WHEN MELANIE AWAKENED it felt as if her lungs were on fire. She gasped loudly, her eyes snapping open to find herself laying in a blindingly white room with several worried faces peering down at her. Trying to ignore the aching in her chest, she inhaled deeply, her breath rattling in her throat. Suddenly there was movement around her and voices telling her to keep calm. But it wasn't that easy; the pain was too excruciating and waking up utterly confused as to what was happening didn't help. To make things worse, her head was thumping and the shock and pain and flurry of bodies around her were making her panic.

"Melanie!" a voice called from the left. "Melanie, calm down!"

"Mel!" another cried.

Melanie gasped for air, the agony only increasing throughout her body the more she struggled; she couldn't help it, what with all the hands flying down to restrain her. She felt trapped, suffocated. If only they'd give her some damn space. The pain though, seemed to be never-ending, one she had never known before. Thrashing around in her hospital bed and groaning in agony, finally her arms and legs were pinned down.

"Melanie, stay still!" said a voice to her right. "We'll have to sedate you if you don't keep still."

Melanie looked sideways at the nurse holding a small syringe and she instantly stopped moving. The pain was still there, but she slowly felt the throbbing lessening with each muscle she relaxed.

"It hurts," she mumbled, squeezing her eyes shut. In seconds, she was asleep once again.

Melanie wasn't sure if it was a dream or reality when she saw Rachel making her way over to her. She sat down next to Melanie's hospital bed, mascara running down her face. When Rachel reached out and placed a hand over Melanie's, she knew it was real. Instinctively, Melanie pulled away and sat up in her bed, her eyes widening at the pain in her chest.

"Stay away from me!" she hissed. Rachel only burst into tears in response.

"Melanie I'm so sorry!" she whimpered. "I'm not sure if you've been told yet, but ... I was ... there when you were injured."

"You tried to crash the car with me in it!" Melanie spat, tears forming in her eyes. "Why would you do that to me? How could you?!"

"Listen to me," Rachel begged, "Please."

"Why should I?"

"Because I'm probably never going to see you again, and I have to tell you the truth!" Rachel gushed, her bottom lip trembling.

"I think I know all I need to," Melanie said, looking away from her once best friend. The sight of her alone was making Melanie angry. "There's nothing you can say that won't make me stop hating you."

"I know," Rachel whispered. "But I'm still going to tell you what really happened." Reluctantly, Melanie looked round as Rachel began to speak. "You know I've been with Kaleb for a long time and you know how close we were. I found out it wasn't real - what we had. You want to know why I always hinted that my family were running low on money?"

"What are you...?" Melanie muttered, shaking her head in confusion.

"Kaleb was a gambler - he still is a gambler, and he loves money more than he loves anyone in this world. He was using me to get money from you, Mel. That's why he wanted you to die last night - for the money. He... He was abusive, Melanie! He hit me and done such horrible things to me if I disobeyed him in any way. He had a knife he carried..."

Melanie remembered Michael telling her about being stabbed by Kaleb.

"Anyway ... he knew how close I was with you, and that you were rich. He made me do things, like force me to make you write what you did in your diary so I'd definitely have money from you. But it was only for him, no one else. I told him no, Melanie. I fought so hard against him, but he's a psycho! He told me if I didn't help him kill you ... he'd kill me. I was so scared, and he said he'd hurt everyone I loved if I went to the police... I didn't know what to do."

"So, you didn't want to kill me?" Melanie said slowly.

"No!" Rachel sobbed. "I love you Mel, I do! I'd never want that for anyone, especially not my best friend. You have no idea how he acted... He was deranged - truly mental. He wanted me to give him the money that you supposedly wanted me to have. I'm sorry, Melanie. I know there's nothing I can do to change the past, and that you'll never forgive me, but I just wanted you to know the truth. Kaleb and I are going to jail for what we've done. I just had to see you and speak to you one last time."

Melanie didn't know she was crying until she felt the tears falling from her face on to her collarbones. She lowered her eyes and sniffled. "I... Honestly? I don't know what to say."

"That's completely fine," Rachel said with a small smile. "I have to go now. The police are waiting just outside the door. They were kind enough to allow me some time alone with you."

"Thank you," Melanie said quickly as Rachel stood to leave. "Thank you for telling me the truth."

