Lyra’s POVI can’t believe that I pushed myself to be in this tight, awkward, and stupid situation. What in the world was I thinking by agreeing to this? Did I really think that I was that untouchable now? Well, I was too dumb.Letting Peter stare at me for this long without showing him what I know is another level of hell that I hate so much. It’s creeping me out, the way he looks at me with lust in his eyes. Removing my coat was a bad idea. I shouldn’t have thought that showing off was a sign of me getting more powerful. I am weak as heck.If Derrick was not here, beside me, holding my hand, I would’ve already run away and left, even if everyone was cheering for the couple celebrating their engagement.I was a little fish thrown into a tank filled with sharks. I was bleeding as the loud whispers scratched me deeper and deeper. I know that everyone in this hall was more interested in seeing the drama that was between Mina and me. Perhaps the revenge route was never for me. Goodness,
Peter pointed at the side of Lyra’s neck, which she covered with thick concealer and foundation. "You’re hooking up with him?" His voice sounded hurt. He acted as if he just found out that his woman cheated on him and then slapped him across the face right after. He was defeated and furious. He’s losing his mind. "Did he pay you? Did you turn into a sex worker like your friend too?" "What the fuck?" Raine came out of the restroom just in time to hear Peter freak out. Rhian came right behind her to yell, "This man’s bothering you, Lyra?" She looked at him from head to toe. "What a disgusting-looking bastard." "You must be kidding me, Lyra!" The man pulled her arm with all his might. "We dated for so long, and you pretended to be a prim and proper, saint-like woman. But now, you sell your body for money!" His yells became increasingly loud, preventing Lyra from breathing normally once more. "How disgusting!" He sarcastically laughed. "I did not know that I would need money for you
"I have to say, that was insane!" Zin was too happy to cause chaos. He clapped his hands as they got out of the car to get inside the mansion. If he were in his original form, Derrick was sure that by now he would be zooming all over the place and scattering all his feathers."I was glad that you enjoyed that," Lyra told him. "It was a horrible experience for me, but I am glad that it is all over.""Not really," Derrick said. "You plan to sue them, right?""At the drive home, I was thinking of not pushing through with it, honestly," she responded. She took off her heels as soon as they got inside the door and walked barefoot. "I just wanted to make them fear me, for once, and it felt like I accomplished my goal.""If you back out, they will stop fearing you again, knowing that you won't be able to do anything against them but talk."Derrick loosened up his tie and sat on the couch to chat with Lyra, who immediately lied down and used her coat as a blanket."I don’t think I am ready fo
"Today is the day," Zin gladly announced, putting down a warm bowl of chicken noodle soup at the table for Lyra to enjoy.She looked down to see how massive her bowl was. The serving bowl was filled to the top just for her."Zin, I can't finish this," she stated. Lifting up the spoon, she found how huge the chicken pieces were and her mind exploded. "Zin, how hungry do you think I am?""Come on, Miss Lyra, today is the day that you'll face the people in the company." Zin tapped her on the shoulder. "Of course, you have to be full to have more energy."Derrick sat back in the chair, his arms crossed as he grinned at Lyra. He watched as Lyra gasped each time she saw a huge chunk of meat."Zin, you're about to make her even more nervous," Derrick shared. "If she becomes too full, she will be worried about vomiting."Her eyes widened as she quickly turned to look at him. She was surprised to hear how Derrick knew that about her. Thinking back, Lyra never shared that with him, but he seeme
"There are a lot of places to express how sweet you two are. Do you really plan on doing that right in front of us as well?" Dame expressed his bitterness towards Derrick. As he glanced at the way the devil held Lyra's hand while casually sitting on the couch, he rolled his eyes.Their first day at the office hasn't been that eventful yet. But Lyra was already excited about going home, and hiding in their room. She could tell that Dame was kidding. But she can't help but feel shy that other people notice how inseparable they are from each other."Derrick, maybe you can let go of my hand," she whispered."They have to get used to this," Derrick responded. "Don't mind Dame, he's just the Demon that hates love.""That's not my title.""Well, it kinda is, really," Zin added. "You're the demon in charge of punishing all the people that turned evil over love.""That doesn't mean that I hate love, does it?""You always hated having to work so much." Zin chuckled. "It correlates, I think.""T
The entire day, Lyra was just peacefully sitting beside Derrick, listening to everything that Derrick had to listen to, and answering whatever question was being asked of her. During lunch, she found out that her former dream of eating at a company canteen was not as fun as how she saw them from shows before. Every bite she attempted to take was monitored by a bunch of people, curious to know more about her or too jealous of what she had. Having three beautiful and hot-looking men sitting at the same table as hers did not help her at all.After ordering a feast, she was able to get at least three bites in. Then, she desperately ran back up to the office. Lyra was sad. Having no privacy is never good. But she has recently figured out why it’s so bad. Seeing some of the employees sneak a candid photo of her and Derrick makes her want to bite her tongue off. She was too uncomfortable to even say that she was uncomfortable. Luckily, Zin and Dame were considerate enough to pack the foods a
