Escape

The secret room.

His smile did not change and internally, she sighed. It will never go her way will it.

"You should see my aunt's collection then. She have this huge collection about witchcraft."

She perked up.

"But I'm warning you, don't go opening the older ones. She will know if someone else touches them." He joked and offered his hand.

When she just stared at it he grabbed her hand in his and pulled her.

She wordlessly followed him outside the library, up the flight of stairs to the room at the end of the hall. Of course she had seen the inside of it, knows the room is his.

Wide windows that encompasses the rest of the room, even part of the roof had been changed to glass which would show the sky or rain as it poured  from above but tonight it showed a very clear night sky.

She gasped as she took a step forward, not realizing that their hands are still linked Michael took a step with her.

Tonight, millions of stars stared back at her. Blanketing the whole night sky, tirelessly twinkling in their own amazing way. She has seen the night sky a thousand times, had slept under them countless of times but not in so long. For months she had been very careful, staying in motels or in strangers' cars never outside for not more than what's necessary.

She felt the pull of the moon as she bathed in its light. How wonderful it is to feel the familiar tingle in her skin as she stood under it all. She closed her eyes, afraid it had turned blue.

But when she turned to look at Michael, he only smiled and guided her to stand in front of a wooden bookcase.

Turned out, there was a panel that opens only when Michael slid a vase to one side and when they stepped inside, light automatically turned on in their presence.

It was a secret room, with two comfortable looking single sofa complete with a small coffee table. On the other side of the room, shelves stands cramped with books from floor to ceiling.

"You have your own library with your aunt's books inside?" she teased reading titles as she goes.

He made his way to a high counter that suspiciously looks like a mini bar, with a modern looking coffee machine, the kind she sees on other peoples houses.

"My room and Lara's used to belong to my great grandmothers. The Towle twins as what everyone used to call them. Naturally they have a shared space, when they both passed away the room was given to us." Taking two sets of coffee mug he asked, "Do you take creamer or milk?"

"Black with one sugar please." she replied grabbing one book that says Runes.

He motioned for the sofa "Sit, I'll bring your coffee."

She laid the book on the table. Despite the title, the cover is actually plain black with a simple white lettering. She breathed in and opened it on the very last page, and there on the bottom is the initials L. T.