[Lucien’s POV]
Before Celeste had left, she had handed over to me a towel filled with ice, which I now used in pressing against the back of my head which ached badly. The pain from falling hard on the ground should have gone by now, but it persisted.
Ryle snickered as he turned up the volume of the television which had a wrestling program going on. Apparently, he had moved in with me on Celeste’s insistence against my wishes, and had been watching shows to build up his fighting skills so he could have revenge on Tyler.
“Weren’t you supposed to be a powerful vampire? How is it that a newly born hybrid defeated you so easily?” he asked in a scornful manner.
“For someone who just lost his family, shouldn’t you be grieving somewhere? How is it that you have the time to sit here and annoy me?” I retorted.
A frown appeared on his face as I had reminded him of something he had been desperately trying to forget. He couldn’t even respond to me; he just wallowed in deep sadness, but no, I didn’t feel the slightest bit of remorse towards him. He was the one who had gotten on my nerves first.
“Really, Lucien? How low can you go?” Celeste asked, walking through the front door, and standing beside her was Nivera who had cleaned herself up and was starting to look like a normal person once again.
I looked away from them then said, “I can go even lower. I never said I was a good person, did I?” it was a rhetorical question.
“You don’t need to frown, Ryle,” Celeste said, brushing my comment aside.
“Yeah, I should be somewhere else grieving. Excuse me,” Ryle said, wanting to stand up and probably go up to the room Celeste had set up for him.
“No, it’s not that. Nivera asked the Alpha to spare the lives of your family members,” Celeste explained.
I was surprised, and so was he. “Did he agree?” he asked, wide-eyed. My ears were itching to also know the answer, but I pretended not to care as my eyes remained fixated on the television screen.
“Of course, he did, and unless he wants to be tormented by the supposed ghost of Nivera, he will keep his word,” Celeste told him.
“Thank you so much, Nivera. Thank you,” he said, as tears of joy fell from his eyes.
“You don’t have to thank me. I just wanted to do something good to erase the guilt I feel,” she stated, and from the corner of my eyes, I could see her smiling proudly.
As I remembered what she did to me, I became angry at her once again then dumped the towel on the table after which I stood up and began to leave the living room.
“Lucien, can we talk?” she asked, gently walking behind me.
“I have nothing to say to you,” I stated, then teleported to the door of my bedroom. Imagine the surprise I felt when I saw her right behind me. Again, I regretted my decision to make her a hybrid. I could have just looked for a different way to save her life.
“Lucien, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have…” she was still speaking when I walked into the bedroom, turned around, and facing her, I slammed the door in her face and sealed it with my mind. Now, she couldn’t teleport in even if she wanted to.
“Lucien, I’m sorry,” she yelled as she stood in front of the door knocking heavily as if she had the intention of breaking it down.
I pretended not to hear her and just took off my shirt and fell on the bed with my hands and legs stretched out as I heaved a deep relaxing sigh, preparing to drift off to sleep, but as she kept on knocking on the door and screaming about how sorry she was, sleep was hard to come by.
“I know why you didn’t want me to become a hybrid, and I know that your greatest fears have come true and it’s all my fault, but please, just give me a second chance. You’re the only one who has ever had faith in me, so if you stop being on my side, how can I live? I need your support again, Lucien. I need you to be on my side. I need you… all of you once again,” she screamed at the top of her lungs.
I tried to concentrate on other things and eavesdrop on Celeste’s conversation with Ryle, but it was all useless as they were still speaking about Nivera, and for now, I just didn’t want to think of her.
“Do you think he’s going to forgive her?” Ryle asked.
“I don’t think he’s mad at her. He’s just playing hard-to-get,” Celeste responded.
Was that true? Wasn’t I angry at her? Was I only playing hard-to-get? I reasoned, but I didn’t think so. I was truly pissed, but I just didn’t know why.
“I personally think he’s not angry that she killed people. He’s just angry over the fact that his own creation stabbed him in the back,” Ryle stated.
Wait… that actually had some element of truth in it.
“No, Lucien isn’t like that. I am sure he doesn’t mind Nivera beating him at his own game,” Celeste countered.
I thought about that for a minute. That was also kind of true.
