Reignite (Extinguish #2) (12 page)

He'd
have to show himself to the humans.

She
could see him, but he was still out of sight to the others, and he couldn't
have her looking certifiably insane, seen in public hanging out and talking to
someone who wasn't there.

As
if she could read his mind, she chimed back in, her voice a pleading whisper.
"Please? I'm not crazy… I'm
not
."

"I
know you're not," he said. "And yes… we can get breakfast."

Her
shoulders seemed to sag with relief, a small smile playing on her lips at his
response. "Great, uh… well, come on."

She
motioned with her head in the direction of the diner before turning away from
him. The moment her back was to him, he gave a quick glance around the parking
lot, making sure not another living soul was around, before he dropped his
guard completely. The air around him sparked, as if consumed by static, his
body tingling with a soft glow as he let himself be visible.

Serah
glanced back at him, to make sure he was coming, her footsteps wavering,
a
look of surprise coming over her face as he strode
forward.

"What?"
he asked, raising his eyebrows in question as he stared at her, falling into
step right beside her.

"Oh,
uh, nothing," she said, a soft blush warming her cheeks. "It's just…
I don't know. Strange."

"What's
strange?"

"You
kind of looked like you were glowing a second ago," she said, the blush
deepening. "Must've been the light or something."

"Must
have," he replied, surprised she saw that, although he shouldn't have
been. She'd been seeing and sensing things she shouldn't have all along.

They
walked quietly to the diner, the sun rising, the orange glow expanding and
covering everything in a soft light. They stood so close their arms nearly
brushed against one another, but Luce made sure not to touch her. When she
moved, he moved, shifting a fraction of an inch away, like they were magnets
facing the wrong way. He could feel it, though—the pull toward her, the
tingle along his skin that reminded him of being bathed in her Grace.

Fuck,
he did her wrong.

Over and over.

Don't let me do it again
.

The
diner was brightly lit, but only a few people sat inside at this hour. Serah
paused when she reached the door, scowling at a small sign in the window.

No
shirt

No
shoes

No
service

She
turned to look at him, and Lucifer knew what she was going to say before she
even said anything. He had a shirt, yes, but his feet were bare.

Her
eyes shifted to the sidewalk as she took stock of his feet. "Are you
homeless?"

Silence
surrounded them for a moment. Luce could tell she was anxious to ask that,
could sense her apprehension, but her words came off humorous to him. He
laughed, unable to contain himself.

Because
yes, he was homeless, relatively speaking.
He sure as fuck had
nowhere to call
home
.

"Go
on inside and sit down," he said, reaching past her to grab the door,
opening it. "I'll be back in just a minute."

She
hesitated again, as if she thought he might be bailing on her, but chose to
believe him after a moment. Offering a smile, she stepped inside the diner, as
Luce let go of the door.

The
second he was certain nobody was looking, he zapped away, out of sight,
apparating just around the block. In a jiffy, a pair of black boots
materialized on his feet. He zapped right back, appearing once more in the same
spot as before. He opened the door, stepping inside the diner, just as Serah
was sliding into a booth. She glanced up at him, wide-eyed, when he slipped
into the booth across from her. "You're back?"

"Yes,"
he said. "I said it would only take a minute. I didn't take longer than
that, did I?"

"Uh,
no," she said, gaping at him. "I mean, I don't even think that was a
minute. You were just standing out there, and I just sat down, and…" She
bent over, looking under the table, before meeting his eyes again. "You
have shoes on!"

"Yes,"
he said again.

"How
did you do that? That's impossible! I can't even put on flip-flops that fast
when they're right in front of me!"

He
shrugged a shoulder, making a mental note to slow down if ever this happened
again. Humans, for being so obsessed with time, certainly did everything
leisurely.

She
was still gaping at him when the waitress appeared, sliding two menus on the
table in front of them. Lucifer picked one up, having absolutely no interest in
food. He'd never tried to eat it, never cared to try it. He was certain he
could, though. After all, it was all their Father's creation. His body would
merely absorb it, converting it to energy.

"What
can I get you to drink?" the waitress asked.

"Orange
juice," Serah said right away.

Lucifer
continued to just stare at his menu.

"For
you, darling?" the waitress asked.

It
wasn't until Serah whispered his name that he realized the woman was talking to
him.

"Luce?"
Serah said. "To drink?"

"Water,"
he responded, staring at Serah. "And an apple to eat."

Her
brow furrowed. "Just an apple?"

"Yes,"
he confirmed. "An apple."

It
wasn't on the menu, but he was certain a place like this had one.

She
blinked a few times, shrugging it off, as she took his menu and placed it on
top of hers. She ordered for the both of them… just an apple for him, while she
ordered a vast array of things.

The
waitress wandered away then, taking much too long to leave them in peace. Serah
regarded him warily, but remained quiet until after their drinks were brought
to the table. Sticking a straw in her glass, she took a sip, eyes never leaving
his. "Can I ask you something, Luce?"

He
couldn't help but smile at the sound of his name on her lips. She'd said it
twice now since they sat down. "You can ask whatever you'd like."

"How
do you do it?"

"Do
what?"

"Disappear,"
she said, her voice quiet. "One second you're right there, and then you're
gone. It's like… magic. You're not a wizard, are you?"

He
laughed. "What do you know about wizards?"

