting her head as she approached me with a sly smile. “Canceling plans for me?”
“Are you going to put it on?”
She reached for me, wrapping her arms around my body, startling me with a genuine smile while she looked up at me. “That’s really nice of you. No one has ever canceled plans for me.”
I looked down at her with a frown. “When was it mentioned by me in the past few minutes that I canceled plans for you?”
“You didn’t have to mention it.”
“I won’t comment because I believe everyone is allowed to be delusional.”
She held my wrists, pulling me back toward the bed. “I hope you don’t mind spoilers.”
“What are spoilers?”
I found out an hour later when she told me all that would happen in the first episode before I had the chance to actually watch it.
At first, it wasn’t annoying. I loved listening to her talk, but three episodes in, I wanted to be surprised by what was happening next. I learned from how the main character examined his thoughts, and was interested in seeing his story through. It was like reading a book but watching it happen.
Hours fell into hours, hours where I reprimanded her, kicked her off the bed, and decided to leave but stopped when she promised to quit telling me what happened, who the killer was, and why they killed the victim.
At some point, I sent a message to Casmiro, telling him I would be running late.
And yes, I ran late; the day turned into night. I was on the last episode of the first season. Zahra had left for almost an hour, brought dinner later, and I was still watching.
I watched until the second season started, and the person who’d roped me into it was fast asleep by my side.
I couldn’t sleep, so I kept on watching…
I liked the show, I liked hearing her breathe beside me, and I liked being in the same space where Elia dwelled.
I felt wholly comfortable for the first time in a long while; all troubling thoughts were set aside.
All that mattered now was this. This show, this woman beside me, and this feeling slowly coming to life in my chest.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Elio
The man sitting opposite me was agitated. Flustered. Guilty of crimes I did not care to unearth; I only cared about the discernible fact that he was wasting my time. I had other pressing matters to attend to. But Casmiro had informed me that if it were something he could have overseen himself, he would have done it.
I sat at the head of the table, with the document the man had brought forward lying right in front of me, untouched.
Angelo sat on my left side with a laptop. Casmiro was on my right, with work folders requiring my attention in front of him. They were waiting for me to speak first, the room silent as a show of respect, but I remained quiet. Soldiers manned every corner in and outside the space, those who belonged to the stranger, Angelo, Casmiro, and me.
