Chapter Text
The next few days went by in a blur of pure happiness for Grimm, him texting with Hollow becoming a regular thing. He found he was having way too much fun talking to the sweet barista, something about them filling Grimm with a kind of warmth he didn’t know he was capable of feeling anymore. One that he doesn’t think he’d be able to live without now that he’s experienced it. It was strange, how his life could suddenly change so much just because a random stranger on the street decided he was worth the time to comfort.
Grimm wasn’t a fool though, he knew Hollow was too good for him, knew that he’d eventually bring them nothing but pain, his past and his life too dark not to stain the pure white of Hollow’s soul. Yet he couldn’t keep away. There was something about Hollow pulling him in so completely, like a beacon of light drawing Grimm in like a moth to a flame. Leaving Grimm unable to fight it, unable to look away.
Grimm was taken aback by this, he’d only known Hollow a few days, yet there was some kind of invisible string connecting them in a way Grimm couldn’t describe nor understand fully. It was like he has lived in shades of grey, only for Hollow to come in and bring color into his life. Grimm groaned from his place on his bed and rubbed a hand down his face. He was completely smitten, it was embarrassing. It’s probably the fact that he’d never been in a relationship. That must be it. That thought made him cringe immediately. Somehow that was worse.
With a huff, he jumped up from his bed and made his way to the main tent to see how his family was coming along with the preparations. Flames were already lit all over the area, smaller tents, much like Grimm’s own, still popping up around him. For the first time, the red and black hues of the circus weighed heavy on Grimm’s eyes. He rubbed at them and entered the looming main tent. He greeted Willow, one of his family’s horses, who was tied to a post and lazily grazing a patch of grass. She looked up at him for a moment, letting out a huffed sigh, then returned to her task. Grimm shook his head fondly, petting her mane and continued down the brightly lit corridor.
To an outsider, the inside of the circus tent was a maze of long, winding pathways with no clear distinction in terms of direction, but Grimm knew these halls like the back of his hand, able to navigate it in his sleep. Once he emerged into the main area, the Arena, how his family calls it, he immediately spotted his parents, who were busy making sure the final touches were perfect. Grimm winced as his father yelled at a worker for picking the wrong shade of red for the seats and went to rescue the poor soul.
Grimm gently clapped a hand on the young woman’s shoulder, making her jump in her nervousness, and gave her a reassuring smile.
“I’m sure these will work just fine, gives the audience a breath of fresh air, don’t you think?”
The woman’s shoulders relaxed slightly under his hand, thankful for the help. Grimm gave his father a toothy grin, his eyes gleaming with challenge. His father narrowed his eyes, then sighed in frustration, letting the woman go with a warning, before turning back to Grimm with a glare.
“Lovely to see you out of your room for once,” he bit out, sarcasm dripping from his voice.
“Good to see you too, father.” Grimm smiled tightly.
“First you don’t help us at all with preparations, now you turn up out of the blue, meddling with my business? How very low of you.”
Grimm sighed, his false smile falling completely. “Come on, you have to admit, getting angry because the seats are crimson instead of maroon is kind of ridiculous.”
Grimm’s father laughed humorlessly, “And you’re the expert here, right? You know best? Better than your mother and me who’ve been doing this for over 30 years?”
“That's not what I said.” Grimm grit his teeth.
“It sounds like it is. Like you haven’t been sitting on your ass this whole time.” His voice was clipped, and Grimm felt a wave of guilt wash over him. He swallowed thickly around the lump in his throat.
“Is there anything I can do to help?”
“No. We’re finishing up here.” His father said, his voice cold as ice, then turned, leaving Grimm standing behind, a mixture of anger and guilt crashing over him in waves. No matter how much he disliked his life, this was his family and his father’s disapproval hurt, his words like knives twisting into him. All of a sudden, he couldn’t stand being in this place for a second longer. He needed to get away now. He started running, weaving through the corridors, tears prickling in his eyes, his heart heavy with something he couldn’t describe.
He knew he was probably overreacting, but there was something about the new feeling of life and meaning Hollow introduced him to, that his old life, his family, their words and actions became unbearable. Almost like he couldn’t go back to his miserable existence of darkness and never being enough now that he found something worth living for.
He didn’t know where he was going, the sun already starting to dip low behind the cliffs in the distance. All he knew was there was only one person he wanted to be with in that moment.