broken thieves

nine

Danielle

I'm exhausted by the time we make it back to the village, physically and emotionally. You'd think I would be used to this kind of tiredness-- it's been a long time since I had the privileged of not feeling drained-- but I'm not. I think it just keeps getting worse.

Maeve and Claudia are quick to storm their way to their houses, making sure to keep a safe distance between them. I see Crystal give me an apologetic look before following after Crystal, and Aurora lingers with me, even when she spots Blake and Colby sitting together in the distance.

"Are you okay?" she asks me.

It's a question I get a lot, but it's one I don't think I'll ever know the answer to. So it's better just to lie. "I'm fine," I tell her. "Hopefully next time will be better."

"I'm sure it will," she reassures.

All I can do is nod, so with one last glance towards me, she slowly steps away.

I let out a small sigh as I watch her retreating back. While her confidence has blossomed by the day, Aurora is still kind and gentle, even if she doesn't believe it. It causes a certain ache to settle in the pit of my heart as everything I know about her flashes before my eyes.

It's all too much for even me. Telling her about her mother was difficult enough, I don't know how I'll be able to stomach telling her the rest.

Not sure what to do with myself, I start to walk over to my own house. Well, it's not exactly mine, as I share it with Zavier, Ophelia, Adam and we each take care of little Posie, but I like having the company. Without that... I'm not sure what I'd do.

Zavier is in the hallway when I enter the house, sitting by the grand piano. He must have been playing just before I entered. I give him a brief smile when his body turns to look at me.

"Did you find one?" he asks, smirking.

I shake my head as I shut the front door behind me. "None of them felt right," I tell him. "But we did manage to save a couple of kids from a bunch of men so... there's that."

"There I was thinking you'd gone out to pick a dress, not a fight."

I roll my eyes at Zavier's poor joke, not bothering to fight off a smile. "Where are the others?" I ask.

"Ophelia's got Posie in the living room and Adam's upstairs," he tells me. "Oh, and if you two are planning on getting it on, could you be quiet about it this time? We're not living in a mansion anymore, remember?"

I shove lightly at his head as I make my way to the staircase and he chuckles. "You're not getting a break until there's a bun in the oven. And maybe not even then."

I hear him groan, but I know he wants me to have a kid almost as much as I do. He will be the Godfather, after all, as I had promised him back when we were teens.

It makes perfect sense that he would be. Both him and Adam are without doubt the most important men in my life, and Zavier has been my best friend for years. I love him like a brother and always will.

I reach the top of the stairs and struggle to catch my breath, something very rare for me. It takes a few seconds to recover quickly, before I enter mine and Adam's bedroom and instantly I feel comforted. The room is light and fresh and quiet, with Adam sat at the window-seat reading a book, the breeze coming in through the open window ruffling his bronze hair. It's my favourite sight to come home to.

He's not wearing a shirt, either. Even better.

I step over to the bed, dropping my bag and jacket onto the floor. Adam notices me then, a beautiful smile gracing his face as he watches me walk over and sit opposite him at the window seat. His legs intertwine with mine instantly, and he places the bookmark between the pages to give me his full attention.