by Lola Gabriel
“You said you’d write me a song,” she said suddenly.
“I never said that. I distinctly remember that I said I wrote a song about you,” Nyx corrected.
“Isn’t that the same thing?” she asked.
“No. It’s not for you, it’s about you.”
Romi pouted and crossed her arms. “Do I at least get to hear it?”
“It’s not even done yet. Far from it, actually.”
“Oh, come on. You can’t tell me that you wrote a song about me and not play me a little bit of it.”
“Actually, I can.”
“Nyx,” Romi whined.
Nyx glanced at her and shook his head. She was sulking like a child, but he adored her playful innocence. He had never intended to play her the song he had written about her, and he never even thought she would want to hear it.
“Please?” she begged.
“Fine,” he finally sighed and strummed a few notes on his guitar.
“Hooray,” Romi giggled excitedly and lay back down against the pillows.
The melody automatically came to Nyx, and it exploded out of the guitar. He already knew the lyrics of the first verse and the chorus by heart, and soon his voice filled the bedroom, accompanied by the melody he had composed a few hours ago.
As he watched Romi, he noticed the amazement and the emotions radiating from her. He could almost make out a pinkish-purple glow around her which calmed him down more than he ever thought it could. He had never thought of witches as being good people, but now he knew that he was so wrong about them. Looking at Romi on the bed next to him, he couldn't imagine his life without her.
She stared at him, and more than anything, he wanted to know what was going through her mind. Did she like it? Was she disappointed? All his insecurities vanished as soon as he thought them, and he knew better. He knew he would never be able to disappoint her or drive her away. He knew that he would always be good enough for her, and that he would give everything he had for her. She was his home, and he would always love her.
Just as his lyrics said.
He stopped suddenly, as the second verse seemed to muddle in his mind, not sure whether he had the tempo right.
“That’s all I have so far. The rest is just a bunch of muddle,” Nyx said, and he placed his guitar on the ground next to the bed. “I’m not sure if the melody is missing something—”
“It’s beautiful,” she croaked, her voice breaking.
Nyx cringed and reached out his hand to her, wiping a tear from her cheek. “I’m sorry. I did not mean to make you cry.”
“Of course you did. You wrote all that stuff about me. No one has ever done that before, and you will never know how much that means to me,” she whispered.
She sat upright and climbed onto his lap, and he put his arms around her, holding her tightly.
He rocked slowly with her in his arms and kissed the top of her head. “I meant every word.”
She raised her head and gazed up at him. He leaned in and kissed her, tasting the saltiness of her tears, as well as the sweetness of her lips. She moved away and sighed softly.
“Can I ask you something?”
“Of course,” she answered and brushed another lock of hair off her face.
“You know everything about me, and my family, and it doesn’t bother you.”
“You did not do anything to me, Nyx. Your dad and brothers may have played a part in slaughtering my family and my father’s coven, but you shouldn’t think that you were a part of it. You did not know that it was my family. I will never hold it against you, ever. And even though you had no control over who your True Mate is, I’m glad that it’s me. I’m glad that I get to share this with you, be with you, and be a part of you now. I don’t care about what your father did, or any of that. I’m here with you, and I am nobody’s but yours. I am not going anywhere.”
Feeling reassured, especially by Romi’s soft and gentle tone, he smiled slightly. “Thank you for being here.”
“There’s nowhere else I would rather be than here with you.”
“Can I ask you another question?” he asked her.
“Anything.”
“What would your father do if he knew you were here, with me?” Nyx asked.
“He’d probably have a heart attack, drag me out of the house with his good arm, and lock me in the attic of his home,” Romi answered honestly. “Then he’d probably kill you.”
“That’s not reassuring,” Nyx answered.
“You can always go talk to him,” she suggested.
“Then I’d get killed for sure.”
“Possibly,” Romi smirked. “I’m sorry that things have to be so complicated.”
“It’s not your fault. Rhaena’s the one who made it complicated. She was such a bitch,” Nyx muttered. “She knew exactly what she was planning for my brothers and me. She purposely made it as difficult as possible for us. For everyone.”
“She was friends with your mother, right?”
Nyx frowned. “Yeah. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that you know that. It wasn’t a true friendship though. Rhaena used my mother to get what she wanted.”
“I’m sorry. I know how you feel about the curse and your mom. I wish that there was something I could do to make it all go away,” Romi said to him, and ran her fingers through his hair.
“Me too,” he sighed. “But yes, she was. I don’t think Rhaena was always bad. Or so my mother said. My mother always sees the best in people.”
“So, she won’t have a problem with me, then?” Romi asked.
He looked at her with tenderness and a warm feeling embraced his heart. “She’s going to love you.”
Romi smiled at him, leaned forward, and kissed him. “I have an idea, which is completely unrelated to what we were just talking about.”
“And what’s that?”
“Why don’t we go to dinner tomorrow night, just you and me?” she suggested.
“Like a date?” he asked.
“Yes, a date.”
Nyx exhaled and shook his head. “I don’t know. I haven’t been on one of those for so long. I might not know how to behave.”
