Bind Me To You

Chapter Twelve

Avery trudged down the sidewalk towards school, her bag slung over her shoulder. Her cheeks and nose were flushed a soft pink from the cold breeze brushing against her face and she rubbed her hands together in an attempt to keep them warm. The school bus had just began to pull away from the curb as she exited her house, and although she had waved her arms at the driver, she did not stop to let Avery on.

"I've forgotten what it's like to be cold" Azrael's voice commented, startling Avery into letting out a gasp. Her heart began to race as she turned to the demon. Azrael simply gave the blonde a lopsided grin as she stared at him, knowing very well that his entrance would startle her. "Can you stop doing that?" She grumbled before turning away from him, taking a deep breath as she began to continue on her way. The request made the dark-haired demon grin, "But your reaction is always so amusing" He mused, slowing to walk a few feet behind the blonde.

Azrael's eyes glanced at the Avery, watching the back of her head as she kept her eyes in front of her, his grin relaxing into a smile. It had been a long time since he had done something as mundane as walking to school, the chilled breeze against his skin felt like freedom to a demon trapped in chains. How Ironic, he thought.

"Did you decide?" Azrael began, interrupting the silence between the two. Avery slowed for a moment, having forgotten about the choice that Azrael had given her before she had to rush to get ready. As much as she didn't want to draw attention to herself, she wasn't going to waste her life for protection when she could get it for free.

There were a few obstacles though. The first was how people would react when some stranger with red eyes waltzed into the school grounds, that would surely bring unwanted attention to her.

"If I did go with option two... would they... I mean, would other people be able to see your eyes?".

Azrael smiled, "No. Only you and other demons can see my red eyes. To other mortals, they will likely just look brown or something else equally boring".

"Oh" was all Avery could say, relieved that the first obstacle was so easy to overcome. "And how about 'a story'. What did your other... humans, use to say?"

Azrael's smile faded at her question, he didn't particularly want to talk about his past clients. It felt akin to talking to someone about his past relationships, likely to do nothing but stir up trouble.

"Nothing that would work for a high school student" Azrael responded after a moment of silence, "Most had no problem selling their lives for my powers anyway, but you're different".

You're different. Those words always sent a tendril of warmth through Avery, even when the cool breeze stung her hands and cheeks. In this case she was sure, different was better. Avery had a lot to think about, she needed to come up with some kind of story for Azrael, something that would make sense and that would cause the least impact or attention. That wasn't as easy as it seemed though.

With a critical eye, Azrael looked over the mortals taste in clothing. The plain coloured shirt and jacket mixed with her minimal effort to do her hair or put any makeup on. Granted, Avery didn't need makeup, but Azrael could only wonder how just a little mascara and eyeliner could make those light blue eyes stand out.

Azrael sighed dramatically, gaining the attention of the girl walking in front of him. Avery glanced back at him for a moment but promptly turned back to watch where she was walking.

"You know, I understand the whole birds nest style, but you could probably put more effort into your hair" The words rolled from Azrael's lips in a mocking tone as he grinned. Avery stopped in her tracks, turning to face the boy who had just made a rude comment, "Excuse me?".

Azrael smiled as he reached out to catch a blonde strand of hair that hung beside her face, "I mean, if I'm going to be seen with you in public, I'd at least like some effort". This statement earned a smack to Azrael's arm. "Well, don't expect any" Avery grumbled in response, giving the demon a glare before she turned on her heel to continue on her way.

Azrael couldn't help but let a chuckle escape. Her reaction to his comments were amusing and he enjoyed seeing her get a little mad with him. It had been a long time since he was able to get away with making fun of a client. He hoped that she would never realise that a simple demand could make him stop altogether.

"What I really mean is..." Azrael started, letting the amused grin turn into a sincere smile, "This is your first day of happiness, shouldn't your look match that?". Avery didn't stop walking as she contemplated his words, It doesn't matter because I didn't have time to get ready this morning...