It had been a year and a few months before when the middle of winter arrived last year, that I had first laid my eyes on this human boy. He was laying on the ground, curled up in the fetal position, shivering from the icy rain. His shelter, built high into the trees, became waterlogged and collapsed, leaving him shelter-less. The sound of the falling wood was what caught my attention. Now, my attention is solely on this young human.
Despite my natural instincts as a Demon, I sit quietly on the ground a few meters away, watching the boy shivering to death. My fingers ached, desperately wanting to reach out to him. To hold him. But if I were to go up to him then, it would have probably scared him to death.
A hard beating had started in my chest. It was a weird feeling, one that felt as if my heart was being pulled deeper into my chest, then pulled out through my throat.
After minutes of sitting patiently and watching, the boys eyes finally close, letting fatigue and the cold take him into a deep sleep.
That's when I make my move. I move silently, careful not to wake him, until I am standing directly over him. My heart races in my chest. This human … he looks so soft, his red round cheeks and big eyes making him look younger than he probably is. When I touch his soft cheek, I startle at how cold he is. Surely, it's not normal for a human to be this cold? Gently, I lift his head with one hand and pull his body closer to mine with the other, as I lay down beside him. My breath catches in my chest. I am so close to him. I squeeze my eyes shut, praying that the sound of my hammering heart doesn't wake him.
After this, it was a few days later that I had realised all those feelings of longing I had felt were signs of an Eternal Connection. He could be my Eternal and I could be his Demon.
I waited until dawn approached before I made my leave that day. But even though I knew that boy was the cause of the aching in my chest, like a fool, I visited him almost every day.
I watched him build his home back up. I watched him cry himself to sleep every night. I watched him attempt to grow plants underneath his treehouse which only got eaten by small creatures. I watched him hold a knife to his own throat and it made my insides churn.
I watched him ... doing other things that made me feel weird inside.
From time to time, I would run into him again - although he never saw me. I would even follow him around silently, watching as he rebuilt his shelter high in the treetops. Sometimes, he looks me right in the eyes, sending a shiver down my spine, but he must not have seen me, as he just keeps working.
I have his whole daily routine memorised. Wake up, eat breakfast, - usually a few pears or peaches from a can - tending to his little garden usually takes up most of the day, then he has lunch, - a few spoonfuls of baked beans and a handful of berries from his garden- then he goes on a jog and explores the forest, gutting a rabbit if he's lucky enough to catch one, then makes his way back home, eats dinner, stares up at the stars that have littered the sky and falls asleep. When he sleeps, he usually forgets to cover himself with a blanket, so I must climb up the tree and cover him in order to prevent him from getting a cold. It's funny watching him wake up, confused as to where the blanket comes from.
Then, there are some days where he ventures into the small river-side town, where he raids the shops for food. Sometimes, another human will sneak up on him and threaten him with a weapon. Once he gives up his own weapons and supplies, the other human will leave and I chase after them, killing them without hesitation, then make my way back to the human boy, putting back everything he had scavenged back into the shops for him to find next time. But it's days like these where he goes home and cries long into the night, staring at a piece of paper that I later found out to be a picture. Probably his family. It's also days like these where I find it the hardest to be away from him. Seeing him so weak and vulnerable makes me want to hold him tight and console him.
There are also times I crave for his blood. It's usually days where my Rampage hits hard. But I want his consent before I make him my Eternal, so I am forced to isolate in fear of losing control and killing him or making him my Eternal accidentally.
And now, today, I have him in my arms. And he's not asleep this time. God, I hope he can't hear how hard my heart is beating. I had caught him in my trap, which I set out for other humans, as I am running low on blood. I had opened my eyes after a nap, only to see my fated human caught in my trap. It must be a sign that we are finally meant to be together.
Except I'm not as happy as I thought I would be.
He seems angry at me, swearing at me and cutting me with his bright-eyed glare. There's a feeling like a punch in my gut and my hands start to tremble. He's scared of me. Of course he is, am I an idiot? All the other Demons he's come across have tried to eat him straight away. They've probably promised to make him into their Eternal, too. If only he knew how serious I am. How can I make him want me as much as I want him? Surely the feelings I get when I see him are also ones he feels towards me. Maybe he's scared of the sudden racing of his heart and longing for me, as I feel for him?