Waking up for her third full day of working at the office, Lyra immediately sighed. She checked the empty space beside her and walked towards her closet to pick up the dress that she had prepared the night before. Derrick was out, sitting in the living room. She could hear the sound of the television. It was probably showing the latest news that Zin had gathered for his master to watch. She never thought that Derrick would be better than her at adjusting to this life. But Lyra had the determination to do better. She knew that she had to do well, or else she might not be able to fulfill the promise she made to Derrick. When she promised to learn and get well adjusted to her new world, she had no idea where to start. But once Derrick told her that she was too kind and too easy to manipulate, it stung. Something deep inside her understood what he meant by that too well. Her only goal is to be powerful enough to protect herself from all the people that are trying to make her into their o
Lyra’s POV It was tough, trying to fit in a world that’s the total opposite of what I tolerated for years. I feel like it would have been better if I had wanted this status before, but I didn’t. So, maybe that was the main reason why I couldn’t really dive into it with excitement. I never wanted to be the princess of the story. I did not long for a life that was admired and wanted by everyone else. Perhaps because I grew up associating being rich with that man, Elvis, I have always stopped myself from dreaming about a fortune because I knew that I could only get there with the help of that man, and I would rather live my life wearing rags than accept him as my father. But now, it’s different. Although nothing of it came from my own efforts, it was a gift from Derrick. I know why he wanted me to have this. He wants to set me up for perfect vengeance against everyone who turned their backs on me during the most difficult times of my life, as well as those who never treated me as anyth
"It’s already seven; where is she?""I swear, Zin, they told me that they would be home immediately; they were just in the restaurant; what would take them so long? They can walk from there to here and it will only take an hour.""I think we should have followed Miss Lyra around as well," Zin replied to Dame. "It is much more difficult for us to take good care of her when we are still focused on the office job. It’s going to risk her life even more. We made a really bad decision; I am already calling it." Zin bit his lips and sat back down on the couch, looking out of the window to see the exact moment that the security people and Lyra would arrive back home. "I think it’s better if we just tell her exactly whats happening. It could really be the best option, but we ignored it like a psycho and chose the risky approach.""I know that trusting other people for Miss Lyra’s safety is a little bad for us to do, but it’s a matter that should be stopped by humans, right?" Dame stated. "If s
"It’s been fine," Lyra happily smiled as she spoke with her friend, Rhian. "I know that you two might think that I am lying, but I swear, I am doing a lot better this week. I am trying my best to have my best life.""I know you are really worried because of your relationship with Derrick; Zin has already told me that," Raine joined in as she placed two huge bowls of shaved ice dessert on the table. "He had told me that the two of you had a really bad fight. He asked us to be extra nice to you because you are really sad about it.""Yeah," Lyra lied. "But we were able to talk it out.""Of course, nothing will be resolved when you put time and effort into communicating your real feelings and your true emotions. It’s really great to hear!"Lyra nodded once again. She was not able to tell her friends that everything they were talking about right now were thoughts and pieces of information that appeared out of nowhere. Dame and Zin had informed Lyra one week ago that there was a rumor roami
"Dame!" Zin rushed inside the mansion with sweat dripping from his forehead. He saw how Dame’s eyes grew big in surprise, and before he could even say anything to him, Zin had already snatched his cold beer and chugged it right in front of him. "What happened to you?" Dame looked around, checking whether there was someone chasing after Zin. However, aside from the beautiful and calm view of the pool behind him, there was nothing. "Why do you look like that?" Is there someone chasing after you? Are you in trouble?" "I don’t think I was being chased," Zin said. Dame rolled his eyes when he answered. "Then why do you have to come in here as if you were about to die or something? You stressed me out within the few seconds that you arrived." He grabbed the bottle of beer from Zin’s hand and took a sip from it as if claiming what was his. "What’s wrong with you then? Were you able to visit Master?" "I did," Zin answered, sitting beside Dame. "I actually did a lot more than that, and I r
