chapter seven

[ IN WHICH SHE IS A DAMSEL IN DISTRESS ]

From the frying pan to the fire.

I ran from the market, and fell right into the hands of three hungry men, who then spiralled me into the trap of the King. If I had stayed at the harmless market a little bit longer, I wouldn't be in the fire right now.

My eyes are glued to the man in front of me. I shift on my feet, uncomfortably, unsure of what to do at a moment like this. I didn't expect to cross paths with the King this way. And now that I have, what do I do?

“Are you really the King?” I ask, breathless.

“Why do you ask?" He tilts his head. "You do not think I am the King?"

My eyes rove round the forest, looking for a route to run through if he tries anything suspicious. But I doubt I'll get that far with huge wings like his.

“Let's just say it'll do us both some good if you aren't the King.”

"And why is that?" His arms are folded across his bare chest.

He takes a step closer, but I step back, cautiously.

"Because I think the King is dangerous."

"What makes you think he is dangerous? " He lifts a dark eyebrow.

The space between my brows crease as I stare at the grey eyed man. "He kidnapped me, and killed my friends!" I scream. "So, if you're him, you better hope I don't attack you right now."

Despite my harsh and haughty tone, the man before me remains calm as he speaks in a kind tone, enunciating his words perfectly.

"Those were never your friends." He tells me. "You may not understand this now, but at times, protecting one comes at a cost."

"Protecting?" I scoff. "If I need protection, it would be protection from you. You cannot justify evil! You ordered for those people to be killed! There's no saying what you would do to me next."

He breathes heavily. "I would never hurt you."

"That's funny, because you already did that by bringing me here."

He doesn't say anything after that. He just stares into my brown eyes in silence, almost like he's lost in some trance. And that annoys me.

"Why am I even wasting time speaking with you?" I search around for some weapon to threaten him with, and ensure my safety, but all I see is a twig. The small and thin branch lays beneath me. Eyeing the man carefully, I quickly pick it up before he gets a whiff of my plan. I wield it like a machete and point it at him. "You are going to show me the way back home."

The corners of his lips curl upward, but he licks his lips and soon, the smile is gone. He takes a step towards me, letting the twig poke his bare chest.

"And if I do not?"

I swallow hard. There's something about him that makes my heart jump at the slightest movement he makes. I quickly shake my thoughts off and move closer towards me, close enough to intimidate him. "You do not want to underestimate me."

He moves much closer. The twig makes a crack sound as it pierces him slightly.

"You will not hurt me." He says, confidently.

I grip the stick tighter. "How are you so sure about that?"

"The same way I will not hurt you."

With that, he snatches the twig out of my hands. He breaks it into two, throwing it behind me, far into the forest.

"Take me home!"

"You are home."

Angrily, I throw my injured arms around. "This hideous creation of yours—" I wince when my shoulders hurt. "Is not my home." I complete.

My body already hurt from falling out of the mansion. But they hurt even more after running a distance, in order to get away from those bloodsucking vampires. The King seems to notice I'm in pain, because he grabs my wrist gently, and pulls me towards him.

"Hey, let go!" I protest, even though electricity sparks through me from his pleasing touch. "I didn't say you could touch me, you asshole."

He places me atop a tree stump, letting me sit comfortably. Without wasting time, he goes down on one knee, aligning himself in front of me. He reaches for the ends of my royal blue dress. He's about to pull them up, but I quickly grab his hands.

At the contact, a cold shiver runs down my spine, and heat storms through my body. It seems he feels it too, because his eyes turn darker, filled with emotions. An unspoken conversation takes place within the next few seconds, and our eyes tell each other the words without a sound being made.

Swallowing again, I slowly let go of his hands, letting him do what he wants.

Unhurriedly, he lifts the ends of my dress, exposing my legs. He stops when my knees are exposed. The dark sky doesn't give my skin the usual glow, and that makes me a little self-conscious in front of the King. But, he doesn't notice that. He's concerned about something else.

"You are injured." He refers to the bruises, and the purple skin around my left ankle.

