Grey

Chapter 29

Riel had apologized to me over and over again yesterday, which had only succeeded in making me feel even worse. I'd yelled at him and stolen his car. I should've been the one apologizing, not him. I had told him that it was okay, that I'd been overreacting, but he'd insisted. It only resulted in me telling him I needed time to come to terms with my fate- the fate I'd be sealing for thousands of lives. He'd agreed, told me that he would go inform the Archangels what Grey had told him about Lucifer, and be back in two days, the night of the gala. I didn't tell him that we wouldn't be home. I didn't want to make him feel worse than he did, and I felt like Grey and I attending a gala together would be like pouring salt on a wound.

"I want to take you out on a date," Grey panted next to me as we ran through the trees. The sun had barely risen, and the mist was hanging in between the trees as thick as a blanket. You could barely see a tree before you hit it.

"A date? Aside from the gala?" I laughed in between breaths. For some reason, I was keeping up with him now. My reflexes were better, and I was a lot faster and stronger than I had been when I had started. I used to think that talking while running was a sort of superpower. Now here I was, talking while sprinting through a misty forest where one misstep could result in a face plant into a tree.

"Yeah, isn't that what humans do when they're involved with someone?" I could see Grey smirking out of the corner of my eye, but my loss of concentration almost ran me into a tree. I dodged at the last moment, earning a laugh from Grey as he sped ahead. I scowled and sped up, my heart pounding in my chest as my body tried to keep up with my spirit.

"Yes, but I didn't think you were the type of guy to want to go out on a 'date'. Imagining you in a movie theater seems impossible," I rolled my eyes and Grey shoved me playfully in the path of a tree, which I thankfully dodged again.

"Bet you also didn't think I was the type of guy to push you into a tree," he laughed devilishly and I snorted, running back over to his side.

"No, actually, that one I saw coming," I retorted playfully, kicking my foot out to the side and into his shin, successfully making him stumble for a moment. "Bet you didn't see that coming though."

His eyes glimmered for a moment, a smirk settling on his lips. And as his lips slowly turned into a devious grin, he sped up, his legs moving faster beyond what was humanly possible.

"Not fair!" I shouted after him as he ran ahead of me. I tried to will my legs to move faster, even the slightest bit, but they refused, and instead tightened in a painful leg cramp. Ugh. Of course, the one time I was keeping up with Grey, they had to give out.

I slowed to a limping halt, gripping my hamstring and trying to massage it back to its normal state. Grey kept running, apparently unaware I had stopped. Oh well. Arrogant asshole could probably use the boost to his pride after baring little pieces of his soul to me as of late. I knew it wasn't much, but it was something. He was trying to let me in, and I was trying to let him in. It was nice. Him wanting me to go to the gala with him was probably also a difficult thing for him to suggest. I'm sure he wasn't entirely used to asking someone to go with him. Women and men probably lined up to be his date.

I heard a twig snap somewhere in front of me and glanced up, still panting heavily.

"Grey?" I furrowed my brows slightly at the silence that followed. I could've sworn I'd heard something. "Grey are you there?"

More silence. I narrowed my eyes and stood up, shaking out my leg in a last effort to get it to loosen, in case I needed to run again. Someone was watching me. I knew I wasn't alone. I don't think it was Grey.

snap.

Another twig broke the silence. Now I was sure I wasn't alone.

"Alright, seriously now? Hiding in the bushes? Coward. You want a fight, come fight me. This whole element of surprise idea you've got is not going to save you," I peered around the forest, looking for the slightest sign of movement. First, there was nothing. And then-