DEVON
Dumb, stupid, Dumb.
That's what I was.
Karla was right. The date was so not going to work out. I shouldn't have agreed to go out with Kayden in the first place. But I also knew that it was too late to cancel it.
'It's just a date, Devon. It's not like he's proposing to you' That's what I told myself.
Little did I know that what I was about to do was going to hurt someone deeply.
The time was still 4:15pm and I was very bored.
I curled up on my bed and began to sketch the designs I'd seen around Theo's ankles. The more I sketched them, the more I craved Theo. I felt like I was obsessed with him. It felt so right and so wrong at the same time. I didn't understand how that was even possible.
Theo had hung out with me a couple of times more, and he was starting to open up to me slowly. No doubt, we were making progress.
My phone beeped and I picked it up. It was a message from Kayden. It said:
Hope you're not thinking of changing your mind about the date. Please don't. I can't wait to see you tonight. I bet you'll look as beautiful as you always do. I'm sorry if I came out too strong. I'm not trying to be weird. My intentions are true, Dev. Please, give me a chance to show how much I really care.
I stared at my phone with a warmness growing in my heart. Maybe going on a date with him wouldn't be so bad after all, so I thought.
I sat up in bed when I heard someone enter my room through the window. Theo.
He was wearing a white zip up hoodie and blue skinny jeans. The golden pendant was hanging around his neck. I grinned and got out of bed to embrace him.
"Hey" I said.
"Hey, yourself" he said.
"I'm glad you came" I said.
"You met Luke?" He asked.
"He's a pain in the ass" I said.
"At least, I'm not the only one who thinks he's a pain in the ass" he said and I giggled.
"I wanted to talk to you" he said and I smiled.
"Let's talk then" I replied.
"You're so beautiful" he said and my cheeks caught fire.
"Thanks"
We both sat down together and then, he caught sight of my sketch book.
He grabbed it and I pouted.
"I'm not very good at drawing" I said and he shook his head.
"You're such a terrible liar" he said to me as he stared at the different things I'd drawn. "Woah...is that-" he stared at the drawing of his ankle art designs.
"Wow. I can't believe you still remember how you saw it. It's exactly the same," he said and I laughed.
"My mum says I have a photographic memory. It's like a talent," I said and he held my hand, his thumb caressing the back of my palm. "You're full of surprises, Devon"
That's when he started to tell me what he was, and what I was to him. I almost burst into tears of happiness when he told me that I belonged to him. "I've watched over you ever since you clocked ten. I needed to keep you safe. I needed to know that you were happy. But you know, it's like a taboo to have a human soulmate," he said and I sighed.
"But, I don't care. I don't give a damn about what anyone else thinks. All that matters is US" he rasped and my heart fluttered with joy.
He was mine and I was his.
But then, I remembered Casper. I was supposed to get married to him.
I thought of running away with Theo because at this point, I would do anything to prevent me ending up with Casper.
"I should've done this a while ago, but I'm doing this now because I want to trust you. I want the both of us to work on ourselves together," he said, placing a hand on the side of my face. I was smiling so much, my face was starting to hurt.
"We can get to know each other, together" I said and he entwined his fingers with mine. "Theo?" I said.
"Yeah?" He said.
"I want to see your face" I whispered. He brushed my hair out of my eyes.
"I'm not sure-"
"No, Theo. I want you to trust me. We want to make this work. You and I. No barriers. Just the two of us" I said
"There's bound to be a lot of ups and downs. Heck, I don't want to drag you into my mess" he said.
I shook my head fiercely.
"I don't care, Theo. I don't care. I just want to be with you. I don't care if we have to struggle. We'll be each other's strength" I said.
I could feel the tension leave his body. Like a dream, all I felt was tranquility....joy.... and admiration for him.
He slowly let go of my hands. I held my breath as his hands came up to his hood. Slowly, it came off and I let out a gasp.
He was every inch, more beautiful than I'd ever imagined.
Beautiful golden eyes stared back at me. His lips were cherry red, skin so pale and smooth like porcelain, eyelashes so dark and long. His long hair was in a bun and I could see the dark outlines of some symbols on his neck. Behind his right eye was a black symbol that looked like a star and a diamond. His ears were delicately pointed.
He was simply stunning.
I walked up to him and pressed gentle kisses to the sides of his face.
Mine.
He was mine.
"You're perfect" I whispered and he smiled, my favorite dimples popping out.
"So are you" he said, gazing into my eyes fondly.
"I have to go now. I'll see you tomorrow" he said to me after pressing a kiss to my forehead. I nodded and watched him jump off my window, gracefully.
