While You Were Creeping Page 5

  “You want two things,” I finally said, “and I want two things.”

  Pink crept up her face but, to her credit, she didn’t blink. Maybe she was thinking what had drifted through my mind—regrettably—a few times.

  “I suppose that’s fair...”

  Fair. Ha! We hadn’t begun to reach fair.

  “First and foremost, I want my freedom.”

  Holly opened her mouth, like she was going to say something, but thought better of it. Instead, she slowly asked, “And the second thing?”

  I didn’t think it was possible for her to appear any more nervous than before. She fiddled with the hem of her coat before picking away at nonexistent lint.

  Oh.

  Ohhhh.

  The corner of my mouth tugged upward. “Relax, I’m not going to ask for any lewd favors. Your virginity is safe with me.”

  Her mouth fell open, eyes grew wide, and her cheeks were nearly as red as her hair. “I’m not a virgin!”

  I canted my head as if I were allowing her to tell her little fib. Did I really think she was a virgin? No. But she didn’t need to know. My tone indulgent, I said, “Sure you’re not.”

  “I’ve had sex. Lots of sex,” she argued heatedly. “I do great sex!”

  I patted her knee, feigning sympathy but thoroughly amused. She was quick to bat my hand away and scoot farther from me, which was only a couple of fingers worth since this transport was so damned small.

  It only made me chuckle more.

  “Wow, you suck,” she grumbled under her breath.

  I think I found a new hobby: annoying the hell out of Holly.

  “The second thing,” I finally arrived at after smothering the rest of my laughter, “is: no more crystal. I’m only allowed out of that thing once a year, I’d like to enjoy it while I can. At least, until you free me.”

  Her brows pinched and she seemed to be debating something. “But where will you go?”

  What was this witch on? “What do you mean? I’ll be wherever you and the crystal are. I’m tethered to that thing.”

  I’d started to think this was the worst witch in history.

  “What’s stopping you from taking the crystal and leaving?”

  I squinted, trying to discern if she was serious, but nothing in her expression made me think she was yanking my horns. “You really are clueless, aren’t you?”

  Even though I hadn’t intended for it to be crass, her glare indicated that’s how it came across.

  “I keep telling you, I’m. Not. A witch.”

  My head was about to implode. It didn’t add up. She had to be a witch to be in possession of my prison. Berchtas weren’t so careless about their belongings as to just... lose an interdimensional prison.

  Likely this was some kind of trick to get my guard down, but I wasn’t falling for it.

  “Anyway,” I shook my head, “do we have a deal or not?”

  “We should finalize more details before we agree to anything. Just,” she scrambled to grab her bag once the transport pulled to a curb on the side of a busy road, “stay in the transport. I’ll be back in thirty.”

  She hesitated before setting the crystal on the dashboard and then bolted, disappearing into an overly decorated two story building.

  Then I was alone. Just me and that stupid crystal sitting there, taunting me.

  Super.

  ****

  HOLLY

  I felt bad leaving Kye in the transport, but I couldn’t exactly walk into an Evergreen meeting with my (hopefully) new Krampus.

  Sliding into a seat, I zoned out. Perry and the others talked nonstop about the winter mixer, her wedding shower—that I wasn’t invited to—and The Bowl’s upcoming gingerbread house competition.

  My thoughts were way too stuck on Kye and how he’d teased that I was a virgin.

  Jerk.

  I mean, I had nothing against virgins. And I don’t even know why I cared. Why did I care? He could think whatever he wanted about me.

  But then it made me wonder if he was a virgin.

  No. A big no flashed in my mind’s eye. There was no way. He was way too cocky to be a virgin.

  What his cocky attitude had to do with his lack of virginity, I didn’t know. Maybe that no one could walk, talk, and exude such self-assuredness around the opposite sex and not know his way around a hoo-ha.

  My nether region tingled at the thought of Kye getting down and dirty.

  Wow.

  I never tingled these days. I fought the strong urge to look down and proclaim, ‘hi vagina, I missed you.’

  “Earth to Holly...”

