KAIROS
Time seemed to crawl by at a snailâs pace. It felt as though years had slipped away.
I gently pushed open the door to Adelieâs room, hoping to find her awake. But she wasnât. Instead, Elias was there, asleep next to her, his head resting on her legs, clad only in his pajamas. I moved toward him, draping a blanket over his small form. I studied his face.
Adelie had claimed him as her own. Yet, he bore a striking resemblance to her. But he was eight years old, he couldnât possibly be hers. So, how could he look so much like her? He was a beautiful boy, just like his mother.
Who could ever abandon such a gem?
Suddenly, Adelieâs body convulsed. Her eyes flew open. I immediately mind-linked the doctor and Leonard. She lay still, her gaze fixed on the ceiling.
I gently lifted Elias. His eyes snapped open in protest, but he quickly calmed down when he saw Adelie. I held him in my arms as we both watched her. Her eyelids fluttered a few times. She seemed exhausted. Drained.
The doctor rushed in, shining a flashlight into her eyes, checking her pulse.
Leonard and Lucy arrived, their faces falling when they saw her lying there, lifeless.
The doctor pulled out a small needle, pricking her fingerâ¦nothingâ¦then her toeâ¦nothing. âSheâs not responding,â he said. âBut it might still be too early to tell.â
No. She needed the forest. Her element. âTake her,â Elias whispered to me.
I looked at him, puzzledâ¦had I spoken out loud?
I set Elias down and moved toward Adelie.
âKairosâ¦â Leonard began as I carefully lifted her, mindful of her injured shoulder. Her body was covered only by a thin sheet. âWhat are you doing?â he asked.
The doctor raised his hand to silence Leonard. âShe is a nymph. I donât know much about them, but her element wouldnât hurt.â
Her head rested against my chest, where my heart pounded wildly. I carried her to the forest, to the lakes and the oldest trees. The darkest place I could find. I gently laid her on the ground and stepped back. Nothing happened. Her eyes were closed again.
âAdelieâ¦â I called out to her, but there was no response, no movement. I knelt down beside her, taking her hand in mine. âPlease. I need you.â I pleaded. âI need you to be okay.â I brought my palm up to her cheek. âHow do you expect me to live when youâre gone with my heart?â
Suddenly, the ground beneath me began to vibrate. Roots emerged from the earth, enveloping Adelieâs body. I recoiled, jumping back.
The roots slithered over her like serpents. Soon, she was completely covered. But then her hand emerged, gripping the ground. The roots retreated, and Adelie was left gasping for breath, her eyes closed but her chest rising and falling.
Her eyes snapped open, and she sat up. Her naked body was turned away from me.
She struggled to stand. I was too stunned to help. She was okayâ¦
She moved toward the lake. âAdelie.â I tried to speak to her, but she didnât respond.
She tore off the bandages, revealing two gruesome holes in her shoulder. They were stitched shut, but they still looked horrific. She discarded the bandages and waded into the lake, submerging herself.
She swam around, her eyes closed, her face turned toward the moon.
I moved toward the great oak a few feet away. There was a field of wolfsbane flowers. I removed my shirt, using it to protect my hands as I picked a handful of them. I could feel their sting through the fabric, but I didnât flinch. Nothing was more important than her.
When I returned, Adelie was there, wrapped in her sheet. She looked at me, her gaze falling on the flowers in my hands.
She approached me, taking the flowers from my grasp. I kept my shirt-covered hands hidden. I didnât want her to see the burns.
Adelie started down the path back to the pack, walking in silence. I hurried to catch up with her. âAre you okay?â
She didnât respond. Her expression was blank. We walked side by side in silence.
As we entered the castle, everyone was gathered in the living room. Waiting in the middle of the night. All eyes were on her. But only Elias dared to approach her. She took his hand and they both headed upstairs, the wolfsbane still in her grasp. Leonard looked at me. âIs she all right?â he asked.