Romi chuckled and Nyx joined in her amused laughter.
“I would love to go on a date with you,” he answered.
Romi smiled happily, but her smile faded slightly after a few seconds, and Nyx got the distinct feeling that she wanted to ask him something important, but was hesitant to.
“What is it?” he asked.
“There’s something I want to know from you.”
“Is there something you still don’t know about me?” he asked in mock surprise.
“Well, this is kind of serious, and personal,” she replied slowly, almost carefully.
“What is it?”
“What’s with the water?” she asked.
“What are you talking about?”
“You drank water at the bar. Don’t you drink?” she asked.
“I used to drink, a lot. I had a problem, which I only realized about three months ago. I almost killed someone, someone innocent, and I vowed to never drink again.”
“Oh my god…” she gasped. “When did it start?”
“I guess about eight years ago,” he explained. “I had been getting pretty horrible nightmares from the past, aggravated by the amounts of alcohol I consumed on a daily basis. I was messed up, I was broken, and I was worthless to myself.”
Nyx was too ashamed to look Romi in the eyes and took a breath. “I came out of Echoes one night after some heavy drinking and I insisted on driving, even though Josh told me he’d give me a ride. I refused and called him a bunch of names. I climbed in my car and drove off, barely being able to see the road in front of me. A poor judgment call on my part, I know that now. I ran a red light, because I thought I could. A car came from the side, I swerved to not hit it, and crashed into a bus stop. There was a group of young people there, and I hit one of them. She was rushed to hospital, and I rode in the back of a
police car in handcuffs. I slept in a cell for an entire weekend, stubbornly refusing help from my father, or money.”
Romi’s hand lightly touched his and he closed his eyes for a second, still hearing the sound of his car slamming into the bus stop, and the screams. His eyes reopened and he looked at her. “My mom managed to convince me to let my father sort everything out. The young woman wasn’t killed, luckily, she only broke her leg, and there was no permanent damage. I was the only one left with scars which did not want to heal. I was in a low place, a dark place, and I wanted to end it all.
“Josh found me sitting on the railing of the Blackfriars Bridge and convinced me to rethink my life, and my future. He got me a permanent gig at Echoes, so that I could channel my sadness and pain into something positive. It also happened to be that I was good at it. I haven’t had a drink in over three months. Sometimes I miss it, the feeling of being completely out of control, but for the most part I am doing okay,” Nyx told her and paused for a moment. “If it wasn’t for Josh, I would not be here, I would not be where I am. He saved my life.”
Nyx had not spoken about his drinking problem, or that he had almost caused the death of an innocent person while under the influence of alcohol, to anyone except Josh. Somehow he felt comfortable enough to share it with Romi, without fear of being judged. He knew she would not think any differently of him, and he hoped she knew how much it meant to him.
“I should thank Josh for being such a good friend and kind person to you. Not a lot of people would do something like that,” Romi pointed out, her voice soft, but there was a certain underlying rawness to it, as if she felt his pain as well. Nyx had no doubt that Romi had the ability to do so, as he felt her emotions as clearly as if they were his own, and even though it was a strange sensation sharing his emotions with someone else—or just someone other than himself—it was welcoming. Romi’s presence was amazing, comforting, and he felt safe.
Safe to say anything without prejudice.
Safe to show emotions and be vulnerable.
Safe to be himself.
The latter was the most important thing of all, especially since he had no experience being himself with other people.
Her warm hand over his was all he ever needed, and without any hesitation, he fell even more in love with her, even though he never thought it was possible.
The faint buzzing sound of Romi’s phone appeared again, which up until now Romi had refused to answer. She had no desire to speak to her father while she was with Nyx, as she had told him numerous times when he insisted he did not mind.
Nyx heard a soft gasp coming from Romi as she glanced at the wooden clock on the wall. “Oh my god, is that the time?”
“Whoa, who knew?” Nyx replied with widened eyes as he also glanced at the clock. She had spent the entire night with him, and Nyx realized that behind the curtains, the sun was already out, lighting up the entire city. Inside his apartment, his room was still dark, the light blocked out, allowing them to live in their own little bubble.
But it was time to pop that bubble, even if it was for a while.
“Back to reality, I suppose,” he muttered.
Romi leaned forward and kissed him softly on the lips, her hand caressing his stubbled cheek. “I’ll see you tonight, okay?”
“For our date, absolutely.”
“You like that word, don’t you?” she asked.
“Well,” he smiled at her, “it’s been a while since I went on one.”
“How long?”
Nyx blew air from between his lips as he attempted to put a number on the amount of years since he’d gone on a date, but he couldn’t. It was definitely more than ten years. “More than a decade.”
“What?” she asked and shook her head. “No, that can’t be. You’re such a charming and brooding guy.”
“It wasn’t about women not finding me appealing,” he pointed out, which made Romi smile, “it was about me. I tried to be what they wanted me to be, but it got exhausting. I’ve been out with quite a few women since then, but never a real date. My relationships in the past had never amounted to such formality, or importance.”
“I feel flattered,” she whispered, her long, red hair hanging down her shoulders, framing her face perfectly. “Pick me up at seven?”
