Demons

Chapter Three ~ They Say It’s What You Make, I Say It’s Up to Fate

     Jade watched the clock on her bedside table intently, awaiting the official declaration that the day had come to a close. From start to finish, it was a domino effect of disaster. After her encounter with Charlie in the morning, Jade pushed her thoughts and emotions to the back of her mind and put on a brave face for her friends to enjoy their special day. She had enough practise with feigning joy over the past year, anyway; she was a pro at it by now.

     Of course, everything ended up crumbling down after notification of the Minister’s death and the Death Eaters’ infiltration of the Ministry and the Burrow. Chaos erupted in the Weasley’s backyard, and Bill and Fleur’s wedding was ruined.

     Yet, after all the guests were safely ushered home and the Weasleys corralled again in the living room, exhausted, Jade watched Bill and Fleur and was in disbelief at how happy they seemed. Regardless of the day’s terrible events, what mattered was that their loved ones were all safe, and they were married and able to begin their lives together- however bleak times seemed. Charlie’s words echoed in Jade’s mind at that moment as she watched Bill lovingly caress his wife’s cheek; she turns her face into his hand and places a gentle kiss on his palm. Maybe he was right after all...

     Jade turns away from the radiant newlyweds only to find Charlie’s sea-blue eyes staring directly at her. She doesn’t want to give him the chance to continue their earlier discussion and heads up to her bedroom. Although Charlie had tried several times to speak to her at the wedding, even asking her dance a few times, she just wasn’t ready for that. The wounds have hardly begun to scab.

    Finally, the numbers flicker from 11:59 to 12:00, heralding a new day and a clean slate. Jade collapses back onto her bed with a loud sigh, emotionally drained. All she wants right now is to wash off, change into her extra comfy pajamas, and climb into bed. She stands and proceeds to slip out of her dress and, as it falls to a heap around her ankles, she halts as realization hits her.

Her stuff remains in the bathroom where she left it this morning.

The bathroom adjoining her bedroom with Charlie’s.

The same Charlie who is currently thrashing around in said bathroom and unintentionally harbouring her possessions.

     Jade groans and, before resolving to sleep in her underwear, she hears the faucet turn on and the swift scrape of the shower curtain close, soon followed by Charlie bellowing a muffled tune.

     This is her chance. She can quietly sneak in, grab her stuff, and be out before he even realizes it. She tiptoes to the door and slowly turns the brass knob, praying the door won’t creak. Charlie’s crooning amplifies as she opens the door and slides in; she stifles a giggle as she notices his silhouette on the shower curtain. Is he really using the shampoo bottle as a microphone?

     Jade shakes it off and remembers her objective. She targets the heap of clothing on the counter and noiselessly dashes to retrieve it. As the cradles the bundle and turns to leave, she suddenly cues into the song Charlie is singing. How could he—

     Her befuddled thoughts are cut off as the shower curtain is pulled open, revealing the sopping wet ginger behind it. Jade is suddenly very aware that she is still in her underwear.

     Charlie turns the faucet off and grabs the towel hanging from the nearby rack, drying his face off. He takes one step out of the tub and freezes as he notices the scantily-clad, slack-jawed, wide-eyed, raven-haired beauty standing before him, looking as though she had just locked eyes with a Basilisk.

     “Hi,” he says, as he slowly steps out of the tub, unsure of what’s going on, yet certainly pleased by this surprise visit. Unashamed, he makes no attempts to cover himself with the towel.

     Jade tries speaking yet she can’t seem to form a coherent string of words. Her eyes, on their own account, trace his dripping torso, past the swatch of faint ginger hairs that bedeck his firm and toned chest, and following the beckoning trail further down...

     She snaps out of her trance and looks down to her bare feet, trying to organize her thoughts. She grips her bundle tighter and tries to conceal herself as much as possible.

     Charlie dries himself off as he awaits an explanation. He notices her discomfort, to which he can’t help but find very amusing and- dare he even say it- adorable.

     “I-I-I just wanted... I came to, um...”

     “Get your clothes?” he assists, finally wrapping the towel around his waist.

     “Yes!” she looks up at him now. “Yes. I came to get my clothes.” And got a lot more. “I’m sorry for disrupting you, Charlie. I’m just tired after this long day and I wanted to go to sleep.”

     “Yeah, don’t worry about. I understand.” He stands beside her at the counter and offers her a quick smile before proceeding to brush his teeth. “You can get dressed, you know.”

     “Oh! Ha. Yeah. Right.” She turns away from him and gets dressed, mulling over how much of an awkward dolt she’s being.

     Charlie can’t help put take a quick peek as she dresses and- sure enough- there’s the dragon tattoo predominantly placed on her back with its tail wrapping around her hip. He averts his eyes as she puts her t-shirt on and turns back to face him.

   “There we are. Decent at last.” She watches him as he rinses off, her eyes lingering over his dragon tattoo, whose head rests on Charlie’s shoulder and body wraps around his arm. “Charlie, I just wanted to say, about what happened between us earlier—“

     “I am so incredibly sorry, Jade. Really, I am. You were right; it wasn’t my place, and I sincerely did not mean to hurt you.”