  My head snapped up. “I’m sorry, can you repeat the question.”

  Was there a question? I wasn’t paying attention at all.

  “Someone needs laid,” Perry joked and the others snickered.

  Fuck you, I wanted to say, but I awkwardly half smiled instead. I could also add that my ex was a terrible lay and I’m considering swearing off human men entirely.

  But that would be a lie. George wasn’t great, but he wasn’t terrible.

  Please stop thinking about George, brain.

  Besides, I tried not to be a shit human. I’d leave that job to them.

  “I was asking about the progress on the Kringle Parade,” Perry said in her fake-sweet voice. “Did you confirm with the local police about the roads?”

  “Yes. Everything’s settled. The same two roads will be closed. Just like last year. And the year before that. And the year b—”

  “Great!” She cheerily snapped, her left brow raising. When we were kids, I discovered she did that when she was irritated and didn’t want her eyelid to involuntarily twitch.

  I was satisfied with that.

  “That concludes today’s meeting.” Perry closed her meticulously organized planner. “We’ll meet again next week, Queens. See you all at the parade!”

  Couldn’t get out of there fast enough. For two reasons: I was nervous about Kye sitting in the transport alone, and I had to piss like a pregnant woman.

  Really shouldn’t have drank all that cocoa before a meeting.

  Just one problem...

  That.

  That pesky compulsion I had. It was so much worse in a public bathroom. Mainly because there was always more than one commode.

  I had to flush all of them. Which could get tricky if it were busy. I tried to avoid public facilities if I could, but there was no way in hell I could hold it all the way home.

  Bursting through the door, I found an empty stall and did my business.

  The door swung open again and multiple people shuffled in.

  Great.

  “I’ve got the hottest date for Perry’s wedding, girl. You’re gonna die when you see him. I swear it.”

  Amelie. Evergreen Queen of ’18. I’d know her chipper voice anywhere.

  “I’m jealous,” someone else said. Dasha? “Enri says he’s busy. I’d give my left ovary if I could just find a guy who wanted to spend time with me outside the bedroom.”

  No idea who Enri is but, Dasha, you can do better.

  Not that I should give advice. I couldn’t stop compulsively flushing toilets and creeping my ex’s social threads.

  Which, I’d only checked twice today during lunch hour.

  Huh. That was a record low, shamefully.

  “Did you see Holly?”

  My spine instantly stiffened and I held my breath, like they’d discover their new subject was in the stall behind them.

  “Yeah,” Amelie said, and made a pitying sound. “She was checked out the whole meeting.”

  “I would be too if my man left me for my cousin.” Dasha giggled. “Can you blame him though?”

  “You’re so mean.” Except Amelie giggled too.

  “Truth hurts. Perry’s gorgeous. Pity for Holly though. Perry said she hasn’t moved on. They all walk on eggshells around her.”

  Pity.

  Pity for Holly.

  My eyes burned. I hadn’t blinked. Pit
y was something I couldn’t deal with. I didn’t want people pitying me. I could deal with my problems on my own. Maybe I needed a therapist to help me, but that was my business.

  It gutted me to think my family felt that way. It shouldn’t, but it did.

  Was it true? Or was Perry spinning webs?

  “Wow, what a sad existence. Like, move on already.”

  Thanks Amelie. What a novel idea. Hadn’t thought of it.

  Not gonna lie... it hurt. Embarrassment and shame shot through me until my hands were trembling and my heart was racing by the time they left.

  And as I went down stall after stall, triggering each sensor, I hated myself the whole time.

  Pity for Holly.

  Pity!

  I washed my hands, dried my face since I didn’t realize I’d been crying, and left.

  To my complete and utter mortification, Dasha and Amelie were in the hallway, still chatting.

  They hushed as soon as they saw me. They knew. We shared a look. One that conveyed I’d been in the room while they were shit-talking me.

  I brushed past them, grabbing my coat and bag in silence. When I rounded the corner, I heard Amelie whisper, “Was she there the whole time?!”

  Yep. The whole time.

