Nyx
"You're not the only monster in this room."
The words lingered in the air long after Adrian said them.
I didn't know why…
But they hurt. Not because they were cruel.
Because he sounded like he believed them.
About himself. The hunger in my throat burned again, forcing me back to reality.
I gripped the edge of the table harder. My entire body felt weak.
Shaky.
Unstable.
And the worst part?
The scent of Adrian's blood was still stuck in my head. Warm. Sweet. Dangerous.
"I hate this," I whispered. Adrian leaned against the wall across from me, arms crossed. "I know." That annoyed me immediately. "You don't know anything about me."
"I know enough."
"There you go again with the mysterious answers."
A faint sigh escaped him. "You ask questions you're not ready to hear answers to." I glared at him. "That's not your decision to make."
For a second, silence filled the room again.
But this silence felt different.
Less hostile.
Still tense.
Just… quieter.
Another sharp wave of hunger hit me suddenly. I sucked in a shaky breath. Adrian noticed instantly. Of course he did. His eyes narrowed slightly.
"You're getting worse."
"I noticed," I muttered bitterly.
He pushed himself off the wall and walked toward me slowly. Every step made my heartbeat react stupidly fast. Which was honestly becoming embarrassing.
"You need blood," he said calmly.
"No."
"Nyx."
"I said no."
My voice came out harsher than intended. But I didn't care. I wasn't doing that again. I wasn't becoming that thing. Adrian stopped directly in front of me. Close enough that I could feel his presence.
Warm.
Dangerous.
Comforting.
Which made absolutely no sense. "If you keep starving yourself," he said quietly, "your instincts will take over completely." I looked away immediately.
"I'll deal with it."
"No," he replied coldly. "You won't."
That irritated me enough to look back at him.
"And what exactly is that supposed to mean?"
His expression hardened slightly.
"It means the next time you lose control, someone dies." The room went silent.
My stomach twisted painfully.
Because deep down….
I knew he wasn't lying. Fear crawled slowly into my chest. Not fear for myself. Fear of what I could become. Adrian seemed to notice the exact moment my expression changed. His voice became quieter after that.
"Listen to me carefully." I hated how serious he sounded. "You're stronger than newborn vampires." My eyebrows frowned immediately.
"Why?"
"That's the problem." Not helpful.
Again.
"You keep saying things like that and then refusing to explain anything."
"Because I don't have proof yet."
That caught my attention.
"Proof of what?"
Adrian hesitated.
Just briefly.
Then…
"Of what you really are."
A chill ran through me.
"What I really am…?"
Before he could answer..
A phone suddenly started vibrating somewhere in the room.
Adrian's expression changed instantly.
Sharp.
Alert.
He pulled a phone from his pocket and glanced at the screen.
For the first time since I met him…
He looked genuinely concerned.
"What happened?" I asked quietly.
He didn't answer immediately.
Which obviously meant something bad.
Finally, he looked at me.
"They found your house."
My blood ran cold.
"What?"
"They know where your family is."
Everything inside me stopped.
Mom.
I stepped toward him immediately.
"We need to go."
"You can barely control yourself."
"I don't care!" I snapped. "My mom is there!"
Adrian's jaw tightened slightly.
Like he expected this reaction.
"You going there right now is dangerous."
"So I'm supposed to do nothing?!"
My voice cracked at the end.
I hated that.
Adrian stared at me for a long moment.
Thinking.
Calculating.
Then finally…
He made a decision.
"We make a deal."
I blinked.
"What?"
"You listen to me," he said calmly. "Completely. No arguing. No reckless decisions."
"And then?"
"I take you home."
Hope hit me so suddenly it almost hurt.
But suspicion followed immediately after.
"And why would you help me?"
For a moment…
His expression became unreadable again.
Then he answered quietly:
"Because if they're targeting your family…"
His gaze locked onto mine.
"…then this is bigger than I thought."