V O I D { F O U R T E E N }
Chapter 14. An ACOTAR fanfiction.
Nessian. Elriel. Feysand.
Previous chapters: Fanfic Masterlist
“I like the night. Without the dark, we'd never see the stars.” ― Stephenie Meyer, Twilight (sure did)
Azriel couldn’t control his nerves which only made him more nervous.
The second he knocked on the door, his hands were shaking. He had to shove them into his pockets to keep from showing his embarrassment, his anxiety.
And when Elain opened the door? He was breathless.
He begged his mind to come up with something to say, but he came up short. He cursed, first in his head, then aloud, causing a bright, beautiful smile to capture Elain’s face.
Azriel was weak in the knees.
“Hi,” he said, at last.
“Hi,” Elain replied, cheeks pink.
“You look…” Azriel’s words trailed off, because anything he would have said would not have been good enough for the goddess standing in front of him.
“Thank you,” she said, anyways, stepping out of the doorframe and onto the front porch. “You, too.”
Nesta was in the hallway behind Elain, smiling mischievously, making Azriel feel even more uncomfortable than he felt.
Uncomfortable, but excited.
He had been out with a handful of girls in the last few years, but none of them made him feel the same way that Elain did. She was different. She was perfect.
Elain closed the front door softly behind her, Nesta disappearing behind it.
“So,” Azriel said, clearing his throat. “You ready?”
Elain chuckled, softly, looking down at her dress. “Yes, I am.”
Azriel, realizing it was a stupid question, nodded and held out his hand. She happily accepted it and he helped her down the front porch steps, refusing to let go of her hand until they reached his truck. He opened the door, helped her inside, and let out a long, loose breath on his walk back to the driver’s side.
They road in silence, although it remained fairly comfortable. Azriel had never been good at taking the lead in the conversation, although it had always been easy with Elain.
With the exception of now.
He wanted to impress her but didn’t know why. He had never worried about impressing her before. But now? He felt like he suddenly wasn’t good enough.
“So,” he began. “I hope you like Italian food.”
“Love it,” Elain assured him.
“Good,” Azriel said, nodding his head uncontrollably.
“Good,” Elain repeated.
Azriel felt the need to facepalm himself, but his hands only tightened on the steering wheel.
“Are you okay?” Elain asked, after a minute.
Was he? He wasn’t sure. He didn’t answer, making the silence even more uncomfortable. In his mind, he scolded himself.
But when he looked at Elain, he smiled. She was watching him, brow raised, amusement lighting up her deep, brown eyes.
“I just want to be with you, Az,” she said, quietly. “I want you for you.”
The nerves didn’t leave him, but he laughed. He actually laughed, for the first time in a long time, his heart felt light. He nodded, carefully, reaching over the middle seat and taking her hand.
~
Nesta and Cassian sat in Hale’s library, neither of them saying a word.
He was nervous.
She was nervous for him.
Hale had yet to arrive.
“You okay?” Nesta whispered.
Cassian shook his head, but said no more.
By the time Hale entered the room, Nesta and Cassian were thrumming with anxiety and anticipation.
He sat in a leather armchair, eyes on Cassian. “I’m glad you came. I was surprised. I thought my doorman was joking with me, honestly, when he said you were waiting in here.”
Nesta smiled, but Cassian’s expression didn’t change.
“I wasn’t sure I was going to come, to be honest with you,” Cassian whispered.
Hale nodded. “I understand.”
Nesta felt uncomfortable, as if she was intruding on something precious. She pretended to fade into the background as the two men stared at one another.
“I’m not sure what I wanted to tell you,” Cassian began. “But, I know that I wanted to see you again.”
Hale’s hard demeanor softened.
“I’m glad you came.”
Cassian nodded, and Nesta suddenly regretted her offer to join him in his meeting with Hale. Nesta loved Hale, and she had grown fond of Cassian, as well, but sitting between the two of them left her feeling more uncomfortable than she had in a long while. She wanted them to have a moment alone. But, she sat perfectly still.
“I want you to meet my sister,” Cassian said, after a minute of silence. “Cecily.”
Hale let out a long, loose breath. “I’d love to meet her.”
Cassian nodded, jaw locked. “I’ll bring her by tomorrow?”
“Maybe we can have lunch?” Hale suggested.
Cassian nodded, again, and that was it. The two men said no more. Nesta wasn’t sure what she expected to happen during this meeting, but she hadn’t expected it to be so short. Nonetheless, Nesta gave Hale a hug before walking out of the mansion with Cassian at her side.
The minute the door shut behind them, Cassian let out a high, manic laugh.
Nesta raised a brow. “You’re scaring me.”
Cassian shook his head, smile still spread wide on his lips. “That...was nothing like I expected it to be. I had a speech planned out in my head, that I arranged on the drive over here...and it went nothing like I had planned.”
“And how did it go in your mind?” Nesta asked as they strode further down the driveway.
“Far less…” Cassian paused, “awkward.”
Nesta barked a laugh, unable to control herself. She had to agree. It was awkward.
“Don’t laugh,” Cassian muttered, but he was smiling. “At least I went.”
Nesta’s smile softened. “Yes, at least you went.”