  I know I shouldn’t let it ruin my day, but I’m human.

  When I got in the transport, I didn’t say anything to Kye. Just set the destination to home and kept my mouth shut on the way.

  “You okay?”

  “Yeah,” I fibbed. “Think I’m just tired.”

  When we got home, I led us up the back. I didn’t want to see anyone, and I didn’t feel like explaining why I had a giant alien following me to my apartment.

  I still didn’t know how I was going to explain that—him.

  Locking my door, I hung up my stuff, kicked off my boots and turned on the projector vid for Kye.

  Goodnight was all I said before retreating to my room.

  Maybe tomorrow would be better.

  NINE

  KYE

  Last night was altogether weird. I’d pegged Holly as a tightly wound individual, but once she got out of her meeting, her mood had completely flipped. She’d almost seemed comatose.

  Don’t know what was up, but it didn’t take a genius to know she lied about being tired. Upset? I’d believe that. My gut said it had something to do with Perry.

  I rubbed my neck, grimacing, trying to work out the kink. Think I’d need more than a decorative pillow to prop my head up if Holly expected me to sleep on the couch for the next few weeks.

  I perused the kitchen, noticing the tech hadn’t changed much since my last waking. Which made my current situation even more confusing.

  What the hell happened to the last berchta? And who was Holly? They looked nothing alike. No familial resemblance whatsoever.

  Sssssss!

  I jumped back at the hiss. The device on the countertop lit up and started releasing hot liquid into a collection pot.

  Leaning in, I sniffed, realizing it was coffee. Huh. Must’ve been on a timer. As soon as it filled, the last drop blooping into the pot, I heard Holly’s door creak open.

  When she rounded the corner, the sight of her nearly spooked me as much as the unexpected hissing of the coffee maker.

  Her eyes had dark circles of smudged cosmetics and her hair was flattened on one side of her head while the rest frizzed and shot in various directions. And she was wrapped in a big blanket that dragged the floor behind her.

  Was that drool on her cheek?

  “You look terrifying.”

  “Jee,” she groaned, and I imagined the dead sounded nicer, “tell me what you really think.”

  “I just did.”

  She huffed. “Asshole.” Then poured her coffee and headed to the living room, plopping down on the couch.

  I grabbed a cup of coffee and followed but kept a healthy distance. Somehow, she’d wrapped the blanket around her in a way that made it look like a hovel while she sniffed the coffee fumes like a true witch about to taste her brew.

  “What happened to you?”

  “Shhh,” she hushed me before taking a slurpy sip of her coffee and moaning. “It’s the first day of winter break and I’m not ready to brain yet.”

  After a few more sips, she finally cracked her eyelids open again. Her green orbs slid my direction before she scowled. “Stop staring at me like that.”

  I took my own taste of the coffee. “Like what?”

  “Like I’m a feral pig about to gore you.”

  “Are you?”

  “No!” She took another sip. “Maybe.”

  I snorted. “Yeah. That’s what I thought.”

  We remained there in silence, the only sounds coming from her. Either a slurp or an ahh after a sip. Did she even know she was doing it?

  “Why are you grinning?” She mumbled into her mug, eyeballing me suspiciously. “It’s creepy.”

  Was I grinning? I let my lips slide back into a flat line before taking a gulp of coffee. Change of subject. “So about our deal...”

  That seemed to perk Holly up. The coffee was breathing some life back into her.

  “I’ve been thinking about that... and I have a confession to make.”

  Why did that make me anxious? “This ought to be good.” I braced myself for a letdown. Berchtas would be berchtas after all.

  “It’s just...” She fiddled with the handle of her mug. “I wasn’t lying when I said I’m not a witch. I don’t know how to free you. If I hadn’t seen you pop in and out of that cube with my own eyes, I still wouldn’t believe it’s true. I... I just thought you should know. I’m not going to trick you.”

  I set my mug down. If my grip got any tighter, it’d shatter in my hand. She’d kept insisting she wasn’t a witch. There’d been inconsistencies. Things Holly did that a berchta wouldn’t.

