The Demon and the Elf (Book 1)

Chapter Fourteen pt 2

Throughout the day, Eial stuck close to his mother, and his mother stuck close to him. They shared moments cooking, foraging, gazing at the sky in a sunny afternoon. Drokn didn't participate and he didn't want to. But that didn't stop his mother from taking time to tease him, slapping him playfully on the back and reassuring him, too, that she was coming back.

Not that the demon needed reassurance. Of course he didn't care. Good riddance, actually. Right?

Before long, the three gathered in front of the cabin, a fiddling tingle between them. As the silence wore off, Eial stepped in to hug his mother, his face buried in her chest. The demoness cradled him in one arm and stroked his hair with the other. "It'll be like I never left," she said, holding him closer.

Then, as she slowly let go, so did the elf with his head sunken. Twisting slightly to the right, she faced the demon and, without forewarning, pulled him in for a brief hug— one not too soft and not too strong. Patting him on the back as she moved away, she said, "Take care of him," and smiled. Turning back to Eial, she smirked. "You take care of him, too."

"I don't need anyone to take care of me," Drokn countered defiantly, almost as if it were an automated response. But despite the words, underneath the stab of his dignity that he was seen as someone to be taken care of as well, was the softest hint of... something that made him feel unknowingly churned.

And so she went into the tree filled landscape, the sky dimming from orange hues to a dull blue. Feeling the bottomless sting of her departure was deeper than the elf thought it would be. He immediately spun to cling to the demon, encircling his arm span around the demon's torso and digging his fingers into the fabric.

The demon, very hesitantly creeped his hands, hovering over the other's shoulder blades, foreign to showing care. Finally, he committed to a full hug, pulling him in tightly and fitting him perfectly into the hold. Drokn could feel the warmth of the elf's breath through his tight fitted top and instinctively, he faced downward, his own warm breath grazing the elf's scalp.

"Sleep here," Drokn commanded, pointing to the bed inside the cabin.

"No no, you can take this. I am fine sleeping in the other bed," Eial said, gesturing to the direction of their underground sleeping hut.

"I'm sleeping here, too."

Eial made an expression of visible confusion that mildly irked the demon. He could almost hear the demoness interject with a, "Eial, he wants you to sleep with him!" and he rolled his eyes. "We're sleeping together," he stated firmly until a flash of realization hit him and he quickly stumbled with words. "Not like that! Though, I mean— no, not like that!" Eial became even more puzzled and Drokn breathed out a heavy sigh. "We're going to sleep. On the same bed."

Unsure of the situation, Eial obliged and sat on the edge of the bed. He must be feeling lonely without mother, naively thought the elf.

With awkwardness and ruffles, they situated themselves on the bed, Eial on the side of the wall and Drokn near the open edge. Drokn managed to fit laying on his stomach. At first, he was facing away, his heartbeats trying to hide the odd unfamiliarity of the situation. When he felt a hand stroking his hair with the gentleness of petting a soft animal, he turned to face the elf.

Eial's hand lifted for a moment before he brought it to the demon's horns and felt every ridge slowly with his thumb. "Sorry, did that bother you?" he asked without stopping.

Drokn smirked at this familiar behavior of the elf that he found very charming. A hidden daring mischievousness.

A stillness of moment blended between them, as if the two existed, and only the two alone. The pulse of their heart rushing with the same calm, the same kneading rhythm.

Drokn's hand came up behind the elf's in a feather's hold. Bringing it in front of him, he gently placed a kiss at the palm of the small, lightly cool hand. "Are you... okay?" he asked, his deep voice seeming to boom within the close proximity. His lips inches away from the place of contact, his eyes gazed deeply into the elf's.

The elf's face darkened and in a barely audible whisper, he breathed, "I'm scared."

Drokn's thumb twitched slightly on the elf's skin. Where there should have been understanding was rather a discomforting squeeze. Unknown to him, he slightly gripped the elf's wrist tighter. His voice deeper. His eyes focused. "I'm here." Comfort, although more so as if a stern reminder.

Even with the darkness of the cabin, a noticeable shadow flashed past Eial's eyes. Breathing in deeply, Eial looked into the demon's eyes. From the right to the left, back to the right. "You're here," he said, a light curl regaining on the edges of his lips. And with a relaxing huff of an exhale, he moved to rest his forehead on the demon, shifting until he felt content and snuggled against his chest. "Thank you."

A sort of pull clutched at the demon. As if a rope in his heart was being tugged. An odd sensation of connection. A clay squeezing inside him.

Drokn's hand left the elf's and cupped the exposed cheek, guiding his jaw to tilt upward. He shifted his weight, gently using his elbow to twist Eial's torso to face him as he hovered above. Loose strands of black glided down and grazed the elf's cheeks, his ears, his neck. His stare drove into the two pink bows beneath a perfect nose. He steadied himself and lowered, as if in a trance—