Corrupted Innocence (Lavi)

Laugh

My breath went out of my lungs with a swoosh, halfway between a gasp and a sigh. My fingertips trembled very slightly with excitement as I stared at the man in front of me.

Because damn.

"Um....hi...." I mentally cursed myself. Had I completely lost the ability to form intelligent sentences? Apparently, Lavi thought so to, because his eyebrow arched. But of course a dazzling grin still remained. Dear god, why was my face so warm?!

I held out my hand." Are you an exorcist?"

He nodded and I suppressed a thrill of excitement as his calloused fingers brushed mine when he shook my hand. He was tall, at least a foot and a half taller than me, so I had to tilt my head up as I talked to him. His emerald eye closed and his grin became enormous. A light trickle of laughter escaped his lips." Yeah. My innocence is Big Hammer, Little Hammer. But I don't think it's nearly as cool as yours, Miss Cynical Shadow."

I blinked in surprise and cocked my head to the side. Did he just say that he liked my innocence? "You like my innocence?"

"Yeah! It's beautiful."

And with that statement, my face turned beet red. Lenalee, who had been watching in silent shock, noticed that my brain functions had begun to fail me, and stepped in to back me up. She placed a warm hand on my shoulder and offered up an even warmer smile.

"Lavi, I think we should all get something to eat. Jezebel deserves to just sit down with a warm meal and relax. The past few days have been really stressful for her." She says, then spreads her arms out wide. "And that goes for everyone. Come on, let's go!"

God bless Lenalee's little heart. We all followed her to the cafeteria. The building had underwent a makeover, so I didn't recognize anything. Even before I had left, I couldn't find my way around. The cafeteria had remained more or less the same, except the smell was much more delicious, and I began to feel saliva pool underneath my tongue. Allen had already ordered a mountain of food, which I thought was for all of us, but ended up being just for him. I stared in frank admiration as he began to devour what seemed to be the entire kitchen. A hand clapped me on the back.

"Don't mind Allen. He's a pig when it comes to food." Lavi said, smiling in amusement. I laugh nervously and sit down between Lenalee and Allen, with Lavi and some cryptic vampire dude next to him. Lenalee had already gotten everyone's food. She smiles as she sets down a plate of mango slices with black pepper.

"I remember this was your favorite dish when we were kids." Her smile fades a little." I...I hope this is okay?"

I nod my head and smile. "It's perfect, Lenalee, thank you."

Lenalee looks relieved as she begins eating her own food, a grilled chicken salad. She was always indecisive as a kid, but this was new. Lenalee wasn't one to feel shy. She notices me looking at her and she looks up to meet my eyes. And, feeling the need to speak and break the awkwardness, I motion to her outfit. "You've grown up, Lenalee. I remember as kids we used to argue about who would have a boyfriend first, but I must have lost years ago. There's no way men could stay away from you."

Her reaction startled me. Her eyes jumped to Allen briefly, and a foreign shade of crimson colored her cheeks. My lips part in a silent gasp. Her and Allen?! Lavi laughed brightly. "Her and Allen aren't official, but everyone knows it."

Allen momentarily looks up from his food, speghetti noodles hanging from his lips. He sees everyone is staring at him, and he ducks his head back to his food. The gesture is undeniably adorable. I giggle politely and begin eating my mango.

"Do that again."

What? I look up at Lavi. He was staring at me intently and I felt my cheeks warm. "W-what?"

"You laughed. Ever since you got here, you've been really somber. I guess it's nice to hear you finally laugh and loosen up a little." Lavi mutters and looks off, avoiding eye contact. Was that a blush I detected on his cheeks? I mutter a thank you and lower my eyes. What was wrong with me?! I was never this fidgety and shy!