I decided to tell him about Casper the next time he would visit, bearing in mind that I had to go to the date with Kayden and then, I would make him understand that I couldn't be with him.
I had Theo now.
It was all that mattered.
...
"I'm glad you came," Kayden said to me as we ate in a very expensive restaurant. Who knew that Kayden was different when he wasn't in school? His hair was gelled back neatly and he was dressed in a blue long sleeved shirt whose sleeves were folded to his elbows. His black jeans was nicely fitted. He wasn't even wearing his glasses. No doubt, he looked good.
We made small talk about school, home, and our future plans. It wasn't so bad after all. But, the hardest part was when it was time to tell him that I wasn't really interested in dating him.
"Why don't you like me?" He asked, calmly.
"It's not you, okay? It's me. There's someone else I really like and I'm so sorry for raising your hopes up" I said to him and he simply shrugged. I began to feel slightly uneasy around him.
"I'll walk you home," that's what he said. We were just a few feet away from the restaurant when he suddenly grabbed my hand and pulled me to himself. I gasped, surprised.
"Why do you not want me? Am I not good enough?" He spat and I started to get scared. "It's that soulmate of yours, isn't it?"
My fear was quickly replaced with confusion.
How did he know about Theo? "Oh, I'll like to see him burn" he said, his voice dangerously low.
Without warning, he pressed his lips to mine. Pain racked my whole body immediately his lips collided with mine.
"Don't worry sweetheart, he'll feel it more" he whispered.
His eyes were no longer green. They were black and completely devoid of pupils.
...
THEO
I was quietly walking along the streets of Oklahoma City when I started to feel very light headed. Lucian noticed it and insisted that he would take me home right away. We had barely walked into the house when I felt Devon's fear. It was then the pain hit me. My vision went black for a split second and when I could see again, I realized that I was lying on the floor with Lucian hovering above me with worry in his eyes.
"What's wrong?" He asked as I forced myself to sit up.
"It's nothing" I mumbled and shakily got to my feet.
"It's not nothing. Theo, you literally passed out" he said and I groaned.
"Lower your voice, please. I just need to get some sleep" I said and stumbled all the way to my room. I collapsed on my bed, biting my lip to prevent myself from screaming. I had never felt this kind of pain. It was overwhelming, gut-wrenching. Something was wrong. Something was terribly wrong. I stumbled out of bed, blindly. More agony hit me and I rushed into the bathroom, retching on the floor. Red, there was so much red on the floor.
***
RACHEL
"Theo?" I said, slowly opening the door of his room. He wasn't in his bedroom but the door to his bathroom was slightly open. My heart constricted when I heard him retching.
This had never happened before. He had never fallen ill. Worry overwhelmed me and soon, I was rushing into his bathroom. What I saw made my heart to shatter into pieces. There was so much blood on the floor. Theo was throwing up uncontrollably. Exhausted and weak, he collapsed into my arms. He was struggling to breathe and he was burning hot.
"Lucian!" I cried, brushing Theo's hair away from his face. "Luke! Come down here! Get your ass here right now!" I cried, tears blurring my vision. I was so scared, I could barely see straight.
"It's okay, I've got you" I whispered, my voice shaky.
I heard rapid footsteps heading towards the bathroom.
"Blood fire!" Lucian exclaimed rushing in.
"What the hell happened?" He asked, grabbing a towel and a bowl. 'Theo has to be okay. He has to be' I thought.
**********
DEVON
With my heart pounding hard, I kneed Kayden in the groin and ran off. I didn't stop to catch my breath. I just kept running.
My heart broke when I realized that Theo could be in danger. Terrified, I flagged down a taxi. When I got home, my mum was surprised by how flustered I looked but I ignored her and went to my room.
I took out my phone and dialled Luke's number. It went straight to voicemail.
Frustrated, I pulled at my hair. "Come on, Luke. Please, pick the damn call" I groaned, dialling his number again. It went to voicemail again and tears filled my eyes. I had to know that Theo was alright. I needed to know. My phone rang.
It was Luke.
I quickly picked the call with my heart in my throat.
"Luke. I need to know if he's okay" I said.
"Luke? Please talk to me!" I cried.
"What did you do?" He demanded, his voice so cold and unforgiving, my stomach sank to the bottom of my shoes.
"I did something stupid. Please tell me Theo is okay" I whimpered.
He heaved a sigh.
"He's not okay..... He's in pain. I've never seen him like this, Devon. He needs you"
'He needs you'.
Those words kept ringing over and over in my head.
It was my fault he was in pain, it made me feel terribly guilty.