Rayline. I furrowed my brows and looked at Nicolas, who nodded his head as he confirmed Jesse's words. "Angel blood is poisonous to demons." "Oh..." I dropped my head, and I had nothing more to say. "Are you hurt?" Nicolas, who now had the turn to ask Jesse another question, looked him up and down. "That's none of your business," Jesse replied in a blunt tone as he straightened up. "You can stay at my house if you want," I said, and Jesse let out a light chuckle. "I don't think your parents would agree with that." "They will understand if I give them a reason," I urged, but Jesse shook his head instead. "You can stay at my house," Nicolas suddenly interjected, and Jesse nearly burst out laughing. "Very funny." Jesse sneered. "Why not? Looks like you need a place to stay." Jesse then stepped away from the arena wall and walked over to Nicolas to stand right in front of him. "Why should I stay with someone like you?" Nicolas' eyes remained fixed on Jesse's. "You think you are
Rayline."Merry Christmas!" Darren squealed cheerfully as he pulled me into his arms when he reached the front door. "Merry Christmas to you too," I said with a grin as he and his family made their way inside my house. "Hi, Rayline," greeted Aunt Gray as she beamed and gave me a warm hug. "Hi, Auntie." I greeted her and flashed a small smile. "Look, there they are!" My mom excitedly called over from the living room. "I was wondering when you guys would get here." She grinned at them. "Did we come too late for drinks?" Aunt Gray asked her. "Of course not." Then, my mom motioned for Darren and his family to take a seat on the couch in the living room which was near the tall Christmas tree with lavish decorations of lights dangling around it. It was a tradition for Darren and his family to come over to my house every Christmas after they had dinner together. My distant family was not that big, not to mention they lived abroad, so I usually received all my Christmas presents by post
Rayline. The door suddenly opened behind me, and I had no energy to look at it. But I could hear the door close again followed by a movement, and when I opened my eyes and turned my head, I saw Darren already by my side. "Hey." He gave me a sad smile. "Hey," I replied quietly as I lowered my gaze to my lap, the ring still on my finger. Then he took a seat, and as he sat down, I felt a coat draped over my body. "You will catch a cold, Ray, if you keep sitting here." I just gave him a small smile, but I kept my gaze from its position. "That gift," he said in hushed tones, "was from Cole, wasn't it?" "Yeah," I answered quietly, almost in a whisper. "It was." After a brief moment, Darren let out a frustrated sigh before finally turning his face to the dark sky, and I glared at him. "What a fucking prick." "Huh?" I was perplexed by what he said. "Cole." My eyes remained on him but he remained silent. "He leaves you like that for weeks, and just when you're getting better, he sends
Cole. While looking out the window at the falling snow, my expression was as cold as a snow crystal as my mind was lost in my daydream. I felt Chase walk over and put his hand on my shoulder. "Are you thinking about her?" Chase asked, and I immediately looked down. Sadness was the expression on my face right now. "I always think about her, brother," I replied in a voice that sounded like a whisper. There was silence as Chase continued to watch me. His eyes looked concerned, and after a long pause, he spoke again. "So just get back home." "I can't..." I trailed off for a moment. "Not until I can control it." No matter how much I wanted to go back to her, to see her. I can't. Not now. "Can you handle it?" I did not answer, and I took a deep breath before turning to Chase. "Please don't tell her that you were here." Chase let out a small laugh and looked out the window. "I was even surprised to hear it from you." He paused for a moment. "Why can't I tell her?" "Because we both kno
Rayline. What happened next was that I'm not sure what overcame me completely; maybe it was the deep look in his eyes, or something else, but I leaned down and kissed him, my eyes were closed this time. We both started off slowly, his soft lips gently touching mine, but after a while, I lifted my body to straddle him. It could be seen from the way he tensed that he did not expect any movement from me, but his hands then rested on my hips as we both matched the rhythm. Both my hands grabbed his neck to pull him closer, and I could feel the soft touch of his fingers starting to trace my back. I gasped as my hands ran through his hair, and slowly his tongue slipped into my mouth with a low moan. He started to explore my mouth as I sucked on his lips, but during it all, I started to hear a voice playing in my mind. 'Ray.' I kept kissing him, pressing myself into his chest, and his hands went down to my waist. 'Ray.' Again. It was the same voice I heard when Nicolas held my hand. 'R
Rayline. College was now over, and the weather turned out to be finally nice enough to go for a walk. Here I was walking around the city with Darren by my side, smiling. "That movie was pretty lame when I expected it to be better," he grumbled about the movie that the two of us had watched earlier. "Actually, it was not that bad," I said as I scanned the neighboring sidewalks. "They turned the whole thing into a cheesy romance drama." "Hey, there are a lot of people who love romance drama and we do need some romance drama in our lives," I said as I elbowed his side playfully. As the two of us were walking, my mobile phone was suddenly buzzing, and when I picked it up, I saw Nicolas' name on the screen. "Hello?" I called out. "Hey." Nicolas' voice faintly sounded in the distance. My steps halted slightly, there was something off in his voice. It seemed like he was really worn out. "Are you okay?" "Yeah," he replied with a sigh. "I just... I just wanted to call you for some reas