As Zin soared higher in the darkened sky, he marveled at the view before him. The borders of hell and earth were marked by a jagged line of jagged rocks that extended as far as the eye could see. The air was thick with the stench of sulfur, and the sky was a deep shade of crimson that seemed to bleed into the horizon. In the distance, he could see the dark silhouettes of mountains rising up against the fiery sky and the occasional flicker of flames dancing in the abyss. It was a desolate and terrifying landscape, but one that Zin had grown accustomed to over the years. As a demon of hell, he had traveled to the borders many times, but this time felt different, and he couldn't shake the feeling that something was about to go horribly wrong. Going closer to the edge, he felt tightness in his chest. It's always been this way whenever he flew closer to crossing the borders. He could already feel the breeze coming from the land of the living, but his gut feeling seemed to have won that tim
Elvis sat in his grand office, surrounded by opulence and extravagance. The room was adorned with expensive paintings and rare collectibles, but the air was thick with tension. Wendy, his best partner in crime, sat across from him, her face set in a deep frown. The only sound in the room was the soft ticking of a gold-plated clock on the mantle. Despite the grandeur of the room, there was a sense of foreboding that seemed to permeate every inch of the space. Both knew that they were treading dangerous waters with their plan to bring down Lyra, and the tension between them was palpable.Elvis sat across from Wendy in his office, his eyes locked on hers as he pitched his latest plan."Wendy, I need you on this one," he said, his voice low and urgent."What's the plan, Elvis?" Wendy asked, crossing her arms."We need to bring Lyra down," he said, leaning forward in his seat. "Something that we always do, but this time it's going to work out!"Wendy listened to Elvis with a sense of appre
Dame was surprised to find Lyra sitting alone in the dark living room with no lights on. He had brought lots of food back to the mansion, hoping to lift her spirits, but seeing her like this made him worried. It was really bad timing that Zin decided to try and go back down to hell that night. Dame could tell, just by the vibes that had hit him straight on, that he wouldn't know how to deal with Lyra like that."Miss Lyra, are you okay?" he asked, placing the bags of food on the coffee table in front of her. He wanted to kick himself in the face. The look in her eyes is the perfect tell that she is not doing alright, but he still chose to ask, just to make her feel bad that it shows. "You know what, let me just get the lights; don’t even bother," he whispered before walking directly to the switch.Lyra looked up at him, her eyes red and puffy from crying. "You are already back?" she asked, confused as she watched the leaves outside the window dance. "It’s already dark outside," she sa
A black bird flew into Derrick's shoulder as he was calmly watching over the newly appointed demons in his realm. As soon as he was able to look into its eyes, his mouth fell wide open, and his jaw hit the floor beneath him. He won't be able to forget those eyes, and he would never forget how Zin looks when he's in his real form.Immediately, Derrick stood up to snap his fingers in the air, and without waiting for another second, they were inside a dark room. Derrick's own little space whenever he wanted to stay out of everyone's sight. His only hiding spot from all the demons that would often try to bombard him with a bunch of questions or sometimes the yells of those souls who were being punished."What are you doing here?" he immediately asked. Right before his eyes, he watched as Zin transformed into his human form to hug him. "Zin, is there something going on? Why are you back here? You crossed the borders again?""Master, it doesn't matter right now," he said, still clinging on
Derrick paced back and forth on his desolate throne in hell, tormented by the images and thoughts invading his mind. He kept seeing Lyra, his beloved wife, surrounded by sinister figures and cloaked in shadows. The more he tried to push the visions away, the more they persisted. Even if he knew that he'd only bring chaos into Lyra's life, he found out that he wouldn't be able to give it up that quickly. Especially after he spent an entire month's worth of time in hell reminiscing about the moments they had together."My dear, please be safe out there," he whispered, wishing that it was only the thoughts in his head that kept on messing him up and not real visions or premonitions of what was happening or what was supposed to come for Lyra in the land of the living. If that was the case and he's stuck down in the depths of nothingness, he will for sure not be able to move forward. He is afraid of what he might end up doing just to stop that."I do not need much," he stated. "I only need
Lyra sat at the breakfast table, pushing her food around with her fork as Zin and Dame bid her farewell. "We'll be back as soon as we can, Miss Lyra," Zin said, giving her a reassuring smile. "Take care of yourself," Dame added, placing a hand on Lyra's shoulder. "If you need anything, just call us." Lyra forced a small smile. "Thanks, guys. I'll be fine. I just need some rest, that's all." Zin and Dame exchanged a worried glance before Zin spoke up. "Are you sure you don't want us to stay? We can handle the hotel issues later." Lyra shook her head. "No, it's fine. You guys go ahead. I'll take care of myself." As they gathered their things and made their way out of the mansion, Lyra was left alone with her thoughts. She couldn't shake the conversation she had with Lucifer out of her head, and the more she thought about it, the more uneasy she felt. "I can't believe he would do something like that," she muttered to herself, her voice barely above a whisper. "Why would he want to