Comfortably Numb

Chapter Five

I followed Arrow down the stairs. I could hear a few people chatting, saying their goodbyes. I slowed down so I was a step behind her, and kept my eyes fully glued to the ground.

I felt awful that these people were being forced to leave because of me, but the alternative of them staying was worse. If they stayed, I would end up either having to talk to them- something I doubted I would ever be ready for with the amount of people that had been gathered in the lobby- or I would end up getting smacked into and the emotions I worked so hard to bury would come  bubbling up.

"It was so nice of you to stop by! Thank you for being understanding! I'll see you later, Lou." As we reached the bottom of the steps I heard the sound of the door clicking shut. I breathed a sigh of relief and finally risked a glance up.

The man standing at the door was classically handsome. He had an air of glamour around him, even though he was wearing a simple t-shirt and a pair of ripped jeans. His eyes sparkled in the light, a swirl of brown  that reminded me of honey, chocolate and cocoa. His smile was wide and welcoming, something that made my own lips tug upwards automatically. His hair was cropped short barely an inch long and the same colour as Arrow's. And he had a dusting of flour over his forearms and the bottom of his t-shirt that just screamed "homemaker". His presentation screamed "suburban house husband" but the vibe I was getting off of him was more like "sophisticated leader".

"Andy this is my Pop, Victor. Pop, this is Andy."
Arrow moved beside me and the man- her father- smiled brighter at me.

"Hello Andy. I've heard so much about you." I smiled and lowered my gaze back to the floor. The full force of his smile was wearing on me- warmth was tugging at my chest. His kindness was radiating beyond my comfort zone.

"I-it's nice to m-meet you too, M-r. Cardinal." My voice was quiet, but the words seemed to reach him just fine. He stepped towards me, almost like he wanted to give me a hug or squeeze my hand, but thankfully stopped. I felt his eyes on the top of my head and reluctantly looked up. His smile was softer now, and there was something in his eyes that made me feel as if I was standing naked in front of him. After a moment he shook his head, wiped his hands on his jeans and spun on his heel.

"Please, call me Victor." I nodded, not at all intending to do that.

"You girls must be hungry. Dinner isn't going to be for a while yet- all those guests kind of popped in unannounced- But i can offer you a snack if you'd like? We have popcorn, chips, cheese and crackers, sandwich meat, candy, chocolate, cookies, or if you'd prefer something else I can whip it up quickly... We've got the ingredients for pretty much anything you could think of. And if you're thirsty we've got water, orange juice, apple juice, dr pepper, pepsi, diet pepsi, ginger ale, milk, both whole and 2 %, or i think we might have some gatorade left in the garage-"

"Honey! I think you're overwhelming the poor girl!" I jumped as the other Mr. Cardinal's booming voice rang out directly behind me. I whirled around, clutching my heart, and stared wide eyed up at him. I couldn't help but note that his skin was no longer blue, though his hair still had traces of off-white weaved in his braids. He smiled gently at me before turning his gaze to his husband. He ducked beneath the doorframe, and then closed the distance between them. He beamed at his husband as he pulled him into his massive arms.

"I'm sure if she wants something she'll ask." Mr Cardinal- the one Arrow called Pop- rolled his eyes at his husband before turning back to us.

"I'm just making sure you know all the options." He smiled at me and I gave a small one in return. "It's been so long since Arrow had brought anybody home to meet us. I was starting to think that she smelled really bad or something."