Rayline. I walked through the forest with carefully measured steps, while stepping on fallen branches and twigs. Winter was over now, the trees there were dried up, brownish in color, and already dying. It looked so bleak, but it would just make it easier for me to get to my destination. As I reached the end of the tree line, my eyes started tracing the empty ground while leaning against a tree, my fingers rubbing the bark as I sighed. It's been a few weeks since I have come here again, it must have been very tough to get here with all the snow piled up. Besides, I also knew that he would not be there. Indeed, he was never there. However, I still had a little hope and faith that he would be there, even if it was an impossible thing. I started walking on the grass, the ground crunching with every step I took. It was as if all life had been sucked out of the area and replaced with a layer of gray that covered everything in sight. I continued walking towards the cliff wall overlooking
Nicolas. I was waking up to the sound of my cell phone that was constantly buzzing. I was dazed for a second and looked around, squinting my eyes as I tried to see, and when I sat up, I was again hit by an overwhelming wave of dizziness. My hand rubbed my face before picking up my phone from the table, and when I saw the name that appeared on the screen, I furrowed my brows. "Huh, Darren?" I said in a groggy voice. "Hey, Nicolas. Have you seen Rayline earlier?" His voice sounded distant and slightly worried. I brushed my hair out of my hands before resting my elbows on my knees. "Yeah, but not for hours." I took a moment to let it sink in. "Why?" "Well, I tried calling her earlier to ask if she was home yet, but there was no answer. I stopped by her house and she was not home, so I assumed that she was still with you." He told me. "What?" I abruptly straightened up and tried to process the information. "Yeah, the last time I saw her, she said that she was going to your place."
Rayline. The meeting went exactly as I had expected it to go. Harvey briefly explained the entire situation and what he knew. Basically, all the causes of the riots and rebellion are related to years ago, and the roots have been resolved and dealt with. However, there would be unresolved loose ends and there were still ropes to be tied. Lilith most likely still has more allies and connections in places they have yet to discover, and they need to be sought out and dealt with. It may take a long time to clear things up, maybe even years, and the impact could be catastrophic. Harvey then asked everyone to share their stories and their connections. Cole spoke in front of us all, sharing everything. He talks about how he was first sent to Earth, and how Lilith gave his mother the disease out of spite and revenge. He spoke about the recent attacks, and how they were done as hatred towards him when they were actually related to the rebellion. He then spoke about me, how we met, how he bec
Rayline. As I lay nestled against his chest, I playfully drew small circles on his chest, the warmth of his skin keeping me wrapped in his arms, his wings spread out around me. The morning light sneaked in through the bedroom curtains while the two of us were still snuggled together on the bed, the sheets tattered messily. He ran his fingers through my hair, fiddling with the strands as I listened to his heartbeat, hearing every breath he took. "Did you fall asleep?" he asked softly, making me smile. "I should be the one asking you that." Spinning around to face him, my hand came to rest under my chin. "You were so busy as soon as we got back, and it doesn't seem like we got any sleep last night... or this morning." His lips curled up mischievously and his hand slid down my bare back, giving me goosebumps. "I'm doing okay. It was all definitely worth it." "Mmm...hmm." I tilted my head cheekily. Right now I was in his room at his father's house. As soon as the chaos died down, h
Rayline. He placed his hand on Cole's chest. There was light... a glowing white light that emanated from the archangel's fingertips, covering Cole's body. The light grew more and more, wrapping everything around him, and I had to squeeze my eyes shut because of the blinding light. I clutched Chase's hand as a wave of power pulsed through the room, shaking everything around me. I could feel my heart beating faster, my breath catching in my throat as the tension continued to rise in my chest. The light was retracted back into Cole's body, clinging to his skin. As I opened my eyes cautiously, I saw the light fading away as the archangel got to his feet and stepped back. Without holding myself back, I jumped forward, rushed to Cole's side, and with trembling hands, placed them on the side of his cold face. A few moments passed without anything happening, waiting. I gently brushed his hair aside. Then all of a sudden, his chest heaved, catching a deep breath that sounded so sharp, and
