Fated

Chapter 16

I woke to an empty bed, my hand instinctively reaching for Ash, finding only the sheet’s coolness. There was no sign of him, and sitting up, the events of the previous day began to wash over me. A light flutter stirred in my stomach, replaying the way Ash had looked at me the night before, the way he had stayed with me when I asked.

Sorting through everything that had happened, I arrived at a few conclusions:

Ash was good.

Whatever happened next, we would face it together.

There were people here in Cresinthia who cared about me.

Today would be my last day as a human.

Tomorrow, if I could, I would heal Ash, and he would learn the truth about himself.

Just as my nerves began to twist into full-blown panic, the door creaked open, and in walked Ash, holding a tray. He flashed me a smile as he approached the bed.

“So, I went down to the cafeteria and got you breakfast. But don’t worry, I avoided anything that even looked like it came out of the ocean.”

I giggled. Somehow, he had picked up on my aversion to all things seafood.

“It’s weird though, isn’t it?” I asked as he sat at the edge of the bed beside me.

“What is?”

“The fact they eat fish. I mean, aren’t they technically part fish themselves?”

Ash chuckled. “Wait until I tell Madam Pearl you called her a fish.”

“Don’t you dare!” I gasped, my eyes widening.

He only grinned, handing me the tray with a plate piled high with fruit, scrambled eggs, and golden hash browns.

“They have chickens down here?” I raised a brow.

Ash shrugged, smirking. “Could be some other type of egg.”

That had me scooting the eggs far from the rest of my food, much to his amusement.

“Thank you.” I said, looking at him more seriously this time. I noticed the shift in his expression, the way his body tensed slightly as if the words made him uncomfortable.

It reminded me of how awkward Calyx had been when I’d thanked him before. “What about you? How long can you go without—um, blood?”

“I’m good,” he replied casually. “It takes about a week before I start getting uncomfortable side effects—mood swings, headaches, cravings, and even then, I can go another week before I’m—murderous.” He let his fangs slide out and my eyes widened at the sight, a flush creeping up my neck, catching me completely off guard.

Ash smirked at my reaction, but then his tone turned serious as he continued. “It’s one way Agidius controls the kingdom. He starves them, then rations the blood to keep them in line. Cruel but effective.”

“That’s awful,” I muttered.

“Guess who I ran into on my way to the cafeteria?” He smoothly changed the subject.

My head tilted, clueless. “Who?”

“Your little boyfriend and his brother,” he teased.

It took me a moment to realize who he meant. “Fin and Keo?” My face lit up at the thought of the two boys.

“You should have seen the look on Fin’s face when he saw you weren’t with me. The poor boy was heartbroken.”

I rolled my eyes though I couldn’t help but smile. Instinctively, I went to reach for my phone, but quickly remembered where I was. “What time is it?”

Ash pointed to a clock across the room on the wall. “It’s eleven. Breakfast was over when I got to the cafeteria, so I went back to compel the cook. As soon as she saw me, she nearly gave me a damn heart attack—came running, screaming at the top of her lungs before grabbing my face and planting a very wet kiss on my forehead.” He wiped his brow as if still feeling the remnants of it. “After that, she said she’d make me whatever I wanted.”

I snorted. “Seems like you’re quite popular down here.”

“I don’t know.” Ash glanced toward the door and rubbed the back of his head.

My eyes wandered over him. It was clear he had been up for a while. I guessed he had showered by the lingering scent of fresh soap mixed with something woodsy, and he was already dressed in his usual black.

“I was thinking—it’s so strange.” I said. “My world and this one are completely different planets, yet they still have so much in common.”

He looked at me curiously.

“Well, I mean, the buildings are similar, the people behave more or less the same … They speak the same way. And your motorcycle looks a heck of a lot like the ones on my planet.”

He tilted his head, his eyes distant as he stared at the door. “I never really thought about it,” he admitted, still distracted.

Suddenly, his face lit up, a mischievous spark in his eyes. “So, it’s your last day as a human. I have a surprise for you later tonight.”

My stomach did a little flip. “What kind of surprise?”

“You’ll find out later—that’s how surprises work.” He flashed another grin.

I rolled my eyes. “What about you? It’s possibly your last day as a … ripper. Is there anything you want to do?”

His smile faded, a flash of sadness overtaking his eyes. “I would’ve loved to fly one more time. It’s hard to imagine my life without my wings but I don’t think the locals would take well to seeing a stranger flying around their city.”

