Jared interrupted, saving me from my humiliation, "This is not time to fight, Az."
Grace spoke up, "Right, for now let's split up. It'll be easier to find the trident and get away from here fast."
"Exactly." Azriel spoke, eying me, as humiliation washed over me. I gulped, looking down as we split up. Azriel and me went to the left direction of the wing. Jared and Grace went to the right section of the house.
As Azriel and I made our way through the left wing, a heavy silence settled between us. The weight of my earlier humiliation lingered, but I knew had to focus right now. So I did, taking a deep breath.
"Hey, I think I saw someone." An unfamiliar voice came from behind us.
My eyes widened. We were not alone. Azriel swiftly pulled me into a dirty closet nearby to save us. My breaths got heavy and my heart raced with fear.
The closet was small, and Azriel was towering me. I could see his chest, his minty scent providing me some solace. He shifted his frame as if uncomfortable, his hands trapped me between the door closet door and himself.
"Should I move?" I whispered.
"There's no space for us to move." He whispered back. "We have to stay like this for a while."
I nodded, my heart racing, not because of fear. Well, yes, that was one of the reasons. The other reason was that our bodies were pressed together. His chest was against my cheeks now, my breasts against his upper abs. I could feel his heartbeat, I could hear the fast beats and wonder if he could feel mine. Because mine was also no different from his.
As the seconds ticked by, the proximity between us became both a source of comfort and an intoxicating temptation. I could feel the heat of Azriel's breath against my skin, his presence enveloping me in a cocoon of desire.
I resisted the urge to move my hands to his chest, or to hug him. Without conscious thought, my gazed moved up to his, finding his eyes looking down at me. My hand moved, fingertips brushing against Azriel's chest. I really wanted to see his reaction.
The touch was electric, sending sparks of longing and anticipation coursing through me.
He sucked in a sharp breath, "Careful, Fiery, we're on a mission now." I saw his eyes darkened with a mixture of desire and restraint. His hand, trembling ever so slightly, reached up to brush a stray strand of my short jet-black hair from my face.
I nodded in understanding, feeling the electricity between us. I withdrew my hand, knowing that we had to focus on the task at hand. But then, he shifted closer, his strong grip holding both of my hands upward. My heart raced in anticipation as he leaned in, his warm breath grazing my ear. His voice was a whisper, laced with a hint of danger, as he uttered, "Don't provoke me, Selene. Or I might just do something we both will regret."
I whispered an 'okay'.
He pressed his ear to the door, trying to listen to any voices, and any footsteps, when he didn't, he left my hands, and opened the door. He halted, all of a sudden.
"You think you can hide from us?" The voice we heard before came from the other side of the door.
I heard two screams, both weren't Azriel's.
"Come out, Fiery." He said.
I saw blood sprawled out before my feet, as I looked down. My heartbeat quickened when my mind flashed images of my parents, and the thing that looped in my mind by Abaddon.
Azriel must've noticed it because what he did next was hug me gently.
"Shh. It's okay. You've grown up now."
I furrowed my eyebrows, tears in my eyes. How did he know that I was having flashbacks?
"We have a task to complete, Selene," he said firmly, his grip tightening around my hand. I followed him, my mind swirling with emotions.
He stopped yet again and at first I thought it was some kind of danger. But he turned around, "Where's my sword?" He asked, looking at me.
I thought and I knew. My eyes flickered of guilt, "I left it at the closet."
"God damn it, Selene!" He whisper-yelled. "It was a way of knowing where my trident is in this maze of a house."
I nodded, confused at how his sword told him the direction of where the trident is, but I kept this thought for when I would be going to sleep. But then my defenses kicked up and I said, "Well, then you shouldn't have given it to me!"
"You're right. I shouldn't have." He glared at me. "You don't understand how important it is." He said walked ahead of me with big steps, and I followed, struggling to catch up with him, feeling a pang in my chest. "No, you'd rather touch my chest!"
I wanted to apologize, but the words were stuck in my throat.
"Don't you dare touch me now." He said venomously, his words stabbing me. It wasn't a big deal. We fought like this everyday but this time, it felt like he was really angry. And it was really my fault. "How are you expecting to save the world by touching my chest?!"
I frowned, my eyebrows coming up together, "Yeah, sorry! I got it! No need to shout." I let out a sigh of frustration.
"Thank you so much! It's such a big favor! And I'll do whatever the fuck I want." His eyes shown in pure anger. As we walked towards the door, I noticed that the bodies weren't there. I hoped the sword was still in there. But I looked at him, as he turned around, his gaze murderous.
I let out a shaky breath.
We walked in silence after that. One minute we were close, the next we were fighting. It was so frustrating.
"It's not there!" He whisper yelled, "My trident and sword both are important. And now, because of you, both are lost. Now what do you suggest I do?"
Say sorry, Say sorry, But instead I rolled my eyes, scoffing, "Can't you just create a new one? You know magic and stuff."
He approached me, glaring at me so angrily, that I thought I would die. "You ungrateful..." He gritted his teeth. "Fuck off!"
I pursed my lips as he started walking in another direction, and I just didn't know what to do. Should I follow him? I mean it was my mistake, and I didn't even apologize. I should have apologized. I should have acknowledged my mistake and shown some humility. But pride and stubbornness had held me back
I decided on not following. It was a mistake, yes. But it was nothing intentional. He didn't have to shout at me. My eyes filled with tears, knowing I would always be a disappointment, to him and everyone. I was to my parents. I killed them. I walked in the other direction, trying to find a way to get out of this house. I had gotten my memory back of that night. I was in my grandmother's arms, sleeping, innocent as a seven year old, but I was not. I was a monster, now and then.
Shaking off the overwhelming flood of emotions, I took deep, ragged breaths, mustering the strength to push back the tears threatening to spill over.
As the sharp pain coursed through my neck, a wave of dizziness washed over me. My vision blurred, and the world around me faded into an abyss of darkness.
Azriel
I looked back to Selene wasn't behind me. Shit!
I ran back towards where I came from, my heart pounding, and it nearly stopped when I saw blood on the entrance of the house.
I took a deep breath, and turned towards the one place I didn't want to go.
I stepped cautiously into the darkness, my senses on high alert. The air was heavy with an eerie silence, broken only by the sound of my own racing heartbeat. Every step I took felt like a weight upon my shoulders, as if the darkness itself was pressing down on me, suffocating me with its malevolence.
My eyes strained to catch any sign of movement, any glimpse of Selene's presence. Had she been taken captive? Was she in danger? I couldn't allow myself to entertain the worst possibilities, but the nagging doubt gnawed me. Her safety depended on me, and I let her down by fucking shout at her. My teeth clenched at the thought.
"If you do anything to Selene, I'll break every fucking bone in your body, Abaddon." I growled, murderously. My body and mind itching to kill him. If he had done anything to Selene, I swore to god to perish his existence after torturing him in- My thought were cut off by a voice.
A familiar voice chuckled at me, making me doubt the reality, "Abaddon?"
"Jared?"
I stared at him in unbelief as the lights switched on with the click of his hand. My very best friend was standing there in front of me.