Lily grunted as her back hit the mat and she glared up at Andy as he stood over her, his long fingers pressed against his knees as he bent down and looked at her with that smug smirk. They had been at this for over an hour and Lily was starting to feel hopeless. She wanted to learn how to fight-dammit-she had to learn how to protect herself. She and Andy had argued for two weeks about him teaching her and finally he had given in as they were currently at a gym in one of the private rooms that was offered. He had been trying to teach her some defensive moves, running at her to see if she could react in time to flip him onto the floor, but Lily seemed to have a slow reaction time, either that or she was afraid of hurting him. Andy smirked down at her, holding out a hand for her to grab and soon Lily was on her feet and grumbling as she headed back over to the opposite side of the mat.


“Lily-run at me, grab my right arm, spin your heel and flip me-it’s simple and I know you can do this.” Andy said as he crouched low towards the ground and watched as Lily huffed and then began to run at him. She grabbed his right arm and spun, but she wasn’t putting everything in to it and all Andy had to do was twist his torso the opposite way and flip her over his shoulder until she was flat on her back once again.

“I can’t do this Andy! Can we please just get to the sword fighting and punching?” Lily groaned from her place on the floor and Andy only grinned as he helped her to her feet once again. They had been here for quite a while, but Andy didn’t want to allow Lily to give in-she wanted to learn this stuff and defensive moves needed to be learned before anything else.

“Don’t be a quitter. Never give in-never back down. That’s what my teacher told me and it’s what I’m telling you. Now-again.” Andy said and Lily only growled at him as she moved over to the other end and ran at him. Maybe he had pissed her off enough this time.


Lily grunted as she sprinted towards Andy, reaching for his right arm and as she grabbed a hold she felt something click within her. Every bully. Every nasty name. Every prank. All of it ran through her head as she grabbed that lanky arm and tugged, moving like lightening as Lily flicked her arm and watched in silence as Andy flipped over and fell to the mat, landing hard on his back. He laid there, his eyes closed and Lily felt her heart race. Shit. She killed him! She killed him…his neck snapped when he hit the floor and now he was dead and oh shit. Lily stood there, her hands up to her mouth as she looked down and finally she felt a breath come to her lips as Andy opened his eyes and looked up at her. There was such an immense amount of pride behind those baby blues that Lily felt herself blush as she stood there, shuffling from one foot to the next.


“See…I knew if I pissed you off enough you would quit worrying about hurting me.”Andy said as he rocked on his feet and sprung up, landing in front of her and all Lily could do was look at him in awe. Where did he come from? It was like he was some super hero come to life and Lily giggled as she thought of her favorite super hero and how much he and Andy were a like.

“Well you’re just so skinny…I don’t want to snap you in half.” Lily giggled again as Andy only smiled and came towards her, his long arms resting on her shoulders as he looked down at her.

“You can’t hurt me any worse than I’ve been hurt in all my years training as a Torture Demon Lily. You can’t hesitate when it comes to defending yourself…you have to be a soldier-instinctive and fight until you die. It’s the only way to fight Lily.” Andy said his blue eyes shining and Lily felt goose bumps come to her arms.


They spent the next hour going over defensive moves and Lily allowed her anger to fuel her and she felt proud at the end of the day as she had been able to flip Andy a few more times and he complimented her on her perfect form as she spun around, her arm up to block an oncoming punch. The two of them were sweaty and tired as they packed up their gear and Lily was still wanting to continue on. It had been two weeks since her attack and she couldn’t help but glance around every corner before walking down the street. There were still eight more Demons roaming around and while Andy and Ashley assured her that she was safe, Lily felt differently. She had nightmares when she slept-dark dreams where she was forced to watch as they tortured Andy until he cried out and when he cried out it was her name and only her name. She would then wake up in a cold sweat and rush to the bathroom-she had promised Andy to stop cutting, but with her dreams and the anxiety Lily felt like she had no choice.


“So shall we stop and get some Chinese on the way home?” Andy asked as he bent over to grab for her bag and Lily only smiled and shook her head. Andy had fallen in love with Asian food one night when the two of them were alone in the building and since neither of them could cook she had suggested ordering food.

“Sure. Can we watch a movie tonight?” Lily asked as the two of them walked towards the exit and hit the sunny streets. Andy only laughed as he slung an arm around her shoulders and Lily felt comforted by his embrace.

“Yeah as long as the television is free I’m all for it. What did you have in mind?” Andy asked, smiling down at her as he turned them towards their favorite take out place and Lily felt a blush creep to her cheeks. Andy had been more openly affectionate since her attack, which Lily loved, but it made her slightly embarrassed.

“One of my favorites…they had it on sale at Walmart and since we just got paid I went ahead and bought the four movie set…” She bit down on her lip as Andy looked to her, his eyes unsure. Lily had weird tastes in movies and they were mostly full of love or sadness and they always gave Andy a headache.

