Page 30 of Virgil's Demons

"Have you been okay?" he asked, a slight furrow in his brow, as if he already knew the answer.

"I've been managing," I replied, though the lie tasted bitter on my tongue. The truth was, I wasn't okay. The dreams, the visions—they were clawing at me every night. I hadn't been sleeping, and even now, as I stood next to him, the voices kept whispering in my mind, taunting me with thoughts I wasn't ready to face.

"I'm sorry I didn't call. I wanted to," he began.

"It's okay," I started, but he stopped me.

"No, it's not. I should have called, checked in on you..."

"You found me that night?"

He nodded. "Yeah, I did. And I've never been so scared in my whole damn life."

My heart skipped a beat knowing he cared. "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course. You can ask me anything, baby girl."

I swallowed hard at the sweet term he used on me. It did something to me. "What happened that night? What did you see?"

He watched me for a long moment, as if trying to decide what to say next. "You don't remember?"

I shook my head. "No."

He sighed, walking over to a bench and gesturing for us to sit. After a long drawn out moment, he spoke. "I don't know what the fuck is going on with you or me, but what happened that night was...it was fucking crazy."

"Crazy, how?" I leaned into his side, seeking his warmth.

"It was as if you called me that night. I'd never felt that type of desperate need to see someone like that before. When I got to your door, I just had this feeling of dread. So I broke in."

"That's what happened to the door," I murmured.

"You were kneeling, your wrists lay on your thighs. You'd slit your wrists, Barythaya."

"What?" I asked, now terrified.

He nodded. "You were already nearly half bled out when I found you. I keep thinking...if I wouldn't have been there. If I gotten there when I did..."

"I placed a hand over his thigh and he turned to me. "You would have died, baby girl."

The earnest in his eyes touched my heart and I slid my hand over his jaw. He pressed a hand to mine and squeezed it. "I don't know what to say to that..."

I shook my head, my eyes glimmering with unshed tears. "You don't have to say anything. I should say thank you. Thank you for saving me."

I slid my arms around him, and he enveloped me in his heat. "What the hell have you done to me?" He whispered against my neck, pulling me in tighter. "I can't stop thinking of you."

"Neither can I," I whispered back.

He pulled back, cradling my face. "I didn't call because you're better off without me, Barythaya."

"That's not your decision to make," I stated. "It's not even mine anymore," I murmured softly.

He gave one nod as if he understood. "Can you forgive me for being a dick?"

I smiled. "I'm not sure yet. I'll let you know in a little while."

Grabbing my hand, we walked together, past the maze, where screams echoed out into the night. The trail wound deeper into the woods, the lights growing dimmer. There was a haunted house ahead, old and decrepit, with more decorations strung along the outside—grinning skeletons, severed heads, and spider webs clinging to the cracked windows. People filtered in and out of it, laughter and fear mixed together.

I could feel that voice in the back of my mind, gnawing at me, telling me to pull Virgil closer. To make him hurt me, make me bleed. I shook the thoughts away, focusing on him instead, on the way his hand brushed against mine as we walked.

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