“I tried to be
a better person for her– but it was to impress her, to get her to want me. But
when I’m around you, I want to be better because… well, because it feels right.
Because I want to. You make me want to become something greater than myself. I
want to excel. You inspire me in every act, every word, every glance. I look at
you, and you’re like… like light made into flesh. […] You have no clue how
beautiful you are or how brightly you shine.”
“Adrian,
I'm on a date. Why are you here? On my car?”
“Sage,"
he said. "What are you wearing?"
I sighed and stared down at the dress. "I know. It's red. Don't start. I'm
tired of hearing about it."
"Funny," he said. "I don't think I could ever get tired of
looking at it.”
“Day
24. Situation is growing worse. My captors continue to find new and horrific
ways to torture me. When not working, Agent Scarlet spends her days examining
fabric swatches for bridesmaid dresses and going on about how in love she is.
This usually causes Agent Boring Borscht to regale us with stories of Russian
weddings that are even more boring than his usual ones. My attempts at escape
have been thwarted thus far. Also, I am out of cigarettes. Any assistance or
tobacco products you can send will be greatly appreciated.
-Prisoner 24601”
“He
shouldn't have said that," repeated Adrian, eerily serious. He leaned his
face toward mine. "I don't care if he's not the emotional type or the
complimentary type or what. No one can look at you in this dress, in all that
fire and gold, and start talking about anachronisms. If I were him, I would
have said, 'You are the most beautiful creature I have ever seen walking this
earth.”
“You
need me? You yell. You want to leave? We go. I'll get you out of here, no
matter what.”
“He
shook his head. “No. Because there's no one else out there who understands you
like I do.”
I waited for more. “That's it? You're not going to elaborate on what that
means?”
Those green eyes held me. “I don't think I need to.”
“Adrian
ordered a martini, earning disapproving looks from his father and me.
"It's barely noon," said Nathan.
"I know," said Adrian. "I'm surprised I held out that long too.”
“He
reached out and pulled me to him, one hand on my waist and the other behind my
neck. He tipped my head up and lowered his lips to mine. I closed my eyes and
melted as my whole body was consumed in that kiss. I was nothing. I was
everything. Chills, ran over my skin, and fire burned inside me. His body
pressed closer to mine, and I wrapped my arms around his neck. His lips were
warmer and softer than anything I could have ever imagined, yet fierce and
powerful at the same time. Mine responded hungrily, and I tightened my hold on
him. His fingers slid down the back of my neck, tracing its shape, and every
place they touched was electric.”
“Really,
Sage? A date?”
I sighed. “Yes, Adrian. A date.”
“A real date. Not, like, doing homework together,” he added.
“I mean like where you go out to a movie or something. And a
movie that’s not part of a school assignment. Or about something boring.”
“A real date.”
“You're
in an awfully good mood," he observed. "Was there a sale at
Khakis-R-Us?”
“Nothing
he said could change what I think of you. I've had my mind made up about you
for a long time... and it's all good.”
“I’d
mentioned this odd wardrobe choice to Adrian a couple of weeks ago:
“Isn’t Dimitri hot?”
Adrian’s response hadn’t been entirely unexpected:
“Well, yeah, according to most women, at least.”
“Ah,
those two. In a fight, they’re lethal. Around each other, they melt.”
“You
made your own jean shorts...with a butter knife?”
“Adrian
stood there leaning against the doorframe, watching me with his heart in his eyes.
In my chest, my own heart was breaking. On my cheek, the lily reminded me who I
was. ”
“It
doesn't matter. Take Eddie's blood. Take Belikov's blood. Take your own for all
I care. But If she doesn't want to give hers, then that's all there is to it.
She said no. This conversation is done.”
“For
once, you're going to hear something that doesn't fit into your neat,
compartmentalized world of order and logic and reason.”
“Isn’t
it obvious, Sage? No, of course it isn’t. I did it so I’d have a reason to be
around you — one I knew you couldn’t refuse.”
“He
froze, and for one moment, we stood locked in time. I could feel the silk of
his shirt against my skin and the warmth of his body. The lingering scent of
the overpriced cologne he wore floated around me. No smoke for a change. I’d
always told him the cologne couldn’t be worth what he spent, but suddenly, I
reconsidered. It was amazing.”
“I
know how you guys feel about us. I'm not stupid, and believe me, I've tried to
get you out of my head. But there isn't enough liquor or art or any other
distraction in the world to do it. I had to stop going to Wolfe's because it
was too hard being that close to you, even if it was all just pretend fighting.
I couldn't stand the touching. It was agonizing because it meant something to
me－and I knew it meant nothing to
you. I kept telling myself to stay away altogether, and then I'd find excuses…
like the car… anything to be around you again.”
“He
leaned closer to me and then seemed shocked as he realized what he was doing.
"Why would you do that? Why would you do that for me?”
“Too
bad you got so bogged down in books. You've got the spirit of a warrior.”
“But
perhaps the best part of all was that I, Sydney Katherine Sage, guilty of
constantly analyzing the world around me, well, I stopped thinking.”
“Why
not see which is brighter: your aura or the sun?”
“Nice
blouse, Sage,” Adrian told me, deadpan. “It really brings out the khaki in your
pants.”
“I
find prostitutes vastly important.”
“If
you went twenty-four hours without cigarettes, I'd drink a can of pop. Regular
pop. The whole can."
Isaw the glimmer of Adrian's earlier smile returning. "You would
not."
"I totally would."
"Half a can would put you into a coma."
Sonya frowned. "Are you diabetic?" she asked me.
"No," said Adrian, "but Sage is convinced one extraneous calorie
will make her go from super skinny to just regular skinny. Tragedy."
"Hey," I said. "You think it’d be a tragedy to go an hour
without a cigarette."
"Don’t question my steel resolve, Sage. I went without one for two hours
today."
"Show me twenty-four, and then I’ll be impressed."
He gave me a look of mock surprise. "You mean you aren’t already? And here
I thought you were dazzled from the moment you met me.”
“I
wanted someone a little more approachable," I explained.
"What, like Captain McTropicalShorts back there? Where on earth did you
find him anyway?"
"Just did an Internet search." Feeling a need to defend my research,
I added, "He comes highly recommended."
"By who? Long John Silver?”
“You'd
give up drinking to go see your dad?"
"Well, not permanently," he said. "That'd be ridiculous. But
maybe I could switch to something slightly cheaper for a while. Like...slushes.
u know how much I love those? Cherry,
especially.”
