RISE

12 - A Sense of Urgency

As Aaron returned to consciousness, he felt better than he'd ever felt in his life. He took a deep breath and stretched across the mattress, stilling when he realized he could hear not only Elvorix's breathing, but his heartbeat, as well. Listening more attentively, Aaron could make out the sounds of breathing and heartbeats in the surrounding apartments, as well. He could hear the whirring of various machines, and the hum of electricity running through the wires behind the walls. He opened his eyes and sat up, and although his black-out curtains were drawn, he could see everything in his room clearly. He looked down at Elvorix sleeping next to him, and could . . . feel him there, like there was static electricity emanating from him, and he was surrounded by a faint, pulsating purple glow.

"E-Elvorix?" he said uncertainly, reaching out a hand to hover over the purple glow, feeling the strange, fuzzy, static feeling.

Elvorix stirred slightly and then curled up further under the covers. "Hmm?"

"I . . . there's something happening . . . I feel really strange."

"The bonding ceremony is complete now," he explained with a sleepy voice. "All of your senses are heightened, and you have some of my magic."

"Oh, right," Aaron muttered. He remembered Elvorix had mentioned something like that before, but he hadn't expected such a drastic change. He climbed out of bed and pulled on his pajama pants before slowly making his way to the kitchen, testing out his new senses. Everything felt lighter, like he was floating, and he could distinctly smell everything from the cleaners in the cabinet, to the leather upholstery on his couch. It was a little overwhelming, but Aaron felt like his intellectual abilities had improved, too. At least, he found he was able to process and distinguish all of the sensory input at once without being sent into a panic.

Elvorix dragged himself out of the bedroom with Aaron's bedsheet wrapped tightly over him like a cloak. He growled and said something in another language, going to the kitchen, opening the cupboards. Aaron watched him, worried that his gain may have been El's loss with how sluggishly he moved. After opening all of the empty cupboards, El growled again, slumping against the counter.

"There's nothing here."

"There's supposed to be nothing, I'm moving out, remember?" Aaron came up behind him and hugged him around his waist. "We'll get something when we go out."

"Like a drive-thru?" El perked up at that, and Aaron rolled his eyes affectionately.

"I'm glad you're so easy to entertain because I don't know how I would keep you around if drive-thru coffee and breakfast sandwiches weren't enough for you."

Elvorix threw his head back and moaned dramatically. "Oh, yes, that is all I want!"

"Perfect. Do you still want to go to Central Park? What time are we supposed to go back to Hell anyway?"

"We're supposed to be in your grandparent's foyer at 9 pm." El turned around in Aaron's arms and kissed him deeply.

When they broke apart, Aaron looked up into his eyes, remembering the previous night's activities with a flush rising to his face. Then, it occurred to him that they were still the brilliant red of his demon form, and hadn't returned to the human brown they were supposed to be.

"Oh, El, your eyes are still red," he told him.

Elvorix looked taken aback. "What do you mean?"

"They turned red last night. I guess I thought you knew. You can change them back to brown, can't you?"

Elvorix looked panicked and pulled away from him to go to the mirror, looking at his red eyes and whining anxiously. "Oh, no! I don't know how to do that! I can't go around looking like this!"