All Strings Attached

by Miss Merikan

  “If I’m dead, then let the Fairy Dollmother have her.”

  It took less than Gavin expected to get inside, and they joined a whole group of couples in a dimly lit corridor. There was no cloakroom, but Gavin managed to plead his case, times when not having an arm helped, and leave the shoulder bag with his makeup case with a member of staff. As unexpected as this was after a ten-hour job from hell, tiredness was replaced by excitement as they laughed their way to the first actor guiding them into the depths of the London Dungeons. And even with the excitement of the tour, he was becoming hyperaware of Anna’s closeness. Their arms kept brushing one another, and Anna gave him a wide smile in the semi-darkness. This was bound to be a happy Valentine’s Day for once.

  For the first time, actually. Not like that time he prepared dinner for Gwen, following a cooking show on YouTube, and ended up eating it on his own. Anna came to him. Wanted to make the day special. There was still panic at the back of Gavin’s mind about the fact that he didn’t have anything in return, but it was overridden by the fun he was having. An idea for what he could offer today was slowly blooming. It was time to take the plunge and see what happened.

  When they entered the labyrinth of mirrors, for a moment, Gavin didn’t recognize that it was him not his reflection grabbing Anna’s hand.

  Chapter 7

  Anna and Gavin were still finishing their huge cones of ice cream as they approached her house. The date had been spot on. They had lots of laughs, shared stolen kisses, and Gavin hugged her when the shadow of Jack the Ripper flew into the pub-themed room in a flash of light. It had been bliss, just like pretty much any day she spent with him. They just clicked and understood one another so well that even a thousand calories in a cone couldn’t scare her.

  “So I was thinking I could take you somewhere as well.” Gavin said as he sucked on the black scoop in his hand. Squid ink flavor. It was so funny to see him even choose sweets in black. Anna could bet he asked for ‘charcoal steaks’ in restaurants.

  “Like, now?”

  “Yeah, now. But I’d need to stop by your house and leave the makeup bag. Is that okay?”

  Anna swallowed. Did that mean Gavin wanted to stay the night later? “Sure, we’re almost there.”

  “And we can take the Tube from your house after that. This ice cream is really weird. Good, but weird.” Gavin shook his head. He looked so cute with his black-rimmed glasses and the mohawk tied back into a ponytail. It was a new Gavin, somehow softer, less theatrical, but just as sexy and interesting as the one Anna had gotten to know so far.

  “Where are you taking me then?”

  “Oh, it’s a secret. A place I like going to for long walks.” He smiled and petted Anna’s ear. A tingle of pleasure ran down Anna’s chest, and she smiled, biting into the waffle cone she was almost done with anyway. She loved it when Gavin caressed her there.

  “All right, I’ll give you your big reveal,” chuckled Anna, running up the few stairs that led to the door of her and Dan’s house.

  Gavin snorted. “Yeah, my moment of glory. Just take my bag, okay? I’ll wait outside and have a smoke.”

  Anna crooked an eyebrow but shrugged. “All right, I’ll just get a hat and gloves while I’m there.” She took the heavy makeup bag and opened the door with a smile on her face. She put it down on the floor close to the door and walked in with increasing excitement.

  “Oh, hey! You’re back!” Dan yelled from the living room and already stomped her way with a wide smile. “I thought we could have an anti-Valentine’s party, with Gavin working and all.”

  Anna grinned and looked back, lowering her voice. “Actually, we’re on a date right now. I’m just taking something warm. But that’s quite a cool idea. Who are you inviting over?”

  “Oh ... I thought about us and Mimosa and Brad. I made pizza.” Dan sounded deflated.

  Anna closed her mouth, sorry she couldn’t slap herself. “Oh ... sorry. I didn’t know you had plans like that. We could eat the pizza tomorrow. What do you say?”

  Dan looked at the table laid out in the living room, with a set of plates. There was a doll-sized table in the middle, and Mimosa and Brad sat at it in a new set of armchairs. There was even some miniature food in front of them.

  “Yeah, I suppose that’s fine,” muttered Dan.

  Anna sighed. It would have been a tempting idea if it weren’t for her date. “That’s so cool, you could take some photos,” she proposed.

