October 14th

Brit looked out of the second floor window. It had stopped raining. Peering over the railing, she noted that the water had still submerged the first floor. Returning to her pillow, she laid across it and took a deep breath. Brit was breathing easier. Even though she continued to cough and sneeze a bit, her fever was gone. Omega had suggested that she rest, and Ethan had not been able to travel to the library to get her. Coloring had been suggested but Brit did not feel up to the strain of drawing and, therefore, she did something she never had done before: She looked at the pictures she had drawn before.

Turning the pages, she noticed the picture she had colored a few days after Ethan had become her beloved. Her brow furrowed as she noticed there was no picture of the night on the rooftop. Looking again to the window, she blinked rhythmically. She focused and realized that a year had passed. Sitting in the quiet of the library, she counted. It was too confusing. She went to get a calendar and stared at it. Her fingers touched the date of October 14th. A year had passed!

Brit crawled to the library window and stared up at the rooftop across the street at the spot she first saw Ethan. They had not become beloveds right away. Months passed. For a time, he had gone into torpor. Forty days and nights passed. Day in and out, she had watched over him and cared for him as he lay dormant. She ensured he was clean of dust and debris, and she read to him daily. Days passed. She brushed his hair and took the liberty of really observing him. She even moved his lips so she could view his fangs. Prior to Ethan, fangs terrified her.

When it was time for him to wake, she was excited to see him moving again even though she felt a small sense of loss. It was the first time Brit ever felt a purpose. She felt that he needed her. Prior to torpor, he had given her clear instructions to pull the dagger and leave. Brit pulled the dagger, but could not leave. Ethan turned his back on her and said tersely, “Brit, you are not safe here.” She knew then that he needed her. Rather than leaving, she offered her wrist. Others arrived on the rooftop, but she was attached to him as he drank from her wrist. At that moment, Brit felt that he needed her and they were rarely apart again.

A few nights later, on October 14th, they were both at the spot where Brit first saw Ethan. She peeked back up at it as if to see him standing there. An odd being said, “Hello, dead one. Are you luring or preying?” Ethan responded and the subject of lies was brought up by the being. Ethan said that he could determine whether someone had lied easily. This was curious as Brit had just learned of lies. She asked him to demonstrate by asking what he could see in her mind.

Ethan seemed startled, but removed his glasses to comply with her request. He looked at her eyes. She found herself unable to look away thinking his eyes were as beautiful as the rest of him. Brit remembered feeling almost linked in the gaze. Her cheeks flushed pink remembering his whisper, “Quite unique. Especially for a human girl.” He turned and mechanically took his hand, and he did not pull back when she clasped it. The nearness was comforting and she stepped closer to brush back his hair.

At some point, the strange being faded away. Brit enjoyed being with him. When Brit neared him, his hand seemed to shake a bit. Brit could no longer feel the presence within as she could moments ago. As she came closer, Ethan’s eyes were less radiant and he held her hand a bit tighter. With a tilt of his head, he seemed to be staring at something rare in front of him. His eyes seemed more focused on what was in front of him rather that what laid beyond her eyes.

Stepping closer, Brit idly touched his hair as if he were still in torpor. Ethan did not move for several minutes nor did he say a word. His hand reached out and lightly touched his hair. He pulled her to him slowly. Ethan ran his hand through her hair once. Twice. His face seemed to show a hint of conflict as if Ethan was having second thoughts about what he was feeling; and then, Ethan leaned a bit forward as if wanting to close most f the gap between them.

Brit felt his hand grow warmer and she watched as he moved closer. Unbeknownst to her, she also leaned a bit closer in return. Ethan ran a finger down her cheek before outlining her lips before touching her face. Moving his fingers away from her lips, he gently stroked her face after pulling back. Then he closed his eyes and leaned in again barely touching her lips with his. Brit’s eyes did not close and she stood statue straight as she felt his lips touch hers. It was so light that she was unsure whether it had really happened.

Ethan pulled back a moment gauging her reaction and then leaned forward again to softly place a second kiss on her lips, and he swore that his heart was beating in his chest. Brit’s hand clung to his and her eyes closed on the second kiss remaining so after he broke the kiss. She blinked slowly a few more times before closing her eyes and mimicking his motion as she returned his most gentle kiss. Ethan felt his senses heighten and he pulled her closer to him to feel her lips on his again. This time, the kiss was bolder. And like before, it was returned.

Later, they continued to watch the city from the rooftop. The shouts and screams meant nothing to either of them. It was true that she had experienced nothing of love or lovers, but she whispered, “I think I always knew you would be my lover.”

Ethan grinned playfully and held her really close for a moment. The shouts and screams from the city below did not distract either of them. “I’m very lucky indeed,” he said as he wrapped his arms around her.

It was at that moment that Brit realized that, with his nearness, her mind was peacefully at rest. Usually, Brit struggled with thousands of sensations but, with him near, Brit found none of the usual distractions. She liked the feeling of him close to her. Wanting to offer him something, she whispered, “I’ll describe sunrise for you every day if you want.”

His arms tightened around her. “That might well be the most beautiful thing I’ve ever heard,” he said. Brit remembered it all as she waited for him to come to the library for her. She hoped the rain would stop so he could remember the past year with her on the rooftop.

[Ethan, this morning’s sunrise was a deep pink along the horizon blanketed above by dark purple clouds. As you raise your eyes to the sky above, there was a vibrant tangerine that faded into a creamy orange color melding into light blue. Traveling to the west, the sky had a darker shade of blue. I hope I always describe sunrises to you. Happy 1st anniversary.]