Chapter 5
Pandora Hart
My focus idles on Xavier as he enters my apartment. Given today’s events, I assumed he would want to go home for space. Little did I know, he wanted to come here in the hopes I could somehow distract him from Jessica and Andrew’s deaths.
Everyone has a different way of coping with trauma and death. When the Kingdom of Crystal fell, I watched countless ice elemny die, and when I was—
A shudder of pain slices through my heart and down the length of my waist. Whatever.
As Xavier sits on my bed, I pull the suitcase from beside the dresser and pack clothes suitable for the smoke-filled air when we go to the Kingdom of Flesh.
T-shirts, sneakers, sunscreen, and masks to filter out toxic air. As I pack my things, Xavier lends a hand but remains silent. “Is that all?” Xavier asks as I press my hands against the suitcase flap and push down to fit everything in.
My focus darts to the bed and back.
It’s not everything. I wouldn’t mind taking the dagger or the gun from under my bed, but I restrain myself from bringing them.
Unlike the other kingdoms, the Kingdom of Flesh takes extra precautions at the Ebon Hall entrance.
It wouldn’t look good if they searched my luggage and found illegal weapons stashed between my clothes.
I’ll find a suitable weapon on the way there…or something.
Xavier takes my hand as he rises. My throat tightens, and my body turns rigid as his mouth finds mine.
With tongue and teeth, he devours the hitched, panicked breaths of someone unprepared for this level of intimacy.
Usually, I can retreat into my mental headspace and match his rhythm, but this feels different.
I place my hands on his chest when his fingers dig into my waist, daringly close to the—
“What’s gotten into you?” I say.
He pinches the button on his jeans, unbuckling himself, but his eyes remain fixed on mine. “I need this.”
I step away and glance at the pillow hiding the dagger. “I thought we were waiting for you to awaken.”
“I can’t, Pandora. Not after what I witnessed today. I need a sense of release. Besides, it would not be romantic anyway. It’s just sex.”
Yes, it is just sex. Even so, his behaviour makes me take another step away for a sense of escape.
My fingernails dig into my arms, despising this situation, yet I suppress the urge to kill him.
While I enjoy picturing the dagger in his throat, he’s my only way into the Kingdom of Flesh without raising suspicion.
“I’m not ready,” I say, hoping the quiver in my voice will cause him to snap out of this diluted funk of thinking he can fuck me whenever he likes.
“When will you be ready?” He grabs my arm, and it takes every ounce of self-control not to strike my palm upward and break his nose.
Keep it together, Pandora. Think about what you’re fighting for. And if it still consumes you, we can return to Oceanview Harbour after you awaken and kill him. But for now, go to your safe place and set me free.
“I need this, baby,” he breathes down my neck.
“Xavier, I’m scared.”
“I will go slow. Promise, baby.” He pushes me onto the bed and crawls over me. His hands explore and touch me in ways that make my stomach churn.
I stare at the ceiling until it wavers. Paint flakes flutter down, resembling snow on a quiet night. His moans turn into cracks in the ceiling until dust sprinkles down, misting in the humid summer air.
In the form of clawing hands, darkness spills from the crack and stains the room black. I sink into it, and as Xavier’s body turns to ash, and the pain shudders between my legs fades, I close my eyes and leave my body.
My pain.
My suffering…
My reality.
Scars [Boy Epic]
Snow settles on my shoulders. It’s silent here. Peaceful when away from the chaos.
Few elemny come up here to train, but the courtyard is empty. There isn’t a fierce breeze or the sound of voices spewing violence, vulgarity, and a hunger for a kill. Just me and the snow.
I scoop the icy mush into my hands, press it into a ball, and then push it against the lump.
No one told me that building snowmen could be this hard.
Snow collapses in a heap, and the snowman breaks apart.
Cracks in the foundation don’t hold firm.
Instead, they crumble when another pile of snow melts against them.
“Need help?” A shiver runs up my spine, and I snap my head to the side. A man stands above me, his dark skin glowing against the pale white scenery, and his white braided hair burns dark at the roots.
The man possesses rugged, tough-as-nails features and a jaw capable of breaking a man’s knuckles. Yet, his indigo eyes reveal sadness, and as he smiles, it guts me like a fish. So, I turn away from him to prevent my emotions from bleeding internally and nod once.
A shaky breath escapes as Desmond kneels beside me.
Without a word, he scoops snow into his hands and presses it against the snowman’s body.
His hands are strong, built to hold iron, yet here, he’s gentle.
His fingers brush against the snowman’s form with care and precision, as if it’s something to be cherished.
He fills in the cracks and seals them shut.
I press snow into my palm and focus on it as I ask, “Why aren’t you using your elemental powers?”
From the corner of my eye, his frown deepens. “I’m merely a figment of your imagination, marionette. It appears you don’t want me to, but want me to focus on the snowman you’re so keen to build.”
I smile slightly. “Even in my imagination, you keep your mannerisms from when you were alive.” The snow I hold presses against the snowman. Emotions rise to new heights, and the undeniable pain tears through me until warmth rolls down my cheeks. “I wish you were here. You would know what to do.”
He sighs. A shadow moves across my body, and the sting of memories too chaotic and sweet to bear washes over the tops of my hands.
Desmond’s presence ignites longing as he sits behind me—his warm breath battles against the chill radiating from him.
Emotions dormant within me surge through my defences, and I lean back until I am cradled in his embrace.
Desmond continues building the snowman, but this time, the power slips through his fingertips. Soft snow collects around us and clings to the snowman’s arms until they wrap defensively around its body.
“Do you find me disgusting?” I whisper.
“If we’re talking about how much of a grub you are, then yes.” His mouth presses against the back of my head, and my lips tremble at the gentle touch. “But everything else, no, Pandora. You’re doing all you can to survive.”
I grimace. “If that were true, wouldn’t I be somewhere far away from everything I despise? Wouldn’t I be hiding on an island? Instead, I’m plotting revenge against everyone who has wronged me.”
“You thirst for it. There’s nothing wrong with that.
If I were in your position, Eraminia wouldn’t exist.” Desmond lowers his hands and wraps them around me.
“Besides, you’re still figuring out who you are, and right now, your hunger for flesh outweighs the safety you think you should want.
” He leans closer, a breath away from my ear.
“I also know you well. Spending time with someone for so long gives me that edge. You won’t be able to live with yourself if you don’t see this through. ”
I grab his arms, as well as tuck my legs up to my chest. “You’re right. They all have to die, and I won’t stop until their lives slip through my fingertips. Just like how they made me feel that night.”
Desmond’s arms tighten around me in his strong and welcoming embrace. “That’s my girl.”
We overlook the snowman Desmond built. However, it’s not a snowman. It’s a snowwoman. Her arms wrap around her as if caging her from everything around her, and she bows her head into her arms. As the moonlight shines across her body, she glistens a marvellous pink.
“She’s beautiful,” I breathe.