     “I know you didn’t. I’m sorry too. I shouldn’t have gone off on you like that, especially since we only just formally met. It wasn’t fair of me.”

     “What? No!” He places his hands on her arms, bringing them an inch closer. “You have nothing to be sorry about. In fact, I deserved more. I was way out of line. I really am sorry, for everything.”

     “How about we declare we’re even? We were both wrong and now we can move past this,” she offers him a warm smile.

     He can’t help but smile back. “Deal.” He relinquishes his grip on her arms- as much as he hates to let go of her- but he doesn’t want to press his luck.

     “So, about that song you were singing in the shower. How do you know it? It’s a Muggle band.”

     He chuckles. “Yeah, Fred and George turned me on to them a while ago. They always seem to discover awesome new Muggle bands, and...” he trails off and looks at her. “I guess I have you to thank, right?” She only winks in response, causing his smile to broaden. “Well then, you have incredible taste in music. I’ve been obsessed with this new band.” He leans in and whispers in her ear. “I guess I have an affinity for all-things dragons.” He reaches around her gently squeezes her hip, where her tattoo is.

     His touch sends a shiver down her spine and the hairs on her arm stand on end. She tenses, unsure of what to expect next. Before she struggled looking into his eyes, now she can’t seem to look away. “Yeah, they’re, um, pretty incredible.”

     Once again, he pulls away. He learned his lesson not to push too hard with this girl. He didn’t want her to slip out of his hands again like a bar of soap when squeezed too tightly. “I know there’s been a lot going on, but did you give anymore thought to us getting to know one another?” he treads carefully.

     She bites down on her bottom lip and takes a step back as if she received an electric shock. “I would like to. Honestly, I would. But—“

     “Jade, it doesn’t have to be right now; we can move slowly. You can dictate our speed. It’s really up to you. But please know that I’m not going to give up.”

     She exhales deeply. “It’s really difficult to open myself up to someone, especially now. I want—“ She notices him open his mouth to interject. “No. Please, Charlie, let me finish. Didn’t your mama ever teach you not to interrupt a lady?” she jokes. He smiles. She continues. “I want to come to you unfettered and sure of what I’m offering you, but it is so hard. I want to be happy, I want to be in love, and I already know that I want you. I may not know your darkest secrets or the story behind your every scar, but I already know. It’s just really strenuous to long for the future when you’re bound by the past. I’m not perfect, Charlie. Even when I was whole, I wasn’t perfect. Yet, for some reason, here you are. And you sure are a persistent bugger.” They both laugh. “Neither one of us, in this set of circumstances, can promise the future, nor can we promise perfection. But this is already happening, and we can’t escape it now. For so long I have folded into myself and disallowed any light to enter my life; I’ve practically forgotten what it’s like to feel real happiness, or love for that matter. But I’m not going to give up either. So I may not have all the answers yet, or even thought of all the questions that necessitate careful consideration, but I’m here. I may know a lot of things, but I am clueless when it comes to loving someone...” she moves in close to him and places her hand upon his chest, feeling his rapid heartbeat beneath her palm. Hers quickens its pace when he envelops her lithe body. “Unless you show me how.”

They kiss.

The end.

     Here is the first in my new Song Series! This, of course, revolved around the fantastic tune Demons by Imagine Dragons (can you pick out all the hidden tidbits relating to the song sprinkled throughout the story? ;)). If you haven’t heard of them yet, I highly recommend you check them out. Siriusly, go now. Well, after you rate and review! :D If anyone would like to suggest a song with an accompanying ship, please do so and I will try my best to deliver!

Lyrics:

When the days are cold

And the cards all fold

And the saints we see

Are all made of gold



When your dreams all fail

And the ones we hail

Are the worst of all

And the blood’s run stale



I want to hide the truth

I want to shelter you

But with the beast inside

There’s nowhere we can hide



No matter what we breed

We still are made of greed

This is my kingdom come

This is my kingdom come



When you feel my heat

Look into my eyes

It’s where my demons hide

It’s where my demons hide

Don’t get too close

It’s dark inside

It’s where my demons hide

It’s where my demons hide



When the curtain’s call

Is the last of all

When the lights fade out

All the sinners crawl



So they dug your grave

And the masquerade

Will come calling out

At the mess you made

 

Don’t want to let you down

But I am hell bound

Though this is all for you

Don’t want to hide the truth



No matter what we breed

We still are made of greed

This is my kingdom come

This is my kingdom come

When you feel my heat

Look into my eyes

It’s where my demons hide

It’s where my demons hide

Don’t get too close

It’s dark inside

It’s where my demons hide

It’s where my demons hide



They say it's what you make

I say it's up to fate

It's woven in my soul

I need to let you go



Your eyes, they shine so bright

I want to save their light

I can't escape this now

Unless you show me how



When you feel my heat

Look into my eyes

It’s where my demons hide

It’s where my demons hide

Don’t get too close

It’s dark inside

It’s where my demons hide

It’s where my demons hide