  “I’ll probably do that. Get some more dolls as well. I’ll show you the pictures when you come back ...”

  Anna smiled and poked him, heat bursting in her chest. “He’s taking me to his secret place.”

  Dan pouted. “Sure he is. He’s worried someone will snatch a girl as cool as you. Just make sure it’s safe wherever he’s taking you.”

  Anna’s grin faltered. “You can’t be serious ... he’s not some creep.” She got herself a glass of water and wiggled her eyebrows. “I’m pretty sure he’d defend me if I needed it.”

  Dan frowned. “Yeah, right. It’s gonna be more like you defending him if a bunch of chavs get in his face.”

  Being skinny and looking like no one else in a mile's radius was exactly the thing that could get you unwanted attention from people whose hobby seemed to be drinking cider and being loud in the street at two in the morning. Anna frowned at Dan, feeling slight irritation simmering beneath her skin. Gavin was very independent and never asked for help, even if it would make his life easier. He had a job and was doing his best to live like anyone else despite the obvious struggle with his disability. She had no idea if she wouldn’t just quit in his place. “Are you saying that because he doesn’t have an arm?”

  “Well ...” Dan scratched his scruffy chin. “I don’t mean it in a bad way, but he is a skinny goth, and then there’s the disability on top of that. He couldn’t protect you if he needed to.”

  “He’s actually pretty strong. And it’s not like I’m a fucking willow,” she said, crossing her arms on her chest.

  Dan’s eyebrows rose along with his hands in a defensive gesture. “Whoa! Fine, don’t worry, I meant no offense, Anna.” He sighed and let his arms flop to his sides.

  Anna sighed and mirrored his gesture. “I’ll get more dolls for the photo shoot.” She went to her room without waiting for an answer. She didn’t want to keep Gavin waiting too long, so she returned swiftly with two of her dolls.

  Dan was strangely stiff when he took them from her but smiled. “Thanks. Have fun.”

  “Don’t wait up!” said Anna with pride before storming through the door and into the cold. She hadn’t been this excited in a long time.

  But Gavin wasn’t there.

  Anna froze, letting the door slide shut behind her. She slowly made her way down the stairs and looked to the sides. “Gavin?” Her temples started pulsing. Didn’t he say he’d wait outside? Had he bailed on her?

  That was when Anna heard footsteps thudding down the street, and when she turned around, there was Gavin running toward her, leaving a trail of steam from his breath. When he got to Anna, he held onto the railing in front of the house and couldn’t catch a breath.

  A smile returned to Anna’s face like magic. “What happened to you?”

  “I—I just—” Gavin panted as if he’d just run a marathon. “I just went to get a lighter from the corner store.”

  Anna chuckled and pulled him close for a hug. That vest smelled so good, like Anna’s sheets after Gavin’s visit. “We could have walked together, silly.”

  “Nah, it’s fine.” Gavin took another deep breath and reached for a cigarette from his pocket, as if smoking could help with the capacity of his lungs. His heart raced like mad under his clothes, and Anna could feel it on her cheek.

  “For a moment, I was afraid the dark elves snatched you from here.”

  Gavin lit his cigarette as they started walking down the street. “They wouldn’t. I’m one of them.”

  “I know, maybe they miss you on the th
rone.” Anna put her arm around Gavin’s waist. She usually disliked walking close to the park after dark, but not with Gavin. His mere presence guaranteed no one made sleazy comments or followed her in a creepy attempt at flirting.

  “I’m afraid I still have business here on the surface.” Gavin smirked and took a big drag of his cigarette.

  It wouldn’t take them long to reach the right area with the Tube, but Gavin took Anna’s hand and led her along the street of a quiet neighborhood. The asphalt was slightly wet, and it glistened in the glow of the streetlights. The air smelled of wet ground, leaves, and the leather of Gavin’s vest. In the dark, they walked in the shadows hand in hand, and Anna even pushed back the fold in the glove that covered her fingertips to feel the touch of Gavin’s skin. “Is it very far?”

  “Nope. Just a nice walk.” He smiled and squeezed Anna’s hand. “Unless I’m actually taking you somewhere I can murder you in a ritualistic fashion.”

