"Jedrick?" I called him softly. His face was only a few inches away from mine and my arms were wrapped around his neck. I could hear the crunching of leaves beneath his boots as he walked with me in his arms. He raised his eyebrows at me.
"What? You are not my boss anymore," I shrugged with an innocent look. I could see his lips slightly twitch at the corners, and he shook his head at me with a serene look.
"Can I ask you a question?" I asked him.
"Do I even have a choice?" I thought about his question for a second and grinned at him toothily.
"Definitely not," I replied him enthusiastically. His eyes were shining with laughter.
"What is your age?" My question made him pause in his tracks. He looked down at me with an unreadable expression. I looked up at him with my big gooey eyes.
"I am as old as this universe," He replied to me and resumed his walk.
"Really?" my eyes sparkled at his answer. He looked down at me and nodded gravely. I probably resembled a curious little girl.
"Woah! You are so old," I exclaimed which made him frown at me. He muttered some unknown profanities under his breath.
"I am not that older than you. Just a few millennials, that is not even that far." He muttered under his breath. Was he being insecure that he was older than me? How cute? I felt like pinching his cheeks but I didn't do that.
"I like older guys." I blurted out without thinking. My eyes widened at my statement. He looked down at me with a smirk.
"Did yo…."
"I said nothing! I am just talking a-about the oak trees, yes, oak trees. Haha!" I cut his off and laughed awkwardly, my cheeks flushed with embarrassment. He chuckled at me and gave me a corky smirk.
"Sure, Love. But there are no oak trees here." He whispered seductively into my ears, skimming his nose at my sides, which caused me to shiver. My heart fluttered at his proximity and I gulped down the anxiety.
I smacked his chest playfully and hid my flushed face in the crook of his neck which made him burst out laughing at my red face. Soon we both reached the mountain cave. I could see, Cerberus waiting for us at the entrance by wagging his tail.
Jedrick gently placed me on the ground and stood to his full height. He was almost 6'4. I looked so short beside him.
"Is Cerberus the same three-headed hellhound that is mentioned in mythological books?" I enquired.
"He is. I have no idea what you did to him but that damn mutt is behaving like a lost puppy around you," he grumbled, which made me chuckle at his sour face. I kneeled beside Cerberus and petted him, which caused him to grunt out in pleasure.
Jedrick paid no heed to us. He enquired about the entrance of the cave and after a while, he said, "Let's go inside." I nodded at him and walked beside him, Cerberus trailed behind us.
The cave was dark and there were some weird images carved on its wall, some were painted with a white substance. Occasionally, I saw some writings in some strange language. When we reached further, I couldn't see a thing but it seemed like Cerberus and Jedrick were not having any problem with their vision.
"Um…Jedrick," I called his name in the dark and tried to reach for him blindly. His footsteps stopped and after a while, I felt a warm arm wrap around my shoulder. I stiffened at the contact.
"I am here." The person told me. It was Jedrick, I relaxed on him and let him guide me further to our destination. I fisted his dress shirt near his stomach and snuggled closer to him. He smelled so good, like, male and his costly cologne.
After few seconds, I could see some light coming from the other end. When we walked further, it cast a reddish-orange light around the place. There were many rocks with sharp edges were lying all over the place, and I could hear the boiling of water from somewhere, when my eyes followed the sound, it landed on red hot lava running through a small stream.
"Right here, guys!" Helena's voice snapped my gaze to her, who was standing a little far from us along with the guys. There was this sky-high gate in front of them which looked like it was carved from the mountains, it had this very dark and gothic aura around it. This place looked like a fragment of my imagination.
I made myself closer to Jedrick as we both made our way closer to them. The lava would bubble out of its place, causing me to jump up in fright. I wrapped my arms around his biceps and observed my surroundings with hawk-like eyes. He shook his head at me with a lopsided grin.
The place was extremely hot, and I was sweating like a pig. I felt like I was being trapped inside an oven. When I looked at Jedrick and his grim reapers, they hadn't broken out a single sweat. They all looked fresh as a flower. Jedrick wrapped his one arm around me, protectively.
"We couldn't hide this place. It seems like we need someone to guard the gates." Victor rushed out as soon as we reached closer to them.
"Lucifer did some heavy job to expose this entrance. After all, he stayed with our father in the past. He knew many things that we don't." he continued.
"I think it is time for Cerberus to get back to his position," Helena stated with a frown.
"We need someone besides Cerberus to protect this place from humans." Victor interrupted her. They all nodded their head in agreement.
"I think it would be wise if Grudgecous and Skull stay behind with Cerberus. You are the most trusted members of mine." Jedrick told them with a serious expression. The situation looked grim.
"We should catch Lucifer as soon as possible or else the situation will be deteriorating further." Jedrick clenched his jaw with a malicious look on his face. I felt like a third wheel in their conversation. But, whatever was going on here, It seemed like, it would put our entire world at stake.