“What is it called?” He asked warily, pushing open the door to the takeout place as she moved ahead of him and walked up to the counter. Lily didn’t answer at first, instead she spoke to the girl behind the counter, placing their order before moving to sit down at a small table to wait for it.

“Batman. Well each movie has a different name, but it’s all a series of Batman movies…” She said, smiling up at him as Andy just looked down at her, his eyebrows raised as his fingers grasped for hers.

“Batman? That sounds pretty stupid Lil’.” He said, smirking down at her as Lily just stuck her bottom lip out and finally Andy relented.


The two sat in silence, Andy taking a seat next to Lily but soon he moved his chair over so that he was behind her, his arms wrapped around her neck with his chin resting on her shoulder. The two of them spoke quietly to one another, mostly about her training and Lily felt a sense of exhaustion creep in to her bones. She ached all over, especially her back and her hips, but Lily knew why her hips hurt…that’s where all of her little tiny cuts were hidden and she hoped that they would fade away before Andy had a chance to ever see them. She felt ashamed at her lack of willpower, but Lily told herself that it was only a little cut each time and it wasn’t hurting anyone. Finally their food was up and as Andy grabbed for the bag, Lily smiled and headed for the door.

The couple walked down the sidewalk, Andy holding tightly to Lily’s hand as she trudged behind him, barely able to move from being so fucking sore. They would train twice a week and Andy was adamant that Lily learn all things defensive before he would try to teach her anything having to do with swords. He wanted to protect her as did Ashley, but Andy knew that he couldn’t be by her side every minute of the day. Lily was pretty independent and she and Sammi often went out together during their lunch breaks. It made Andy nervous, but Lily would only laugh at him, shoving his shoulder and tell him that he worried too much. That had been before her attack-now Lily was almost scared of her own shadow and she clung to Andy every time they were together.


“What is this movie about? If it’s a documentary about Bats…you can wait until Jake comes tonight and watch it with him…” Andy laughed as they approached their building and Lily only giggled from beside him as she began to climb the stairs.

“It’s not about actual bats…it’s an action movie and I think you’ll love it.” Lily laughed and Andy only smiled as he grabbed for her arm and spun her around so that she was facing him. They were face to face right now, since Lily was up a few steps and they were now equal in height.

“I don’t know what love is Lily. I may look human, but I’m still very much a Demon in my actions and emotions.” His tone was serious and Lily felt her heart drop in to her stomach. What was he telling her? Did he love her, but he was denying it to keep from getting hurt?

“I-okay.” She didn’t know what to say to him and words were unnecessary as the next thing she knew Andy’s lips were against hers. Her arms wrapped around his neck instinctively and Lily smiled as Andy moved to deepen their embrace a little more. He hadn’t known what a kiss was almost a month ago, but Lily was pretty sure he had been an expert at it in a past life.

“Lets go inside…” His voice was low and deep, his blues eyes searching hers as Andy pulled out of their embrace and smirked at her. Lily only nodded as she turned around and finished walking up the stairs, Andy behind her the entire time and he didn’t let go of her hand until they were in the building with the door locked behind them.


No one was in the common room and with a gleeful cheer Lily ran up the stairs to get her DVD while Andy only shook his head and walked into the small room. There were two couches, both of them pretty beat up but they were comfortable and Andy sighed happily as he sat down on one, placing their dinner on the coffee table in front of him. As he opened the containers, the delicious scent of soy sauce hitting him in the face, Andy couldn’t help but think over what he had said to Lily outside. He was a Demon. Demons did not love. But Demons also weren’t supposed to feel emotions beyond hate or anger and Andy felt many emotions, especially around Lily. She made him so happy-happier than he ever would have thought was possible and he couldn’t imagine not having her around.

Maybe he could love? But what was love? Was it smiling whenever the person you had feelings for walked in to the room? Was it being unable to breathe when you looked down on them in the morning…their utter beauty simple and heart wrenching at the same time? Was it feeling pain at seeing them sad or upset? Laughing with them. Being silly with them. Never wanting them to hurt or feel sad. Enjoying every moment with them, even the quiet ones. Wanting them to forever be with you, even if it was a selfish hope. Andy bit down on his lip ring as he sat there and there was a soft noise from behind him and as Andy turned, he couldn’t help but smile.


“You okay?” Lily asked as she stood before him, a small smile on her face as she walked over towards the television and inserted the DVD.

“Y-yeah.I-I’m fine.” Andy said-liar-his gut was in knots as he looked at her, standing there in front of him with that cute smirk on her face.


Lily said nothing as she fiddled with the television and soon the room was filled with the beginning strains of a movie. She sat down next to him, pulling her bare legs up underneath her and she smiled at him as she reached for a container of Lo Mein. Andy gulped as he looked at her and quickly he turned his attention towards the television. He couldn’t love Lily-love was impossible.

Leaving Hell was also supposed to be impossible, but somehow they both had managed it.

Notes

What? Love? Does Andy know how to love? I dunno, but he seems pretty smitten to me.
Please read and review : )

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