Nova's Diary

Chapter Nine

16th August Brașov, 9:19 pm- I awoke to a rather cozy, yet surprising experience. Dexter had somehow wound his body around me, his arms wrapped firmly around my waist, his legs entangled with my own. His hands were buried in my hair, his face nestled in the crook of my neck. He seemed to be sleeping still, despite it being dark now. He may have been sleeping in, I could definitely understand. I couldn't very well move and disturb him, so I closed my eyes, waiting for him to stir. Maybe 15 minutes later he did so, letting out a soft huff as he pulled his head away from me. He squinted for a moment, as if having no recollection of what was going on. Dexter blinked quickly, looking at me then closing his eyes. He carefully pulled his body away from mine, stretching. He looked awfully stiff. I would be lying if I said I did not want to cuddle a little longer. He tried to bend his arms, but they were completely ridged. I tilted my head, looking at him. He seemed to catch onto my confusion.
"Rigour Mortis. It happens after we wake up, lack of blood intake causes it too. I do not tend to drink a lot of blood, you could classify me as malnourished. I dislike taking blood from strangers." He mumbled, struggling to loosen his muscles. I remembered my mom would rub my sister's arm when she got sore from working out. I reached out, massaging his arm firmly. He did not pull away, he simply watched me. I hummed softly, smiling a bit.
"My sister used to get stiff muscles, not to the extent of Rigour Mortis but still pretty bad. This is all I know on how to help." I pulled away, looking at Dexter to move it. He tried to, but it was still stiff. After another few minutes of massaging, he began to move it. He smiled at me, chuckling.
"Usually I have to hop around my room until I loosen up. This is much better." I laughed softly, grabbing his waist and scooting him to the middle of the bed, moving to his left and massaging his other arm until it was moving again. He began to massage his right leg, I massaging his left at the same time. Finally, Dexter stretched, cracking his back and neck loudly. He let out a roar of relief, hunching over and smiling happily.
"Thank you darling that was most helpful." Darling? Did he call me darling? That made my stupidly gushy heart flutter, more than it honestly should have. Dexter climbed out of the bed, bending his knees a couple of times before walking off to a dresser and opening it. I averted my eyes as he dressed, mostly because I saw he took out a pair of trousers and I knew he was going to change them. After a few moments he crawled back onto the bed, resting his chin on my shoulder. I nearly jumped out of my skin, I did not even feel him climb on the bed. He laughed, must have gotten a kick out of how jumpy I was. I stood up, straightening out my nightgown, looking off to the side as I recalled I was not at the mansion I had grown used to, and the fact that when I looked last time, all of my clothes were gone from my drawers. I must have given a face to show my thought, as Dexter asked what's was on my mind.
"Last night, before everything went strange, I opened my drawers, and my clothing and cellphone are no longer there. I do not want to accuse Constantine but..." I trailed off, looking down at my nightdress. It was tattered and filthy, blood stained it, glass had cut it. It was no longer wearable after today. I let out a soft sigh, frowning and biting my lip as I began to worry about what I was going to do for clothing. Dexter reached out and patted the top of my head.
"Please do not worry too much about it. If your clothes are gone, I am sure we can find more. So cheer up dear?" The more he used the nicknames, the more I wanted to melt. I gave a nod, smiling up at him. He was so kind, and I was happy to have someone like him be so nice to me. He walked back over to his dresser and pulled out a deep red hunk of fabric. He hummed and waltzed over to me, draping the fabric over my shoulders. It was velvety, warm. He hummed softly as he pulled a gold link chain across the collar, latching it. He stepped back and rubbed his goatee, nodding.
"Now that is quite a lovely look on you. That should keep you warm until we get you clothing." I wrapped up in the cape, giggling softly and shuffling closer to him, pressing my chin to his chest. I felt strangely affectionate towards him, maybe it was the fact he was so cuddly and protective earlier, and I wanted to continue to feel that closeness. It had been a very, very long time since someone was so gentle with me. Dexter looked down at me, reaching down and grabbing my hands, swaying with me and humming softly, twirling me around slowly. I closed my eyes, surrendering to the warm feeling in my chest. I used to be so stern with romance, I told myself that feelings took years and years to develop and learn, but I suppose after you hit a certain age, and when you are faced with the fact something such as vampires exist, your old ideals sort of get tossed out of the window. There was a sudden knock at the door, which sent me launching backwards and sitting on the bed, putting my hands in my lap. Dexter gave a look, one of disappointment and frustration. He walked over and opened the door, and in swooped Draven, a stupid smile on his face. He looked to me, then to Dexter, a smirk now spreading.
