holy

xv

every rustle of leaves and gust of wind shook brett's body as if he were a bird upon a tree branch. he sat, knees to his chest, on top of his bed, trembling in fear. gold eyes stayed trained on the bloodstained message on the wall, occasionally glancing to shattered but still functional clock on the floor. his heart beat twice as fast as the sound of the ticking.

eddy had been gone for 45 minutes now, and with each passing second brett grew anxious at the prospect of what the demon might be doing. killing, probably, brett figured that much. the question, though, was who.

but the answer was obvious as brett heard the creaky door open and heavy footsteps approach down the hall. the image was familiar, eddy standing in the doorway, hands and shirt dripping with the fresh blood of a human, piercing red eyes nearly glowing in the dark. brett's eyes stared at one thing in particular, though: the demon's lips, which were stained with red blood after he had tried to wipe away the burning aftertaste of the human's kiss. he should've been afraid of the demon, really, but instead he was left thinking about how devilishly good eddy looked in red.

eddy sauntered through the bedroom wordlessly, walking into the bathroom where brett could hear the faucet running. when he returned, he looked sorrowfully at the tear tracks that traced brett's cheek, and wiped them carefully with his thumb even when brett flinched away.

"let's go." eddy grasped brett's hand, keeping his voice low so as to hold back his anger and not startle the angel. he pulled him out of the house quickly, and they had yet to let go of each other's hands even as they landed on the balcony of eddy's apartment.

brett gratefully took a shower, scalding hot water tinging his skin a light pink as he tried to rid himself of the putrid scent of death. eddy looked on in disapproval as brett stepped out of the bathroom, a trail of steam emerging with him. however, something in eddy's heart pounded as he realized that brett was wearing his clothes once again.

the angel took a seat on the couch he had become well acquainted with, unintentionally very close to eddy, their shoulders barely brushing together.

"are you okay?" eddy watched as brett shook his head, a frown forming on his face. the silence was deafening.

in a matter of hours, his entire world had changed, but not in the same way it had that fateful night at the bar. no, this time it was different, worse. he had lost his violin which had been a gift from the archangels, and he was completely traumatized from the state of his house.

"take the bed tonight," eddy commanded, his firm tone leaving no room for argument. not that brett would, he was too tired and sad to object.

but thankfully he fell asleep quickly, buried into red sheets and under covers that smelled so familiarly of eddy, finding himself breathing extra deeply as he dropped off into oblivion.

moments later, eddy creeped in, laying on top of a blanket on the floor at the foot of the bed, staring up at the ceiling on high alert.

he didn't sleep that night.

-

before brett woke, eddy made a stop at the cafe to pick up a coffee for himself and a cupcake for the angel. he was hesitant to leave, but figured it was worth it to see that smile of brett's again.

when he returned, brett was just rousing himself from sleep, rubbing his eyes and stretching his arms as he sat up in the spacious bed. eddy watched, leaning on the edge of the doorframe.

"good morning, angel," eddy said, only half teasing, hiding the paper bag with the cupcake behind his back.

brett didn't even look up at him, just nodding and fiddling with his fingers.