THEIR HEADS DUCKED UNDER the truck's dashboard when Stephanie Xu locked up A Chosen Bond for the day. Ronan had parked in the empty lot next to the adoption center's property, hiding their obvious presence in the dark of the night. Gwenn felt her heart flutter like a hyperactive bird fighting to take flight. Ronan grabbed onto her trembling fingers, squeezing them as if to remind her that he was there, that he wouldn't let anything happen to her.
A slam of a car door echoed, and Ronan peered over his window just as bright taillights gleamed into the inside of the truck. She pursed her lips as he rested his forehead over the worn steering wheel. Her legs trembled, struggling to hold the weight of her body while crouched down in the most uncomfortable position.
"Is she gone?" Gwenn asked.
Ronan looked out again, then took the keys off the ignition. "It's clear. Let's go."
His hands found her lower back as they hurried to the front door. The usual entrance greeted them, only the front doors wouldn't budge. Gwenn looked out into the deserted parking lot, gulping at the sight of a streetlight, which illuminated all of their actions. She fumbled with the black turtleneck wrapped around her skin, which almost restricted her breathing. Her fingers scratched at her throat, hoping to alleviate her discomfort, but found her lungs gasped for more air regardless.
Ronan took out a kit from the back pocket of his jeans and crouched close to the lock.
"Since when do you know how to pick locks?" she asked.
"Please don't tell me you offered to break in without even knowing how to open the front door," Ronan responded, then grunted as he maneuvered his pick.
"I figured we'd go for a window or something," she mumbled.
He stopped his quick advances to arch an eyebrow at her. "I don't know what's more concerning—you offering to break into a building or you wearing my color."
Her fingers found the edge of her collar once again, heat curling up on the apples of her cheeks. "You don't own the color black."
"No, but I distinctly remember you actually not owning anything black," he replied, a hint of amusement lacing his words as he went back to the lock. She said nothing, shuffling her feet as she prayed no one decided to drive past the street at that precise moment. "You look good," he added, almost like a second thought.
As if she couldn't get any redder. "You think everything looks good in black."
The lock clicked, and he swung the door open, carefully and slowly, as if he expected sirens to blare at the mere movement. "You know me well." He held the door for her, the ghost of a smile on his lips. She slipped inside, unable to see a foot in front of her.
"Stay close to the door, honey," he advised. "I don't know where the cameras are."
Following his instructions, she leaned against the cool glass door until he entered beside her. His arm brushed her shoulder, and she shivered, blinking as if that could help her eyes settle and she could see in the dark like an owl.
"Shit," Ronan exclaimed and pulled her to the floor. She couldn't see his face, but could feel his breath on her cheeks. "There's a camera right there."
"Do you think it caught us?" she whispered. Ronan pressed his forehead over hers, and if she was having trouble breathing before, she was having an asthma attack now.
"Hopefully not." He lifted his head, but she couldn't even pinpoint where he was. All she knew was that he was still on top of her, his body warming hers until she felt like tiny flames ran through her torso up to her cheeks. "See that light on the ceiling?"
YOU ARE READING
Forever Luminescent
General Fiction"Just shine like you always do." Gwenn Davidson has always known she was adopted, but after clearing up her stuff for her first move out of her parent's house, she finds an old blanket gifted to her by her birth mother that triggers an avalanche of...