“Absolutely.”
“I’ll text you my address.”
“Just make sure your dad’s not there, or we might have to have a cage match first,” Nyx joked.
“Don’t joke,” Romi chuckled and placed her hand on Nyx’s chest.
Nyx quickly got dressed, as Romi gathered her clothes and got dressed as well. He watched her move around the room, and his heart soared.
After she left, Nyx roamed his apartment, feeling a little lonely, but he knew it was because of Romi’s absence. He cleaned up a little, doing his laundry, washing the dishes, and vacuuming the carpets. He wanted to keep himself busy until that evening, but his tasks seemed to run out within an hour of Romi’s departure.
Moments before he turned on the water in the bathroom sink to shave, his phone rang in the bedroom. Hoping it was Romi, he rushed to answer it, but an unknown number flashed on the screen.
“Hello?” he answered.
“You should really stay away from that witch, if you know what’s good for you,” a voice he did not recognize said to him.
“And why is that?”
“She’s got ties to powerful people who you don’t want to get involved with.”
“Who are you?” Nyx asked.
“Just someone concerned for your safety.”
“I highly doubt that. No one is concerned for my safety. Especially not someone who makes threatening and anonymous phone calls,” Nyx muttered, his jaw clenching tightly.
A sinister laugh sounded in his ear and shivers ran down his spine. “Just watch your back, Dragon Prince. We would not want anything to happen to you.”
Before Nyx could respond, the line went dead. He lowered the phone, staring down at the screen for a few seconds before he dialed Raine’s number and waited for him to answer. Nyx glanced out the large window in his bedroom at the busy roads of the city. He wondered who had the balls to phone him and threaten him like that, warning him to stay away from Romi. Did that person know something, or was it simply someone who did not like him being with Romi?
Like Romi’s father.
Despite not having met Romi’s father, Nyx had a sneaky suspicion that he was behind the call. Maybe he was not the one who had made the call, but simply got someone else to do it for him. Nyx wasn’t going to mention this to Romi on their date this evening, as he did not want to upset her and drive a wedge between her and her father, although he knew there was one already.
Romi was nothing like the other witches he had ever encountered, and he was grateful for that.
He also did not want to tell her because he did not want her to confront her father. Nyx knew how most witches and warlocks were, and how they felt about the dragons, specifically his family.
Thanks a lot, Dad, he thought.
“Hey, Nyx,” Raine answered his phone eventually.
“I just got a call from an unknown number, threatening me to stay away from Romi,” Nyx said.
“Who’s Romi?” Raine asked.
“Right,” Nyx sighed, realizing that he had not spoken to Raine about her yet. “I met someone, a witch named Romi, and—”
“Holy crap, you met someone?”
“Not the point, but yes,” Nyx answered and rolled his eyes. “She’s also a witch and…”
“A witch? Are you crazy? You’re hanging out with a witch now?”
“It’s not that simple,” Nyx insisted.
“Why not? Ever since I’ve known you, you’ve hated the witches because of what happened to your mother, and—”
“It’s not like I had a choice in the matter, Raine. She’s my True Mate.”
Raine was quiet for a few seconds and a sigh came from the other end of the line before he sai
d, “Well, that’s not what I expected you were going to say.”
“Trust me, I did not expect it either. It came as a massive surprise to me too.”
“So, your True Mate is a witch,” Raine said absentmindedly, as if he was thinking about something. “What does that mean exactly?”
“I’m not sure, but Rhaena sure had a twisted fucking sense of humor when she decided who our True Mates would be,” Nyx muttered.
“Do you still think she had something to do with it?”
“She was one of the most powerful witches in the world, besides, of course, Livia. She had everything to do with who our mates are. She set the curse in motion, and picked our mates accordingly. She wanted us to suffer, even after the five thousand years ended.”
“And clearly that is exactly what she achieved, especially if I listen to you now.”
Nyx was quiet for a few seconds, allowing Raine’s words to seep into his brain.
He would not call having Romi as his mate as suffering, but he knew that things were not going to be easy. For one, Romi’s father would be a massive obstacle in their relationship, but Nyx was adamant to clear things up with her father. He couldn't be as narrow-minded and unreasonable as Romi described him.
Could he?
“I’m going to need you to find out everything you can about Henry Friar.”
“Henry Friar. Why does that name sound so familiar?”
“I thought the same thing, but I have no idea,” Nyx agreed.
“I’ll find out for you, Nyx. As quickly as I can.”
“Tell me tomorrow. Romi and I are going out tonight, and I have no idea what time we’ll be back. I also don’t want her finding out that I am investigating her father.”
“So you never met the man?”
“No, but I did receive a threatening phone call from someone who doesn’t want me anywhere near Romi.”
“I would not be surprised if it was him.”
“That’s exactly what I thought, so naturally I don’t want Romi to find out.”
Raine chuckled and retorted, “What a perfect way to start a relationship.”
Nyx’s jaw clenched and he ended the call without so much as another word to Raine.
Even though Raine was Nyx’s best friend, he could be a total dick sometimes.