Rayline. A wave of cool air filled the room as the flames died out, leaving a trail of empty craters. No one moved. No one dared to breathe until the demon himself, Harvey stepped back. All the Nephilim watched his movements in awe, and some of them even bowed their heads in his honor. I leaned over Cole's body, my hands shaking as I brushed his hair, which had fallen to the side. Tears fell again, rolling down my cheeks without stopping. The sound of footsteps coming closer, got louder until they finally stopped right behind me. "Rayline?" I blinked slowly, turned my head towards the source of the voice, and saw Cole's father standing there. His expression changed as his gaze fell on his son who lay motionless in my arms. He swallowed, his gaze filled with such deep pain. "...Is there any other way?" I asked hoarsely. "Is there anything you can do?" He knelt beside me, pain filling his eyes. "I'm sorry," he says hoarsely. I look back down at Cole, and the sobs I have been holdi
Rayline. Seconds. In a mere few seconds, my entire world comes crashing down, shattering into pieces as the heart-wrenching pain rips through my soul. My lungs burned as I let out a horrifying wail, holding onto Cole's chest with all my strength, begging, pleading for him to come back to me. My hands are still clasped tightly in his now cold hands, while my tears are flowing freely. I clutched at his shirt, crying helplessly as if I could bring him back with the despair welling up from within me. Out of the blue, I felt a gentle hand placed on top of mine, and I jumped, before I froze at the sight of Jesse looking up at me, his tattered wings dragging behind him. Tears streamed down his face from pain and sorrow, and his eyes lowered to the motionless Cole. He bites his lip as he looks down, squeezing his eyes shut as more tears fall. A sob that sounded like it was choking his throat before he sucked in a deep breath, and his head lifted. He reached out his trembling hand over to C
Rayline. Chris lifted the sword back up with a solemn look, ready to chop his bones off, and started to swing. But before Chris could swing the sword, Lilith suddenly stepped aside, stopping him in his motion. "Hmm..." Lilith stepped forward, and Chris suddenly stopped in midair. "I think I have seen this before." He said, moving between me and Cole. "You are ready to give up everything, while the ones around you squirm helplessly." She went on, talking about the night Cole would trade himself... to let them kill him so that all of us could leave. Cole's head snapped up to meet her eyes, with a glint of hatred. "But there was something missing, something that happened afterward. What is it now?" She tapped her fingers on her lips, as if in deep thought. "Oh! I remember now!" She let out a maniacal laugh. "You lost the person you loved the most..." Then she lifted a sacred sword, the reflection of its light glistening down on the steel, as her eyes locked onto mine, and I felt a pie
Rayline. To my horror, I watched as the skin of his wings was ripped away from the bones that reached out below, leaving only shredded pieces of flesh. His blood spilled onto the ground, soaking the tiles beneath him. She did not stop. With an expressionless face, Lilith continued to shred her own son's wings... the most precious thing to them. "STOP!" Cole's shout echoed out, filled with pain. Tears flooded his eyes. In a fit of rage, he let loose a blast of power that sent the men flying across the room, crashing to the hard ground. Cole reached out his hand towards Lilith, trying to stop her. Lilith froze in place, while Jesse's screams stopped, his body falling to the ground with a sound that struck my heart. I rushed towards him, my heart sank as I made my way to his side at the sight of the remains of his wings in a pool of blood, and a sick feeling came over me, making me bring my hand to my mouth, trying to hold back the gasps. How could she do this? To her own son. "...H
Rayline. Cole let out a slow breath, as if trying to calm himself down. I hold on to his side, trying to provide support. "But I'm not done with you yet," Lilith continues with a sinister smile. "Cole!" I exclaim as his body abruptly slips out of my arms, throws onto the stairs of the dais, and lands hard on his back. A groan escaped his lips. "To think a half-breed like you could beat me." Lilith walked haughtily towards Cole, her smile full of disdain. "What happened to all those threats, huh?" she asked, her eyes flashing with cruelty as she lifted her hand, making his eyes widen and I could see her power take hold of his throat. "What happened to ripping me apart, hm?" She took a step closer. Cole remained motionless, his blood-red eyes locked on Lilith, full of malice. "What's wrong? Nothing left to say, mutt?" But then, Cole smirked. His blood-stained lips curled up, making Lilith frown, puzzled. Slowly, his hands opened, causing the melted pieces of metal to fall to the gr
Rayline. Chaos broke out in a split second. Before I could even see his movements, Cole was already whizzing over to Lilith. The blazes lining the entire wall burst with the sudden increase in heat, forcing me to lift my arms to protect myself. Screaming and roaring could be heard clearly as Cole furiously swung his claws at her while she quickly dodged out of his reach. Lilith sent a wave of fire that blasted across the room, scorching the air around her, which made Cole lift his wings and throw them off to the side. I ducked down to avoid the lick of flame that shot out when I heard my name being called. As I turned my head, I caught sight of Taylor staring at me, tugging on the enchanted chains that held both him and Jesse, and without thinking, I jumped to my feet and slid towards them. In another corner of the room, Levi and the other demons were too distracted with helping their leader to focus on me, in addition to the battle that was going on inside the room. Once I reache