"Girl, what the hell happened? Why are we here so early?" Raine almost hit Rhian's nose right when she got inside the cute, overly pink cafe when she faked a punch. She rolled her eyes before sitting right in front of Lyra, who was already sipping a tall cup of iced coffee. "You even called Lyra? This bitch rarely slept, for sure. Remember how tired she was?""Nope," Lyra said."I slept all night, no problem.""Bitch, I was the one who didn't sleep," Rhian added. "And when I messaged the group chat, it was Lyra who immediately responded. She was the one who called me first, too. I was happy to hear that she was down to meet up.""You didn't sleep, and yet you wanted to meet up at seven in the morning in this cafe. Come on, Rhian, you live across the street in the apartment building; why can't we just stay there? I still want to lie down.""We can't," Rhian responded. She almost scalded her tongue as she sipped her latte. "It's being cleaned right now.""Huh?" Raine scratched her neck i
"What's wrong? Why do you keep on looking like you just saw a ghost or something?" Raine pulled Lyra aside as soon as they got into their apartment building. As they sent Rhian to the main reception to grab her keys, Lyra and Raine stayed outside to talk."Don't tell Rhian, but Dame called me earlier," she confessed. "He told me that last night, Rhian had told him that some of her past clients kept on bothering her in her apartment. Apparently last night, someone tried to break into her unit.""Oh, my God!" Raine began to worry. "I never heard that before. Why the hell did she not tell us earlier? She could have stayed in my unit immediately!""I know, it was very scary!" Lyra checked to see if Rhain was still far away from them. "Luckily, Dame was there to keep her safe. I can't even imagine what might have happened if that wasn't the case."Raine bit her lip and shook her shoulders, trying to shake off the strange shivers she was experiencing. "That's really bad; I can't believe tha
It was a wild morning for Robert at the publishing company. He's been pounding his head since early in the morning because he was bothered by Lian. Everything that he had ordered her to do Lian was adamant that she should be the one to take on the project for the Business Mag, but when he gave it to her, she did everything she could to make it all wrong. When he ordered Lian to behave and just do her job, Lian messed it up by going in with ulterior motives that Robert soon discovered through the stories of the other crew members. Once he realized that Lian had offended the people who could literally bring them so much money, Robert panicked and called Lian and told her to apologize as soon as possible. But instead of listening, Lian chose to hang up on him without saying anything. Then, as soon as he had the chance to sit down and think of ways to make sure that Derrick and Lyra from Pluto Hotels wouldn't back out of the magazine feature, he received a complaint from Dame."Angelica!"
Rhian moved faster than the three girls expected. They didn't think that Dame had also taken care of the people who would fix things for her in her new unit. They just had to point out where the things should be put, and the movers would take care of arranging them. Only a few personal belongings were left for the girls to take care of. It was easy to organize Rhian's closet, especially since her two friends were there. It was amazing. Even with her new bed, she doesn't have to worry about it because it's already arranged for her. Lyra and Raine were very excited because of what they witnessed. Money does things differently; it makes everything easier. "I'm about to get used to this life," Rhian said while looking at each of her new pieces of furniture that matched her favorite color. The pink couch won her heart. She got new furniture that really spoke to her. It's crazy how a bunch of new stuff was delivered to her when she never picked any of it up. It was a treat to see everythi
The party was great. Derrick and the boys arrived with drinks for all of them to enjoy. It was rushed, but everyone was pleased to see variations of dishes on the table. There was an abundance of seafood dishes, steaks and grilled fish, fresh salads, and, of course, desserts. What caught Lyra's attention was the chicken soup. It was hearty and warming; it reminded her so much of her mother that she almost began to cry the first time she took a sip.It made Rhian happy to know that everyone liked her cooking. Raine was also proud to be the sous chef. She even bragged about how well she cut the carrots for the salad, which, of course, attracted a diss from Zin. He told her about how the mandolin would have worked much better. The comment earned him a glare from Raine and a laugh from everyone else. The entire time, all of them had a great time eating, but Rhian had a better time watching how Dame kept on getting more food for himself. If him stuffing a bunch of food in his face wasn't a
The sound of the wind singing through every wave woke up Lyra. The salty air immediately gave her a boost of energy as soon as her eyes opened. She was in a new room that she didn't even recognize. It was a cool-looking hut. The roof was made with straw, something that she had never seen before. They really found a great deal, renting out a nipa hut or villa by the beach last night, even though it was an impulse buy."Good morning, Love!"Lyra gasped as she saw Derrick's head pop up at the window. He has a huge smile on his face while watching how her eyes bulge."Oh, my goodness! You scared me!" She sat up with the thin blanket wrapped around her naked body. "What are you doing?" she asked. "You woke up quite early.""It's ten in the morning," he said. "You woke up late.""It is?" Lyra reached out to the wooden nightstand to reach his phone. "Oh my, what happened? I don't wake up this late!""I mean, after last night..." Derrick trailed off with a proud smirk on his face. "You could
Lyra's POV It was a beautiful day. It seemed so perfect. Derrick did everything to give me whatever I wanted. When I asked for him to grill us some meat, he did it without asking me anything. He had no idea how to do barbecue, but he was so excited that we were on vacation together that he tried to pretend that he knew what he was doing. Although the fire was too big and the beef looked like it was about to be cremated, I gave him a huge smile and showed him my two thumbs up just so I could see his confidence rise. I haven't tried to eat steak on skewers before, but I think he's onto something. I just have to remember to put a lot of salt on the sauce that I'll make later; he really used at least three granules to season the whole two-kilo pack. Derrick is very knowledgeable at a lot of things, but I figured out that he's not great with cooking. "Love! Do you think these are done cooking?" "Yeah! Put them on the plate!" I think they've been done for at least ten minutes, but when
Lyra is feeling torn. Seeing how Derrick tried so hard just so he could keep the bad news to himself made her heart break so much more. She could tell him that she knew, but she can't ruin the fun vacation that he's been trying to give her. She could clearly see how it would be much more difficult to manage for Derrick as well. As they sat by the beach, eating some freshly cut fruits, Lyra could see him peeking at his phone, trying to check the news that came from his men, who were dealing with stuff back at home. He'd then turn to her with a big smile on his face, as if nothing had happened. The stress was piling up on top of his plate, and soon it was going to spill over. "Love, do you want to explore the place?" He's been asking her that for quite some time now. He knew that she would give him the same answer, but he would still try. "You can shop, you know?" "Alone?" That was it, her overly used response. "Why are you trying to push me away? Did you find someone more interesting
"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