I feel an unexplainable emotion as I gaze down at him. Trying to hide my emotions, I say, "Well, no shit, Sherlock."

He snaps his head up. "I do not appreciate the use of curse words."

My eyes widen. "Oh, fuck! I had no fucking idea. What the hell was I thinking? I'm so fucking sorry, I won't say shit like—"

The King cuts me off immediately. He slaps his hands beside me on the tree stump, moving closer to me. I hold my breath when his face is inches away from mine. The sight of his grey eyes makes me tremble.

"We have only just met, but know this now. There are two things I do not tolerate: disobedience and disrespect," he says, getting back on one knee. "We need to get your wounds healed."

... [he said i couldn't curse in front of him, but he didn't say i couldn't curse him in my mind, so i did just that every time he annoyed me.] ...

"There's no first aid here, so we can't treat it." I try covering my legs back up, but he doesn't let me.

"Your wounds will not heal with that in this realm. And the first aid from the human world does not exist here."

My eyebrows furrow at his last statement. "Human world? Then what is this place?"

As expected, he ignores my question.

He gently grazes the bruise on my ankle, causing me to tense up. "Do I have your permission?"

I frown. "Permission for?"

"For whatever."

It takes a moment to understand him. I scoff at his question. "Birdman," I say. "I don't think you understand what's going on here. I do not like you." I glare at him. "Not even a little bit. So, no, you don't have my permission for whatever."

I get up on my feet, but he pulls me back down.

"Your wounds will not heal without my touch. Only my touch can heal you in this realm, without it, it will only get worse."

The way he speaks of a realm causes goosebumps to spring out of my arms. I want to leave this forsaken hell. I stand up again, staring him down. "Then, I'll choose dying over your touch."

... [i had a big mouth. i knew that. and my words ended up slapping me hard in the face, because a few days after, i begged for his touch.] ...

"You are making a mistake," he says, slowly getting up to his feet.

I put some distance between us, to slow my heart rate. "Tell me. What do you want from me?" I ask him. "The faster I get you want you want, the faster you can let me go, right?"

"Sure."

I'm unsatisfied with his response. "The faster I can go back, right?" I repeat.

"You know, November."

I shiver when he calls my name, a sensation running right through me.

... [that was just a fraction of what i'll feel when he eventually calls me by my real name] ...

"You do not need to hide your attraction beneath a thick blanket of hate and resentment."

"What?" I feel like a deer caught in headlights. "You think highly of yourself, don't you? I'm not attracted to you." I scoff at his joke.

"I never said it was me you were attracted to."

Huffing in embarrassment, I turn around, and begin tracing my way out of the dark forest.

"You are injured. You should not be walk—"

I cut him off. "I can handle myself, birdman. I have been fine for the past nineteen years."

"Are you sure you are nineteen? From your behavior, one would guess you are at the age of four."

I stop, turning to glare at him. "You do not want to provoke me. I have acrylic nails."

He smiles, letting his eyes light up for the first time since we met. "And you do not want to resist me." He pauses. "It will only cause you to beg for more."

I swallow. My throat suddenly feels tight. A blush crawls up my face, and I quickly turn around to hide myself from him.

"Stop."

His deep voice reverberates through the forest. It holds so much authority that I'm forced to stop walking. I slowly turn around. He's sauntering towards me. And before he approaches me, his wings shoot out of his back, creating a force similar to when waves collide in the oceans. I flinch at the power the wings hold. As he moves, he causes the trees to move with him, making the forest roar in acknowledgement of the presence of a powerful being.

The next thing I know, he picks me up in his arms.

Bridal style.

I gasp as I am being lifted into the air. "What are you doing? Put me down." I slap his shoulder.

"If you do not want to meet any more of these hideous creations, as you have called them, you might want to return to the mansion as soon as possible. It is getting darker, and the majority move at night."

"I can walk."

He ignores my pretense.

"Wrap your arms tight. I know you get air sick."

That is his last warning before he launches into the sky at full speed.