Winnie's POV

I walked in the front door and shut it quickly, blowing out a breath and leaning against it for a moment. I collected myself and walked into the living room, quickly making my way to the stairs.

Mom rushed over and gave me a hug. "Hello, Winnie! Dinner's almost—"

I cut her off immediately. "I'm not hungry. Sorry."

I ran up the stairs and ignored both her confused look and the stabbing guilt in my chest for blowing her off like that. I ran into my room and pulled the curtains shut. I took off my clothes and didn't bother putting on any pajamas. I crawled under the covers of my bed and laid there facing the ceiling, trying to make sense of what happened.

Ash kissed me.

Why did he do that?! Does he like me? I mean, it would be great if he did—

What am I saying?! He's a demon! I can't like him! Even though he did help me that day in the bathroom, and he never made a move to hurt me, and he told off Marcus and Tyler, he's still a demon! I can't like him!

I sighed.

But I really want to.

I turned my head slightly and looked over at the picture on my desk. It was of me and my best friend Archer three months before he passed away. We were seven when the picture was taken. I felt my eyes prick with tears. "Oh, Archer, what in the world should I do?"

I took in a deep breath when I realized what I should do. I sniffed and sighed again and took the covers off of me. I sat up and looked at the time.

Was I really in bed for two hours?

I got out of bed and pulled on my favorite sweater. I threw on a random pair of pajama pants, not caring about those. I looked in the mirror and frowned at my reflection. My eyes were slightly puffy and my hair was a mess.

I hurriedly wiped my face to get rid of any tear trails. I quickly splashed some water on my face and ran my hands through my hair. Satisfied, I quietly walked downstairs and hesitated on the last step. I could faintly hear my mom talking to Dad. I bit my lip, made up my mind, and walked into the living room.

Mom stopped talking as I appeared around the corner. I walked over and sat between them. Mom pulled me into a hug which I gladly returned. Dad threw his arms around both of us.

"What's wrong, Winnie?" Mom asked.

I sighed. For some reason, I didn't want to tell her, but I didn't want to lie to her either. "Um, it's guy trouble."

Dad tensed. "It's not Marcus and Tyler again, is it?"

"No! No, it's not them. Not that kind of guy trouble, either," I said as I straightened up.

Now it was Mom's turn to be angry. "Was it Asher?"

"Um, a little?"

Mom's jaw clenched. "I'm going to kill him. I'll be back," she said as she got off the couch.

I grabbed her hand and pulled her back down beside me. "Mom no! It's also kinda me, too."

Dad leaned back. "Explain."

I sighed and recounted to them my day, starting with Ash taking me out of school (leaving out the part when he yelled at me), to me taking him to church, and finally ending with Ash kissing me. 

Mom's mouth dropped open. "He did what?"

"He stole our little boy's first kiss, is what! You know what, maybe I'll kill him!" Dad angrily said as he stood up. 

I grabbed his hand and pulled him back down. "No, don't do that! I didn't mind, really, it's just..." I trailed off, unsure of what to say. I didn't want to hide anything from them, but at the same time, I didn't want to give them every detail. 

"Just what, Winnie?" Mom asked.

I hugged my knees to my chest. "I really like him. And that scares me."

Mom turned to face me. "Winnie, do you remember when you came out to us and how scared you were? Especially since we go to church every Sunday and the other priest is always talking about 'gay is bad' or some other shit like that?"

I giggled at Mom's impression of our previous priest and nodded.

"Do you remember how relieved you felt afterward?"

I chuckled. "I remember thinking how stupid it was that I was scared. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be."

Mom nodded. "Well, maybe you need to think about Ash the same way."

"That he's stupid?"

Dad laughed. "No, that maybe he's not as bad as you're making him out to be. You tend to overthink things. Maybe if you just go with what you want, in your gut, you'll figure everything out. And I think I speak for your mother as well when I say as much as I dislike him at the moment, he does make you happier," he said gently.

I nodded. "Yeah, you're right. Thanks, Mom. Thanks, Dad. I'll see you tomorrow!" 

I ran up the stairs and climbed into my bed again. 

Okay. I'll do it. I'll kiss him back tomorrow.

Satisfied with my decision, I quickly fell asleep.

***

Ooh, what'll happen next? Will Winnie actually go through with it? Stay tuned to find out what happens next on His Guardian Demon!