The hint of true sorrow in his voice tugged at my heart. Somehow, I’d never considered the fact he would lose his wings. They were such an intrinsic part of who he was.

“I’m sorry about your wings.” I offered.

“Maybe I’ll gain some new cool superpower to make up for it.” He shrugged, forcing out a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes.

I lightly touched his arm. “It will be all right, Ash.”

He nodded, but an uneasiness lingered on his face.

A dull throb began pulsing in my temple, and I rubbed my forehead, sighing. “I don’t think I’ve ever gone this long without coffee.”

His eyes flicked to me, and without a word, he stood and took the empty tray of food.

“I’ll let you get ready,” he said, though he lingered a moment before speaking again.“Madam Pearl stopped me downstairs. She asked me to tell you to come see her at noon. She also said it was up to you if I joined you …” His gaze dropped and his throat bobbed.

“I’d love to go see Madam Pearl with you.” My lips curved into a smile. “I thought about exploring some of the shops today. I’d really like to find some clothes and a few other things.”

At dinner yesterday, we’d learned just how generous Madam Pearl had been leaving each of us with a small fortune to spend. “You don’t have to go with me,” I added, well aware that most guys balked at the idea of shopping.

“Of course, I’m going with you, Areya.” He patted the top of my head.

I blinked at him. “Did you just pet me?”

He said nothing, just turned and left the room with the tray, a grin tugging at the corner of his mouth. Once the door clicked shut behind him, I chuckled to myself.

***

As I took my shower and got ready, something about today was decidedly different; there was an undeniable sense of anticipation in the air. I was genuinely excited about what the day held, finding myself constantly smiling, replaying the morning in my head.

Ash had been in such a great mood, surprising me by bringing me breakfast, even recognizing my distaste for seafood without me saying a word. It was a small gesture, but it felt significant.

Every time I thought about whatever surprise he had planned for tonight, a tiny jolt of electricity shot through me, igniting a fluttering deep in my stomach.

By the time I finished getting dressed, the butterflies in my chest were practically beating their wings against my ribs, stirring up a flood of emotions and questions I wasn’t sure I was ready to answer—questions I wasn’t sure I could ignore for much longer.

***

I shuffled through the assortment of turquoise clothing and picked out a rather cute, short one-piece jumpsuit. After drying my hair, I clipped half of it back with a pearl clip found in the closet. As I stood in front of the mirror looking at my reflection, I desperately longed for makeup to brighten up my face, and maybe for something other than endless shades of blue to wear.

Hopefully, I’d have luck at the shops today.

Right before noon, I walked to Ash’s room and knocked but there was no answer.

I cracked open the door and peeked inside, but he wasn’t there, so I decided to head downstairs, thinking he might be waiting for me there.

At the bottom of the staircase, I heard the front door opening and closing. Footsteps approached and soon enough, Ash appeared, holding something.

I squinted and made out the words The Sandy Bean on the front of a coffee cup. He walked over and handed it to me, the warm, rich aroma of coffee immediately filling my senses.

My eyes widened. “You went all the way out to Main Street to get me coffee?” I put my hand on my chest, genuinely touched by the gesture.

“You said your head was hurting,” he stated, pointing out the obvious.

“Still, you didn’t have to go out of your way—”

“It’s just coffee, Areya—take it.”

I snatched the cup from his hand. “Thank you!” I squealed.

With another smirk, he reached into his pocket to pull out several packets of cream and sugar.

I took them all, eagerly mixing my coffee while he watched with mild amusement. Once I’d finished, I tossed the trash away, and we knocked on the door to Madam Pearl’s sitting room.

She opened the door with her usual warm expression.

“I take it you both are joining me?”

Nodding, we followed her inside. She gestured for us to sit in the same chair as yesterday, then took her own seat behind the desk.

“Areya dear, I wanted to check in with you and let you know I’ll be out of the manor on business until tomorrow morning, but Lilly will be here if you need her. She’ll also have that tonic sent to your room today.”

I smiled appreciatively. She glanced back and forth between Ash and me, seemingly pleased with whatever she found. “Tonight is the night of your settling, a very exciting night for one of the divine.” Her words sparked a nervous excitement inside of me.

Tomorrow, I’d be considered a divine, and with that came magic. Real magic.

“Are you nervous?” she asked.

“I honestly haven’t had much time to think about it.”

She nodded, understanding. “And you, Sebastian? How are you holding up?”

“I feel … hopeful,” he said, appearing as if the word felt almost foreign as it left his mouth.

