Envelope Challenge

Chapter 36 - Accidental Revelation

I normally know what to write up here, but now I don't so...

Enjoy!

Polly was pulling on a beanie that complimented her hair perfectly when the knock on her door sounded. Using the wall for support, she hobbled over to the door and opened it, exposing Nathaniel standing there with his hands shoved in his pockets. Rolling her eyes at his impatience, she went back over to the bed and grabbed her crutches and her purse before going back over to him.

"Are you ready yet?" she asked in faux exasperation.

He chuckled. "Yeah, because I'm the one that spent the last ten minutes deciding what hat went with my shirt."

"It's a beanie," she pointed out and followed him into the entryway. "It's still cold and I have to be stylish on my sticks, you know."

"Right," he drawled. Reaching into the drawer he kept by the door, he grabbed his gun and tucked it into his waist holster. Ever since telling her the truth, he'd been more obvious with what happens he had. She got a serious shocking after finding out he always kept at least one knife and gun on his person at all times. When she questioned him on why he didn't use it in the Gateway Arch, he replied that there were too many people for a knife to be effective and too cramped a space for the gun.

He opened the door for her and she went out in front of him, quickly pressing the elevator button. Apparently, he used to use the stairs all the time, walking down a whopping sixteen floors, but that wasn't an option with her current state of damage and she wouldn't do it even if she could. Her eyes flickered over to the stairwell before the elevator opened in front of her.

"Remember when you chased me down the stairs?" she reminisced once he'd locked the door and joined her in the box.

"You mean when you were being an idiot?" he asked innocently.

She glared at him. "Well, an idiot was faster than you so what does that make you, huh?"

"Please," he scoffed. "If the concierge hadn't stopped me you would not have made it to Maria before I stopped you."

This time, she was the one that scoffed. "Right. And then you're going to say that the carpet tripped you and let me get out of the room before you could even catch me."

He opened his mouth to make a snappy retort, but the door opening and allowing a couple on called a ceasefire. Nathaniel scooted away from the door and closer to Polly to give them more room. He wrapped his arm wrapped around her waist, awkwardly avoiding the crutch in between them. She didn't mind too much.

"First floor?" Polly asked them politely because she was by the elevator buttons. When they nodded, she let her hand drop from the buttons and moved the offensive crutch between them to curl closer in to his side.

After the long awkward silence that always came when in an elevator with strangers, they finally reached the bottom floor and the other couple left. Before they got off, too, Nathaniel pulled her tighter against him and kissed the top of her head.

"You sure you're ready for this?" he asked against her hair.

"No," she replied and smiled up at him. "I'm not ready for this at all, but you gotta do what you gotta do."

He chuckled and helped her out of the elevator, even though she didn't need it. When they got down to the car park, he released her to hurry forward and open her door. With a 'why thank you, good sir' and a scoff in return, she sat down and he laid the crutches along the back seat. With a rustle of leather as he got in and a quick twist of his wrist and turn of the wheel, they pulled into traffic.