Cresswell: The Lunar Chronicles

Chapter One

Cress's eyes snapped open, her breathing fast and shallow as a low cry escaped her lips. Tears stung her eyes and she blinked, causing them to trail down the sides of her face. Her hands trembled as she brought the blankets tighter around herself. Her mind was foggy, but she was aware of soft, fluffy, pillows beneath her head and another blanket tangled around her legs.

She was in the palace. Cinder's palace. On Luna. Things had been settling down for the past couple weeks and despite knowing that both Levana and Sybil were dead, being alone seemed to bring out the nightmares in her mind. Nightmares that used to plague her when she was first left on the satellite. Alone. Abandoned. Imprisoned. Unloved. Shunned.

A quiet sob escaped her lips and she pressed her hand against her mouth, squeezing her eyes shut. She curled up as best as she could, given her still sore stomach, as tears dripped down her face and onto her pillow. She didn't want anyone to hear her, knowing most of the others suffered injuries and emotional trauma much worse than hers.

The door quietly creaked open, sending her heart-rate through the roof. She thought for one horrible second that the figure standing there was Mistress.

"Cress?" Thorne was at her side in a moment, brushing the hair away from her face as he knelt down in front of her. He reached for her hand and kissed it, giving her fingers a gentle squeeze. Even in the dark, his blue eyes were bright and filled with concern. "Are you in pain? Where does it hurt?"

Cress shook her head, her throat beginning to tighten as she tried to blink back additional tears that had gathered in her eyes. "N-no, it doesn't h-hurt."

"What's wrong? Don't cry," he whispered, his face contorting into a soft smile. His thumb moved up and down her cheek.

She chewed the edge of her lip, desperately trying to keep more tears from spilling over. She was about to say that she simply didn't like being alone and she'd be okay in a minute, when Thorne squeezed her hand again and stood up. Cress bit the inside of her cheek to keep from crying harder and begging him to stay. He stepped out of her line of sight and 1.5 seconds later the bed behind her shifted as he slid beneath the blankets.

Relief flooded her mind. Turning over to face him, she froze; suddenly timid. 

"Do you want me to go?" Thorne asked, pausing.

Cress shook her head. "No."

Settling in beside her, he slid one of his arms beneath her and pulled her against his chest.

With a contented sigh, Cress took a deep breath and let it out. For a while she merely listened to the steady thumping of his heartbeat against her ear. A small smile crept onto her face and she was glad the darkness concealed the flush she knew had crept onto her cheeks. Taking a deep breath, her eyes fluttered closed and she didn't wake up against until morning.

When she opened her eyes , pale light was coming in through the windows and all thoughts of her nightmare were gone.

Realizing she was still wrapped in Thorne's arms, Cress's heart started to flutter. She peaked up at him through her lashes. He was staring out the window, his fingers running along her scalp and through her hair. Her movement got his attention and he smiled at her, his hand pausing on the back of her head.

"How do you feel?"

Cress shrugged, her blue eyes settling on his handsome face. She remembered not so long ago when all she had dreamed about was waking up in his arms. Living it, she couldn't believe it was real. "Good. Thank you... for, you know... staying."

Thorne winked at her, dipping his head and kissing her forehead. "I couldn't let my girl cry herself to sleep."

Cress's heart stirred at the words "my girl" and she felt the corners of her mouth turning up in a smile. She hadn't ever been anyone's anything. Except Mistress's prisoner and that hardly counted.