Page 46 of Shadow

“Sylar, if you please,” Asylum said, cocking his head to the left. “That’s my name.”

“Your name will be fuckingdeadif you don’t pay the fuck attention to what I’m telling you.”

Asylum waved him off. “I got it. Shadow isn’t allowed to fuck her. I’ll make sure it doesn’t happen. I’m good at being a cockblock.”

I looked at Church and frowned.

“Don’t look at me like that, specter,” Church murmured when he noticed me. “I love you. I want you to be safe. I don’t like you being away from me.”

I pressed a finger to his lips to silence him.

He closed his eyes for a moment before exhaling and staring at me.

“Please be good,” he said softly.

I went up on my tiptoes and kissed him. He fell into it easily, dragging me against his body and crushing his lips harder against mine. When he pulled away, my lips were swollen from his kiss, and my breath came in soft gasps.

“Be good,” Church whispered again, his words feathering across my lips. “Please, be fucking safe, baby. I worry.”

I kissed him again before backing away, his eyes locked on my every move. Asylum held my coat out for me, and I slipped into the thick layers before he moved around in front of me to zip it. It was my long jacket, so I’d definitely be warm in my dress.

“Looks like you’re wearing a comfy blanket,” Asylum mused, smirking at me as he tugged a hat over my head. “Cute.” He chucked my chin before turning to Church.

“I assume Ashes and Stitches will come get her?” he asked.

Church nodded, his eyes on me. “Yeah. I don’t know what time. They’ll message you.”

“Mm, around midnight. Just after the third movie ends.” Asylum grabbed my mittens, and I held my hands out for him to put them on me. “I can’t see past that. Brain is still a bit messy from all the drugs.”

I winced at him, making him wink at me.

“Specter,” Church called out as Asylum opened the front door.

I turned to him to see his Adam’s apple bobbing in his throat. Immediately, I went to him and hugged him tightly. He wrapped his arms around me and held me back, his lips at my ear.

“Come back to me,” he whispered.

“Always,” I whispered back.

He hugged me tighter for a moment before releasing me. I took Asylum’s hand and cast a final look at Church, noticing a pained expression on his face. I knew this was hard for him, but I also knew he’d never leave me home alone, especially now. Plus, I wanted this time to be with Asylum and Shadow. If I were going to make a decision about this, I needed to be around them to do it.

I walked in silence with Asylum through the cool evening air. Night had fallen long ago. It typically gets dark around five in the evening these days. The days were short and the nights long. And cold. I hated how cold it got here.

“Hope you’re hungry,” Asylum said as we walked. His breath puffed out in a cloud of white. Per my usual, I said nothing, but I was definitely hungry.

“It’s a bit odd to be alone with one another,” he mused. “No one around to hear you scream.”

I cast an uneasy look over at him. He’d not hurt me since the coffin situation, and even then, he’d only scared me with the talk of us dying together.

He chuckled when he caught me staring at him and reached for my hand again. I didn’t pull away from him as he clutched my mitten in his mitten.

“You scare too easily, firefly. We need to work on that.” He began to hum softly, the same song I’d known for years, as we walked through the night. He didn’t say another word as we continued on the path.

When we got to his dorm, he led me inside, and I took off my boots while he helped me with my jacket, hat, and mittens.

I looked around his space as he hung my items. As far as dorms went, his really was immaculate. I had no doubt it was a gift based on his history with Everett Church. It seemed one was rewarded when under his wing.

It didn’t make Everett any less of a scumbag, though.

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