Species Unknown [Book 1: Aves]

EIGHTEEN

Day 35
C.R.O.S.S. Laboratories
Aves Department
The Observatory

A little while earlier...

THE SILENCE THAT followed my confession was thick. My heart raced as the realization of what I had just said sank in. I bit my lip, watching his face for a reaction.

"Care..." Elias repeated, the word foreign on his tongue.

I swallowed. "Yes," I began, struggling to find the right words. "Do...Do you know what that means?"

He frowned. "Yes," He answered defensively. He never liked it when I assumed he didn't know things.

For someone who spent their entire lives in a cage, he was surprisingly well learned. He spent much of his day studying, and one night I noticed he had a screen built into the wall of his room.

When I asked Dr. Pierce about it, she said that it was her doing. When he was younger, Dr. Grant would treat him terribly. Forcing him to endure harsh tests to push Elias to his limits. Despite his best efforts, it was never enough and Elias went to his room each night more bruised and defeated than the last.

One night after a particularly rough session, Dr. Pierce turned off the security cameras to sneak into his room and install something. It was a flatscreen monitor with access to hundreds of books, movies, and music he could use as a distraction from the pain. All he had to do was press a button and hide it come morning when Dr. Grant would return.

I smiled at the memory. Perhaps he did know what it meant to be cared for. But the way I cared for him was different, and I wasn't sure how to make him understand that.

"Jeanine...she cares about you right?" I asked.

He nodded, his face softening.

"And I care about you too..." I said, pausing to think of the right words, "but in a different way."

I watched as his eyebrows furrowed with either frustration or confusion. I wasn't sure which.

I didn't give him time to respond. "It's okay if you don't understand. It's a difficult subject to grasp, even I don't really know what it means to truly care about someone..." I rambled, pausing to take a breath. I hoped to offer some sort of explanation, but the truth was I had no experience with the subject at hand. Before I could continue, Elias cut in.

"I care about you too," He stated with such certainty it threw me off guard.

I blinked a few times before I could think of a response. "Look Elias, you don't mean that. Just because I say it doesn't mean it has to be true for you."

"But I do care!" He insisted, his conviction surprising me.

As if to confirm his words, in the next moment, I felt his hand reach for mine. Grasping my hand, he brought it to rest on his chest. His hand was warm against mine and I could feel his heart race beneath my fingertips.

"I care," he repeated, his voice softer this time. I felt a blush creep up my cheeks as a wave of emotions washed through me. Emotions I was unfamiliar with. Suddenly overwhelmed, I pulled back. Reclaiming my hand, I shook my head silently.

"You don't even know what you're saying," I whispered half-heartedly, looking down at the grass.

"Yes I do," He said quietly, I could hear the hurt in his voice and it made my chest ache.

Don't do this Aurora. Don't push him away.

Tentatively, I looked back up at him. "What do you know?"

I watched him take a breath, keeping his eyes on mine as he explained. "I know that it hurts, but the pain I feel when your near me is not nearly as bad as the pain I feel when you're not."

The blush that stained my cheeks deepened into a crimson red as I listened to his words. How could someone with no experience with people -let alone love- be so much better at this than I?

I felt my eyes burn with the threat of tears from both frustration and happiness. In the end, my happiness won out and the emotion consumed me.

"I feel the same way," I replied, my voice coming out hoarse.

Instead of a response, he leaned in, so carefully. As if I would run away if he moved too quickly. He was so close. Suddenly I couldn't feel the warmth of the air, or the soft grass beneath me. All I could feel was him, everywhere, filling all my senses.

His face was so close. I could feel the warmth of his breath fan across my cheek, until his lips finally brushed against mine.

His lips were softer than anything I had ever felt, caressing mine ever so gently.

Impatient, I leaned into him and kissed him back. He froze for a moment, his wings fluttered a few times in shock, before he reacted. Positioning himself impossibly closer, he kissed me back with tentative movements until his confidence grew enough to kiss me harder.

I wasn't sure what it was supposed to feel like. It was my first kiss and most likely his as well.
But inexperience didn't seem to matter.

He met each of my kisses with a fiery rivaling passion and curiosity for the new sensation, growing increasingly braver with each passing second. I wrapped my arms around his neck, and in return, he put his arms around my waist, drawing me closer.

When we finally broke apart, I saw that his face was flushed and his breathing ragged. He looked up at me, dazed, like he couldn't believe what just happened. A small smile played on his lips and I felt something in my lower stomach twist.

He was looking at me in a way nobody else had. His eyes worshipped me. Regarding me as if I was everything to him, his whole world, his entire universe.

His roaming eyes took in my flushed appearance and his lopsided smile widened as he basked in my attention and the clear effect he had on me.

My lips twitched with a smile seeing this new confident side of Elias. He looked so happy, genuinely and truly happy. It was so pure, so perfect and I couldn't possibly think of a place I'd rather be than here with him, in this moment, forever.

My smile grew as I watched as his brilliant blue eyes flicker back down to my lips. Right before I could reach for him again, the intercom clicked on followed by the frantic words of Dr. Pierce.

"RUN ELIAS, RUN!"

The garbled words of Dr. Pierce rang throughout the room, turning into a blood curdling scream before the noise was cut off completely with the ending click of the intercom. My body jolted with alarm and I found myself moving closer to Elias, grabbing onto his soft cotton shirt as he shifted to wrap his wings around me protectively.

Within seconds, the screeching sound of alarms began to surround the room and the lights lining the walls around us flashed red.

After a few rounds of alarm, an electronic voice began echoing throughout the compound.

INITIATING LOCKDOWN. SECURING ALL EXITS. INITIATING LOCKDOWN...

The ground beneath us shuddered and I watched with panic as the walls shook and groaned, revealing another metal layer that sealed itself over all the doors, locking us inside.

With wide eyes I turned to Elias who looked equally as terrified as I was. But among the confusion and the fear, we knew one thing to be true.

Something was inside the compound, and we were trapped inside with it.