"Oh my what has gone on in here hm? Have you been in here all night?~" I flushed, hanging my head in embarrassment. Dexter let out a catlike hiss, squinting at his brother. Draven laughed, shaking his head.
"Relax I'm kidding. I know you are a prude, there is no way anything happened you boring old fart." Dexter bared his teeth, Draven sauntering over to me and grabbing my hand, kissing the top of it softly.
"Good morning Miss Nova. I am happy you had a safer night. I am terribly sorry for what Constantine did." I stood up, closing my eyes and putting my hand on my cheek. I wanted to say it was okay, but it was not. It was attempted murder and that's not something to be handled lightly. Draven turned to Dexter, putting his hands behind his back.
"The carriage is all set, the glass will be cleaned as soon as we get there." I gulped, did I really want to go back to a place where someone tried to murder me? I opened my mouth to say something, but I faltered, pressing my fingertips together before building up the courage to speak.
"Um, pardon me but, I...is it safe? For me to go-go back? I understand that Constantine is under your control Draven but you cannot be around me at al times. Not to mention that I was almost murdered...Is it really safe for me to go back?" Dexter blinked, he looked confused. Draven gave me a sympathetic look, about to speak before Dexter spoke up first.
"W-what do you mean? If you don't come back with us where would you go? O-Of course it is safe, you...you have to stay..." he trailed off, twiddling his thumbs. I gave him a surprised look, had he forgotten that I lived in London? I raised my brow, Draven clearing his throat.
"Dexter please. Miss Nova, I assure you are safe. Constantine is under control and will not bother you any longer. Please do not worry about that." He gave me a smile, but my mind was still on what Dexter had just said. It wasn't like when Damien demanded me to stay, it didn't sound angry or even a demand. It sounded more like a plead. Dexter bit down on his lip, excusing himself and walking out of the room. I looked to Draven, putting my hands on my hips. Draven pulled at his collar for a moment, before hunching down a bit.
"Okay okay, don't look at me like that. Dexter has been talking to me. He's trying to work up to getting you to stay in the mansion. He hid your briefcase so that he couldn't sign the papers. He has been trying to get closer to you but he knows you are human so he is trying to move slower. It is hard for him, admittedly it was not the best idea to fall for a human but he is always the rebel. Please do not hold this against him he wasn't trying to be rude. He is panicking now, he fidgets when he panics. He really likes you, and he is worried that you will leave before he gets the chance to convince you to stay. Vampires develop bonds to humans quickly, not to mention he's tasted your blood. Vampires form a bond with those humans they take blood from but do not turn. That is why he is more comfortable with being close. Essentially, what you did was convince him further you wanted to be with him. If I may ask, what are your motives Miss Nova? You came here on business, with no intent on meeting someone, yet that seems to be what has happened. Tell me, what now?" I looked at Draven blankly for a moment, the question coming from him took me off guard.
"I like Dexter, I like him a lot. He's kind to me, wise and distinguished. He's smart. He's caring, not to mention he likes me as well. It is just so odd to move so quickly in romance, I have always taken so long to even get to the point of holding hands with a person, yet I felt perfectly fine having him sleep next to me. I am so confused and I just want to be happy. I have only been here for about two weeks, but I have told him everything about me, I've shared my darkest secret with him, I even kissed him. I don't understand why I feel so attached and affectionate towards someone I have met not too long ago..." Draven put his hand on my shoulder, squeezing it softly.
"Miss Nova, I know this must be hard. You never could have planned for something like this. But you need to stop thinking like a human being faced with a human issue. This is a rare opportunity fo you to abandon your human norms and try something new. Something a bit risky, but you'd be supported. You should hear the way he speaks about you. He would be crushed if you left, but I am sure he would understand if you told him. You have been rather thrown into this, and it is understandable for you to be confused, but you must look into your heart. It is time to stop thinking with your brain, your human limits, and begin to think with your soul, and your passion." I closed my eyes, putting my hands on my cheeks and looking down.
"I like him. I like him a lot. He makes me feel like I have something in this life to look forwards to, something new and different. I never reached out for what I wanted in life, and now I have this chance...and frankly, I mean, he knows everything about me, he has stayed with me in a time of need, I feel really comfortable with him, my heart is telling me it is time to make a new me. I want to do that. Yes, I want to be closer to Dexter." I clasped my hands tightly, nodding. I was being honest, and honestly, it felt good to do so. Draven put his hands on his hips, closing his eyes.
"Did you hear that? You can stop panicking now." There was a loud flutter, a dark blot falling from the ceiling and heading right towards me. I yelped softly, jumping as the blot landed on my chest, wrapping around me as tightly as it could. It was a bat, a Dexter bat. I could tell after one look at his eyes. I blinked, watching as he scrambled up, nestling into my shoulder and letting out small squeaks. I gave a soft smile, closing my eyes and reaching up, petting his head slowly. Dexter jumped off of my shoulder, a puff of deep red dust pluming up. He was back to normal, fixing his suit jacket. I put my hand on my hips, furrowing my brow.
