Anger burns within me as he and I are face-to-face. I promised myself a long time ago that I would never let anyone frighten me. I stand tall and try to control my breathing, refusing to show any signs of weakness. With every fibre of my being, I am determined to stay strong and not let him get the best of me. I take a deep breath and prepare to face whatever consequences may come my way.

"Disrumpum,"

I shout, feeling the power within me. Clay's neck snaps instantly, and guilt begins to consume me. I observe as his body falls to the ground. As if a switch within me was turned on, I suddenly realise that the one person who genuinely loves me for me was just killed by me. As I see him lay there, time stands still.

What did I do?

"Ray." Brie comes running. Logan gets beside Clay and shakes his head. "Ray, look at me!" Logan shouts. Clay's lifeless body is lying there, and despite my efforts, I am unable to look away from him. "Ray, look at me. What are you feeling?" This time, his voice is more comforting. I take a deep breath and try to answer him, but my words come out as a choked sob.

"I'm not sure. Normally, I would have walked away if it were someone else, but right now, something in my heart is telling me not to."

"Raven, do you understand what you did?" Logan asks. I feel the tears streaming down my face. I look him dead in the eyes. "I..I killed Clay." I stutter.

"He isn't dead," Brie states. I feel a wave of relief rush over me, and tears start to fall. I fall to Clay's side and take his hand in mine.

"Can you feel it? Do you feel your chest being relieved of pressure? It's happiness, that is humanity, and it is all because your love is not dead." Logan whispers softly.

I stroke his hair with my fingers. He was willing to die for me to be the person he fell in love with the entire time, but I was a cruel bitch to him. "I'm sorry." I sniffle through tears. I kiss his forehead and wait for him to wake up. It feels like an eternity when Clay finally gasps for air and starts to cough.

"Clay!" He looks at me, not knowing what to expect. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to. I'm sorry." My eyes fill with tears.

He sits up and cups my face. "I knew I could get you back." He says with relaxation in his voice.

"I'm so sorry," I say once again. I wrap my arms around his neck and hug him tightly.

"It's okay, baby. This wasn't your fault." He tries to assure me. As Logan assists him, he winces in pain. I saw that Clay's back was covered in blood from being thrown into the wall.

"Clay, you're bleeding," I say with guilt for doing this to him. "All good, it will heal as soon as I get out of this basement."

With sorrow in my eyes, I stare at him. He approaches me and holds me in his arms. He kisses my head and assures me that everything is fine.

"Okay, you need to get her home before the wolves figure out her humanity has been turned back on. We will clean up and meet you guys there." Brie says, and Logan nods in agreement. We head upstairs, guilt consumes from what I've put them all through. I hesitatingly ask Clay to stay the night with me, and he agrees. He grabs some clothes, and we head out.

⁂

We finally arrive at my building after a quiet car ride. With no words between us, he takes my hand as we enter the apartment. I shut the door after us as we enter my room. He scoops me up, and as I encircle him with my legs, he kisses me more passionately. He places me on the bed. He grips me tightly as he lies next to me.

"Thank you for not giving up." I nestle my head into his neck.

"I told you I would always find you and bring you back." He kisses my head. "Even if you can't see me there, I'll always catch you when you fall. I'll be here for you, no matter what. As long as I'm still breathing, you won't have to worry. You'll never be alone. I'll always be here to hold you, baby. I swear never to leave you."

"I love you," I tell him. His eyes light up with a smile as he replies, "I love you." And in that moment, we both know that our love will never falter. He kisses me, and I get lost in our bubble.

"You need to shower," I tell him, looking at the dried blood on his shoulders. He nods and heads to the bathroom. Two seconds later, his head pops out, "Join me?" He pleads.

I stand up and begin undressing. He approaches me from behind and grabs my waist. I pull at his sweatpants as I turn to face him.

"Now that's what I'm talking about." He laughs.

He pulls me in for a kiss, and we stumble to the bathroom. I turn to him as the water rushes over us and begin to wash the dried blood from his flawless skin. As he turns to kiss me, we are oblivious to Logan and Brie's voices outside of our bubble. In proper Clay form, he starts laughing.

"What?" I ask. I already know where this is going.

"We should get out there before they think... you know." I roll my eyes and step out of the shower. I grab some shorts and steal one of Clay's shirts. Still wrapped in a towel, I head to my bed and place my clothes there while I dry myself off. I stand there thinking about everything that has happened. The pain I put him through and Brie. Oh no, Brie. I hurt her. I remember that day clearly.

—I walk towards her, eyes glowing blue, and say, "But right now I'm hungry."

Brie screams as I sink my fangs into her, the taste of blood on my tongue is delightful. I can feel the fear in her, but I don't care. Arms wrap around me, and Clay throws me across the room.

"Get her out of here!" He yells at Logan.

Blood dripping down the side of my face, I watch as Logan takes Brie out of the room. Clay stands in my way. His eyes are red and fangs out. I rush towards him and push him up against the wall. He grabs my neck and slams me onto the floor.

"This has gone too far. I told you if you hurt anyone, I would kill you." He barks.

I push him and run towards the balcony, jumping off. I look up and see him standing there. I wave and run, running as fast as I can. I've died once before, I'm not doing it again.—

Clay walks out in his towel, and I'm shaken out of my thoughts. He looks at me and says, "To hell with what they think " He picks me up and brings me back to the bed. I watch as his muscles contract under his skin. "All I want to do is hold you tight. Will you object if I call you mine again?" He says.

"No, I want to be yours." I quickly find myself lost in the euphoric feeling he induces in me. His tongue glides down my stomach, leaving a mark as he approaches my spot. I cry his name as his tongue finds it. This man makes me feel amazing.

"Come for me, baby." He says. I feel myself getting weaker for him, and I release, letting out a pleasurable scream. He moves his way back up my lips and kisses me as his length enters and gives my core a delightful stroke, and I fully take him in. Within minutes, we both release. He pulls me close to him and whispers. "I missed you." He kisses my head, and I lay on his chest.

"I don't want to move, but I know we should head out there," I tell him. "You're right, but I want a few more moments with you." As he pulls me back to his chest, pulling me on top of him as he cups my face and kisses me again. I feel my body respond to his touch, and I can't help but melt into his embrace. It's like time has stopped, and we're the only two people in the world. His fingers trail down my back, sending shivers down my spine, and I know I could stay like this forever. But eventually, we both know we have to get up and face the world outside.