5. Eliza
Waking up to my hand clasped in the hand of a massive demon is something I never would have imagined before getting sick. I yank my hand back and sit up.
“What? What is it?” Abbadon says, jumping up and looking around as if he expects some kind of danger.
The irony isn”t lost on me—here I am, the one who should be filled with dread at the sight of a demon, yet it is the demon himself who displays an air of vigilance and wariness. I watch him closely, his towering form a stark contrast to the delicate setting of the room, my mind struggling to reconcile the incongruity of the situation.
”N-Nothing.” I say, the word tumbling out in a stuttered rush as I attempt to calm the racing beat of my heart.
Despite the surreal circumstances that surround me, a strange sense of unease settles in the pit of my stomach, an undercurrent of tension that lingers in the air between us.
Abbadon lets out a deep, weighted breath and sinks down onto the foot of the bed. The mattress groans under his weight.
“I’m sorry for scaring you,” I say.
“I wasn’t scared,” he snaps in his gravelly voice.
”I”m sorry for… grabbing your hand,” I say, my voice barely above a whisper. I can feel the heat rising to my cheeks as I awkwardly apologize for my unconscious action.
He raises an eyebrow, a small smirk playing on his lips. ”It”s not something you need to apologize for. I didn”t mind.”
I let out a sigh of relief, grateful that he isn”t upset with me. I can”t help but feel a sense of embarrassment wash over me as I realize that I must have been holding his hand in my sleep.
”Did I do anything else while I was asleep?” I ask, half-joking, half-serious.
Abbadon”s smirk grows into a full-blown grin. I find myself completely taken aback. I”ve never seen him smile before, and the sight of it is nothing short of breathtaking. His sharp teeth and angular features are softened by the warmth of his expression, and his eyes seem to sparkle with a newfound light.
”Wow,” I breathe, unable to take my eyes off of him. ”I...I didn”t realize you could smile like that.”
His grin falters for a moment, as if he”s caught off-guard by my reaction. But then he chuckles, a low, rumbling sound that sends a shiver down my spine.
”I don”t have much occasion to smile,” he admits, his voice tinged with a hint of sadness.
I find myself smiling back at him, feeling a strange sense of connection that I can”t quite put my finger on. Despite the fact that he”s a demon, and I”m a human, there”s something about him that draws me in.
“You said my name,” he says suddenly.
My brows furrow in confusion. “Huh?”
“In your sleep. You said my name.”
My cheeks burn with embarrassment as I realize what he”s saying. ”Oh no, I”m so sorry,” I say, burying my face in my hands. ”I had no idea.”
Abbadon chuckles, and I can feel the bed shift as he moves closer to me. ”It”s okay,” he says, his voice low and soothing. ”I don”t mind.”
I peek up at him from between my fingers, feeling a mix of embarrassment and gratitude. ”Oh,” I say, my voice barely above a whisper.
His expression softens, and he reaches out to gently brush a stray hair out of my face. ”I don’t think anyone has ever said my name like that,” he says, his voice tinged with a hint of sadness.
I frown, feeling a sudden pang of sympathy for him. But the embarrassment is too strong—I jump at the opportunity to change the subject.
”Why don’t you have many opportunities to smile?” I ask, genuinely curious.
He sighs, and for a moment, he looks lost in thought. ”I”ve been alone for a long time,” he says finally.
“Why?” I press on. “Why aren’t you with the rest of your people?”
He hesitates for a moment, as if debating whether or not to tell me. But then he takes a deep breath and begins to speak.
”I was part of a scout group, sent here long ago to find a new home for my people. Our own world was dying, and we were desperate to find a place where we could start anew. We had hoped that this planet would be the answer.”
I listen intently as he speaks, my heart aching for the plight of his people.
”But things didn”t go as planned,” he continues. ”There was another demon clan, a rival group who saw us as a threat. They betrayed us, blocking our magic and stranding us here on this planet. We were cut off from our people, with no way to return home.”
I gasp in horror, unable to imagine the pain and heartache that Abbadon and his fellow demons must have felt. ”That”s awful,” I say, my voice barely above a whisper.
He nods, a faraway look in his eyes. ”It was a dark time,” he admits. ”Many of us lost hope, and some even turned on each other.”
”I watched helplessly as my people fought and killed one another,” he continues, his voice heavy with sadness. ”It was as if the darkness had consumed them, and they were no longer the demons I had once known.”
I feel a lump forming in my throat as I listen to his story. It”s hard to imagine the pain and suffering that he must have gone through, watching as his friends and comrades turned on each other.
