Not Long At All

Chapter Ten

David's POV:

      "Forward, forward, right, forward, up, up, up, up..." 

      My clammy hands muffled his voice, leaving an almost ghostly sound. Footsteps echoed towards me and I ducked behind a side wall, covering the worm's mouth with a thumb. I tried to steady my breathing, but my heart was pounding so loudly that I couldn't tell if it was quiet or not. A heavy set man in a janitor's uniform walked past me, ignorant of the fact that I was a mere foot away.

      His heavy steps faded down a set of stairs and I let go of my breath, uncovering the worm while doing so.

      "Right, forward, forward, left, forward, forward, oh no... back, stairs, up, up, up, up..." 

      The seconds seemed to stretch to an impossibly slow amount of time and I struggled with the heaviness of my body. It was on the third floor that the worm finally wiggled in my palm, "Here."

      I stared at the door in front of me- thirteen. A faded spot was proof of another number that had been in front of it, but that likely fell off. I slid the worm into my pocket, somehow ignoring the sensation of him wiggling around. My hand reached out and twisted the knob. A click and it turned in my grip. 

      My stomach was in my throat as I pushed open the door. What if she wasn't here? What if I got caught? What if she was dangerous?

      The room was dark and I gently closed the door behind me, "Sarah?"

      A whisper came from the corner, "David?"

      I held a hand in front of me, trying to feel my way in the darkness. Suddenly there she was, her hand grabbed mine and she pulled me close. Her face pressed into my chest and I could feel her warm sigh of relief. My arms wrapped around her, almost holding her up.

      My heartbeat pounded against her ear and I could feel her smile, "I knew you'd come."

      I gave a hopeless laugh, "That makes one of us."

      She gripped me tighter and a shiver rolled down my spine. I pulled away from her, "Let's get you out of here."

      I grabbed her hand and pulled her after me out the door. The dimly lit halls hit her brown hair, paling her. 

      "Forward, forward, left..."

      Sarah frowned, "What is that?"

      I looked at her for a moment, "It's a worm- long story."

      From my pocket came the little voice, "Ello!"

      Sarah smiled, "Oh! It's you!"

      I followed her gaze and nudged her, trying to draw her eyes away from my hips. She looked up and suddenly her smile dropped as she pulled her hand from me, "How can I trust you?"

      I stared at her, "You just now decided to ask this?"

      Her expression was dark and I sighed, checking the hall both ways, "Look. I'm sorry. But what did you expect? If you met a random person and they started telling you all this, what would you think?"

      She drew back, hurt laced in her eyes. I grabbed her hand, letting it drop when her eyes flicked towards it, "I'm sorry. I don't know what any of this is. I'm just an average guy okay? I've never done good things, I've never done bad things, I've never done anything out of the blue and yet here I am." 

      I stopped, those could make good lyrics. Sarah bit her lip and looked up at me, "How do I know..."

      "You don't." I searched her eyes for some sort of belief, but found myself locked in them instead. They were so familiar. They held me like nothing else. They were-