  “No, we’re too far away from Whitechapel,” yelped Anna and gave Gavin a playful nudge.

  “I’m planning to cut your arm off and take it as mine. I already made the deal with the devil. Now I just need to deliver the goods.” Gavin wiggled his eyebrows and gave Anna a predatory smile as they walked along the street by the park with the background murmur of the city.

  “Oh, so that’s what it’s about. You’re taking me to your secret lair,” chuckled Anna.

  “Actually, I am. To a place I like visiting when I want to chill out and have some time to think.”

  “This time you won’t be thinking too much. You’ll get too much sugar into your system,” said Anna, raising the pack of lemon cupcakes they got on the way.

  “You really do want to fatten me up, don’t you?” Gavin shook his head.

  “No, but it’s Valentine’s, and I don’t think you had lots to eat at work anyway.”

  “Not really, no.” They turned into a cul-de-sac with two rows of narrow houses, and Anna rested her head on Gavin’s arm. It was so nice to have someone to spend time with like this, and she was glad he liked being with her out of bed also. She loved her friends, but it just wasn’t the same when walking with a guy with butterflies flapping about in her stomach.

  They got to the end of the alley, to an old wall with plaster chipping off in places.

  “You ready to commit a crime?” Gavin asked.

  Anna frowned, unsure. Were they breaking in somewhere? But the wicked excitement in Gavin’s eyes stopped her from asking. It was Gavin’s moment after all. “I’m yours to command, dear prince.”

  “Follow me then.” Gavin climbed up the stairs of the house by the wall, and when Anna already thought he’d be knocking on the door, he turned to the fence and climbed on top of it at the lowest point between the stairs and the top of the wall.

  Anna’s heart skipped a beat, but she stepped closer, like a lamb following the flock. There were lights in some of the windows around so they had to move quickly. Gavin already jumped down to the other side, clutching at the trees growing way past the fence. It was bound to be hard to get through here in the summer with thick leaves and vines covering the trees. Anna let out a shaky breath and grasped a branch, stretching out one leg to check if she could safely jump off.

  Gavin laughed from the ground, his pale face visible in the shadows. “Come on! Are you afraid your polyurethane resin will shatter into pieces?” He actually remembers what they’re made of, thought Anna with a giddy feeling in her chest.

  Anna chuckled and took the plunge. The ground was clear, and she exhaled in relief but then blinked when she noticed pale shapes looming in the darkness. “Is this a cemetery?”

  “See? I did bring you to my lair.” Gavin wrapped an arm over Anna’s shoulders.

  She took a deep breath and rested her shoulders against Gavin’s hand. “Are there many people who come here, or will we be alone?”

  Gavin grinned at her and leaned down for a kiss. “You’re never alone at a cemetery.” Anna wasn’t sure if she liked that.

  “I’m not into skeletons without skin,” she said, pulling Gavin onto the track between the gravestones.

  Gavin pinched the back of her neck. “Hey! I’m not that skinny.”

  “No? Let me see,” whispered Anna. She quickly pulled off her glove and pushed her hand under Gavin’s vest and hoodie.

  “They’re cold!” Gavin whined but pulled Anna closer as they walked along through the eerie scenery. Anna didn’t believe in ghosts, but something about the silence and all the shapes emerging in the bright moonlight made her adrenaline levels heighten.

  “I’m sure you can do something about that.” She tapped Gavin’s flat stomach, playing with the hair on his treasure trail. It was so peaceful here. With her eyes getting used to the dark, she was able to see the cemetery in more detail, but the shadows kept bothering her for no reason. She supposed Gavin knew they were safe here.

  “You got enough presents for the day,” Gavin said, leading them through the narrow footpath.

  “I did?” Anna snorted, glancing to the side at the pale shapes of statues, headstones, and bigger structures. A bird screeched in the dark, breaking the silence. It was so strange that only now, in a place so quiet, Anna was able to distinguish a distant, over-encompassing hum of the city.

  “Hello! You got an audience with the prince of darkness. Doesn’t happen for just anyone.” Gavin gave her yet another kiss. He couldn’t seem to get enough of her lips, and she was happy to grant him all the kisses he wanted and more.

