Syn

     Ten minutes. We had left the car ten minutes ago and I was half a hair away from snapping my fingers and killing everyone in this restaurant. The moment we walked inside, all eyes shifted to Queen. She captured a room— she always did and it never bothered me. She was fucking beautiful.

If she had walked in here with another man, I wouldn't have been able to take my eyes off of her either.

It was a fact. It just didn't make it any easier. Especially given the fact that I could hear every tiny whisper and gasp floating throughout the room.

I fucking hated Earth.

In every other realm, they knew who I was. They wouldn't dare stare a second too long or breathe in her direction. Especially if I were standing right next to her.

They just didn't give a fuck here.

"She's hot as fuck..." I heard a man whisper and my eyes narrowed in his direction. A man, no more than thirty years old surrounded by a group of uptight suits that laughed and grunted in agreement.

"The things I'd do to her," another one them spoke up as they clinked glasses and muttered, "Amen."

I let out a huff and stared up at the ceiling. We were waiting for the hostess but I was getting agitated by the second. Don't do it. I let out a deep exhale. Rein it in.

I ignored the voices around me and turned my focus to Queen. Her arm was tucked into the crook of my arm and she leaned against me as she looked around curiously. Her eyes found mine after a few seconds and a smile spread across her lips.

"What?" She whispered.

Where could I start?

I shook my head to say nothing. She rolled her eyes at me, her expression full of amusement. My eyes lingered on her for a few more seconds before the hostess walked toward us again.

"Your table is ready. If you'll follow me."

Queen's hold on my arm loosened and she took my hand. We followed the young woman to the back of the busy restaurant. It broke out into a wide lounge area. Faint music flowed throughout the space and people were scattered about.

Strings of lights hung across the space, golden lanterns hanging from them and Queen looked around in astonishment. I needed to remind myself to thank Caspian for recommending the place. It was expensive as fuck, but now I understood why.

The place had thirty seven floors, each offering a different environment and cuisine. And tonight, we were on the highest floor.

We walked up a step and followed a stone pathway to a clear elevator in the middle of the space. Water fountains were on either side of the walkway and I moved Queen in front of me. She above all people would find a way to somehow fall in.

We took the elevator up and Queen wouldn't stop gushing to the hostess about how beautiful everything was. I had to admit myself that I understood the restaurant's intrigue, but I was more fascinated by Queen.

When the elevator doors opened, the hostess stepped out. I moved to follow behind her but Queen was frozen to the spot. I turned around and raised a brow at her. "What's wrong?"

The warm breeze from the rooftop began to infiltrate the elevator. "This is beautiful," she looked out in amazement before turning to me. "But are you sure?"

"Am I sure?" I tilted my head with a laugh and pulled her along. "Why wouldn't I be sure?"

"It's just that we're so high up."

"And?"

"And here's your table," the woman spoke up, gesturing toward an oak table with everything already set. I made sure to ask for a table far from the balcony. We were still on the roof. I just didn't want to eat dinner and feel like I was going to fall off the building. The thought of it made me nauseous.

"Thank you," Queen told her. She sat in the seat that faced the balcony and open sky and I took the seat facing her.

"Sure. Your server will be right with you."

I gave the woman a nod before adjusting in the seat and looking at Queen. A wood lattice snaked with greenery and vines stood behind her, its branches hanging up above us. Golden bulbs of lights— in various sizes hung from them, illuminating our table and the small space around it. It was intimate.

If it wasn't for the breeze hitting the back of my neck every few moments I could've pretended we were inside...not five hundred feet from the ground.

"You really don't mind being so high?" She leaned in a bit, concern etched onto her face. "I thought you were afraid of—"

"I'm not afraid." I immediately stopped that train of thought. "And rollercoasters are different. They're in constant mechanical motion. It's not like this building is going to levitate and start spinning all of a sudden," I said. I thought for a moment. "Right?"

She laughed a bit and shook her head. "I think we're safe from that...At least for a few hundred years."

I sat back and sighed. "That is a nightmare I will have to leave you with. Thankfully, I won't be around to see that." She gave me a small smile, her eyes studying me and I held her gaze. Something drastic had changed from yesterday to today because if I had made that joke yesterday, she would've chewed my head off.

"What?" I let out a breath and leaned my arms on the table to get a closer look at her. My fingers grazed her arm and I raised a brow. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Because you're beautiful," she said simply and my fingers stilled.

What?

She giggled. "I thought we were doing the cliches."

I sat back in my seat and dropped my arms to the armrest as I looked at her. "You're something else."

She gave me a grin before turning toward the approaching waitress. My eyes remained on Queen and I watched her give the woman a once over. I'd seen plenty of women do this before and I believed it was always some version of them measuring each other up or comparing themselves. But it was different with Queen.

Her examinations always ended up in compliments or questions about where they got something they were wearing.

"Hi, how are the two of you doing tonight?" She set menus down in front of us.

"Good. You?"

"I'm perfect. Can I get you guys started with any drinks?"