She
shrugged, her face flushing as she averted her eyes, as if embarrassed. "I
read books."

"Do
you?"

"Yes."

"Just
because you read it doesn't make it real."

"I
know," she said, fidgeting in her seat. "I know wizards aren't real,
but sometimes I question whether you are, too. Until that waitress spoke to
you, I half-expected her to not see you. Nobody else ever seems to… and I just
wonder why that is. It's unnatural."

Intuitive
. Luce stared at her, surprised
by her bluntness. She laid her cards all out on the table and asked to see his
hand, a hand he wasn't quite ready to show. "Unnatural."

"Yes,"
she said. "Like… not normal."

Luce
watched in silence as she took a sip of her orange juice, her eyes peeled to
him.

"That's
because I'm not," he said. "I'm not normal."

"What
are you then?"

He
laughed dryly. "An abomination, apparently."

She
rolled her eyes, like he'd been joking.
If
she only knew…

Neither
of them spoke again until after their food arrived—two plates for Serah,
a lone apple for Luce. He picked it up, rolling it around in his palm as he
stared at it. It looked quite similar to the one Eve ate that day in the
garden, the skin the same shade of deep red.

"So,"
Serah hedged as she started to eat. "How is it you knew me?"

"Long
story."

"Shorten
it."

Luce
let out a deep sigh. "Work."

Her
eyes widened as she slowly chewed a bite, staring at him. Luce realized after a
moment that she expected him to go on.

Apparently
that answer had been too short.

"We
were working on different sides," he explained, trying to word is so she'd
understand without actually telling her the truth about it. It was a fine line
to walk, one he was sure he was going to fuck up. "It was your job to try
to bring me around to your side."

"Different
sides of what?" she asked. "What do you do for work, Luce?"

"Nothing
now," he said. "I was, uh…
let
go
."

"Okay,
so what
did
you do?"

"Babysat."

That
answer made her laugh, again like she thought he was joking, but he'd meant it.
It was glorified babysitting down in the pit.

"I
supervised the imprisoned," he said. "And you worked for those who
make it their job to keep the world safe, to make sure the bad was kept locked
away."

"So
you were like, a warden," she said. "And I was, what? One of the
powers that be?"

"Uh…"
Luce laughed at her wording. She couldn't have been more right if she tried.
"Basically."

"Interesting,"
she said. "And did I sway you to our side?"

"Debatable," he said. "You put up a
strong argument, though, which is a testament of my being here."

"Wow."
She ate some more in silence, the air between them comfortable. Luce just
watched her, not interrupting, saying nothing. Eventually she pushed a plate
aside and cleared her throat. "You know none of that makes any sense to
me, right? I'm still just as confused."

"I
know you are," he said quietly. "If it's any consolation, I'm
confused, too."

"Okay,
new tactic," she said, pointing at him with her fork. "Since my
memory's shot and you said you'd give anything to have a clean slate, why don't
we start there?"

"Okay."

"Okay,
good." She nodded firmly. "So tell me something."

"What?"

"Anything,"
she said. "Just tell me something, whatever you'd like me to know about
you… no matter what it is. We're starting from scratch."

"Uh…"
Luce wasn't quite sure what to say. She was taking this all in stride, way
better than he expected her to take it.

"I'll
start," she said after a moment, turning her eyes back to her plate as she
shifted some potatoes around with her fork. "I love the smell of fresh-cut
grass, but it makes me sneeze."

Luce
smiled at her, a little surprised by the random nonsensical declaration, but he
wasn't at all shocked by the information. She'd been fascinated with the
concept of smelling. "I love fresh air."

"Is
that why you spend a lot of time outside?"

"How
do you know I do that?"

"Because
I spend a lot of time outside, and I see you almost every day."

"It's
one of the reasons."

The
other being he had nowhere else to be, but he kept that to himself for now.

"Well,
as you can see, I love food," she said motioning toward her plates.
"When I woke up, I felt like I hadn't eaten in
forever
. People always say that hospital food is horrible. When
they find out I spent weeks in the hospital, that's the first thing they
say—that the food must've been horrible. But I couldn't get enough of
it."

"What
was it like being in the hospital?" Luce asked.

"Horrible,"
she said. "Minus the food, anyway. They couldn't find anything wrong with
me physically, so they said it had to be psychological, but the psychiatrist
said I wasn't a danger to anyone, so I was free to go."

"So
you left."

"So
I left," she agreed, "and here I am."

She
finished eating in silence as the waitress returned with the bill, casting Luce
a peculiar look. Serah glanced at the check and pulled out some money, tossing
it down on the table. A sinking feeling settled in the pit of Luce's stomach.
He hadn't thought this through at all. He knew little about the usage of money,
but he knew human customs after years of observing them from the pit.

He
knew he should offer to pay.

He
just wasn't sure how to go about it.

Before
he could try to materialize some money, or offer to pay her back or something,
Serah was sliding out of her seat. "Ready?"

"Sure."

Luce stood up as she strutted passed him on her way
to the door. Hesitating, Luce glanced at the apple in his hand before slowly
bringing it to his lips.

He
bit down on it.

It
was crisp, with a sharp sort of taste, intense and sweet. He chewed for a
moment before swallowing, shrugging as he tossed the apple down on the table,
discarding it.