Angel Burn (Book 1 Of Angel Trilogy)

Chapter 33| Happy Birthday, Luce!

Chapter 33| Happy Birthday, Luce!

Lucy's POV

Finally— just when I was about to tell him to forget it, that I didn't care anymore whether I still had shampoo in my hair or not— he said, "OK, I think that's all of it." I felt him wrap the T-shirt around my hair, squeezing the water out.

"Oh, thank God!" I straightened up from the stream, drops of icy water darting down my neck. "I'm never washing it again; I don't care how disgusting it gets."

Natsu rubbed my arms briskly, grinning. "You say that every single time."

"It's true this time. I swear that water's twenty degrees colder than it used to be."

Back in the cabin, I sat on the bed to comb out my hair, trying not to get the sleeping bags wet. It was such a relief to have clean hair again, even if it felt all tangled. Natsu sat next to me, leaning back against the wall.

"Your nose is all red," he observed.

"Yes, that's how it gets when I'm dying of hypothermia."

Bending forward, Natsu kissed the tip of my nose. Then he got up and went over to his bag; crouching down beside it on the floor, he unzipped an inner pocket. He came back and sat beside me again. "Here." He handed me a small white box. "Happy birthday, Luce!"

I took the box, feeling stunned. I had lost all track of time up here. "Is it my birthday? But— how did you know?"

Natsu gave a sheepish grin. "I sort of looked at your driver's license when you were taking a shower that first night in the motel."

I held the box in both hands. "You didn't! That's not even fair— you don't even have a driver's license with your real details on it." I looked down at the box, touched its slightly dimpled top. "What is it?"

"Open it and see."

I eased the lid off, and then just sat gazing downward. There was a necklace inside— a slim, shimmering silver chain with a crystal teardrop hanging from it. "It's beautiful," I breathed, drawing it out. The faceted pendant winked in the sunlight, turning on its chain. "Natsu, this is so. . ." I trailed off, at a loss for words.

He smiled at my expression. "It reminded me of you," he said. "Of your angel's wings."

My heart seemed to stop. We hardly mentioned my angel; I didn't like thinking about it. Up here, away from everything but the wind and the trees, I could almost forget that I wasn't wholly human.

"My angel's wings?" I repeated.

Natsu nodded. "The way they shone in the sun."

"But. . ." I stared back at the pendant, my thoughts spinning. "But you must have bought this before we even got together."

"Yeah, when I was buying your clothes." He ducked his head to peer into my face. "Hey. What is it?"

I could hardly put it into words. The pendant with the light hitting it was so clear, so shining. "You don't just not mind, do you?" I said slowly. "About me being a half angel. You really. . . accept it."

Natsu gave a gentle laugh and tapped my forehead with his fist. "Hello. Have you just figured that out?"

I didn't know what to say.

There was a long pause. Natsu cleared his throat. "You know. . . back in the motel room in Tennessee, I woke up from a nightmare once. A really bad one that I used to have a lot. And I looked at your angel." He scanned my face. "She's beautiful, Luce— she looks just like you, only more radiant. And just seeing your face, I was able to go to sleep again."