Chapter 27 #2
"I'm sorry." He stares down at the floor. "I don't mean to frighten you. It's just…" Finn inhales deeply and I grab ahold of Nyx's forearm in anticipation. "I don't want to lose the nerve to tell you what has been on my mind for a very long time."
Nyx and I tense.
"Oh my gosh," I whisper.
"What?" Nyx whispers back.
"Is he going to tell her how he feels?"
"How he feels?"
"Don't be daft, Nyx," I fuss. "He's clearly in lov – "
"Eris," Finn's voice comes out shaky but determined. "I love you."
Nyx's mouth drops and he stares at me. I grin in triumph as if I had anything to do with their romance.
"What did you say?" Eris says lowly, drawing Nyx and I's attention.
Finn takes a step toward her, closing the gap between them. He slips his hand along her jawline and smiles. "I love you. I've loved you from the moment we first met on the rooftop in Hydra."
"You love me?"
"From the moment I wake to the moment I toss and turn at night, I love you," he confesses, more boldly than before.
"I should have told you years ago, but I was scared.
But with a war on the horizon, there's so much uncertainty and I won't let another day go by without telling you how I really feel. "
Eris stares at him quietly. I feel Nyx bounce foot-to-foot beside me, his nerves taking over.
When the silence stretches too long for even my comfort, Finn cuts his fingers through his hair and grimaces. "Damn it, Eris, say something. Even if you don't care for me in the same light, please just end my misery. Tell me you don't love me. Tell me I'm a fool. Tell me – "
"I love you, too." Her admission steals my breath away.
"You do?" Finn stammers, as if he's imagined her reciprocated adoration.
"Yes, I love you." She says without a tremor of doubt. She tilts her head up, her lips inches from his. "Now are you going to kiss me or – "
Finn's mouth crashes against Eris'. In a flash, he lifts her up and plops her onto the counter pushing her legs on either side of him, their kissing intensifying.
"Oh, for fucks sake," Nyx hisses, shooting me an uncomfortable look. "We can't stay in here, Kitarni."
"Don't you think I know that?" Panic stirs within me but when I take a turn around the storage room, there's only one way in and out. If we're to leave, it'll be the way we came. My stomach drops.
A moan rattles Nyx. "We move now."
"But they waited so long for this moment – "
"Shaye, I swear to the Celestials if I hear or see them fuck – "
Desperation clear in his voice, I lift my hands in attempts to calm him down. "Ok, ok! Maybe we can sneak by?"
Eris groans Finn's name and his shirt hits the floor by the curtain. Nyx pales.
"Steady, Nyx," I say with a soothing quality. He's about to lose his shit. I can see it in his eyes. "It's just a shirt. No need to panic."
"Oh, the things I want to do to you," Finn growls.
Eris spreads her legs wider, inviting him closer. In one swift motion, she swipes her sweater above her head and adds it to their growing pile of clothing. "Do whatever you want to me. I'm yours."
Nyx wretches and slaps a hand over his mouth. "I'm going to be sick."
Eris moans. "Oh, Finn." Her bralette flitters beneath the curtain.
"Tell me how you want to come," Finn commands. "With my tongue, my fingers, or my cock?"
"Nope!" Nyx yells, bursting through the curtains with his hands held high in surrender. Finn gasps and Eris attempts to cover her bare chest. "Sorry. So sorry." Nyx keeps his eyes glued to the floor. "Eris must have forgotten we were back there. We'll be on our way."
Finn is wide-eyed, his hair disheveled. "We?"
"Hi," I slip out of my hiding spot with an awkward smile. "Don't mind us. We're leaving. So happy for you both, by the way."
Nyx swipes the box of Treats left on the counter beside Eris. "We'll also be taking these. I think we've earned them. No eye-contact for the next twenty-four hours."
Nyx and I slip out the door. We don't make it three feet from the shop before a chill zips down my body and I realize I left my jacket.
"Oh, shit, my coat." I turn to go back inside but Nyx grabs my arm and shakes his head, draping his enormous coat over my shoulders. It hangs by my ankles making me appear childlike.
"Your coat is lost, Kitarni. It lives there now."
"Aren't you cold?" I ask, teeth chattering as a blast of cold air hits my face.
He shakes his head, his eyes distant as if having traumatic flashbacks. "Ancient Basilius blood, remember?"
"Ancient Basilius blood," I mimic, hating how he inherited the ease in the cold temperatures and I didn't. "How can you eat after what just happened? I feel awful we interrupted them."
His eyes widen. "They should feel awful for us! My eyes, Kitarni. My eyes… My ears. I might never have sex again after tonight."
"You of all people shouldn't be a prude about this," I grumble, tugging the flaps of his coat tighter.
"I'm no prude, but I draw a line at kin." He clutches his stomach, his face growing paler by the minute. "It's bad enough I accidentally heard you and Atlas through the wall – "
"I beg you to not finish that sentence!"
"But that back there," he tosses a thumb over his shoulder, "was too close for comfort. We should have left the second Finn walked in," he laments, regret taking deep root in his soul.
I roll my eyes, although second-hand embarrassment is creeping across my skin. "We had no idea Finn would randomly confess his love for Eris."
"No, we did not."
We walk in silence for a few seconds before a smile stretches across my face. I elbow him in the ribs. "He finally told her."
"Good for Finn." Nyx finally softens, a smile matching my own appearing. "Looks like everyone is coupling up except me."
"Never know. You might meet a really nice – "
"Yeah, yeah," he waves me off. "I've heard all that before." He fishes the last pastry out of the Treats box. "Want to split this with me?"
"Sure," I smile, taking a chunk and sinking my teeth into it.
Love can be confusing. I have a heart full of joy for Eris and Finn finally making their intentions known.
But in the same breath, my heart breaks for Nyx being alone.
I know his fears. I understand his reasoning.
Yet part of me wishes he would give love a chance, even if it's fleeting.
That's probably selfish of me, but I adore Nyx far too much to watch him harden himself more than he has already.
Then a sobering thought crosses my mind.
What if Nyx likes being on his own? Some of us aren't meant to find a partner.
He seems sure of himself and enjoys his own company.
But I see how he looks at me and Atlas. How he looked at Eris and Finn, despite the initial shock of the situation.
He wants what we have. Even if he won't readily admit it out loud.
I swallow the last of the raspberry treat and snake my arm around his, resting my head against his bicep. In a comfortable silence we make our way back home.