What Is Love? | My Inner Demons x Reader

Chapter 20: Getting Butterflies... {Noi's Route}

~(Y/n)'s PoV~

        We stop in front of the building and Ava's eyes light up. "Ooh, butterflies!"

        "Butter-flies...?" Rhys tilts his head, looking at me, at the building behind me, then back to me.

        Asch crosses his arms, scowling. "Where did you bring us, Pet?" He questions me, spitting out my new nickname as if it were venom in his mouth.

        I try to brush by his negativity, as I am genuinely excited. "We are at a very sacred and beautiful place called a butterfly sanctuary. And butterflies are little bugs with wings that are super colorful and pretty!" I hum, unable to control my smile.

        Noi beams. "Wow, that sounds amazing!"

        "Yeah, yeah, pretty colors- can I kill them?" Leif asks, grinning and bearing his sharpened teeth.

        Ava and I quickly shake our head. "N-No! No no no, you can't... b-because, uh... they're actually very dangerous and if you kill one then they'll all attack you!" Ava states, confidently.

        The boys seem to get the picture: Rhys gives an almost nervous-looking nod, Leif smirks menacingly at the idea of fighting for his life, and poor little Noi shivers with fear, looking between me and Ava. I always feel awful, lying to Noi. He's such a sweetheart, I'd never want anything bad to happen to him. Maybe I can make it up to him later...

        Ava starts to usher the other Daemos into the building. I start to follow, only to get held back. Noi's arms are wrapped around me from behind, one around my waist and another around my shoulders. His grip is firm, yet gently, so I feel no cause for alarm from standing with him. However, I can't help but feel flustered, being stuck in his arms.

        "I-Is-" I clear my throat, trying to wipe away that weak stutter from my mind. "Is something wrong, Noi...?"

        I feel his face pressed against my shoulder and I find myself smiling at the way his hair brushes I've my neck when he shakes his head. "N-No... I-I'm just, uh..."

        I try to glance back at the ginger, but the way he's holding me doesn't give me much room to move. "What is it...?"

        "C-Can you stay... w-with me when we g-go in... p-please?" He asks, nervously. The realization dawns over me that Ava scared Noi... and I feel guilty. Noi is scared over the lies that Ava and I told and now I owe it to him to help.

        I nod, pulling myself away from him with the slight feeling of heat on my cheeks. "O-Of course..." I take his hand in mine and begin to lead him into the building. I can almost sense how tense he is, as if it were in the air, but he seems to settle when I start to stroke his knuckles with my thumb.

        Fingers crossed that he stays calm...

~Noi's PoV~

        As we walk to the door of the odd building, (Y/n) shoots me a weirdly calming smile. Not that I'm complaining, I really like them. (Y/n) and Ava have been kind to us, more so than anyone on Daemos ever was. I think I'm going to like E-urth, especially if we get to stay with them!

        I close my eyes when (Y/n) opens the door and I hear them giggling. "Wh-Why are you doing that...?!" I panic.

        Their laughter persists and though it makes me feel worried, it's also a very sweet, pretty sound. "Open your eyes, Noi..." (Y/n) hums, squeezing my hand.

        My eyes hesitantly flicker open, only to find dirt pathways in the ground and vibrant green vegetation growing around us. Sunlight shines in through glass in the walls and ceilings and it seems to make everything glow; from the leaves on the trees to the pretty, colorful flowers.