  My head kept telling me this was another trap. A trick. Even if she said otherwise.

  The muscles in my jaw throbbed, but I loosened them enough to get out, “No freedom, no deal.”

  I meant it. There were no favors I could offer Holly if she wasn’t willing to grant my freedom. I didn’t care if she claimed she couldn’t.

  “Wait!” She set down her mug and got up, leaving the blanket behind. “What if I promised to help you get free?”

  I sighed, my frustration venting from me. “And how would you do that?”

  “I don’t know! I’ll make calls. I’ll try to get in touch with the elf who gifted me the cube. I-I’ll talk to her boss. And their boss, and the next boss until I can get to the bottom of this!”

  The more she rambled, the louder she got until I wondered if the coffee short circuited her brain.

  “Please? We’ll get this figured out. I’ll try my hardest to find a way to free you.”

  It wasn’t what I asked for. I didn’t want the possibility of release. I wanted freedom. Cut and dried.

  I wanted to tell Holly to fuck right off with that nonsense, but my anger wasn’t directed at her specifically. Just her kind. Or not her kind.

  I didn’t know anymore!

  Lying or not, I still didn’t fully trust Holly.

  I chewed on it. Deep down I knew it was better than nothing. If Holly couldn’t free me, but was promising to help, could I afford to brush her offer aside?

  Would I rather snatch the possibility of release or remain in this limbo with a guaranteed imprisonment?

  Hated both options. Yet, one dangled hope.

  I chose hope.

  “Fine. But no half-assed attempts.”

  Holly squealed, then sobered, holding up two fingers in some oddball human gesture. “No half-assing it. Scout’s honor.”

  “And...” my eyes darted over our surroundings. “We have to put up decorations—”

  “Wait, what?” Confusion crinkled her face.

  “If I’m going to spend Christmas here, I want it to at least look like Christmas.”

  “Whoa, whoa, whoa.” She held up her
hands. “Let’s talk about this first. Be reasonable—”

  “I am.”

  “But I decorated!”

  I hmphed. “Your sad snowflake doesn’t count.”

  “It’s not sad. It has glitter.”

  I speared her with a glare.

  “Alright, alright. Chill. Maybe a few decorations...”

  “The whole apartment.”

  Holly crossed her arms over her chest and my eyes were drawn to her flimsy pajama top and how her nipples strained against the silky fabric.

  Suddenly my throat went dry.

  “Since you’re making demands, I think it’s fair I have a few of my own.”

  I rolled my eyes upward. “Here we go.”

  Her smug smirk was simultaneously worrying and alluring. Her lips were slightly swollen, like she’d been nipping them, and I had the urge to nip at them too.

  Started to think this was a bad idea.

  “I don’t just want you to be my date at the wedding...”

  This doesn’t sound good.

  “I’d like you to be my date the rest of the month.”

  “What?”

  “Listen, there’re like a million events in Tinsel this time of year. Think about it... You want all the Christmas cheer and I don’t want to show up alone. Besides, if you pretended to be my boyfriend, it would explain what you’re doing in my apartment.”

  “Wow, it’s worse than I thought.” This human was ten degrees past crazy.

  “Desperate times,” she jabbed.

  “And what happens when I’m free and leave this place?” Or, worse, if we fail and I get sucked right back into my prison.

  “I’ll tell everybody you had a work assignment.” She shrugged. “In a few weeks, I’ll say I couldn’t handle the long-distance relationship and tada! Easy breakup. Don’t worry, I’ll mope around for two weeks to make it look real.”

  My eyes narrowed, but I couldn’t keep my mouth from tugging up at the corners. “Only two?”

  “Fine, four. I’ll say you were a wild guy in the sack and I’ll never find another who can do that thing with his tongue.”

  Oh, this was getting better. “What thing might that be?”

  Holly’s smirk faded just about the same time her skin blushed and the silence stretched, caressing its awkward fingers between us.

  This human was much too easy to read. Messing with her brought me more wicked delight than I cared to admit.