The smell of smoke and curiosity

~Meeting point~

It's been a few weeks since I started living here, since I did I've been supplying him with blood now and again, he doesn't trust anybody to give him blood bags anymore since his last ones got spiked, it took a lot of convincing to get him to agree to it but he was starting to get sick, it's for the best, I don't want him to starve, so he just takes a small amount from my wrist every few days, though he didn't want to he knows himself that if he didn't take mine he could end up hurting someone else as he knows he would rather that than hurt me anymore than he has in the past.

He says keeping me here is to keep me safe, nothing has indeed happened since being here so I guess it's working, but I'm just liking it because I get to see him every day, I get to sleep next to him every night, not that he sleeps but he just watches over me like a guardian angel, I get to watch him paint, I get hypnotized when he does, it's so beautiful and peaceful, I feel like a little married couple, watching her partner doing what he loves. 

He is in full focus painting right now, so I'm making him and myself some hot chocolate, something to soothe us through the night, as now that I'm living with him I realized a lot, ever since Cassius came back he's been getting nightmares, really bad ones, he wakes up screaming some days, and some days he doesn't want me in the same room when he sleeps in fear he will hurt me in his sleep, though I trust him enough not to it's probably for the best. These past few nights he's been so focused on painting, I don't think he's done it in a while due to recent circumstances, but he's really into it, but he won't show me what he's painting yet, he says it's a surprise. 

As I walk into his room to give him his hot drink he stands up, with a great big grin on his face, "I've finished it, I hope you like it" he looked so nervous with it, I put down the drinks "Show me, I'm excited to see what you've created" he lets out a sigh and spins the big canvas around, it's me, he painted me when I'm asleep, he's made me look like an angel, with such light emitting from behind me, how did he do that? it's incredible. I take the painting into my hand, feeling over it, it's every brushstroke, how it felt so looked after. "I started it when I first met you, seeing you for the first time, when you were asleep, the light that arose from you, it was like seeing a sunrise for the first time, you reminded me of the man I once was, how I'm not a monster that used to be a man, but I am a man with a monster, and at that moment I fell for you instantly" 

His words were like a poem, bringing tears to my eyes, I can't say anything even remotely close to what he said, so instead, I just kiss him, letting my love for him pour out in my actions, I stroke across his face with my free hand and whisper "I love you so much it's crazy" He smiles and I go to walk away with the painting, but he grabs my hand, spinning me round and bring me to a halt at his chest, it was so fast it made me catch my breath "I love you also Willow. I'm guessing you like it then?" his eyes scan down to the painting, "I love it so much there are no words I can say to express how much I do, I'm going to frame it" he takes it out of my hands putting it on his bed, he picked me up and swung me around, I've not seen him smile this much ever, it's refreshing. 

He guided me to near his front door, "put your shoes on, I want to take you somewhere" he wants me to go out with him. wait is this going to be like a date? If I knew he wanted to go out I would have dressed better, not a second later he draped a big coat over my shoulders "I don't want you to be cold where we are going" he smiled before zipping it up, I was nervous going out but if I'm with him I know I'll be safe. "where are we going?"I asked, he simply smiled at me as if he was saying wait until we get there, but I'm like an impatient child, I want to know already. 

We walked for about 20 minutes until we ended up near a closed fairground, the fences were so tall and locked up tight, why has he brought me here? He looked at me with a cheeky look on his face "Do you trust me?" I just nodded and he held onto me tightly, "Close your eyes and don't open them until I say" I did as he asked, and as soon as I did I felt my feet come off the ground, making me jump a little as the wind hit my face, then my feet landed again gently onto the ground. "keep them closed" he let go of me then I started to hear strange noises around me, why am I doing this? 

Suddenly his hand gripped mine again, "you can open them now" and I did, to realize I was now in the fairground, all the lights are now on and the rides were all active. He still ceases to amaze me, I just laughed, he's so sneaky, "I figured we deserved a day of fun" and just like that the weight was fully gone, for me and it looked like it was gone for him too. We spent hours there, going on every ride, and playing every game, it was just us against the world, I haven't had this much fun in a long time, and every worry was gone, all we needed was to get outside, face the world head-on, we knew could do it but it just took a bit of time. 

Or so we thought. When we arrived back home, still laughing from our little adventure, my tummy rumbling kind of killed the mood, well killed mine anyways, he just laughed it off, he's been stocking up his cupboards for me with anything I've needed even going out of his way to get my feminine products just in case, just when I thought I couldn't love him any more, I find I do, I fall every day for him. "What takes your fancy tonight?" he says as he takes the coat off for me and heads into the kitchen, looking through his cupboards and fridge, "I have an idea, why don't you get comfy and I'll go get a bottle of wine and make some pasta as we did on our first meal?" his face beamed with excitement, how could I possibly say no to that face. 

I walked over to him and gave him a peck on his cheek, "that sounds like the perfect way to end the perfect day" he pecked me back, "I won't be long, I love you Willow" I giggled,  and he left, when he gets back I'm going to be there like a wife waiting for her husband to finish work, like the normal, perfect family scenario. Maybe I should set up the plates, though he doesn't need to eat with me, he still likes to as it makes him feel normal he says. I get out the glasses, and it makes me laugh, thinking back to our first drink together, and all we have been through together, we know each other's past, we've lived through each other's past and helped each other grow, though we haven't known each other that long, it still feels like I've known him all my life.

It's shortly after 9 pm and it's been 5 minutes since he left, I'm already missing him, he's got me obsessed. Amid my thinking, I know he will be back really soon. When unexpectedly there's a knock at the door, who would come to the house this late at night? I edged closer to it, and he locked it I know he did, but I get hesitant to answer it without him being nearby, so instead, I just shout out "Who is it?" there was a moment of silence when I hear a man shout back "Postman", he sounds strange, and he normally wouldn't come by this late, I still have a gut feeling that I shouldn't open the door, but I can't be scared all my life right?

My feet creep towards the door, I carefully turn the lock, there's still time to back out I thought. But I shook that thought away, don't be scared, the lock is fully turned now, and I opened the door slowly and peered at who stood there, phew I thought, it really was just Bradley, but he didn't look right, "Hey are you okay?" in a flash everything changed, Bradley who was stood there looking a little strange hadn't responded, and there was a reason for that, his head wasn't attached, it had discarded while I asked if was okay, it was on the floor at my feet, not one second later his body fell also, while it did I felt the blood splatter across my face, it was still warm, I jolted out of the way, screaming as loud as my voice would let me. I only just avoided the body from falling on me, my breath is trapped in my throat, and I'm beginning to panic, for a man was standing behind Bradley this whole time, I hadn't noticed because I was looking down, a man in a suit, and blonde slicked back hair. 

He smiled at me so villainously, his creepy stare and deep reddened eyes pierced through my gaze, I couldn't move, I was frozen in fear, it was him, it was Cassius. He stepped over the body and head that lay within Dante's doorway, inviting himself in, all I could do was step back, even if I screamed again I doubt anybody would come, I'd be dead before I opened my mouth again, all I can do is hope Dante is nearly home.

"I think it's about time we met, don't you? Willow" He smirked.....

                                            

                                                                ~To be continued in the next volume~