Nephilum

Chapter 15

I tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear. My hand was starting to ache from how hard I was gripping the door beside me. The wind was blowing softly and it was quite beautiful up here. Even If it was too high up for my liking.

"Why are we up here again?" I asked James, who was sitting on the edge of the roof, swinging his legs back and forth like a small child.

"Just to enjoy the veiw." I rolled my eyes at his simple answer, but I did look out over the city. It was around midnight, but that didn't keep people from venturing off into the cities for a night of fun. All the buildings and clubs looked distant. I would never admit it to James, but it was kind of beautiful.

I went a few more moments being silent, until I couldn't stand it anymore. "So, what kind of work do you do?" I asked casually. It was actually something I'd been wondering for a while. He always seemed to be busy, he never had time to just sit and relax.

He answered without even looking back at me. "I complete a lot of assignments."

"Like?" I prompted.

He didn't answer. I slowly loosened the death grip I had on the door and shuffled toward James. I swallowed  hard as a particularly strong wind blew past us, making my braid fly to the other side of my back. I really didn't like heights.

James looked up at me questionably as I slowly sat down beside him. I didn't let my legs hang over the edge like James, and stayed about a foot away from it.

"I thought you didn't like heights?" He asked.

"I don't." I replied. My voice shook slightly and I forced it to stay steady.

James chuckled. The side of his shoulder brushed against mine lightly.  "So, what's your favorite color?" I asked randomly.

"What's with the twenty questions?" He countered.

"I figured since I basically live with you, we should get to know each other."

"Dark blue."

"What?" I asked.

He looked at me again. "My favorite color. It's dark blue."

I nodded. "Mine is purple or silver. I like both."

I thought for a second. "Tell me about your brother." I said gently.

James stiffened beside me. I had the feeling that I shouldn't have said that. "I'm sorry, you don't have to tell me about him."

"His name was Ian. He died because of my dad. He liked cars and had a pretty cool girlfriend." He didn't say anything further and I took that as a clue to drop the subject.

I looked down at my fingers and started picking at a hang nail.

"So, tell me about your family." He said. He was still looking out over the city and I took a moment to admire his strong jaw line and intense eyes that never seemed to miss a thing. His dirty blond hair ruffled in the wind slightly.

"Well, there's my mom, who's a nurse. She's pretty great, but can be totally overbearing sometimes. I don't care though, she's always been there for me when I needed her. Then there's my dad. He's an architect and he's pretty cool too. He's more laid back than mom though. He likes to pull pranks and stuff. Mom always pretended that she hated all the stuff he'd pull, but we all knew she loved it."

I sighed for a moment, before continuing. "And there's Alex. He's my brother and he's six. He's more like an older sister though. He always gives great advice and I don't know how, but he always knows when I'm lying. It's like his sixth sense. I used to hate it, but now I miss it."

James looked at me, but I didn't meet his gaze. I saw his scrutinizing eyes passing over my face. "They sound pretty cool."

"Yeah, they are." I looked down and blinked away the sudden tears blurring my vision. I sniffed and forced my voice to take on a more cheerful tone. "So, this place is cool. When did Michael get it?"

"About a week and a half ago. When you first started living at the old safe house. I guess you can say it was plan B."

I laughed. "Which safe house? We've already been to two." I joked.

James smiled slightly, but it was a somber smile. "I'm sorry."

I looked up at him. "What for?"

"For everything. For dragging you into all of this. For putting you in danger. For being a jerk to you." His voice trailed off until the last words he spoke were near whispers. His eyes showed an emotion I couldn't interpret. Guilt? Regret? Pain? I couldn't help but feel bad for him as he looked down at me through his dark lashes.

"James, don't be sorry. You're the reason I finally know things. Things about myself that I should have known, but I didn't. You're the reason I finally know the truth about my life. About who I am and what I'm supposed to be. You're the only person who hasn't told me lie after lie. You're the only one I can trust." My voice cracked and I cleared my throat slightly. I hadn't meant for the heart to heart.

We sat in silence for a few minutes. The distant sounds of the city drifted up to us. Everything was beautiful. I've begun to notice, almost everything is more beautiful since I met James. Colors are more vibrant. Sounds are clearer. It's like when you've gone your whole life without glasses-not ever thinking you needed them-and when you put them on, everything becomes ten times sharper.

"What are we going to do?" I asked James.

"I don't know. I'm supposed to be keeping you safe and teaching you about angels, but all I seem to do is piss you off or put you in even more danger."

I didn't say anything. He seemed so frustrated with the fact that he couldn't do what he thought he should be able to do. I yawned and James looked over at me. "It's late. You should probably go to bed."

I nodded. It had been a very long day, and he was right-it was getting pretty late. I stood and walked carefully to the door of the roof. I looked back at James, and then back at the door.

"Good night James."

Just as the door was closing behind me, I could have sworn I heard a faint "Good night Lizzie,".