Queen turned to me in question and I spoke up, "Waters and a bottle of Château Margaux." I looked up at the woman and immediately crimson filled her cheeks. Her heartbeat tripled in pulse as she bit her lip to hide a smile.

My eyes shifted back to Queen to see her twirling a strand of her hair with her finger. Her eyes were on me and I hoped that I was simply too observant. Humans were far too easy to read and I'd be lying if I said I didn't recognize the look she had given me.

"I will be...right back with that, for you." She cleared her throat.

"Thanks." Queen grinned up at her and the woman walked away.

I expected her to bring up the interaction now that the woman was gone but instead she looked at me and whispered, "Are you okay?"

I gave her a single nod as I tried to decipher why she was asking me that. "I'm fine."

"You don't have to wear this mask for me, Syn." She leaned her elbows on the table and tilted her head. "I appreciate what you're trying to do here, but I don't want you to act. You can be honest with me."

My jaw ticked as she spoke. It wasn't necessarily my intention to put up this mirage, but I'd been doing it all day. It sort of just became habit.

I sighed and leaned back in the chair, the tension I didn't realize was there swirling in my shoulders as I blew a long breath out into the air. "Queen," I said. " My position still stands strong." I looked at her- she needed to understand this. "I will be turning myself to Heaven tomorrow. I know what will happen to me and I have come to terms with it-- I don't want to fight about--"

"I know," she said in a low voice. "I hear you and I won't argue with you about it anymore."

Just like that? I eyed her curiously as she looked toward the waitress coming our way. In my peripheral I could see her set the drinks down and fidget with a notebook in her apron but my focus wasn't on her or food right now.

She cleared her throat. "Are we ready to order?"

"Umm." Queen looked down at the menu before looking back at me with a questioning look at my gaze.

"We need a few minutes."

"Okay, no problem," she chirped. "We also have specials if you'd be interested in--"

I rolled my eyes. "Please get the f--"

"We just need a few minutes, please. Thank you."

"Okay," the woman said quickly before scurrying away and I rubbed my temple. I had twenty-four hours left to live, the last thing I had time or patience for was incompetence and unnecessary interactions. I should've taken her somewhere more private. The place was nice but I was far from comfortable.

I felt the hairs on my skin become prickly as I preemptively foresaw Queen's next words. Something about me not being rude- which was fair, but I was not in the mood to hear it. My hand dropped and I sighed as our eyes met.

She opened her mouth to speak and I shook my head, sitting up in the seat. "I know. I will apologize and tip her well."

She shook her head slowly. "That's not what I was going to say." I raised a brow and she sighed, reaching over to grab my hand. My eyes moved down to her soft fingers caressing a scar on my palm- a nasty one it was. I got it years ago when I tried to catch Julius's whip. It hurt like a bitch and I never dared tried it again. There was another one a few inches higher resting on my wrist from some fight.

It was funny how the memory of scars were so vivid yet I couldn't even begin to think of where others came from. I was just so used them because that's all I was for a long time- a blank canvas in which everyone aside from me had a brush. Like all paintings though, my body told a story. A graphic and disturbing one at that. If I were in a museum I'd probably evoke the same reaction from people as a headless horse in the street would.

My thoughts may have been self deprecating, but they weren't random. Chances were my dead body would be flaunted around somewhere in the upper world. They were novices when it came to putting holy brutality on display.

"Syn," Queen called out, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"Yes, Princess."

She gave me a smile but they hardly reached her eyes as she looked at me. A pang hit my chest when I looked back at her. I was a monster, truly. She wasn't wrong when I said I was cruel. If I had knowledge of the deal I made, I would've left the moment I knew she was going to wake up instead of putting her through the pain of saying goodbye. But I was a selfish man. I wanted my last few days to be with her.

"What are you thinking about?"

I forced a laugh. "Nothing that would interest you I'm sure."

She bit the inside of her cheek and tilted her head. Silence permeated the air for a few moments as we looked at one another before she let go of my hand and sat back. She ran a hand through her hair before reaching for the bottle on the table and popping it open. She poured herself a glass before setting the bottle down and taking a sip.

"You're upset," I said.

She set the glass down in frustration before letting out a bitter laugh. "Of course I'm upset, Syn. I don't want any of this." She gestured around us. "This doesn't make anything better for me. Not talking about it won't make me miraculously forget that I'm about to lose you again. Nothing makes this better for me. But I'd feel less alone knowing that I'm not the only one on the verge of insanity. You act as if you're going on vacation instead of walking to your death, and I have no idea why that hurts me so much because God knows the last thing I'd ever want is for you to be in pain but--"

"You're rambling, Princess."

"Well you're not rambling enough," she said. "I get that with everyone else you have to act like everything is okay. But when did I become everyone else to you--"

"Fine. You want me to say how I really feel?"

"That's all I want."

"Then promise me you can bear it," I told her. "Promise me that this won't do more harm than good for you and I will tell you everything on my mind."

"I promise."

Liar.

꧁꧂