She paced along the edge of the lake, back and forth.

  Her thoughts tangled into tight, relentless knots, crashing against one another inside her skull. She tried to calm herself. Tried to gather them, sort them, make sense of anything—but it was impossible.

  “Ahhh—!”

  The scream tore from her throat and vanished into the pitch-black sky.

  Tears streamed down her face. She dropped to her knees, fingers clawing into the grass as she sobbed. She howled with pain. All the effort—hers and her doctors’—to pull herself back from the edge, to learn how to stand again…

  Her scars burned. Itched. Especially the ones on her wrists, whispering insistently, seductively, urging her to open them again.

  God knew how badly she wanted to.

  “Jacek!”

  She screamed his name through broken sobs, driving her hands deeper into the earth until her joints protested. The thoughts in her head pressed too hard, crushed too tight. She tensed every muscle she had, desperate to force them out.

  Eventually, she collapsed.

  Her vision clouded, then went black. She fell fully onto the damp grass, gasping for air in sharp, uneven breaths. Her half-conscious mind flooded with memories—of a time when she had been happy with Jacek.

  The confession.

  The first kiss—sudden, unexpected.

  Shared outings. Laughter.

  All of it replayed in black and white, slowed down, relentlessly labeled as past. A past that would never return.

  It took a long time for the sobbing to quiet. She cried softly, mourning innocence lost forever—hers, and that of the best man she had ever known.

  After another hour, her exhausted body began to recover, if only slightly. She pushed herself upright and sat trembling on the grass, staring at the lake’s dark surface. Lights from houses on the opposite shore shimmered ominously in the water.

  The wind from the lake brushed her face gently.

  She closed her eyes and let the sounds of the night ground her, just like during therapy sessions. Slowly, her breathing steadied. Her heart found its rhythm again.

  She thought—this time clearly. Rationally.

  What had happened wounded her deeply, though she knew she wasn’t the one who had suffered the most. Her thoughts drifted to Maya. She wasn’t ready to erase her, to destroy their entire friendship.

  “Hey, Maya,” she said when her friend answered the phone. “Are you busy?”

  “Well… kind of. Why?” There was tension in Maya’s voice.

  He told her, Amelia thought.

  “Nothing urgent. Let me know when you’re free. I’d like to light a candle at your mom’s grave.”

  “Not before tomorrow after four. Maybe lunch?”

  “Sure. I’ll pick you up.”

  When she hung up, she noticed a missed call from Julia.

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  “I’m on my way back,” she said when her mother answered. A deep sigh followed, then silence.

  “I’m going to sleep,” Julia said finally. “Do you have your keys?”

  “I do.”

  “Okay.”

  “I love you, Mom,” Amelia whispered. “I’m sorry I left like that. I needed it.”

  “I understand, sweetheart. Good night.”

  The call ended.

  The walk home felt endless. Darkness thickened like autumn fog, swallowing even the streetlights. Silence rang in her ears.

  She managed to ignore it—until a black sports car sped past her.

  Panic surged.

  She felt watched again.

  She scanned her surroundings without slowing, but saw no one. The unease only grew. She quickened her pace. By the time she reached her building, she was on the brink of losing control.

  And then it got worse.

  Standing at the door, she reached into her pocket.

  Empty.

  She searched the other pocket—nothing.

  “Oh God. Please. Someone let me in,” she whispered, bracing herself against the doorframe. She didn’t want to wake Julia. Not like this.

  “That might be yours.”

  The voice behind her was unfamiliar—and unmistakably known.

  A shiver ran through her body. She froze. Her mind went blank, except for one overwhelming memory.

  Slowly, she turned.

  Her heart raced—fear or excitement, she couldn’t tell. The first thing she saw was a hand holding her keys. A beautiful man’s hand, covered in a black tattoo that shimmered with gold and silver.

  Feathers, she realized. Black feathers.

  “You dropped it a few meters back,” he said softly.

  She swallowed hard and lifted her gaze—from the leather-clad arm, to his tattooed neck, to his face.

  Her breath left her lungs.

  She sagged backward, barely kept upright by the door. He caught her with one arm, careful, as if she might shatter.

  She knew him.

  That perfect face—no longer terrifying. Those eyes, black as space itself. More human now, but undeniably not human. Those lips.

  The fear. The uncertainty. The disorientation.

  “It’s you…” she breathed.

  She didn’t dare blink, afraid he would vanish—or turn back into the monster from her dreams.

  He didn’t.

  “You needed me,” he said.

  His voice vibrated through her, sending waves from her feet to the crown of her head. Something impossible filled her chest—real happiness. Twisted with fear, anger, and unbearable desire.

  Her eyes filled with tears.

  “It’s not a dream?” she asked.

  He shook his head and smiled gently. Relief softened his features. Confidence returned. His gaze darkened, lips parting slightly.

  “This is insane,” she whispered.

  The air around him shimmered like it did in her dreams. Streetlights dimmed. She wanted to run. She wanted to touch him. Stranger and familiar all at once, her body buzzed with a strange, intoxicating energy.

  “It’s okay now,” he said warmly, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear.

  The touch shattered her. She closed her eyes and leaned into his hand. Her heart still raced, but it was okay.

  He traced her lower lip with his thumb.

  She looked at him, hungry.

  Not animal hunger. Something older. A pull, like a minus drawn to a plus.

  He opened the door, wrapped an arm around her waist, and guided her inside. His body burned with restraint. He pressed her gently against the wall, inhaled the scent of her hair, brushed his nose along her neck, and kissed her softly.

  The kiss felt like a promise of salvation.

  Too gentle. Infuriatingly gentle.

  Don’t hurt me, she pleaded silently.

  My love, his voice echoed inside her mind, perfectly aligned with the tenderness in his eyes.

  He kissed her once more—just as softly—then placed the keys into her palm.

  And he was gone.

  “You will never be alone again,” his voice lingered. “Sweet dreams.”

  The door clicked shut behind her.

  Amelia stood alone in the dark hallway, keys still warm in her hand.

  And for the first time, she wasn’t sure whether she wanted him to come back— or whether she was already afraid that he would.

  Thank you for reading the first part of the story.

  New chapters will be released regularly.

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  - N.