Asael sat up with a jolt in bed, sweat dripping down his temples. His chest was rapidly going up and down, his hands tightly clenching the sweat-soaked sheets. He closed his eyes, muttering things under his breath, his breathing slowly but surely relaxing. Once he felt like he had a grip on reality, he ran a hand through his messy copper colored hair. He slowly opened his eyes, looking around the room to make sure that there wasn’t anyone hiding in the shadows. Once he was satisfied that nothing was going to jump out of the darkness and bite his ass, he got out of bed.
He went over to the bathroom, opened the door, and instantly turned the water on in the shower. He slipped his clothes off and looked at himself in the mirror as he waited for the water to warm up. His heterochromatic eyes roamed over his body riddled with scars, pain briefly flickering across his face before it disappeared. He glanced at the phoenix rising from the ashes on his right arm, reminding him that he was reborn after everything that happened in the war. His eyes then snagged on the sunflower on the left side of his chest, pain once again flickering across his face with the memories that came with that tattoo.
He ran his hand over his five o’clock shadow, making a mental note to shave his beard in the next couple of days. Once he noticed that the mirror started to get foggy, he stepped into the shower, letting the warm water trail down his tense body. He should really tell his therapist more about what happened and everything that he did in the war. He knows it would make him feel like he gets some weight off his shoulders, but he doesn’t want her to look at him differently after hearing the horrors. He shook his head, knowing that he should stop thinking about this before he gets further into his head about it.
He quickly washed himself up before he put on a pair of jeans, a black short-sleeved shirt, a red and black flannel, and a pair of black boots. He slipped a watch onto his left wrist and grabbed his phone off his nightstand, quickly glancing at the time and seeing it was only six AM in the morning. He supposes he has enough time to go get some coffee and some donuts for the office before he heads into work. He stuffed his wallet, badge, and keys into his pocket, grabbing his gun out of the safe before slipping it into the holster at his hip, his flannel concealing it so people don’t freak out.
He opened the door to his house and locked it, tugging and turning the handle a few times to ensure that no one was getting in. He gave a slight wave to the neighbor as they were getting into their car. He was surprised by how lucky he was when he moved into the neighborhood, with how nice everyone was, and that both of his neighbors were just lovely couples. It definitely makes things easier when he is welcomed into a community than trying to have people run him out of it.
He slipped into his car and made his way down to his favorite coffee place. He walked in, and the people working behind the counter instantly had smiles on their faces once they saw who it was. He will admit it is a bit bad that he loves his caffeine when the workers of his favorite place know what his order always is. Then again, he knows if he stopped coming, he might not be able to function without any caffeine in his system with how much he relies on it now.
“Good morning, Asael! The usual?” Katherine asked, already starting to move around.
He let a small chuckle out and nodded his head. “Of course. How has this morning been going so far?” He waved at the other workers in the back, knowing them fairly well as well. He knows Katherine fairly well due to coming in, and she was his sister’s best friend.
She shrugged her shoulders, heating the milk up as she spoke. “Surprisingly slow this morning for a Tuesday. I’m sure that it will get busier, though.” She poured the milk into the to-go coffee cup before putting the lid on. “Are you still having the nightmares?” He glanced away, giving her the answer that she needed. “I figured.” She sighed, running a hand through her golden hair. “Still the same time on Friday?”
He nodded his head as he handed her more than what the coffee was, knowing that she wouldn’t argue with him. “Yeah.” His throat closed just thinking about Friday. It is the tenth anniversary of his sister’s death. He can’t believe it’s been this long, knowing that he can’t hide from it forever. “I’ll see you later, Kate. Thank you as always for my cup of sunshine in the morning.” He gave her a wink before he rushed out of the building.
He grabbed some donuts a few minutes later, giving them thanks before he made his way to work. He parked and glanced at the building, his hands rubbing his face to get rid of the exhaustion. He knows that he picked this career since he is good at it, but sometimes he wishes that he had never chosen this path. He grabbed the box of donuts and made his way in and set it on the table in the break room. He made his way to his desk and plopped down in the chair, enjoying the quiet before others get here for the day. He turned on the computer and started to get to work on some of the cases that he had to finish paperwork before the court hearing.
A few hours went by before he got a tap on his shoulder. He swiveled around in his chair, and a grin spread across his face at who it was. It was his best friend and his partner. He is surprised that they are friends with how vastly different they are. He stood a smidge higher than himself, and his raven-colored hair blended well with his ocean blue eyes.
He stood up and hugged his friend. “Ambrose.” He greeted, slapping his back. “I'm glad you are back since I can’t stand most of the detectives in this place.” He grumbled as he looked around, making sure no one was too close to hear him say that. “How was the honeymoon in Paris?”
“As expected. She had the time of her life there, as did I. Only wished we were gone longer since I never wanted to come back after being there for a month.” Ambrose stated as he leaned against the desk and crossed his arms over his chest. “Do you want us to both come this Friday with you and Kate for more support?”
There it was again, people bringing up his sister. He didn’t want it to keep being brought up, but he knows that Amrbose is only asking since he cares. “That would be great.” He said, a tight smile on his face.
Ambrose opened his mouth to say something, but it was interrupted when Asael’s phone started to ring. “Asael.” He answered, his head nodding to everything that was being said to him over the phone by his supervisor. “Will do. Bye”
“What was that about?” Ambrose asked as he took a sip of Asael’s now cold coffee. “I hope it isn’t some rookie thing that the others could take care of.”
“Well, it is. Sounds like a patient from the mental institution a handful of blocks from here escaped last night. We are tasked to find them and bring them in.” He muttered, annoyance heard in his voice as he started to clean up his desk and turn his computer off.
“Let the games begin.”
Spring Month: 1 
Night 
Flood Moon: 
