Bloom and Destruction (ACOTAR - Elain + Azriel)

Chapter 2

Azriel

    I feel the bed dip slightly behind me before a warm hand rests on my shoulder. "Azriel?" Elain. I turn my head to look at her. "I'm sorry to wake you," she whispers.

    I shake my head, turning my body to face her. "No need to apologize. Are you alright?" I blink the sleep from my eyes.

    She looks down to her lap. "I'm fine. I just wanted to offer you some lunch." I smile into the darkness. "I can save you some for when you get up if you want to go back to sleep," she whispers.

    I'll only go back to sleep if you'll crawl into this bed and lie with me, I wanted to say. But I went with, "I'll be down in just a moment."

    Elain nods, pushing herself off the bed and walking to the door. She closes the door gently behind her.

I run my hands down my face, groaning tiredly. I throw the blanket off of myself, chuckling at my friend who decided to wake up as well. Guess I'll have to take care of that before I go downstairs.

Elain

I hum softly as I carry the plates of sandwiches to the table. I retrieve a pitcher of water from the kitchen along with two cups and place it between the plates. I glance at the clock. Maybe he fell back asleep, I frown at the thought.

I head up the stairs and towards Azriel's room. I can hear him grunting as I approach the door. I knock gently, his noises stopping abruptly. "Azriel?" I call through the door.

"I'll be down in a minute," his voice hoarse.

    I nod to myself. "You can go back to sleep, I don't want to disturb you," I place my hand against the door.

    "Elain, please," he whispers so softly, I could barely hear him. I place my hand on the doorknob just as the door swings open. I jump slightly, bringing a hand to my chest to rest over my heart. Azriel stands before me, pants hung low on his hips and shirtless, smelling of sweat. "Sorry, love," he smiles lazily. "Didn't mean to startle you," he leans against the door frame. His hoarse voice echos through my body as I shake my head. "Shall we?" He gestures to the hall behind me. I nod silently, leading the way to the dining room.

    I sit across from Azriel as he bites into his sandwich. I notice his shadows dancing around the corners of the room as I sip my tea. "Where has everyone gone?" I ask before biting into the food before me.

    Az looks up. "Well," he clears his throat. "Rhys took Feyre and Nesta shopping for your birthday. Mor went to go see Amren and Cassian is at the Illyrian training camp."

    I nod, "why didn't you go with Cassian?"

    He leans back in his chair, my eyes raking over the toned chest before me. "I was out all night doing something for Rhys," he shrugs.

    "That's why I couldn't scent you this morning when I walked past your room."

    His brow furrows. "Your room is at the opposite end of the hall."

     I stand up, grab both of our plates and nod. "I know," I throw him a smile over my shoulder as I walk back to the kitchen. I giggle as I hear his chair groan as he pushes it away from the table. My smile remains planted on my lips while he makes his way to the kitchen.

    "You walked past my room this morning? On purpose?" He steps in front of me, grabbing the plates from me and setting them in the sink.

    I nod, "yes."

    "Why?" He turns on the faucet to begin scrubbing the dishes.

    I stare at the muscular back before me, my mouth going dry. "I-I wanted to show you the garden," I almost whisper.

    He pauses for a moment before shutting off the water. I hold my breath as he slowly turns towards me. "You wanted to show me?"

    I nod again, loosing that breath. "Yes, I did.  You... You are my friend, Azriel. My best friend. I want to share everything with you," I smile.

    He takes a step forward. "Everything? With... me?"

    "Yes," I breathe out as he places his hands on either side of me against the counter. I lean back slightly, feeling the edge press into my lower back.

    Something soft flickers in his eyes. "Elain," he whispers, a hand settling on my hip. I look at him between my lashes, leaning upward slightly.

    Just when I thought he would lean down to kiss me, he jumped back. The door opened a heartbeat later, Cassian and Mor waltzing into the kitchen. "Oh, hi," Mor grins at me.

    "And what were you two doing?" Cassian teases, looking between us.

    A blush heats my cheeks as I look down to the floor. "We just had lunch and were cleaning up," Azriel snaps as he places a hand on the small of my back.

    I step out of his touch and silently make my way to the back door. I close it behind me, watching as Cassian and Azriel argue in the middle of the kitchen. I make my way back to my tucked away corner, the place I'd been sitting when Nesta came to retrieve me this morning. I take my seat on the ground and look up at the clouds.

    I don't look toward the house as I hear the door open. They won't find me here, I reassure myself. I lean back so that I'm laying flat on the ground. Footsteps approach, as if knowing exactly where I was, Azriel appears above me. I stare up at him, still shirtless. We stare and stare at each other for a long moment before he sighs, dragging a hand through his hair. He plops down next to me, bending one knee to rest his arm on. I look back to the sky, trying my best not to look at him.

    "You know," he whispers. "I want to share everything with you too."  I smile, turning my body so I'm laying on my side to face him. "Maybe not in the way you want to share things with me, but I want everything you want to share with me."

    I furrow my eyebrows. "What do you mean not in the way I want to share things with you?" The question tastes bitter coming from my lips.

    He sighs, shuffling so he's now laying on his side opposite of me. "Just that... you bring beauty to everything, I don't want to destroy everything we share. I'm happy to see it, I'm happy to be able to witness it, but I will not be apart of it to destroy it."

    I feel tears start to well up in my eyes as I push myself off the ground and storm into the house. I ignore his calls for me, I ignore Cassian and Mor asking what happened when I pass the living room and head straight for my room. I slam the door and lock it before letting my tears fall.

    Tears of rage, of sorrow, tears for him. He doesn't destroy everything and I don't know why he thinks he's so damn destructive. He's never been anything but kind and caring and beautiful to me.