âI donât knowâ¦â But she was walking. She was breathing.
I glanced down at my burned hands.
I waited downstairs for what felt like an eternity before deciding to check on her. Everyone else had already retired for the night. I needed to know she was okay before I could rest.
I found her in her room, the same sheet loosely draped over her body. She was sitting there, picking apart the flowers, grinding them into a bowl. She added water to the powder and some white mixture, stirring it carefully.
I approached the round table and sat across from her. Our eyes met and held for a moment. She didnât look angry or sad. She looked calm.
Adelie extended her hands toward me. I hesitantly lifted my burned hands toward her.
She took my hands in hers and began to heal me. Slowly easing my pain. My hands returned to their normal state, free of burns. Clean and healthy. How did she know? She hadnât seen my palms.
I never allowed her to heal my injuries. Why did I let her now, when she was in so much pain? Maybe I was just captivated by how alive she looked.
She gently placed my hands back on the table.
Her fingers moved to the sheet draped around her neck. She let it slide off her shoulders, falling to her waist. She was bare, her skin no longer covered in blood. It was flawless, save for the stitched-up bite marks. She applied the cream to them, rubbing it in roughly.
But her face didnât betray any discomfort.
Once she finished tending to her wounds, she didnât bother to cover up. She just sat there, unbothered, serene. Her eyes slowly lifted to meet mine. She was deep in thought. I longed to know what those beautiful eyes were hiding. She rose and before I could comprehend what was happening, she was moving toward me. My eyes followed her perfect form.
She settled into my lap, causing me to inhale sharply. I didnât know what to do with my hands. I knew what I wanted to do, but I didnât know what was acceptable. So, I just let them hang in the air.
I could feel her breath on my face. She picked up a wolfsbane flower. She watched my eyes as she slowly brought it toward my chest, but didnât touch me. Her lips curled into a smile.
She clenched the flower in her fist and began to lift my shirt. She stopped when she noticed I wasnât helping.
But I wanted to. She had just caught me off guard. I removed my shirt and tossed it aside without looking. She stood up and I started to follow her, but she wasnât going anywhere. She was just getting closer. Adelie positioned herself so she was straddling me. I slowly placed my hands on her thighs, watching for her reaction. She didnât resist.
She smiled. Not a sweet, innocent smile, but a devilish one.
And then she pressed her palm against my chest. The palm holding the wolfsbane flower. I hissed, throwing my head back. It felt like hot coal burning my skin. I gritted my teeth until she crashed her lips onto mine, kissing me through the pain. She was fierce, confident, and full of desire.
One hand tangled in my hair, pulling my head back. She broke the kiss before I could fully savor it. I realized my hands were gripping her thighs tightly, so I eased my hold.
I looked down at her hand on my chest, but it wasnât burning anymore. It didnât hurt at all. But the flower was still there.
She then picked up a piece of the stem. The part that burned the most, filled with the most poison for me. Her lips found mine again. She pressed her poisoned palm against me. But this time, it didnât burn. It didnât hurt. It was just her hand against me.
She was healing me. She was healing me while the wolfsbane was on my skin. Or maybe her lips were distracting me. I wouldnât put it past me. I would endure any pain just to feel her.
There was a sense of liberation. Not being tormented by a flower. A simple, harmless flower that others could touch without a second thought.
She withdrew, her hand lingering on my neck while the other fell to her lap. I was her guinea pig. She was testing, seeing if she could make me immune to the pain. And I was okay with that.
She tried to stand, but my hands found her thighs, pulling her back onto my lap. My hands slid to her back, drawing her body close to mine. As close as possible.
She looked at me, her eyes filled with unspoken words. But instead of listening, I pressed my lips to her skin. My mouth moved against her breasts, her soft, flawless skin. I felt like I was tarnishing her perfection with my touch.
I wasnât like her. I didnât look perfect like her. I didnât taste perfect like her.
She was my eternal muse. And no hell could ever come between the heart she held within her.