"Anything for my best friend," Rachel said, her voice hoarse. She exhaled deeply and laughed quietly. "Oh, wow. I'm a mess. I'm sorry, Mel. I love you, and you'll always be my best friend. I'm just sorry I let you down."

"You were scared," Melanie found herself saying, not quite sure if she could forgive Rachel or not. "It's not your fault."

"But it is," Rachel whispered. "If I had just went to the police..."

"Rachel," Melanie said sternly. "You were being threatened by a maniac."

Rachel nodded, "I was. Sorry."

"Time to go," said a male's voice from the door. Melanie looked behind Rachel to see a police officer waiting outside. She watched more tears fall from Rachel's eyes before she held her arms open.

"C'mere," Melanie said. Rachel ran forward and hugged Melanie carefully, trying not to hurt her healing injuries. "It's fine."

"Sorry! I'm so sorry..." Rachel sobbed over and over into Melanie's hair until the police officer repeated his previous words. "Bye, Mel," Rachel whispered.

Melanie watched as her friend left the room. As soon as the door closed, Melanie burst into tears. She had been wrong about Rachel all along - she had been a true friend. Rachel had been scared into doing what she had done, and Melanie was still unsure if she was able to forgive her. After all, Rachel had still been the one to try and crash the car.

Throughout the day, several people entered and exited Melanie's hospital room. Her family had entered in tears, as had some of her other friends. Michael had smiled widely at her and carefully wrapped his arms around her healing body in a lingering hug. As soon as everyone had left the room, Michael pulled his chair closer to Melanie's bed.

"Do you remember everything?" he asked and Melanie nodded with a smile.

"I do and - Oh my God, he has a penis!" Melanie cut herself off as she remembered her last moments with The Devil.

"What the fuck?" Michael asked, frowning at Melanie's sudden out burst.

"Nothing, it doesn't matter," Melanie said, shrugging. Michael saw her smile to herself and he groaned.

"Please don't tell me you sucked him off?" he said. "That's just weird."

"Ew, no!" Melanie said. "That's taking it just a little too far, Mikey."

"Well, he did mention something about him fucking you..."

"Oh really?" Melanie said, a brow raised. "Horny bastard."

Michael laughed at her pun and then slowly sat back in his chair. "How are you feeling?"

"Pretty good, actually," Melanie said, looking down at her bandaged body. "A few broken ribs and a fractured skull. One of the ribs nearly punctured my lungs, so that's why I have a pain here," she said, patting her chest carefully.

"Mine was pretty minor," Michael said, pulling up the hem of his T-shirt. Underneath, Melanie could see the layered bandages covering his stomach and a small red stain blossoming in the middle. "Just needed stitches to be honest."

"Lucky you," Melanie said. "You'll get to go home soon. I'm here for about a month."

"A month?" Michael asked, his mouth hanging open. "That's a bit extreme."

"It's the safest option," Melanie assured him. "Mum and Dad have paid for special treatment, so I should be up and running again in no time."

"It'll suck being stuck in here for four weeks though," Michael said with a pout.

"I'll live," Melanie said, smiling. "Should bloody well hope so after all the shit we've been through."

"Yeah," Michael laughed. "I'd hate to die again so soon."

"Shh!" Melanie hissed, looking around the room. "If someone hears that we were dead, questions will be asked."

"Sorry," Michael said, a goofy smile on his face. Slowly, he stood up. "I'd better get back to bed, it's getting late."

Melanie looked over at the clock in the corner of the room and her eyes widened. It was nearing ten o'clock, and her lights would be put out on the hour.

"Night, Mikey," Melanie said softly. She smiled as she watched him close the door behind himself and she closed her eyes as the medicines kicked in, making her drowsy. Nurses had been injecting all kind of pain killers into her system, and the repetition was becoming tiresome.

When the lights were turned off in her room, Melanie took the opportunity to carefully maneuver herself around to face the window. Her eyes were glued to a single star in the distance, the largest one beside the moon.

Suddenly, she pictured herself back in The Beyond, the memories of her time there flashing before her eyes. When she had first landed, how confused and scared she had been, when Louis had stepped out from behind the garages, the story of how she was no longer alive, Michael's appearance. Melanie's freshest memory was of Louis though. The way he seemed to trust her - a human girl. A nothing in a world where Angels and Demons lived. Melanie felt a pang of sadness as she realized seeing Louis again wouldn't be for a long time. Seventy years, if she lived that long.

