City of Magische Geschöpfe [Complete]

Epilogue Two

Jacob:

Work was tedious.

Oh, would you look at that? The multi-millionaire was complaining about sitting on his ass in a comfy office of the company he owned. There were so many worse things I could be doing right now. Still, work was tedious. I lived for the day that robots would be able to do everything. No working for the humans.

The words on the desktop in front of me blurred and refocused and blurred again. Perhaps I was overworking myself. Maybe I should rest more, just as Taylor had said. Sleep eight hours or more instead of five hours or less. Maybe I'd get more done then too. Maybe.

I must say I regret sending Taylor off to get a place of his own. This house was too large for one person. Hell, too large for two. I'll even admit I'll miss him critizing my cooking and yelling at me to 'just go the hell to sleep'. That was the moment when I decided I'd try and call Taylor back from wherever he ran off too. He and Roman could keep that apartment if they so wanted. Maybe as an escape route. I just wanted him back for at least part of the time. During the day or here at work was something . . . but I missed my little brother. Damn him.

"Jacob?"

Without lifting my head I already know it's Robinson. "Hmm?"

"You have a meeting soon."

"Taylor can't attend?"

"No, unfortunately not. He left early today. Bolted without notice." To his credit, Robinson really did sound apolagetic.

"Did he know about this meeting?"

"Yes. That's probably why he bolted."

"True enough. Alright, I'll be there. When exactly?"

"Twenty minutes?" He says that more as a question than a definitive statement.

"Is it or isn't it in twenty?" I'm too tired for these games.

"It is."

"Great, I'll be there."

"Great, good to see one of you still adhere to the rules."

What rules? I think to myself and scoff. Rules, yeah right. More like expectations.

I turn to go back to work when my office is suddenly flooded with weird light. For a hot minute, I wonder who on earth turned on every lightbulb in this room and then some.

But then she was there, perched on my desk like she owned the damned thing. Honestly? If she wanted she could get it in a heartbeat.

Ally. Allea- however, you said her full name. Did it matter?

She looks beautiful. She always did, mind you, but now the sickly pallor was gone. Luckily her glowstick-like appearance from the city was also toned down. Not gone, not by a long shot. She still looked like an angel, but rather one who chose to grace me with her presence rather than one who got her wings ripped out. Ah, the irony.

She stilled glowed now, but it was a subtle glow. Instead of the inferno blazing inside her, embers glowed instead. Ready to be reignited any day.

She smiles down at me. "'Hello, Jacob."

I grin back, readily, not afraid to show how much I've missed her. It's been damned years. Years.

"Hello, Ally."

"You look like shit."

I blink, taking a moment to register the wild change of course. "Uh, thanks?"

"Never forget to take care of yourself."

"I wouldn't."

"But you did."

"I did, yes."

"Don't."

"Okay."

She's grinning now too.

I open my arms wide. "Stop being all the way over there. Come here. Grace me with your presence."

She hops off the desk and launches herself into my arms so hard my chair slides back a good distance. "You're ridiculous. Impossible."

"I know."

"I watched you from afar, did you know that? Monitored you." She looks at me, eyes flicking over every part of my face. "On second thought I shouldn't have done that. It was creepy."

I tuck a strand of that soft hair behind her ear. "No, I know. It helped me feel connected to you."

"Sappy."

"Always."