Angels May Cry

Falling or Fallen?

Chapter 3: Falling or Fallen?

4, October 2014

It had been just over a week since Noelle had been out with Dante. She had been going for long walks in the city and checking in with Alexis regularly. She had even joined one of the volunteer groups helping to continue reparations on the city. Noelle was helping a pastor clean up a church that had been turned to rubble. The plans were to rebuild the city as much as possible, and the church was an integral part. Noelle had found that she was far less consumed by her thoughts when helping the people rebuild. Today was a chilly fall day and she had a large hot cider from a local coffee shop warming her hands as she sat on the park bench, she had occupied a week prior.

She checked her phone once again, hoping to see a call or text from an unknown number. She sighed, wondering why she even got her hopes up. The wind picked up and she pulled the fur lined hood of her favorite jacket closer around her. She was just about to leave the bench and start for home when a shadow caught her attention beside her. The smirk on Dante's face made her smile. He sat down, crossing his ankles with his legs stretched out in front of him.

"Well. This must be your favorite place." He said.

"I wasn't busy today, so I thought I'd come for a walk." She smiled as she sipped her cider.

He nodded and held up the card she had slipped into his pocket. "Sorry I didn't call you. I had to go out of town for a job." He said.

"Oh..." She paused, tilting her head. "It's okay. Really. I figured you would call me if you wanted to see me."

"Well I found you instead. So you weren't busy today. You've been pretty busy all week?" He asked.

"Yeah. I started helping the rebuilding efforts and the volunteer groups. It's been nice to have time to help the community."

Dante watched her cheeks as they turned rosy from the cold. He had just returned a few hours ago from a job and his demon had demanded he find Noelle again and check on her. As he sat here watching her, his demon was purring softly with happiness at the proximity to the girl. He scooted closer a bit as she shivered and put his arm over the back of the bench behind her. She smiled at him, her green eyes captivating his attention. Her laugh broke him from his trance.

"You sure do stare a lot." she teased.

"What can I say? You're beautiful. Any man would stare." He countered.

"I... I don't think so. But that's very kind of you to say." Noelle blushed deeply.

"Well then they don't deserve you." He said, honesty in his tone.

"Thank you... That's very sweet of you."

Dante didn't have long to contemplate her downplay of his compliments. His mind wasn't fully registering the fact that she was so close to him when she leaned her body against his chest. His demon was ecstatic as her sent of strawberries and roses hit him like a wave. He glanced down to see her eyes closed. She shivered again as the cool breeze hit her.

"You need to get somewhere warm." He commented. "You might just freeze to death out here."

"I'm not used to the cold. But I suppose I should get inside soon." She agreed.

"Hungry? We can go get food again... So you don't have to eat alone." He suggested. "Unless your sister is back."

"No. She's still off on her job. I would love to go get something to eat with you." She said, giving him a nudge and a smile.

Dante stood up and helped her stand, holding her hand between his for a minute. "Girl your fingers are frozen!" He chuckled.

Noelle simply stuck her tongue out at him. He shook his head and started walking to the diner they had gone to before. He still held her hand, figuring she would pull away if she wanted to. He paused to let her drop her empty cider cup in the trash before continuing along. Noelle watched him, appreciating that he kept himself between her and the street. She had been a bit lonely over the last week, missing her sisters of course, but missing the presence of the red devil more. Dante must have picked up on her slight shift in mood because he gave her hand a gently squeeze.