Masks

Chapter 6

It had been a few days since their poignant first night on the couch. They had developed a new system for caring for 'their' home. Somehow Evey had convinced him that he could live without his gloves. The storms had not let up. Because of this Evey had not left to get supplies since his arrival, she watched him like a hawk, something was not quite right. The lights had been flickering for the past few days along with their tempers; the one constant being the tension of their mutual feelings. The brief hiccups had been comical more than anything and only a few legitimate scares caused any more tension between the two.

V, even with his superhuman healing, was still in pain. It had taken Evey a day to catch on, he had pushed himself a little too hard, the sharp intake of breath as he tried to move the heavy bag of fertilizer on his own has cut through the constant soft sounds of the music. Evey ran to him helping him move the bag to his goal. She wouldn't coddle him; she knew he would hate that. But that sound, its rasp, was a terrifying one. When she had asked about what the doctor had said V gave her his explanation that he was discharged without muss nor fuss. This had angered her. It was obvious that he was still in immense pain, suffering in silence may have been his style but she was not going to stand for it.

She still had not convinced him to eat without his mask. Therefore that night after he had prepared their evening meal, they had eaten in their separate rooms, and cleaning had turned into the epitome of their teamwork. One washed one dried. Side by side they scrubbed down the counters. Even below ground the rumble of thunder could be felt. The lights flickered ominously, much like the lighting of a horror film. Until they went out completely.

The Shadow gallery without light or sound was truly a mausoleum. Out of shock, Evey dropped the spatula she had been drying. V with his superior sight had bent down to retrieve it, but a single beat behind Evey who was overly eager to pick up her error. In the dark, her head made contact with the edge of his mask, as she stood to right herself the mask edge was caught. It was flung across the room. Simultaneously they gasped, then dead silence as the mask clattered to the floor.

The removal of his mask allowed more light to pass through his eyes, allowed him to see even more in the inky darkness. Evey's face was priceless. The shock radiated from her features, her mouth moving up and down like a fish, when she finally was able to close her mouth. He vaguely remembered that perhaps he should be looking for his mask, but her face and its contortions were just too captivating, too hilarious. At one point in his life this situation would have enraged him, but now he could feel the laughter building in his chest.

Had Evey been less shocked, or possibly more pragmatic she might have moved forward. Placed her hands on his face, she may have comforted him, informed him that no matter how twisted his face was she would still accept him. But all she could do was gape, like a fool, at what had just happened. When she caught herself, she snapped her mouth shut, but she could feel her bottom lip begin to quiver and the tears were beginning to well up.

After the pause, Evey began to apologize profusely, large tears bubbling to her eyes from the shock and humiliation. With that V began to laugh his rich baritone unfiltered by the absence of his mask. He could not stop himself, he gathered his blubbering companion to his rumbling chest. "This isn't funny V!" She managed to choke out, "I am so so sorry." The apologies continued to pour from her into his chest, her tears were beginning to soak through his shirt. She clung tightly to him, shaking with her apologies. The wet tears sobered him, instantly. To calm her he stroked her hair, sssh-ing into her fragrant hair, therefore gently hushing her.

She could feel his gentle noises in in her hair. As he pressed his face into her hair she could feel the absence of his mask, his nose was soft and yielding as it pressed into her scalp. His breath tickled the roots of her hair for once. She could feel the electricity moving from her head to her toes. She unclenched her hands from around his back and carefully brought them up to the sides of his head. The wig was gone and she wrapped her hands into the soft hair she found there.