Page 17 of Starlight

At some point, he must have fallen asleep as he dreamed of flying and nests made out of blankets. When he woke, it was daylight, and Akai was standing on the deck staring out over the valley in much the same way he had yesterday…except Akai was wearing pants.

His cheeks heated. Yes, he’d done it because he felt like he was being watched—out weird the weirdo, right?—but it wasn’t some random weirdo. It was Akai.

As he got off the sofa bed Akai turned.

For a heartbeat, Cole froze, not sure what to do. It was obvious he was awake, but he also needed the bathroom, and he was not going out on the deck with a morning wood, not with company, anyway.

He swallowed and got up, pacing over to the bathroom, the one room without views of the valley. He took far longer than he actually needed and wasted extra time brushing his teeth before he was brave enough to face the monster on his deck.

And if the monster was gone?

That should be what he wanted.

He opened the bathroom door and was far too relieved to see Akai in the living room.

“Coffee?” Cole got a pot of water boiling.

“Do you have any juice?”

Cole pulled a carton out of the small fridge. Putting in the solar panels had been an extravagance, but the fridge was worth it. As was the electric hot plate. In winter, he used the wood heater, but in the summer months, it was the hot plate or outdoors, if there wasn’t a fire ban.

He poured Akai a glass. “How did you sleep?"

“Not good. You?”

“Fine, once I got to sleep.” He watched Akai, drinking the juice like his life depended on it. There was no way he could go back to pretending monsters weren’t real. “Do you need some more painkillers?”

“I shouldn’t. Besides, they only mask it, which means I may make the wounds worse.”

Cole made himself a mug of coffee.

Akai grinned. “Not drinking that on the deck?”

His cheeks burned. He swallowed and tried for nonchalance. “Maybe don’t creep on people, and you won’t see things you don’t like.”

“Never said I didn’t like it.” He finished the glass of juice without looking away. “I was wondering if I’d get to see more.”

Cole stared at the monster in his kitchen, drinking his juice. He blinked, not sure what to say. “You’re a… Why would you…” He frowned. “What?”

“Maybe you should drink your coffee because that made no sense.”

“Neither did you.” He took a drink, needing a distraction. Maybe his face had gotten sunburned yesterday because his skin was far too hot.

Akai placed the glass down on the counter. “I won’t be able to fly for weeks. Can I stay here?”

He glanced up. “Here?”

“My workshop is down an old mine. It’s very hard to get in and out of, and my wounded wing makes it hard to balance.”

“I mean, sure. It’s not like I’m here every weekend.” What was he doing? Akai couldn’t stay in his cabin, but he was the reason Akai couldn’t fly.

“I wouldn’t mind if you did come here every weekend…so I don’t get lonely. Bring some games, more food…”

“This isn’t a hotel.”

Akai tilted his head and considered him for several heartbeats. Cole held his gaze long enough to see himself clearly reflected in his big red eyes. He blinked, suddenly off balance. Akai caught his elbow. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, just need some food,” he lied, not sure why he’d gotten that falling sensation.