The cool air of Hell seeped through the cracks of Yumi's bedroom window, and the eerie hum of distant flames was a constant reminder of where she lived. But, as always, Yumi's room was her sanctuary, her space where she could relax, be herself, and escape the constant noise of Hell. As the night wore on, Yumi's mind wandered, filled with thoughts of Elnora and the fleeting moment they shared.
After sneaking out of the castle the night before, spending hours at Elnora's house, and creeping back into her room unnoticed, Yumi finally crawled into bed. Her legs ached from the walk, and her mind buzzed with a mix of exhilaration and confusion. The kiss on her cheek, the teasing smile, the quiet moments they shared—it felt different.
She rolled over, settling herself under the covers, Cerberus curled up beside her. Despite her hesitation, she eventually whispered to herself, "Sweet dreams."
But the night didn't go exactly as planned.
The morning came too quickly. Yumi groaned, burying her head in the pillow as the first rays of Hell's fiery sun began to creep into her room. She moved restlessly through the night, tangled in dreams she could barely remember. When she finally stirred from her deep sleep, the room felt oddly different.
Yumi opened her eyes and blinked, immediately aware that something was... off. The blanket, once neatly tucked around her, had somehow ended up in a heap on the floor, discarded as though it had been thrown off in a struggle. Her first instinct was to laugh, thinking that she must have rolled around a lot while asleep. But that feeling quickly evaporated when she realized she wasn't wearing her shirt or pants.
She was lying in just her bra and underwear.
Yumi shot up in bed, her heart racing, only to be greeted by an even weirder sight: Cerberus, her dad's little demon-chihuahua, was perched on the wall by her window, as if he had decided that was the best place to sleep. His fiery eyes blinked lazily as though he didn't have a care in the world, and his little paws rested against the stone wall with the kind of nonchalance that only a demon dog could possess.
Yumi stared at him for a moment, too confused to even think straight. "What the hell?" she muttered under her breath. "How did you even...?"
And then, there was her hair. She ran a hand through it, only to find it a tangled mess of knots. It was as if she had been wrestling with something in her sleep, or maybe Cerberus had decided to play a prank on her while she was unconscious.
But then, reality hit her like a ton of bricks. "Oh no. Mom's going to kill me."
Yumi quickly jumped out of bed and rushed to the mirror. Her reflection confirmed her worst fears: her shirt and pants were nowhere to be found, and she was looking like a disheveled mess. Her makeup had smudged while she slept, and her eyes were bloodshot from exhaustion. She was more than a little embarrassed—after all, she was supposed to be this rebellious, confident teenager, but this? This was a whole new level of chaos.
Just as she was about to grab a shirt from the drawer, the unmistakable sound of footsteps approached her door. Yumi froze. She knew those footsteps anywhere.
Her mom.
Ere'ana.
Yumi's heart raced as the door creaked open. Yumi quickly grabbed a nearby hoodie and yanked it over her head, but before she could even stand properly, Ere'ana was already in the room, her angelic presence filling the doorway.
Ere'ana paused, her eyes scanning the scene in front of her. The mess of clothes on the floor. Yumi's chaotic hair. Cerberus, still perched on the wall, his tail wagging like nothing unusual was going on.
"Yumi," Ere'ana said, her voice calm but tinged with concern. "What is going on here?"
Yumi stood there, momentarily speechless. How could she explain this? How could she possibly explain the mess in her room and the fact that Cerberus had decided to spend the night perched on the wall?
"I... I don't know, Mom," Yumi said, trying to play it cool. "I must have, uh... moved around a lot in my sleep or something."
Ere'ana raised an eyebrow, her piercing gaze scrutinizing every detail of the scene. "It's more than that, Yumi," she said softly, glancing at the blanket on the floor. "What happened?"
Yumi hesitated. She couldn't tell her mom the full truth—she wasn't even sure she understood what had happened herself. "I don't know. I guess I was just... restless. And Cerberus is—well, Cerberus."
Ere'ana didn't look convinced, but she didn't press any further. Instead, she let out a soft sigh and crossed the room, gently pulling Yumi's tangled hair away from her face.
"You need to take better care of yourself, Yumi. You can't keep staying up all night, sneaking around... it's not healthy," Ere'ana said, her voice soft but firm.
Yumi rolled her eyes. "I'm fine, Mom. I'm not a little kid anymore, you know."
"I know," Ere'ana replied, her voice softening. "But you're still my daughter. And I don't want you getting into trouble."
Yumi groaned. "I'm not getting into trouble, okay? It's just... things happen."
Ere'ana didn't respond immediately. Instead, she glanced at Cerberus, who had now jumped down from the wall and was sniffing around the room like he owned the place.
"I see Cerberus is... well, Cerberus," Ere'ana said with a small chuckle. "But you really need to take care of yourself, Yumi. You've got so much potential, but you're not going to reach it if you keep running around like this."
Yumi met her mom's gaze, feeling a mixture of frustration and guilt. She knew her mom was right—she wasn't exactly helping herself with all her reckless behavior. But Yumi wasn't ready to face the truth, not yet.
"I'll be fine," she muttered, standing up and heading toward the door. "I'm going to get dressed and grab breakfast."
Ere'ana smiled softly as Yumi hurried out of the room. "Just remember, Yumi," she called after her. "I'm always here if you need to talk."
Yumi didn't reply, but she knew her mom meant it. She could always count on Ere'ana, even if she didn't always act like it.
As Yumi walked down the hall, her mind buzzed with everything that had happened: Cerberus's bizarre antics, the mess in her room, and her mom's stern but loving words. It wasn't how she'd planned to start the day, but it seemed like life had other ideas.
And with Elnora still on her mind, Yumi couldn't shake the feeling that things were only going to get more complicated from here.
The End of Chapter 4