Dinner went by fairly quickly. Azrael turned out to be comfortable to chat with; he was knowledgeable in alot of topics.
At the end he decided to show me where all the worlds can be seen. I was so excited I had practically nagged him the whole time.
As this is the inbetween it basically serves as a crossroad to the other worlds but it cannot determine which dimension one ends up in.
However, from Azrael's earlier words, I deduced that so far I hadn't encountered any dimension where the people I knew had a different personality than the one I knew them with.
So basically, our soul is a reflection of our personality. And since our souls have been split, each piece housing a specific trait becomes multiplied.
Azrael led me through a long corridor, up a flight of steps, passed by door after door until we reached a specific one.
He opened it revealing a winding staircase that went up up up up UP.
From where I stood at the bottom, I couldn't see what was at the top. Just stairs, stairs and more stairs.
"So we need to climb all the way up?" I asked staring at the flight of stairs warily.
The railings were a gold color with vine like design running the length of it. The middle was curled to form different flowers and shapes.
"We do. What are you planning to back out now?" Amusement laced his tone.
"Of course not. I, Arianna Isabella Grey, am not a quitter" I huffed with my arms crossed.
"I hope you remember those words" he voiced out.
We began climbing the stairs.
Five minutes later~
"I give up" i declared, sitting down on the steps with my back resting on the railings.
"I thought you said you were not a quitter" Azrael raised a brow in disbelief at my words, simultaneously pointing out my earlier words.
"I don't remember saying that" I denied it feigning ignorance.
He shook his head at me " I'm starting to see just how lazy you can be or is there something else?"
"It's not that I'm lazy but I just happen to lack the energy and motivation to climb these stairs at this particular moment" I told the half truth. Obviously I'm not admitting to being lazy. "Usually climbing a set of stairs would be easy as pie but right now my limbs feel heavy and sluggish. Even my thoughts seem slow. Talking itself feels like a chore" I may have exaggerated to he seems to buy it.
"That must be the effects of traveling to the inbetween. It will wear off in a few days" he explained.
"That makes sense" I commented.
"Do you still want to see how all the worlds look from here today or would you rather go back and rest? We can come back some other time" he asked looking down on me from where he stood.
I knew I was tall, but Azrael still has a couple more inches on me.
"I do but—ah" before I could finish what I was saying, a yelp left my lips. I instinctively wrapped my arms around his neck as he picked me up bridal style.
"I'll take you there since you want to see it" he stated simply.
I gazed up at him noticing how the mask had a faint glow due to the lighting. He seemed focused with the way his lips were pressed in a thin line.
"Like what you see" he shifted his gaze to me a smirk now playing on his lips. My cheeks burned at being caught red handed.
I averted my eyes, though I could feel his intense gaze on me.
"I-I wasn't staring, I was just–" my cheeks burned brighter when I heard him chuckles. I could feel the vibrations from where my head pressed against his chest.
My began to beat erratically in my chest. It was loud enough I feared he could hear it.
He continued up the stairs, his pace was neither fast not was it slow.
That was how we made it up with me in his arms to a place I never imagined could ever exist.