“Would you stop fidgeting with your dress, you look amazing.” Zachary smiles, looking at his sister through the mirror.

“It's our first date. Our marriage depends on me getting this right.” Lilith frowns, smoothing out none existent wrinkles in her red dress. She had agonized over what to wear for hours, she considered going on the date naked. That was a surefire way to win Charlotte over. 

“Where are you going that you need to dress so fancy?” Zachary asks plopping down on Lilith’s bed.

“Devil’s desert,” Lilith mumbles checking her makeup. Zachary couldn't help the psychotic laugh that erupted from his chest. “What?” Lilith asks through clenched teeth, “Not fancy enough for you?”

“Oh, it's very fancy, just not Charlotte’s style. She prefers…less socializing.” Zachary smiles.

“Well then Devil’s dessert should be fine, there are only ten tables.”

“Ten tables that seat up to four people,” Zachary frowns, he may have only known Charlotte for three years but he knew she hated social situations. Unless you were someone she liked and or trusted she didn't want a damn thing to do with you.

Lilith frowned, she hadn't thought of that. “What happens? When…”

“She gets… overstimulated. At best, she shuts down and you know stops talking and almost seems statue-like. At worst, she…shuts down in a really bad way.” Zachary sighs before finishing, “The first time it happened it scared the shit out of me. One minute she was fine the next her eyes were closed and she was pushing past everyone toward the doors. When I found her she was standing on the patio throwing her guts up. When she finally stopped throwing up and looked up at me all I could see was fear. By then I had known her for almost a year and at that time I had never seen her afraid. Not even when she got stabbed by some lunatic, she just turned to him and knocked him out in one punch before calmly attending to her wound all while I was freaking out.” Zachary laughed after the guy was taken away he was able to convince Charlotte into going to the hospital to make sure she wasn't going to suddenly die. The doctor could praise her work enough, test results came back and the knife had missed all major organs and arteries, Zachary smiled at the memory of what the doctor had said, “Not one of my staff could do work as good as this, where'd you learn this?” while examining Charlotte’s stitches for the hundredth time.

“Military, I've been stabbed and blown up hundreds of times too many to not know how to properly stitch and tourniquet a wound,” Charlotte had said with a shrug. He still had nightmares about that day. Zachary was snapped out of his thoughts when his sister's pacing caught his attention.

“Hi, do you guys have V.I.P. tables?” Zachary watched as his sister continued to pace and bite her nails. He hadn't seen his sister do either since her first day of high school. 

“Damn, you do love her,” Zachary thought with a huge smile breaking out on his face.

Charlotte sighed as she sat on her bed, she hadn't been on a date since… high school. God high school sucked. A knock on her door pulled her away from her horrible high school years. Charlotte froze, Lilith looked like a goddess. How had she gotten a goddess?

“You okay?” Lilith smiled smugly.

“Yeah…You look amazing.” Charlotte mumbles grabbing her keys as she stepped out of the door.

“You look way better than me,” Lilith said with a seductive smirk making its way onto her face. All Charlotte was wearing was a new white dress shirt she had bought for the occasion along with some new dress pants, she had originally wanted to wear jeans but Zachary reminded her it was a date, not a college part. She had sighed and sprung for dress pants, she had also polished her black dress shoes to their shiniest as per Zachary’s request.

“Yeah, you can thank your brother for that. I was just going to wear some jeans and a nice flannel,” Charlotte mumbled as they walked down the hallway. “Guess I should have asked where we're going, huh?” Charlotte smiled.

“About that,” Lilith says stopping to face Charlotte, “I got us a reservation at Devil’s Desert we're at a V.I.P. table but we do have to walk through a room full of people, is that okay?” 

Charlotte smiles, “Did Zach tell you something?”

“Just that you don't do well with crowds-”

“And the throwing up.”

Lilith nodded silently, “I'm sorry, he just didn't want you to be uncomfortable.”

“It's fine. Really. But I would have been fine with a normal table. Thank you for going the extra mile, but I don't want you doing more just for me.” Charlotte says shoving her hands into her pocket. Lilith frowned, confused. “It's not just crowds it's attention of any kind. I had to take three Pepto Bismol pills just to not throw up at the thought of this date. But I've learned to deal with it. I had to, in the military, either work or go home. I couldn't afford to go home.” 

“I'm sorry-”

“No. Don't be. I just don't want you to suffer for me-”

“I'm not. Paying a little extra for a stupid table isn't suffering watching you puke your guts out cause you're so afraid is suffering. Watching you fight in your sleep and not being able to do anything is suffering so just give me this.” Lilith yells. Unsure what to do Lilith clears her throat, “I'm sorry-” Before Lilith can even think of what to say next she’s engulfed in two muscular arms and pulled into a massive bear hug.

“Just being there is enough. You being there to hug me when I have a bad day or a bad night is enough.” Charlotte sniffs.

“I didn't mean to make you cry,” Lilith says moving as best she could to wipe the tears away.

“They're happy tears,” Charlotte smiles.

“So being there, huh?” Lilith smirked, “It's hard to be there when you have a nightmare if you're not sleeping next to me.”

“Then I'll just have to start sleeping next to you, now won't I?”