As the conversation went on, they kept turning my thoughts round and round in circles and I wasn’t sure what to think anymore. I decided not to eavesdrop again and my focus went back to Nivera who I presumed was still outside the door as I could perceive her scent like she was right next to me.
However, I couldn’t hear her speaking anymore. Everywhere was quiet and I wondered if she was trying to trick me into opening the door thinking she had left while she would be outside waiting for me. I doubted that because she knew about the fact that I could perceive her scent, and I had known her to be fragile, not stupid.
The next thing I heard was loud snoring coming from outside. Wait a minute! Had she really fallen asleep outside the door? I giggled, and that was when I understood I wasn’t actually mad xr at her. My anger was directed elsewhere.
I smiled to myself, then closed my eyes in an attempt to fall asleep, but her loud snores stopped me from doing so. I wanted to ignore it, but my conscience pricked me. I just couldn’t let Nivera sleep outside on the cold hard floor. As annoyed as she had made me feel, she still deserved the warmth and comfort of a soft cozy bed.
The pain in my head had gone already and I just climbed out of bed, bare-chested with a pair of black sweatpants on and without bothering to put on any footwear, I stepped outside to carry her and take her to her room since it wasn’t far off from mine.
She was sitting with her back leaned against the wall and her eyes sealed shut as she snored rhythmically.
“Didn’t you say you won’t stop saying sorry unless I opened the door and forgave you? Yet, you could fall asleep so easily,” I said as though she could hear me. “But then again, I guess you must be exhausted after killing all those people,” I noted, then stooped to brush my fingers on her cheeks.
She looked so peaceful and beautiful as she slept. I wanted her to be pure and innocent, and maybe she wasn’t all that anymore, but somehow, my heart still recognised her and beat in a different way than it beat around other people.
I breathed heavily, then scooped her up in my arms, then walked gently until I came to her room after which I opened the door and closed it behind me.
I then placed her in the middle of the bed and was about letting her go, when she suddenly wrapped her arms around my neck and pulled me down so that I fell heavily on top of her.
She whimpered and I knew it was because of my weight.
“I’m sorry, are you hurt?” I asked, truly concerned as I tried to roll off her.
“I’ll survive,” she said, wrapping her arms even more tightly around my neck.
I then understood the game she had been playing. “So, you had been faking your sleep?” I inquired.
“I’m sorry. I just didn’t know how else to get you out of your room,” she replied.
“That doesn’t change a thing. Even though you succeeded in tricking me, I could still leave your room right this minute,” I stated in a firm tone.
She looked sad. “Fine, you can leave if that’s what you want,” she said in a soft tone that made my heart tingle. “I was hoping you’d stay though,” she added.
I couldn’t help but look deeply into her eyes. I stared intently at her and even though I had it in mind to just yell at her and leave, I couldn’t ignore the fact that she was a woman I wanted and she was lying right beneath me with her delicate skin against mine and the moment she licked her lips in an inviting manner, I swallowed hard, and looked away to avoid giving in to my feelings.
“I’m sorry, Lucien. I know I messed up, but can’t you just give me one more chance?” she asked. “Trust me, I also regret not listening to you and taking off and killing those people. Now, I’d have to live forever with their blood on my hands,” she stated.
“I’m not mad because you killed anybody,” I said to her.
“Why then?” she asked.
I shrugged. “Probably because I was disappointed that you couldn’t control yourself around me, and if it were the other way round, I would have… I mean, I literally would do anything just for your sake, but you pushed me to the ground the first chance you got,” I explained.
“You mean, you wanted me to control myself at least for your sake?” she inquired.
“Yeah.”
“Just like how you controlled yourself when you wanted my blood, controlled yourself when I asked you not to kill the Alpha, and just like how you’re controlling yourself right now?” she inquired.
I was taken aback by her last question, and when I looked back at her, my gaze met hers again.
“I don’t care about control, Lucien O’Hara. That won’t make me think highly of you. Because of your so-called control, I would have been in the arms of another man day and night if not for the universe. You have me all to yourself now. Forget about control. Sometimes, it’s okay to let loose. Show me who you truly are, Lucien,” Nivera said.
I swallowed hard, and as her lips parted in an attempt to say something again, every bone in me screamed that it was the right time and just like that, my lips crushed hers and she moaned slightly, reeling me in with her tongue.
Sometimes, it’s okay to let loose.