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kind of traumatic event it was going to take him a while to recover<br />
from, like a car crash or a mugging. Hell, I was traumatized by it,<br />
and the thing hadn’t even touched me. I was dying to k<strong>no</strong>w what<br />
was going through his head, what he was feeling, but I couldn’t ask<br />
him yet. Not here.<br />
“You’ll be okay, though, Chelsea. I promise. I k<strong>no</strong>w that was<br />
horrifying e<strong>no</strong>ugh for me to watch. I can’t imagine how you feel,<br />
having had to witness it in person. If you need anything, you can call<br />
Daisy or me anytime, day or night.” Richard offered his best<br />
comforting smile.<br />
I was touched by the concern, but it didn’t take away what<br />
had just happened. All the same I <strong>no</strong>dded. “Thank you. Do you guys,<br />
um, need some time alone?” Part of me wanted Tucker to finally<br />
talk, and I thought that maybe he would if they were by themselves.<br />
<strong>The</strong> other part of me just wanted to get out of there and pretend like<br />
<strong>no</strong>thing had happened in the kitchen with my friends.<br />
“That’s a good idea. Thank you.” He <strong>no</strong>dded.<br />
I turned to Tucker, wanting to say something before I left.<br />
But my tongue was suddenly clumsy. Any words I could think of<br />
seemed silly and <strong>no</strong>nsensical in the face of what he’d just gone<br />
through. So I settled for resting my hand on his thigh for a moment<br />
before I got up and headed to the next room.<br />
<strong>The</strong> others were making some kind of lemony chicken<br />
deliciousness, and I helped by grabbing some plates and setting<br />
them up on the table. <strong>The</strong> conversation was a little forced and a bit<br />
too light considering the situation, but at least it was a distraction. I<br />
was happy to listen to Adrian talk about the martial arts classes she<br />
was teaching if it meant <strong>no</strong>t thinking about the demon that had<br />
attacked my boyfriend.<br />
Eventually, Richard and Tucker joined us at the table, and<br />
we all tried our best to keep the dark reality at bay during the latenight<br />
dinner. But there was one more thing that was bothering me,<br />
tugging at my consciousness all throughout the meal. While<br />
everyone else was clearing their plates and filing into the kitchen, I<br />
grabbed Richard and pushed him into the next room.<br />
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