Page 26 of Nightmare For Hire
Nox: Thanks. I’m gonna give this a think.
Cael: :thumbs up: any time.
Who is to say Nightmares and Eldritch Horrors don’t have fated mates? Maybe we do?
Chapter 12
Cyrus
I dig my camera bag from my closet. It’s been a while since I’ve actually used my professional DSLR and figured I should probably give it a quick once over at least before I take it on a nature walk.For the longest time, my camera was my sole companion after being saved. I'd capture happy scenes and look at them over and over, trying to take the emotion into my heart.
There's something about Rivenfield that makes me want to wander around with my camera and capture the beauty around me again. Or maybe it's a certain Nightmare that has me wanting to expand my life from just working?
When I pull the DSLR out of the camera bag, the grip is sticky, making me gag. It really has been a long time. I know it went in clean, so why is the grip sticky? I give it a quick cleaning with an alcohol wipe until the tacky feeling is gone.
Next, I examine the lens. I only have the one that came with the camera. My life kind of exploded into studying when I started nursing school, but I wouldn’t trade my time there for anything. It gave me life experience, and it was the OBGYN rotation that made me fall in love with helping people.
Babies in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit need the most help to thrive and I love being there through the good times and bad. My heart soars when a baby thrives and gets to go home. And not gonna lie, I spiral when a baby passes. Those days I have to take a time out and do a bit of journaling. I know it’s never my fault, but it’s hard nonetheless.
I empty the contents of my camera bag, looking for the battery pack and charger. When I find them, I plug them in so once it’s charged I can check that everything works.
Some days I question why I chose to work in the NICU. It’s grueling work, but rewarding. It keeps me from dwelling on my past. On what could have been.
With my parents insisting on good grades and punishing me if I got less than an A, you’d think I’d hate learning. But I love it. I devour books on all sorts of subjects and since moving to Rivenfield I’ve read no less than seven books on different monster types and their cultures. I’m glad I could move to a monster town and live among those so unlike me. While Stonehowe and Edgewind both sounded interesting, the military presence was stronger than I was interested in. Plus, Rivenfield is totally small town vibes and I’m here for the quietness of it.
Some days when I’m off, I just want to sit on my couch and stare at the wall, but I push through and either play video games or go to the gym. Anything to keep from going into that dark place in the back of my mind that tries to tear me apart.
Meeting Nox has knocked something loose, though, and I’m excited to meet him shortly. Maybe not with my camera since Istill have to charge it up, and make sure it works. But we can explore parts of Rivenfield I never thought to explore.
My phone dings.
MONSTER MATCH 1 New Notification: You have been hugged by Nox_Nightmare.
I grin at the notification and send him back a hug.
MONSTER MATCH: You have 1 new message.
Nox_Nightmare:Can’t wait to see you again.
MONSTER MATCH 1 New Notification: You have been hugged by Nox_Nightmare.
Every time my phone dings and it’s Nox, I smile. I can’t wait to see him again, too.
Thankfully, I can head out to meet him by the library. I’m not sure what he has up his sleeve, but he said it’s a surprise.
It’s dark by the time I reach the library and Nox is already there with a blanket in his arms. He’s in a pair of white skinny jeans again and a tie-dyed crop top. His boots are bright orange. And he’s sans makeup tonight.
“Do you like stars? I do. They smell like steak.” He grins up at me and laughs when all I give him is a confused look. “They smell like steak when I float among them.”
“You can float with the stars?” I ask.
He nods. “It’s interesting in space. Haven’t been in…” He tips his head. “No idea. Since the planets formed, I guess.” He shrugs. “Anyway, there’s a nice field by the playground. I thought we’d lay out and look at the stars. There’s not a lot of light pollution, so we should get a good view. What do you say?”
“I’ve always wanted to go stargazing with someone.” Since I was a kid. Sometimes I’d disassociate and imagine I was among the stars, but I won’t tell Nox that.
“Perfect!” He grabs my hand and leads me to this field several blocks away. It’s freshly mowed and grass goes everywhere when he snaps the blanket in the air then smoothes it on the ground.
My fingers twitch. That feeling of needing to photograph this moment overcomes me. Nox looks stunning with the backdrop of the stars behind him. Next time I'll bring my camera.