Cassian stopped and turned to Nesta. “I...want to thank you-”
“It’s not a big deal-”
“Yes, it is.”
Nesta’s eyes met his, and for once, her breath caught in her throat.
“Why do you want to help me?” Cassian asked, quietly. “You’ve been pestering me for months, but we hardly know one another.”
Nesta tilted her head to the side. “I have spent a long time wondering if anyone else feels the way I feel. When I met you...we feel the same. You understand me, and I understand you. We don’t have to know everything about one another...we understand each other. Our minds, yours and mine...they are the same.”
Cassian nodded, hazel eyes softening. “I have waited for someone to come along who understands the chaos that is my mind.”
“It seems we’re both a little crazy,” Nesta said.
Cassian chuckled. “It seems so.”
Nesta stopped in the driveway and faced him. “So, what now?”
Cassian met her gaze and smiled. Not a fake smile, not the cocky one he typically gave out, but a real, genuine smile. “Now we move forward.”
“And how do we do that?” Nesta asked.
Cassian’s grin widened. “Want to walk with me?”
Nesta pretended to weigh his question for a minute before answering, “Okay.”
~
Rhysand stood in the threshold of his old bedroom, heart heavy.
He hated it. He hated those four walls, the four walls that once seemed to close in on him so often. Yet, he was back, bags in hand, ready to sleep in the bed he had once slept in.
His dad hadn’t said a word when Rhys had told him that he was moving back in. He obviously couldn’t play basketball, which was the original agreement, thanks to the crash that left his body broken and bruised.
Reina was happy to have him back. She had greeted him with a big hug and a soft sob, helping with his bags back into his old bedroom, right across the hallway from hers.
“I’m glad you’re back,” Reina said from behind him.
Rhysand twirled around, eyeing his little sister as she meandered in her own doorway.
“I know it wasn’t an easy choice,” she continued, “but I like having you here.”
Rhysand nodded, and turned back to his room. He had only been gone for a few months, but it felt like a lifetime ago that he occupied that room. His childhood trophies sat on floating shelves beside his bed, posters covered his walls.
He had trouble entering. Not only because it was his father’s house, but because he was a different person the last time he had been in that room. “Rhys?” Reina asked, concerned from the doorway behind him.
Rhysand took a step inside his old bedroom. “I’m glad to be back too, Rein.”
Reina smiled. “You don’t have to be here, you know. Me and mom were getting along just fine. You deserve to live your own life.”
Rhysand turned, ever so slowly, and met his little sister’s gaze. “This is where I belong.”
“With dad?” she asked, arms crossed.
“No, with you,” Rhysand corrected. “And with mom.”
“And when you go to college next year?”
Rhysand frowned. He hadn’t thought that far. He would be going to college next year. At least, that was the plan. And then what? It would be him moving out all over again. Unless he went to a local community college. It wasn’t his dream, but Velaris Community College was nice. He could go there, if it meant staying with his family.
If it meant keeping Reina and his mother safe.
When Rhys said nothing in return, Reina sighed. “I love you, Rhys. But you were so miserable here-”
“I’ll be fine,” Rhysand said, forcing a smile. “It’s going to be great. I promise.”
Reina nodded, although she still seemed unsure. After giving him a gentle nudge in the arm, she left him alone to his thoughts.
Rhysand felt lost in the quiet. He had felt so certain coming back home, but now that he was there, the nerves were settling in.
He had yet to see his father. He and his mother were gone on a business trip. When Rhysand arrived and found Reina alone, he was half relieved. He hadn’t realized how intimidated he still was of his dad, after all these years.
But he was doing the right thing.
He knew he was.
Just, unfortunately, sometimes the right thing was the hard thing.
And this new situation of Rhys’ was difficult as hell.
~
Their date had gone better than Elain thought possible.
Azriel was the perfect gentleman. He treated her with the utmost respect from the time they got to the restaurant to the time that they left. He pulled out her chair, offered his jacket when she caught a chill from sitting on the patio, and grabbed for the check before she could even offer otherwise. He smiled at her constantly, ate with forced manners, and laughed at every lame joke that she attempted.
On the car ride home, their fingers danced against one another’s. Elain was in paradise. She had never had such a perfect first date.
Her heart felt lighter.
Her soul was just a little bit freer.
When he pulled into her driveway, she didn’t want it to end.
“When will I see you again?” Elain asked.
“Soon,” Azriel promised. “As soon as possible, I hope.”
Elain’s smile widened. “I would ask you to come in, but everyone’s home and…”
“I understand,” Azriel chuckled. “Can I call you?”
“Of course,” Elain smiled, fingers still brushing along his.
Azriel cleared his throat. “Good.”
“Good,” Elain repeated.
Before she could get anything else out, Azriel met her gaze. And before she could comprehend what she was doing, Elain leaned across the center of his truck and pressed her lips softly to his.
At first, he tensed beneath her touch, but his hands soon found comfort along her lower back.
Elain let all doubt fall out of her as she crawled across the bench and settled onto his lap.
She hadn’t realized that Azriel’s hands could be so comforting and lustful all at once. And yet, she did not push him away. Instead, she melted in his arms and fell apart.