  “I can see why you like this place so much,” said Anna, watching the naked trees and all the motionless figures looming in between. “It feels like we’re alone in the world.”

  Gavin took a deep breath. “I used to come here a lot after my accident. People wouldn’t bother me here.”

  Anna’s throat tightened, and she looked down at their feet as they slowly moved over the ground, her pink creepers next to his platform boots. Gavin never mentioned how he lost his arm. He never even said how long ago it was, so she never wanted to press the question. “It must have been tough.”

  “It was proper crap. I didn’t want to tell you how it happened because it has to be the stupidest accident in the history of mankind.” Gavin sighed, looking forward through the trees. He let his arm fall down from Anna’s shoulder and grabbed her hand.

  Tightening her fingers around it, Anna swallowed, a heaviness spreading through her chest. “It’s not stupid if you’re having problems because of it.”

  Gavin inhaled deeply and looked away, his feet dragging over the ground. “I went to a waterpark with my family, which is kind of stupid because I can’t swim, but they all wanted to go, so I joined. And then, the waterslide I was on crashed. Parts of the construction crushed my arm. It’s beyond undignified for the prince of darkness, isn’t it?”

  Anna hugged Gavin tight and pushed her face into the leather vest. She couldn’t imagine how horrifying this must have been for Gavin. And what were the odds of it happening? Such bad luck. “I’m so sorry.”

  “It was just last year.” Gavin’s arm tightened around her, and he clung to her like never before even though his tone didn’t change. “I got back to London as soon as possible because I don’t want to be stuck in a village in Wales for the rest of my life. I want to do stuff, you know?”

  “That’s ... I would never think anyone could put themselves together in such a short time,” sighed Anna, at loss for words. It was so incredibly sad. She’d thought it had been longer since Gavin’s accident. His determination to go back to normal life must have been incredible.

  Gavin snorted, but it was a bit shaky. “Yep, only goth in the village kind of situation.”

  Anna tightened her arms around him and kissed his collar bone through the vest. “Were you already wearing leather back then?” she asked, trying to disperse Gavin’s tension.

  “Idiot.” Gavin kissed the top of her head. “Leather and a lot of makeup. Not the most popular kid.”

&n
bsp; Anna nodded and let her hand slowly glide up, straight for the stump hidden in the folds of fabric. She tried not to touch it too much because it made him uncomfortable, but she just needed to sense it now. “Does it still hurt?”

  “It tingles, and it’s sensitive. But only hurts like a bitch if I bump into something.”

  Anna brushed her fingers over it gently. Even after spending so many nights together, it felt so unfamiliar because Gavin would always discreetly move it away. “Worse than being kicked in the balls?” she tried.

  “Similar.” Gavin laughed and pulled her along the footpath.

  Anna kissed his shoulder and looked at the bright moon with a smile. “This is a great place for a date.”

  “You can call it that.” Gavin smirked when they got to a wooden gazebo with a cozy little bench inside. He delved his hand inside his vest and pulled out a simple white standing candle. “Put this inside your jacket, Annashi.” His eyes were so intense a shiver went down her body.

  Her heart skipped a beat, and jolts of heat trailed all the way to her pussy. Her inner muscles tightened with excitement. Was this it? Did Gavin decide to give her fantasies a try? She shuddered despite her warm clothes and grabbed the candle, quickly stuffing it down the front of her jacket.

  Without telling her anything else, he left her on the bench and walked out of the gazebo. Anna stared after him, all stiff, and she gripped the edge of the bench with tiny sparks bristling all over her skin. What was Gavin’s plan?

  She waited for what felt like forever, but was probably a few minutes, before Gavin appeared again with a cell phone in his hand. “I saw what you did,” he said in a voice so different, so serious, she didn’t know what to say, only watching him dominate the space with his tall figure. It somewhat worked with his black-rimmed glasses and a more neutral look. “You little menace. I’ve got it all filmed. Desecrating the cemetery? Graffiti? Stealing candles from the graves? Do you have any idea how much trouble you can get in for this?” His steps toward the gazebo were slow and intent.