My hands glided over her sides while my tongue left damp trails on her upper body. Her breath hitched with each kiss. Her chest heaved and her body began to move against mine. She wanted me. Just as I wanted her. Just as Iâve always wanted her.
I paused, looking up to find her already watching me. Her lips slightly parted. âLove me, Kairos,â she said, her words a melody to my ears.
ADELIE
He gently laid me down on my bed, treating me like porcelain. His lips were the only rough part of him. I wanted him to touch me. I wanted him to kiss me. I wanted to feel alive again, if only for a moment.
I thought I was going to die. I thought I was already dead after the attack. Iâd never experienced such darkness, such fear. It felt like death. The fear of nothingness. When nothing was around me, only darkness. I couldnât hear anything, I was alone.
And then there was Kairos. He made me feel so much. Love, lust, happiness, and misery, all at once.
For one night, I wanted to forget all the darkness that had consumed my mind. I wanted to feel loved, even if it was just for a moment. Loved by him.
My hands traveled up his arms, which were larger than I remembered. He had a few new scars on his skin. But his lips were the same. They made me feel the same way they did five years ago.
We didnât have a fairytale love. A happy ending. We didnât even know what that was.
He kissed my neck while my back arched, and my head fell back. I didnât care about my injured shoulder. The pain was nothing compared to how he made me feel. Like a beautiful dancer in the fire.
He was the fire I craved. He kissed my lips and caressed my cheek. His forehead rested on mine, pulling back, his eyes closed and his breath uneven. âTell me that you feel it too,â he whispered. âPlease tell me you feel it in your heart. How right it feels. How good it is to forget all the rest. Tell me that you love me,â he exhaled heavily.
I placed my palms on his cheeks and searched for his eyes. âWhat if I donât?â I whispered softly.
âThen lie,â his husky voice sent shivers through my body. I was burning under his touch.
âA sweet lie? For what?â
âSo, it doesnât hurt. Only for a moment.â And maybe thatâs all we were meant for. A moment of bliss.
I looked him in the eyes. The words I hadnât spoken to a man in five years. âI love you.â
He kissed me, passionately claiming my lips. His hands went under my bare back and my legs wrapped around his waist.
I told him I love him. I had him in my bed, kissing me. Whatâs the worst that could happen if I was already hurt?
Desire swept us away. I bit his shoulder as he moved his hips against me. I clung to him like glue. Skin to skin.
I moaned into his ear while he growled with passion, longing, and lust.
Our bodies moved against each other while our voices became shaky, and our hearts raced. His lips found my neck, kissing my sweet spot. Where he once marked me. His hands roamed my body.
There wasnât an inch left unexplored. He knew my body better than I did. And my lips traced his form like a marker. Inch by inch, earning his quickened pulse.
The most wonderful feeling washed over us. A moment we never wanted to end. Euphoria against each other. The cause of my unraveling.
We laid there as I traced lines on his chest. But then the harsh reality hit me. He wasnât mine anymore. I could have fought a thousand battles, but the wounds would never be as deep as the ones from love.
I lifted myself from his chest and sat on the edge of the bed, my back to him. And it started to hurt. Everything all at once. I needed to wake up from the dream I had allowed myself to be in.
The mattress shifted and Kairos moved closer. His hand reached for mine, but I pulled away.
âYou need to leave,â I told him, my lips trembling.
âIs that what you want?â he asked.
âI donât want to cry, Kairos!â I said, the corners of my eyes burning as I fought back tears.
He got dressed while I wrapped myself in a blanket. For comfort, not warmth.
He opened the door. I watched as the light peeked in. He paused to look at me. âI am so sorry,â he said. âFor everything.â
He closed the door behind him, and I crumbled. I let my heart bleed out the things I would never let anyone else know. I laid on my bed with my knees pulled up to my chest. And I cried until my voice gave out. Because it hurt that I had so much of him consuming my existence.
I loved himâ¦