Ah! Heaven!
“Woah!” Chester pulls off his glasses and quickly cleans them with the edge of his dress shirt before putting them back on and staring at my drink. “Where did that come from? It’s almost as big as you!”
A giggle escapes me, and I quickly smother it before I get another ill look from our professor. Lowering my voice and leaning in, I decide to share my favorite place.
“I take it you’ve never been to the best coffee shop in Nova?” Chester shakes his head and a brilliant plan takes root. “Why don’t we meet early enough for coffee before dinner, and I can show you around or—wait…how well do you know Nova?” I ask, taking another sip of my heavenly delight. I can’t believe I’ve only had a couple of these today. I’m so behind.
He waves away my concern with a smile. “My family just moved to Nova yesterday, and I haven’t had a chance to get my bearings. I’m all for having a tour along with dinner. Do you know anyone willing to meet with me early to show me around?”
I beam as I bump into his shoulder and whisper, “Yeah.”
I feel eyes boring into me, and I spot Gertrude staring daggers at me. I don’t know where the moxie comes from, maybe from the guy sitting next to me, but I quickly stick out my tongue and smile, much to the shock of the smelly fish woman.
Nothing could bring down my high right now.
ChapterEight
BABY STEPS
JP
Afew minutes after Moni takes off out of the dorm like she was fired from a rocket launcher, Knots makes his appearance. Apparently the footsteps we heard was Knots returning to his station, but before he settled in, we got the pleasure of reliving that night. The relief I feel that he’s back and hasn’t been lost forever surprises me. But after what he did to try to protect our home, and to know he’s alright and back with us again, that’s all I care about.
“Where are those fuckers!? What happened? How long have I been gone?”His voice booms out, making my head rattle. Rez’s wince is the only indicator she hears Knots also.
“I’m sorry,” her voice cracks as tears gather in her eyes, “but I...I can’t do this right now.” Her emotions crash against me as she runs back to my room to be alone. Even after the workers came and put everything back together like it was brand new, she still decides to crawl into my bed. I’m not sure how I feel about that.
On one hand, she obviously isn’t ready to go back to her room alone, and on the other, I’m selfish enough to hold onto the fact she’s still sleeping in my bed. Even though it’s innocent, I preen at the idea she feels comfortable enough to have me curl up around her and just hold her. It makes me feel like I matter and can offer her the comfort that she sorely craves and needs right now. My heart breaks as I hear a sob leave her.
‘Was it something I said?’Knots asks, his voice taking on a somber tone.
Letting out a sigh and pinching the bridge of my nose, I plop down on the sofa.
‘How much time do you have?’The words flow out without me thinking.Fuck me. Of course he has the time, where would he run off to?
It ends up taking a little over an hour to fill in Knots to what had happened while he was gone. Catching him up on the guys might be a mistake when he vows to castrate all of them if they dare harm a strand of hair on her gorgeous head.It’s just our luck that we got the one moody, yet protective as shit knight attached to ma chérie.He wanted to know what happened after he was shoved into the dark crevice of the ‘black abyss of dullness,’ so I try to fill in the blanks the best I can and relay what I found out through Rez’s flashback.
After spending time talking to Knots, and thanking him for all of his efforts, he agrees to help in any way he can. The first thing he is going to do is get a hold of the Door Knight network and put out feelers for Lynx since he’s still missing. Earth has Google, but we have Door Knights, and they are a force to reckon with when a task is put forth.
Knots decides to check in on his friends after that and see what gossip is running around, and I find myself needing to check on ma chérie. She’s resting peacefully on top of the covers, so I grab my duvet and gently place it around her and tuck her in, placing a kiss on a worry line that graces her forehead.
My heart hurts seeing her like this. There are two different types of wounds we end up with. There are the ugly cuts that bleed and sometimes disfigure us. Then you have the ones which rip and shred at the base of who we are. They are the ones that can devour your soul and irrevocably change you forever. The latter one is the type of wound I’m afraid ma chérie is dealing with now. The only thing I can do is help keep her from spiraling into despair and allowing her to rest when she can.
I can’t seem to focus on anything at the moment, so mindless TV is what’s in store for now as I make my way back to the living room. Sitting back and channel surfing, I stop on a comedy show called Shitty Shifters. Whoever decided this was something to be watched had their mind vaporized apparently.
Bang!
What the hell? Shooting up from my slouched position, I look up and find Moni rushing into the room.
‘You okay there, Knots?’
‘Ye little pixie pop wanted in so I tried to move quickly. Forgot there was a wall.’
“KNOTS! You’re back. Yay! Welcome back, our humble Knight! I’ve missed you, and I can’t wait to hear all about what happened to you! I bet it was something big to take you out. I’m in a hurry though, and I can’t be late. You’ll have to catch me later! Promise,” Moni calls, flying down to her room before stripping off her teal jacket and dropping it to the floor as she goes.
What the hell is going on?
Getting up, I follow her down to her room, picking up her discarded jacket on the way.