"And what was that about?" I asked, squinting. He gave a nervous laugh, twiddling his thumbs again.
"Before I took you back to the mansion, I wanted to make sure it was worth it. I did not want to put you through anything you didn't want to, and I wanted to make sure that this was something you wanted to pursue. That I was someone you wanted to maybe see a little longer. I assure you Constantine will not be a problem anymore, he has been fed and punished." I did not ask what that punishment was, frankly I had no interest, the bastard tried to kill me, and admittedly I was bitter towards him, especially for calling me a harlot. I nodded, giving Dexter a teasing smile.
"You have convinced me to stay just a little longer. But I better see my suitcase turn up." Dexter nodded quickly, laughing nervously. He held out his hand, to which I grabbed, and the three of us walked out and downstairs. We all said goodbye to Ram and Alexandria, making our way out to the carriage. Elizabeth was in the coachmen's seat, ready to take us back to the mansion. Draven opened up the carriage door and helped me inside. Dexter climbed in next to me, the door shut behind him. He scooted close to me and smiled at me, looking at me with such bright, happy eyes hiding behind those rose coloured lenses. I felt the lurch of the carriage, wondering where Draven was sitting. He may have been up front with Elizabeth, that seemed the only option. Dexter and I chatted for a moment, before we fell into a comfortable silence. I glanced at him, leaning up and pressing a kiss to his cheek. Dexter blinked, a goofy grin spreading across his lips. He leaned down, kissing my lips gently, closing his eyes. I kissed back, my eyes fluttering shut as I relished in that warm moment. Kisses were something I got very rarely, only a handful of times from Damien. These kisses were so different, they made me feel like I was floating on a cloud. I did not realise that the kiss had gotten a tad deeper, only barley noticing when Dexter put his arms around me. I wrapped my arms around his neck, the kiss was veering into something a bit different, a french kiss one would say. I put my hands on his cheeks, parting for a breath. I opened my eyes, my cheeks felt so warm. Dexter opened his eyes and cleared his throat, smiling timidly. He opened his mouth to say something, when the carriage hit a bump, causing us to jump. I nearly fell over, clinging to Dexter, who almost fell as well. He snorted, laughing softly and helping me back into my previous sitting position. He began to play with my hair, humming softly. I leaned on him, closing my eyes and relaxing. I dozed the rest of the way there, Dexter gently awaking me when we arrived. I got out of the carriage, stretching and smiling happily. It felt so nice to say my feelings, and be freed from my old views. Draven and Elizabeth soon joined me, Dexter stumbling out of the carriage soon after. He took my hand, everyone walking inside at once. I had not see Constantine, not that I much cared. Draven told me to stay downstairs while my room was being cleaned, so I sat in the kitchen chatting with Elizabeth and Dexter. Draven soon joined us, and we talked for what felt like hours. It was so nice to talk like that, it felt like I was in my home away from home. I didn't even feel that homesick, but I was beginning to feel tired. How long had it been? I noticed Elizabeth yawning too, Draven was leaning back a bit more in his seat. We all eventually decided it was time for bed, even though it was still a bit dark out. I was slowly getting used to this night schedule, but it was still a bit difficult. Dexter stood up, holding his hand out. I grabbed it, and we walked upstairs. He stopped in front of my door, opening it for me. I stepped inside, pausing for a moment.
"Dexter? Will you be sleeping in the bed with me again?" I sounded hopeful, purposely so, I wanted him to know that I wouldn't mind at all. He caught on, walking inside of the room and closing the door, smiling.
"If you so wish, I will yes." I nodded happily, taking off the cape and draping it over the arm chair, Dexter took off his shoes and socks, his suit jacket as well. He unbuttoned his shirt, humming softly as he took off his trousers. I blinked rapidly, not expecting him to take them off. He wore boxers, black. His legs were thin, virtually hairless. He turned around, picking up his clothes. I looked at his rear, it was cute, round and small. I put my hand over my mouth and giggled, my blushing cheeks worsening. I looked away before he could get suspicious. He laid down in the bed, patting the spot next to him, his ears wiggling quickly. I crawled next to him, scooting under the blankets. He immediately wrapped his arms around me, burying his face in my neck again. He played with my hair soothingly, absentmindedly it seemed. He didnt seem tired, but I sure was. I closed my eyes, letting out a soft huff before I relaxed, my mind drifting as I faded into a content, warm sleep.