Chapter 12
Chapter Twelve
Thoughts of what Aodhan could possibly be hiding consumed her mind for the rest of her shift. Sierra barely noticed what was going on around her as she went through the motions of scanning books for checkout and answering student questions about where to find certain books within the library.
Sierra wasn’t shocked when she went to grab her coat that Aodhan was waiting for her.
She donned her jacket in silence while Aodhan’s eyes appraised her.
Once she was finished and had grabbed her messenger bag, they both exited the library with the rest of the employees as Mona locked the door behind everyone.
Sierra bid the other employees goodnight, then began her walk home with Aodhan at her side, even though she hadn’t asked or even hinted that she wanted company.
Once they were off campus, and they were mostly alone on the sidewalk besides the occasional person passing in the other direction, he turned to her.
“You have questions.” It wasn’t a question and his eyes sparkled in a way that was beginning to make Sierra think he could read minds.
“I do,” she replied, “But will you answer them?” She kept her voice calm even though her heart was jumping within her chest, nervous about what she would find out and wondering, if Aodhan was actually a vampire, what she would do.
She wasn’t much of a runner, and she knew from the Twilight movie that if he was a vampire, she wouldn’t be able to outrun him anyway.
Aodhan paused before answering, giving Sierra even more time to plot worst-case scenarios in her overactive mind. “Probably not.”
The sound of their footsteps echoed on the empty street as they passed several darkened storefronts and restaurants. Sierra tried a different tactic, “Will you just answer one question for me?”
“Possibly.”
“Are you a vampire?”
Aodhan’s mouth ticked, but he didn’t laugh. “No, Sierra, vampires aren’t real.”
Sierra didn’t believe it. She was pretty sure he was just trying to cover something up. “You’re just saying that because I’m on to you and your secret.”
“No, I’m not. If vampires were real, I would know about it. Trust me.”
That was the problem, Sierra didn’t trust him.
They walked side by side in silence, with Sierra stealing frequent glances at his imposing form.
He had pale skin, that part checked out, but then again, it was Ireland, so no surprise there.
Tons of people who lived here had that skin tone.
He had said he was an adult for a while when he was physically 25, so he was a type of immortal.
The only thing Sierra kept getting stuck on was the black beanie that he never removed.
Plus, she had seen him during the daylight before, and he hadn’t sparkled or turned to ash which did make it seem like he was being honest about not being a vampire.
Sierra’s thinking must’ve been going on longer than she thought because the next thing she knew, they were standing on her doorstep, the dark green door at her back.
“So, you’re really not going to tell me then?”
“No,” he replied. He didn’t look angry, but his mouth was pressed into a tighter line than normal.
Sierra tapped her finger on her chin as she appraised him. Earlier, she suspected he had been reading her emotions. There had to be something she was missing here. Her eyes again settled on the beanie that was always on Aodhan’s head…covering his ears.
Sierra’s eyes widened. She was on the verge of a breakthrough. But before she could shout her assumption to all who lived on this side of Dublin, Aodhan put a finger to her mouth. “Not here.”
Sierra looked around at the empty street.
She wasn’t too keen on having this strange…
man, or whatever he was, in her apartment, but she knew exposing his secret to everyone on the block would only make him attack her…
if he was somehow dangerous. But at least he said he wasn’t a vampire, so that meant she didn’t have to worry about the dangers of inviting him over the threshold.
So, she nodded, digging her keys out of her bag, and opening the door. She ushered him up the two flights of stairs and into her small apartment, closing the door behind her. She remained standing in front of the door, so he couldn’t change his mind and escape without answering her questions.
“So, you’re an elf,” she guessed.
Aodhan’s responding wince made her feel like she’d gotten it right, but he shook his head. “No, I’m not, and let’s leave it at that.”
“No way.” Sierra crossed her arms over her chest. “I refuse to have you keep lying to me, and I know you’re not human, so you better just tell me before I lose my cool.”
“Maybe we shouldn’t be friends after all,” he tried.
“It’s too late for that, Aodhan. You can’t just walk away now.”
Aodhan shook his head, either in denial or annoyance. Sierra couldn’t tell, but her attention was inadvertently drawn to his black beanie, which pressed his curly brown hair to his head, other than the few curls that peeked out from the bottom.
In what she thought was a fast movement, Sierra uncrossed her arms, lunging for Aodhan and reaching up to remove the beanie from his arrogant head. But somehow, he was faster, and Sierra found herself falling to the floor, grasping at nothing but air.
She caught herself and looked around, trying to see where Aodhan had ducked off to, only to see he wasn’t there at all. He had vanished entirely.
Sierra quickly stood, glancing around to ensure he wasn’t playing a joke on her, but her apartment was too small to really offer anywhere to hide. After a moment, she said, “You can just disappear, too?”
Nothing but silence reached her ears. She reached into her pocket to pull out her phone, only to find it wasn’t there. She turned back to her messenger bag, only to nearly jump out of her skin at the sight of Aodhan’s large frame leaning against her door.
“What. The. Fuck.” she gasped, feeling as if the wind had been knocked out of her. “Tell me what you are,” she demanded, her voice dripping with vinegar.
He tapped his chin with his finger. “Hm. No.” Then he disappeared again.
“Get back here!” she yelled, knowing that she probably looked and sounded like a crazy person right now. “Aodhan!”
Sierra nearly growled at her frustration with the man, or whatever he was, but before she could lose her composure entirely, she took a deep breath and stepped toward her messenger bag. Aodhan was infuriating, but she was smart, and she knew she could figure this out without him.