Madam Pearl grinned widely. “Splendid.” Then, turning to me, her expression softened. “I could always reschedule my business, Areya, if you’d feel better to have me stay here tonight.”

“No, of course not. I’ll be fine,” I assured her, trying to sound braver than I felt.

“I just don’t want you to feel alone on such a big night,”

Before I could say anything, Ash spoke up. “Areya won’t be alone—I’ll be with her.”

Those pesky butterflies were back.

Madam Pearl’s smile widened as she looked between us. “Very well, then, if everything is in order, I’ll let you two get on with your day.”

She stood and walked us to the door, patting us both on the back as we left.

I tossed my empty coffee cup into the trash bin and followed Ash out the front door of the manor to be greeted by a beautiful, warm sunny day. As we walked toward the street, something shiny caught my eye, glinting in the sunlight.

Squinting, I thought I could make out a bicycle. No, it was …

“Um, what is that?”

Ash grinned from ear to ear. “This is our ride.”

Standing a few feet in front of us was an absurdly long yellow bicycle. But instead of just one seat, one set of pedals, and a single handlebar, this contraption had two of each. One set was positioned in front of the other, making it look like it’d been stretched to comedic proportions.

My hand clamped over my mouth to keep from laughing. “Stop, you can’t be serious.” I giggled, looking on in disbelief. “What even is that thing?”

My own laughter caused Ash to laugh too. “What do you mean? It’s a bicycle, of course.”

“We are seriously going to ride that contraption? Together?” I planted my hands on my hips.

“We really are.” Ash mounted the front of the bicycle.

“Have you ridden one of these before?” I asked him.

“Of course not.”

“Then how do you know you can?” I was still struggling to hold back my laughter.

He gave me a look that said , please , what kind of question is that?

He motioned for me to get on.

“And before you ask—yes, I checked. The only helmets they have are child sized.” He was doing a poor job of hiding his smile now.

Shaking my head, I climbed onto the back, settling my feet on the pedals.

Something told me this was going to end disastrously.

“All you have to do is pedal,” he called over his shoulder. “I’ll take care of the rest.”

I bit my lip, doing my best to ignore the many ways this could go horribly wrong.

“Just trust me, Areya,” Ash said, flashing me a wink that sent my stomach into a tailspin and heat creeping up my cheeks.

“Any particular store in mind?” he asked as the bike began to move.

“I was hoping for something that had a bit of everything.”

“Then hold on tight,” he called back with a grin.

He started pedaling, the bike gliding away from the manor smoothly.

I began pedaling too and soon, we were moving fast. Ash had been right, I barely had to do anything as he steered the bike around the corner and onto Main Street. The breeze blew through my hair and as I watched the shops and people pass by, I realized I was beaming.

In fact, I was grinning like an idiot and when Ash glanced back, I could see the amusement in his expression. I couldn’t deny the fact that I was enjoying myself immensely.

Ash led us in the opposite direction of where we’d gone yesterday, though I had no idea how he knew where to go. After about fifteen minutes, he slowed down the bike in front of a large building with a sign reading Seaside Outlets.

Ash pulled into a small lot on the side of the building, meant for bike parking. I climbed off, while he propped up the kickstand and led us inside, still carrying a faint smirk of amusement.

“How did you know this was here?” I asked as we walked in the entrance.

“After our fight yesterday, I needed to blow off some steam, so I went for a run.”

We stepped through the large glass doors into a shopping center. In the middle of the space was a huge stone fountain with a sculpture of three tailed women rising from the water. Benches surrounded the fountains, where people were eating or resting from shopping. Stores stretched out in every direction, and my eyes immediately lit up at the sight of it all. I wanted to start at one end and make my way to every shop just to see what I could find.

“Um, if you want to wait out here, that’s fine,” I offered, pointing to the benches.

Ash looked at me, dead serious. “Why would I do that?”

I shrugged. “Most guys hate shopping.”

“Areya, do I look like most guys?”

No. No, he certainly did not.

The first store that caught my eye was a women’s clothing store called Seaside Chic . Everything was tailored to the hot climate in Cresinthia. As I browsed the store, I realized I wasn’t sure what Ambrosia would be like if we found a way in, so I stuck to basic essentials. The clothing here was different than what I was used to; there were no jeans or graphic tees. Most of the tops were simple and elegant, and everything seemed to be made out of the same lightweight cotton that was soft to the touch.

I ended up choosing a couple of loose-fitting cotton pants and matching sleeveless tops in black and cream. The outfits screamed of classy beachwear.

