Chapter 23 Enough For Now
Chapter twenty-three
Enough For Now
Bryce
The plane landed in Montana with a jolt and a rumble, and Zef squeaked in fright, grabbing Bryce’s hand in a death grip.
Their normally peridot complexion was ashy, lips pressed into a thin, stressed line.
Had their wings not been pinned between their back and the seat, they would have been beating with anxiety.
Zef was terrified of heights, and they had never flown in a plane before. Add on being crammed into a tin can with a hundred other bodies at close proximity, and Bryce could imagine they were hovering on the edge of a mental breakdown.
Lacing their four fingers with his five, Bryce rubbed a thumb soothingly over their hand. “Breathe, sweetheart. You’re fine. Everything’s okay. Just keep breathing.”
“I am aware that I am fine,” they said shortly. “But that does nothing to stop the feeling of looming and imminent death, Bryce!”
Instead of responding verbally—or with laughter, as he wanted—he simply squeezed their hand in comfort.
The passenger on Bryce’s other side stood the moment the plane stopped moving, but Bryce and Zef remained seated until the plane was almost empty. Only then did they feel comfortable walking down the aisle, backpack clutched to their chest like a shield.
The moment they stepped off the plane, their shoulders loosened, but they still recaptured his hand the moment they could walk side-by-side again.
As if his hold on their hand was the only thing keeping them grounded.
The ease in which they twined their fingers with his was still a marvel, and Bryce didn’t think he’d ever take it for granted.
Not after all they’d overcome to get here.
People bustled around them, shoulders and arms knocking, and Zef’s wings buzzed in agitation as they fought to avoid coming into contact with anyone.
In Hellia, other species gave Mantodea a wide berth unless it was physically impossible not to, but here, no one knew Mantodean customs. Heck, half the people bumping into them did so because they were stunned to even see a demon and froze to gawk at them.
“Everyone is touching me,” Zef whispered.
“I know. They don’t mean nothing by it. It’s just busy and—”
“Why are they staring? Do they not know it is rude to stare?” They curled tighter into Bryce’s side, and he released their hand so he could wrap an arm around their shoulders.
“We don’t get many demons in these parts. Not that it’s an excuse. They are being impolite.”
“I want to go home,” they whimpered, and disappointment crashed over him. Like they could read it on his face, they blurted. “Not Envy. I mean, I want to go home to your house, with Nan and your parents. I do not want to be here in this airport anymore. I do not like it.”
Rubbing their shoulder, he guided them toward the exit. “I know, baby. We’re almost out. Just hang in there.”
They stopped at the restrooms so Bryce could pee, and he used the moment to text his family to let them know Zef was really agitated from the flight. Then he washed his hands and met back up with the Mantodea who was hovering near the entrance.
“Oh good, you are back,” they said in relief. “I am sorry for being so anxious. I cannot seem to regulate. I apologize.”
He cupped their face and pressed their foreheads together. “Hey, none of that. You got nothing to apologize for.”
“I wanted to make a good impression with your parents,” they said miserably.
“They already know and love you, so you don’t gotta worry about that. I told them you’re stressed from the flight, and if you need to just sit in the back of the truck quietly and zone out, that’s okay. They’ll understand.”
Their antennas dotted over his brow in little kisses. “I am still happy I am here with you.”
“Me too.” He booped the tiny, raised bump between their nostril slits with the tip of his nose. “Let’s get outta here.”
When they finally made it out of the main hub, the crowd thinned, and Bryce caught sight of his family. Nan and her pink curls and floral handbag. His mother in her work jeans and tank top. Dad in his overalls and John Deer ballcap.
Releasing Zef’s hand with a parting squeeze, he jogged ahead so they could all hug him without the risk of touching Zef.
“Oh, my baby,” his mother said, kissing his cheek again and again. “What do you even eat over there? You’re skin and bones.”
Since Bryce had never, in his life, been skin and bones, he snorted with an eyeroll and let her fret over him. His father clapped him on the shoulder, then pulled him into an embrace next.
“Missed you, kid.”
“You too, Pops. Is Trinket foaling?”
“Not yet, but she’s close. I think your beau will be around to see it.”
After hugging and kissing Nan, Bryce turned back to Zef, who stood a few feet away, top hands messing with their backpack straps as their lower hands fidgeted with their button-up.
“Mom, Dad, this is Zef. Zef, these are my parents.”
