i don't feel safe anymore

Part 14

Nadine could not be happier. It was Halloween night and though she could not go trick-or-treating due to where Sebastian lived, how far away from town he was, she was pleased. Nadine didn't need trick-or-treating. She was too old for that she'd told him, and he chuckled. Still, Sebastian felt terrible, so they went into town, and he bought a bunch of candy for her to eat while they watched Halloween movies. Cartons of Chinese food littered the coffee table. It was well past eight, and the sun had already set.

Nadine loved when she had Sebastian all to herself. They were watching Hocus Pocus on TV, when the channel changed to commercial, Nadine leaned forward on the couch and grabbed a KitKat from the grocery bag. She peeled the wrapper off and bit into it. When she leaned back, she glanced at Sebastian. He was filling out papers. The glasses he wore slanted on the bridge of his nose. Nadine frowned. He wasn't even watching the movie!

With a pout, Nadine moved so that she was leaning against him. When that didn't catch his attention, she shuffled again. He slanted her a glance, but then went back to his papers. Why wouldn't he put the stupid papers down?

Nadine's head fell back against the leather. "Can't you do that later?" she murmured. Sebastian turned his gaze to her through his glasses. With an innocent tone, she added, "it's Halloween."

Sebastian said a small apology and quickly stacked the papers on the coffee table. He even went a step further and closed the folder as he slipped off his glasses for Nadine to see he would be giving her his full attention from that point on. She grinned widely. He clicked his pen and leaned back. The moment he had, Nadine took the opportunity to curl up against him. When he let her, and even rested his arm along the couch behind her, her lips curled as she focused her gaze back on the TV again, popping the last piece of her KitKat into her mouth when the movie started up again.

Nadine sighed in relaxation. Sebastian's wonderful scent surrounded her. She wished she could have nights like these every night for the rest of her life. It would undoubtedly make living much more bearable.

After a while, her eyes slowly began to get heavier and heavier. As much as she wanted to stay up all night and to watch movies with Sebastian, she started to feel more and more tired. Her sugar high wearing off fast. The film continued, and she drifted in and out of consciousness; trying oh-so-hard to fight the sleepiness off for as long as she could. She moved closer to get more comfortable where she sat. A small yawn slipped from between her rosy lips as she rested her head on Sebastian's shoulder.

He continued to watch the movie. He knew it was nearing the time Nadine usually fell asleep, so he let her snooze until the film was over. There was only less than half an hour left anyways.

She swallowed in her sleep as she nuzzled her face in the side of his neck. A moment later, her nose brushed underneath his jawline. Her soft honey skin to his.

Sebastian pressed his lips together. He could hear a gentle snore slip between her lips. Her small body entirely lent up against him. Poor thing must be tired. He felt terrible, he knew she had a long day. The little thing practically exhausted herself at the grocery store with all the candy she was sampling while he picked up a few things for home.

Sebastian grabbed the remote and turned the TV off. Dimness fell over the room, but the full moon outside in the foggy night illuminated in. He scooped Nadine into his arms and carried her down the corridor to her room. She was so light and fragile, Sebastian found himself still baffled he found her alone in the woods. He pushed the door open with his shoulder as he walked into the dark room. He took her over to the bed, bent over, and laid her down.

In her sleep, Nadine's arms stayed locked around Sebastian's neck. He tried to pull her off without waking her up gently, but when he small face frowned, and she began stirring, he froze and waited in uncertainty.

A moment passed, and he carefully took her small arms into his hands and pried her off. She groaned in her sleep, but reluctantly let go. When he gently laid her arms down, she rolled onto her side and curled into a ball over the covers. Sebastian slipped off her shoes and her frilly socks, he pulled the blanket out from underneath her and tucked her in gently.

Her small hand reached out, and she gripped his finger. Sebastian froze and gazed at her. She was staring at him through tired eyes, her chestnut waves pooling around her slim shoulders. "Goodnight Sebastian," she murmured with a small voice.

"Goodnight Nadine," Sebastian replied, equally as quiet. Nadine blinked, her long lashes kissed her rosy, high cheekbones. Groggily, she released his finger and curled back on her side, nuzzling her face into the pillow.

When she was all settled, he went back into the living room to clean up the mess on the coffee table. He picked up Nadine's candy and the empty Chinese takeout cartons. He took the wad of empty candy wrappers to the trash. Once everything was cleaned up, he went to his room to go to bed.