The Dark Side of The Imagination {Prinxiety} - Book Two of the Why I Run Series

Chapter Eight

Point of View: Roman, First Person
Timeline: Present Day, Day 5 Of Roman's Quest

I was quieter than usual.  I half expected Virgil to comment something snarky about it actually, but I guess he was in a quiet mood too.

It was a long, boring walk.  There wasn't much to do, not even much to look at.  The place was pitiful to look at.  A cold, black, barren environment.  I glanced at Virgil, but he didn't even look at me, appearing to be lost in thought.  The sky was overcast, blocking out the sun making everything look even sadder than it already was.

Gosh this silence was killing me.  I had to do something.

Smirking, I walking slightly closer and sneakily slipped my hand into his.

Virgil jumped at my touch, snapping back to reality.  He instinctively flinched yanking his hand back.  His eyes looked at me, wide - almost as if my small touch had genuinely frightened him.

"Sorry," I teased, leaning forward and landing a quick kiss on his cheek.  "Forgiven?"

Virgil let out a shaky nod, slowly letting himself relax.  I frowned.  He was usually comfortable around me, but hey - these weren't usual circumstances.  I slipped my hand into his again and this time he let me, clasping mine in return.

"Wow, you're hands are cold," I teased.  "Lemme warm them up," I said, pressing a kiss on his cold knuckles.

At that Virgil smiled softly, but I could still see it was a bit forced.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

Virgil didn't say anything, just shook his head - bangs falling over his eyes.

"Hey," I said stopping, forcing Virgil to stop too.  He avoided my eyes, constantly flicking around us, almost as if he was expecting something.  "What's wrong?"

"I'm just... uneasy," he said.  "I mean - where is everybody?"

I blinked at that, confused.  "What do you mean?"

"I mean why haven't we run into anyone yet? We're not exactly keeping a low profile," he said, waving his hand at our bare surroundings.  And he was right, nothing for miles.  Nothing really in sight but a cliff side off to our right and the cave we had entered from, several miles behind us now.

I shrugged.  "Maybe they're in the Mind Palace?"

Virgil frowned even more so at that thought, adjusting his hoodie on his shoulders uneasily.  "Then someone would definitely see us coming," he said.

I planted another kiss on his hand, still trying to warm them up.  "No worries, love.  I'm here to save you," I teased.

Virgil flushed pink at the nickname, his small smile a little more genuine than before.  "Yay," he added weakly.  Optimism really isn't his strong suit.

I smiled and pressed one more kiss on his hand, which was refusing to warm up.  "We'll work on your enthusiasm when we get back home," I encouraged to which Virgil merely rolled his eyes in response.

We continued walk for what felt like hours and it honestly felt like we hadn't made any progress.  I could've easily flown there myself and been there in hour or so, but I couldn't carry Virgil and fly, nor simply leave him behind.

Once it really started getting dark, the cold really started setting in.  Virgil, who obviously hadn't taken the time to make sure he packed everything - wow he really must've been a rush to find me if he didn't take the time to triple check to make sure he had everything he needed.  Feeling guilty, I snapped my wings open and spread them around the both of us, their natural heat keeping us warm.