Stepping forward, Zef bowed deeply, their hair falling in two curtains on either side of their face. “Bernice, Daniel, it is my honor to make your acquaintance.”
“Hello, Zef,” his mother said, bowing awkwardly back. “We’re so happy you’re here.”
“Yeah, of course,” his dad said gruffly. “Any friend of Bryce’s, and all that.”
“Thank you. I am grateful for the hospitality.” Straightening from their bow, they smiled wanly at Nan. “Hello, Nan, I am happy to see you again.”
“You too, kiddo. You’re looking better than when I left you.”
“Yes, it is because I was about to undergo my fertility cycle, even though I did not know it at the time. It was very terrible. I stared at Bryce’s nipples, then I cried in the bathtub while I ate cake,” they said morosely.
“But I did not inseminate myself, so the outcome was as positive as one could hope for, I suppose.”
Nan guffawed as Bryce’s mom pressed a hand to her mouth to smother a shocked smile. His dad shifted his weight uncomfortably, and Bryce chuckled, brushing their hair off their shoulder to shower down their back.
“Forgive me, did I say something wrong?” they asked him, and he shook his head.
“Nope, you’re perfect.”
“I told you they were a hoot and a half,” Nan said, gesturing toward the exit. “Let’s get home.”
During the drive, Zef stared out the window in fascination, watching the trees and other cars.
They barely spoke at all, only voicing a question now and then about an animal they saw or what kind of trees they drove through.
Sitting between Nan and Zef in the back of the old Ford, Bryce updated them on his life in the Pentagram, then listened to the changes that happened in his hometown while he’d been away.
A little over an hour later, they pulled into the drive of the farm.
Zef perked up, head swiveling in every direction as they tried to take it all in at once.
Like a little kid at the zoo for the first time, they trilled and chirped in curiosity, practically stumbling out of the truck in their haste.
The dogs converged on them immediately, making Zef stagger back into Bryce as they whistled in alarm.
“Oh, don’t mind them. They don’t bite.” He patted their side before he knelt down and gave the dogs some love.
“This is Rascal. He’s a shepherd mutt of some kind.
And that diva is Stratus. She’s a collie. ”
Stratus sniffed cautiously at Zef’s shoes as Rascal circled them, tail wagging.
“Hello,” they said carefully, inclining their head at the dogs. “I have only met one dog before, and Molly was not very rambunctious.”
“Yeah, Rascal’s still a pup, so he has lots of energy, but he won’t hurt you.” Bryce grabbed their bags from the bed of the pick-up. “Come on, let’s get you inside.”
Rascal trotted to the house at Zef’s side, yipping excitedly. Zef chirruped back, and the dog cocked his head, making Zef copy him. Bryce watched from the porch as they navigated nonverbal communication until a squirrel caught the pup’s attention, and he sped away with a furious bark.
Inside the house, Bryce sighed in relief at the air conditioning and breathed in the scents of home. Zef stared at everything in awe, soft clicking noises echoing in the back of their throat. They leaned in to study the cuckoo clock, jumping when the bird emerged to tweet the half-hour.
He tried to take them upstairs so they could drop off their bags, but Zef was already enamored with the living room.
They dragged their fingers over the throw hanging on the back of the couch and inspected the scenic artwork on the wall.
Above the fireplace, they perused the family photos, shooting Bryce a soft smile over their shoulder when they found one of him from second grade, missing both his front teeth.
The stuffed beaver beside the mantle captured their attention next, and they poked it, jumping back like they expected it to retaliate.
When they completed a full circle around the living room, he nodded at the stairs, and they started up them.
It was slow going since they paused to look at the pictures on the wall, but they eventually made it to the landing.
“That was Charlie’s room, before Nan moved in,” he said, and Zef peered in through the open door without entering it. “My room’s at the end of the hall.”
“Yeah, ’cause I’m a lady,” Nan said as she bustled out of the bathroom, “and I don’t need to be subjected to the ruckus you two make at night.”
“Jesus, Nan, can you not?” Bryce blushed horribly.
“I have never found Bryce to be loud at night,” Zef said sincerely. “He is very considerate.”
Bryce snorted as Nan made a face. “Eh, there’s some things a grandmother should never know about their grandson.”
“Then don’t make inappropriate jokes,” Bryce said as he ushered Zef farther down the hall.
Like a light bulb flickered on, Zef made a comical O with their mouth. “Oh, she was making a sexual innuendo. I understand that now.”