The Blade in the Stars (Swiss x Female OC)

15: Burn

     Shorter chapter, idk just felt like a good place to end, so enjoy. Ik, disappointing bc I already take forever to publish these chapters.

     "So, want a blanket?" Cirrus peered over at me from where she sat on the bed. I had decided to sit down in a comfortable chair that she had set up near her bed, and I was actually quite content with the environment. For how small the room was, Cirrus was really able to make use of the minimal space. It was very cozy, with lots of fairy lights and a tv propped up against the wall.

     I glanced over to the ghoulette, "Oh, no thanks." Despite how comfortable I felt, I wasn't eager to actually seem like I was. I still barely knew Cirrus, and I continued to ponder the real reason she brought me with her. I wanted to know why we were watching 'Friends', and why everything appeared to be happening without some ulterior motive.

     But that wasn't on my mind as much as a certain ghoul was. Swiss, whatever was happening with him, was either starting to scare me or really worry me. He hadn't left my thoughts for the past few hours, and now my mind was whirling with the reality of what had happened in the hall. Really, all I was thinking could be summed up to: what the hell. I hated to think that there was a divide shoved right between us that whole day, but it was difficult to ignore.

But the emotions. The emotions that I could feel coming from Swiss were just so messy. It was never like that. I had taken note of the strange way I could just tell what he was feeling—well, mostly—and that made it easy to pick out the cracks in his mood. The weirdest part was that this was one of the first days where there actually was a crack. A hole in the midst of that playful, joyous energy. I would almost compare the way I could feel his spikes of emotion to that of two ghouls within the same pack.

     I wasn't sure how long I was in my thoughts for, but it had to have been a while when Cirrus's voice caught my attention, "Want a cig?" When I glanced over, I stiffened when I saw that she had rolled over and was much closer to me. She was nearly hanging off the bed, waving a cigarette towards me.

     Cirrus wore a spirited smile on her face, and looking at her for a few seconds caused me to chuckle. I nodded and took her up on her offer gratefully, taking the cancer stick and murmuring a small, "thanks." I set the cigarette on my lips, and I saw Cirrus go to hand me a lighter, but by that point I had already lit the tip with a wave of my hand.

I leaned my head back as I took a gentle inhale, closing my eyes as the smoke infiltrated my lungs. I took the cig back in between my fingers, slowly exhaling as I pictured the cloud of smoke going up into the air. It was quite the moment of relief as the small bit of nicotine settled. The quiet that had overcome my mind was broken by Cirrus asking, "What were you thinking about before?"

My brows drew together as I forced my eyes open, my gaze traveling towards the ghoulette. "Nothing," I responded slowly, trying to gauge what Cirrus was thinking. The way she was looking at me, I was nearly convinced that she was somehow fishing around in my mind.

"Not Swiss, surely?"

I scowled.

"How'd I know," she rolled her eyes before letting a cheeky smile form on her lips. I averted my gaze, taking a quick drag of my cigarette to calm my slight frustration. She continued, more serious this time, "If I had to guess, he's just having one of those days. He'll probably be back to his usual self tomorrow, alright?"

I believed that Cirrus spoke mostly truth, but there was something in the pit of my stomach that was still filled with trepidation. I tried my best to voice that emotion aloud by speculating, "So, you think his behavior was.. normal?"