The Wallflower Ch. 09

"What is on that mind of yours?" a deep voice purred beside her.

"Nicholas, aren't you supposed to be sleep?" Lily said, slightly annoyed that he had broken her out of her thoughts. She looked down at him to find that he was resting his body on his elbow while peering up at her with sleepy smoldering red eyes. He raised his hand to his mouth as he let out an audible yawn.

"Yes, well while he slumbers, my soul is awake." He stood up to stretch his spine and his legs. "But I have to tell you. Whatever you put in those desserts makes it harder for me to want to control this body. Even I want to go to sleep and I have just awakened."

'I can't believe I thought I'd actually get away without talking to him today,'Lily thought as she stared back at the fireworks.'He probably won't stay for long.'She glanced back at him to see he could barely keep his eyes. In fact, he looked less menacing than usual. He looked more like a sleepy cat than anything.'Maybe with a little incentive...'

"What is so fascinating about those fireworks?" he muttered, still yawning.

"They're beautiful out at night," Lily said shrugging.

"They're just stupid fire rockets. There is nothing special or beautiful about them."

"You're too focused on what you see. For me it's about the feeling. Imagine what it is like to be the firework on the Fourth of July. About being a rocket full of something so explosive that you'll burst." Lily placed her palm on top of his head as she talked, rubbing his curly hair and occasionally scraping his scalp. "Something or someone sets your whole being on fire. Giving you reason to rise. Rise high into the sky. To keep going...and going... and going...faster and faster until you can't take anymore." Lily lowered her voice to a whisper. She glanced down to see that the Spirit closing his eyes, savoring her words. Lily lowered her head so that her lips brushed his outer ear.

"Then you explode with exhilaration and power. You're free. You're free from all the pressure and heat caused in the first place. You let out a mighty cry when you achieve such euphoric release. So rewarding. So amazing that you leave evidence of that freedom you worked so hard for. Now you can die in peace, knowing that your life was no waste. You died for your freedom."

He caught her hand in mid stroke. He brought her fingers to his mouth and softly brush his lips across her fingertips. He opened his eyes half mast as he licked each fingertip and blew across it, causing her to shiver. "You should know better than to play with me, Lily."

"It depends on who you are. Are you the fire or the firework?" Lily had no clue where that came from. She hardly ever flirted, but it felt... good.

"Indeed," the Spirit said before lowering his eyes. "Freedom comes to us all in one way or another." Lily saw his chest rising and falling slowly as he drifted off into sleep. Lily sat there with her fingertips still pressed against his mouth.

A peaceful pause settled into the air as she looked back up into the sky of what remained of the fireworks.'Will I be the fire or the firework?'

BLRRRRGGGGHHHHH!

"OH MY GOD!" Lily jerked her hand from Nicholas's and covered her nose. "YOU ARE SO GROSS!" Nicholas let out a peal of laughter as she got up to run away from Nicholas's farts.