Page 161 of Living Legend

I saw her fingers tighten around the smooth curves of the armrest, her eyes flicking open, fire burning in them. She flinched for a moment as she bounded off the chair. She was eye level to me as I hunched my shoulders. I wasn't shocked by her unbridled emotion; I was expecting it. It honestly looked like it hurt, the way her chest was heaving. She grabbed my shirt with her good arm and twisted the fabric into her fingers. She pulled me forward as I watched the red glints of fire dance in her eyes.

"You don't know a fucking thing." The crossing switchblade tattoo on her neck pulsed.

"It's alright to admit you care, Elise."

"Jokes on you because I don't fucking care. It's actually hilarious that you think so. Don't project your angelic emotions onto me; it's disgusting."

I leaned in a bit, slightly amused at how right I was. "I'm not buying it. I can't believe I didn't see it sooner."

"There is nothing to see, you annoying prick," she snarled at me.

"You came here to protect her."

"Shut up."

"You came here because you had no idea what was going on, but you wanted to make sure she was alright."

"Fuck off."

"You didn't want Lilith to hurt her, so you pushed her. You pushed her to keep her alive."

"Tread carefully, pretty boy." She tightened her hold on my shirt.

I pressed my lips together, trying not to laugh. "You want to know why you did that, Elise?"

Her eyes were tiny slits now as she waited. She stayed silent, almost daring me to let the next words pass my lips.

"Because you fuckingcare."

Her eyes widened and she held onto my shirt as she pulled me towards her and whirled me around before I could say anything else. Mid turn, she grabbed the back of my neck and slammed me down onto the table, pressing my cheek to the wood surface. I felt a sharp twinge of pain, realizing I had accidentally bitten my tongue. My shoulders tensed up, but I could see a defensive move a mile away. Elise leaned down as she pressed her fingers into the side of my neck.

“You are starting to irritate me more than your friend," she said against my ear, her hair brushing the skin at the top.

I swallowed, trying to find my words, which was difficult when half my face was smashed. "You are only irritated because you know I'm right."

She huffed against my ear. "Stop making me sound like a fucking pussy, Nicholas. I'm not. The decisions I made have nothing to do with your little girlfriend, so just fucking stop."

I tried to raise my head up, but she pushed me back down. I could feel my teeth rub aggressively against the inside of my cheek. I shouldn't push my luck, but with Elise, I couldn't beat around the bush. I just had to give everything to her straight. "Every decision you've made has been because of her. I think if you didn't let your fucking pride get in the way, you would have just been honest, but no, you couldn't do that. You had to keep her at arm's length, like I'm sure you do everyone."

She let out one loud grunt and released my neck, pulling away from me and stomping across the room. I remained bent over the table for a few moments, waiting. I pushed myself up, placing the palms of my hands against the table, reaching up to rub the side of my face. My skin felt flattened from the wood and cool to the touch. I slowly turned around to look at her, staring at me from across the room as if waiting for me to collect myself. The wound in her shoulder was pulsing and looked as if it needed that amethyst stuff sooner rather than later.

She shook her head, her dark full bangs fanning back and forth. "You make everything sound so fucking simple, you know. It makes me want to throw up, how simple you think everything is."

"I never said it had to be simple. I just said it would have been easier. This could have made a difference," I argued.

"Easier how, huh? Ever since I met her, I knew something was off but I didn't think about it. I just did what I was told, but then when Lilith told me, yeah, I thought it was fucked up, but you learn to just not ask questions down there." Elise licked her lips, pausing for a moment. She let out a light chuckle that sounded almost a little defeated. "I don't do friendships because they require a bond I can't commit to. There is always something that is going to fuck them up, and it's a real waste of time to try and hope for the best."

"Dani wanted your friendship, didn't she?"

"Of course, she fucking did. Even if I wanted to, if I didn't keep her demon brimming at the surface…" She trailed off, biting her lower lip.

"Elise, it's okay that you—" I started but she waved her hand before I could finish and started speaking again. "I made sure Lilith didn't kill her, alright? That doesn't make us friends, but it also doesn't make me a monster. I just didn't want all my hard work to go to waste if she decided to defect and Lilith ripped her heart out."

"It's okay to admit you didn't want her to die because you started to like her," I coaxed, wanting something other than sarcasm to leave her mouth.

She twisted the side of her mouth as if she were scrutinizing my words. "I will likely never admit that."

"Okay, will you admit that you came to Heaven's Gate with her to keep an eye on her, because you care about her and her wellbeing?"

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