When she fell asleep, she could once again feel Satan's lips on her's; the soft caress of his mouth against her own. How she longed to feel his touch at least once more. Seventy years was nothing for Louis - he was immortal and had already lived multiple lifetimes. Melanie's life was just beginning.

Opening her eyes was almost painful. She tried hard to fall back asleep and continue her perfect dream, but no matter how hard she tried, her body refused to lose consciousness again. Slowly, she rolled her head to the side to look at the clock. It was just after three in the morning and she groaned.

A sudden chill went up her spine and she lowered her eyes from the ticking object to the window, which was hanging wide open. Melanie groaned and sat upright in her bed. With all of the tubes sticking into her skin, it was going to be difficult making her way over to close it. Still, she done just that. Carefully, she kicked her feet out of the bed and winced as a pain shot through her chest.

Louis's words came back to her all of a sudden:

"Breathe, Melanie. Breathe."

And she did. Slowly, she pulled the cables over to her side of the bed and pushed the metal tri-pod holding her monitor closer to the window. Her footsteps were slow and steady, her eyes fixed on the window. She wondered how it had managed to fly open and one possibility came to mind: Louis. But why would he be at the hospital? Melanie crossed her fingers as she made it to the window and pulled it shut. Outside, the streets were empty and she felt disappointed.

"C'mon you bastard, you said you were able to come to Earth," she found herself saying. She let out a sigh and turned to go back to bed. She slowly sat down on the edge and fixed her monitor back into place before kicking her legs up onto the mattress. She made herself comfortable, lying back against the pillows with a sigh.

She wanted to see Louis again and she wasn't going to lie to herself; she missed him. She'd never met someone who was just as witty yet broken like she was. They both had a terrible past, and being able to share it with someone who was in the same boat, was what had made Melanie like him. And he seemed to like her.

Melanie looked over at the window again, but out of the corner of her eye, she saw something. She pushed herself up onto her elbows and looked down at where her pillows met the mattress. There, trapped between the two was an envelope. Melanie tugged it free and opened it to find a hand written letter within. She smiled as she read through the cursive penmanship.

Dear Melanie,

They say I'm the bad guy - the evil, manipulative, cheating Devil that only takes what he wants. Over the last day, it'll be obvious to you that I'm not the monster that religion and myths claim me to be. I want you to know that you're the first person I've ever let in, and I thank you for being so considerate.

Sharing the past is hard, I know. You do too. Despite how hard your life has been, you were still able to confide in me like I was with you. I never got a chance to fully tell you how sorry I was for your losses. Losing someone you love is hard - I know.

Make sure to stop drinking, yeah? We don't want anymore accidents before you become a pensioner, do we? Don't do drugs either - you'll probably just die all over again.

As you know, I am able to make an appearance on Earth for twenty-four hours before I must leave again. I'll be checking in on you once a month to make sure you've not done some crazy shit, OK? Consider me your guardian angel ... with horns and a tail, of course.

Tell Michael to stop drinking too. Or don't, it's your choice...

I wish you the best of luck, Melanie Cooper. Just make sure to stay out of trouble until you're in your eighties, yeah? I'll be seeing you soon, love.

Sincerely, your devilishly handsome man,

Lucifer

Melanie read the note over three times before she could accept the fact he had been in her room while she was sleeping. Her dream came back to her, and she remembered the kiss they had shared. Only then did she start to wonder if it had been a dream. Had he kissed her again while she had been asleep? She touched her fingers to her lips slowly, remembering his gentle touch.

She held the note close to her chest and smiled to herself. 'Your devilishly handsome man', he had said. Despite the pun in the sentence, Melanie was touched by his words. 'Your man', he had said. 'Your man'.

Clearly, he just took the friendship to a new level, Melanie thought to herself.

She looked out the window, still holding the note tightly. "Until next time, Satan," she whispered.

___________________________________

IN THE DEPTHS OF HELL, stood a figure dressed in black. His red eyes examined the image manifesting within the flames before him and a human girl could eventually be seen lying in a hospital bed, hugging something small to her chest. He watched her soundlessly, tapping his chin with his forefinger.

The girl folded the note carefully and placed it under her pillow before lying down in the bed, closing her eyes. He watched her with a small smile as the flames ate up the image and evaporated into thin air.

"I'll be seeing you soon, Melanie Cooper," Lucifer said with a smile.

*

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Continue reading for the sequel (part two) of Lucifer!