Shopping with Ash felt a little awkward, but he seemed content enough to follow me around and even help me scan the racks for my size.

“I sure hope your kingdom has better clothes,” I whispered to him, trying to hide my grin. He only chuckled.

Before leaving the store, I grabbed two pairs of soft cotton shorts, one pair in light pink and another in baby blue, along with two tops in simple white and pastel pink.

Ash wandered away for a moment, returning with a sundress in his hand. It was short and coral colored with a revealing neckline and thin straps. I didn’t hate it.

“This one.” He handed it to me.

I raised an eyebrow.

“The color suits you,” he said and shrugged.

I took the dress, a small smile playing on my lips.

Our next stop was a shoe store, where I picked out a pair of sandals with delicate seashell straps and the most practical pair of white sneaker-like shoes for traveling.

As we left, I nearly squealed in excitement to have spotted a beauty store, making a beeline for it, practically dragging Ash along with me.

He grabbed a basket and patiently followed as I tried different shades of products. By the time we left, I’d amassed quite the haul—makeup, moisturizer, face wash, hairbrush, a few hair ties, deodorant, a summery-scented body spray, and deliciously scented hair and body wash. I couldn’t wait to try out everything later.

Ash insisted on carrying my bags as we made our way through the shops.

The next one we found was a general store that had a little of everything. There, I went straight to the back where I found a cute lilac shoulder bag.

With a bit of strategic folding, I figured I could fit everything inside.

We finally made it to the far end of the building, stopping in front of a store called Ocean Treasures. A poster of a woman in lacy lingerie hung in the window.

I was in desperate need of undergarments, but the last thing I wanted was Ash following me around, trying to pick out underwear for me. When I turned to face him, he was already wearing a mischievous grin. I crossed my arms and raised an eyebrow.

“I’ll wait here, Areya,” he said, chuckling as he plopped down on a nearby bench. As I turned around to head into the store, he added, “I’ll be here if you need a second opinion.”

I rolled my eyes and stepped into the store, picking out a few bras, some underwear, along with a silky pink pajama short set, and a cozy long pajama set.

More than happy with everything, I left the store with a sense of accomplishment, but when I got back to the bench, Ash was nowhere to be seen. I glanced around at the nearby shops, scanning for any sign of him, but he had disappeared. A knot of worry began to form in my stomach as I sat on the bench, clutching my bags and nervously awaiting his return.

After just a few minutes, I saw him, rushing toward me from the opposite end of the shopping center.

“Sorry, there was something I had to do and didn’t know it would take so long.”

I just smiled at him before we headed to the exit. We had nearly made it to the bike when it occurred to me … Where would we put all the stuff I’d bought? I felt like an idiot and was about to tell Ash—before he stopped in front of a bench outside the store.

He set the lilac travel bag down on the bench and unzipped it.

“Put as much as you can into here,” he instructed.

I quickly started arranging everything inside, throwing away excess boxes and packaging until to my surprise and relief, everything fit perfectly. We hopped back on the bike, Ash steering us back toward the manor. There was a grin on my face at the sight of the vampire in front of me, with the girly purple bag draped over his shoulder.

Just as we neared the manor, Ash slowed.

We were in front of a quaint little restaurant called The Green Oasis.

“What is this place?” I asked, eyeing the building curiously.

“It’s a vegan restaurant.” He glanced at me as if that was supposed to mean something to me, but I just stared at him.

“It means they don’t serve seafood,” he clarified.

Oh. Ooooooh. “How did you know this was here?”

“I noticed you didn’t like seafood yesterday,” he said, shrugging slightly. “So, when I went on that run, I looked for places where you might like to eat.”

Warmth spread through my chest and for a moment, I was at a loss for words. After everything—our awful fight, and me telling him I hated him—he had gone out of his way to find a restaurant just for me.

“Thank you, Ash,” I said quietly.

He nodded, turning to walk inside, but I put my hand on his arm. “No. Really, Ash, I mean it. Thank you. First, the coffee. Then, you spent the entire day by my side, carrying my bags without a single complaint. And now, you’ve even gone to the trouble of finding this place for me. No one besides my mom has ever done anything like this for me.”

He seemed to consider my words for a moment. Then, with a playful smirk, he tugged lightly on a strand of my hair. “You’re a princess, Areya, get used to it.”

The butterflies were back, fluttering wildly as he held the door open for me, and something was telling me they weren’t going anywhere anytime soon.