”I tried to stop them, to remind them of who we were and what we were fighting for,” he says, his eyes filled with a mixture of sadness and determination. ”But it was no use. The darkness had taken hold, and there was nothing I could do.”
My heart aches for him, and I can”t help but feel a sense of guilt for being the cause of his isolation. If I hadn”t been sick and drawn him to me, he might have still had a chance to find his people and return home.
“I’m the last of my doomed expedition.”
”I”m so sorry,” I say, my voice thick with emotion. “I… I didn’t know…”
I had no idea that demons could be so… human.
Abbadon shakes his head, a small smile playing on his lips. ”It”s not your fault,” he says. ”You couldn”t have known. Besides, I”m glad that I was able to find you. You”ve given me a sense of purpose that I haven”t had in a long time.”
I feel a warmth spread through me at his words, and I can”t help but smile back at him. It”s strange to think that I, a mere human, could have such an impact on a demon like him.
”What happened to the others?” I ask, my curiosity getting the better of me. “To your planet and the rest of your people?”
He sighs deeply. “It’s been decades. Either they found a different planet or they perished with ours. I have no way of knowing.”
I feel a sense of overwhelming sadness wash over me, and I reach out to take Abbadon”s hand. It”s hard to imagine the loneliness that he must have felt, being the last of his kind on this planet.
As my hand touches his, I feel a strange sensation course through me. It”s unlike anything I”ve ever felt before, a mix of warmth and electricity that sends a shiver down my spine.
I pull back slightly in shock, my eyes wide with surprise. He looks at me with a confused expression, and I can”t help but feel self-conscious.
”I”m sorry,” I say, my voice barely above a whisper. ”I didn”t mean to...I don”t know what came over me.”
His expression softens, and he reaches out to take my hand in his. The sensation is even more intense this time, and I feel a jolt of energy pass between us.
”It”s okay,” he says, his voice soothing. ”I don’t mind, Eliza. I… it feels nice.”
We sit there for a moment, our hands clasped tightly together, staring into each other”s eyes. Abbadon”s eyes are burning red, like molten lava, and I feel like I could get lost in them forever.
It”s a strange and intense moment, and I can”t help but feel a deep connection… a compulsion to be even closer.
As we sit there, holding hands and staring into each other”s eyes, I can”t help but feel a deep sense of empathy for him. I can see beyond his demonic exterior to the lonely, betrayed soul within.
I can”t imagine the pain and suffering he”s endured, watching helplessly as his people turned on each other and his own kind betrayed him. It”s no wonder he”s been so alone for so long.
”Abbadon,” I say, my voice barely above a whisper. ”I had no idea you”ve been through so much.”
He nods, a sad look in his eyes. ”It”s been a long time,” he says. ”But I”ve learned to live with it.”
I shake my head, staring at our clasped hands and running my thumb along his dark fingers. His hand is so large… I’ve never seen anything like it. I’ve never seen anything like him.
“No one should have to live with something like that,” I say.
He smirks at me but, like mine, his eyes are glued to the space where our bodies connect. “Not even a demon?”
Guilt wells in my gut as he references what I said the day I woke up here. “No,” I whisper.
His expression softens, and he squeezes my hand gently. ”What about you? Do you deserve to suffer?”
I freeze, unsure of how to respond. I”ve never really thought about it that way before.
”Do you deserve to be abandoned by your family?” he continues, his voice gentle but insistent. ”To be left alone and sick in a forest?”
Tears prick at the corners of my eyes as I realize that he”s right. I have been suffering, and it”s not fair.
”I don”t know,” I say. ”I don”t know if I deserve it or not, but it”s my reality.”
Abbadon”s expression turns fierce, and he pulls me into a tight hug. ”You didn”t deserve to suffer like that,” he growls, eyes flashing with a terrifying fury. “If I could get my hands on them, I’d tear them limb from limb for how they’ve treated you.”
My heart leaps into my throat at the sound of his promise of vengeful violence.
I pull back slightly, looking up at him with wide eyes. ”Abbadon, you can”t do that,” I say, my voice trembling. ”You can”t just kill someone because they”ve hurt me.”
But his harsh expression doesn”t soften. ”I would do anything to protect you, Eliza,” he says, his voice low and intense. ”Anything. I would kill anyone who even thought about harming you.”
I feel a shiver run down my spine at the intensity of his words. I”ve never seen him like this before—so fierce, so protective. And in that moment, I know he means it.