Lips Red As Blood

10 |

Disbelief and horror whip across Cora's body, as she stands there motionlessly, while a battle brews inside her. It feels like she's choking, like the air is being wrenched out of her throat. 

"I don't understand," she mumbles, stumbling slightly like she's in a trance. "Why are you... with her? Why are you together? Why would you do this to me?" 

It hurts. Like a knife, slicing deeper and deeper until emotions pool out like blood. Cora's throat feels dry, the atmosphere around her uncertain — as if she wants to cry, but can't. She wants to scream, but her voice doesn't come out. She wants to grab Ryan's shirt and scream at him or ask how he could be perfectly fine with hurting her or fall towards the floor or run away. 

But she can't. Her feet are rooted towards the concrete ground, a slow burning in her chest. Wildfire, burning and scorching, clashes with the ocean wave of sorrow and embarrassment. 

They haven't noticed her yet, too engulfed in the interesting conversation they're having. Brielle lets out a flirtatious giggle. Cora rears, prepared to destroy them. Ryan points at a status, whispering mischievously into his date's ear. Cora crumbles, turning to dust. 

"Ryan Cho," Cora says. She reaches for his shirt, desperation slipping through Cora's fingers. "How could you—" 

Ryan's head turns a fraction, about to see his ex, when someone wrenches Cora behind a bush. "What in the world do you think you're doing?" Asher hisses, looking furious. "Are you trying to get us killed? Leaving your car in the middle of the road, running off to a park, following a demon and your ex? Is this how you're going to fulfill part of your deal?" 

Cora goes quiet, swallowing hard. 

"Our deal was solely based on you moving on from Ryan," he explodes, angrily running his fingers through his hair. "And yet, here we are, hiding behind a bush because you were trying to play stalker." 

Heart throbbing, Cora bites down on her lower lip, hands trembling. 

"It was supposed to be 'fall in love and move on from ex' — not 'chase ex after seeing him with a female species' or 'try to wrestle him to the ground to show how unhinged and how not over him you are.'" Asher shakes his head, disappointed. "I honestly thought you would have more control, but when it comes to your ex, I guess not." 

"Enough!" 

Cora's voice lashes out like a whip, startling them both with the shrillness and sharpness of her tone. 

"I get it, okay?" She chokes up, voice cracking. "I made a mistake and I'm stupid for following Ryan and I should've have even got out of the car and I shouldn't have even looked in their direction. I know all that, so can you just stop berating me about the mistake I did?" 

Asher blinks, stunned. "Well, I was just trying to help," he stammers. "I didn't mean to make you upset." 

Cora looks down, still overwhelmed by the emotions that crash onto her head. 

"Hey, don't cry," Asher says gently. He looks like he's debating whether he should hug Cora or not, before deciding to do a half-hug, half-pat on the back. "I shouldn't have yelled at you like that. I know how hard it is to move on from someone you love." 

A sob escapes Cora and the devil looks alarmed. "Sorry," Cora sniffles, wiping her tears away. Embarrassment makes her cheeks burn pink. "I cry when people comfort me." 

Asher coughs. "Remind me not to comfort you unless absolutely necessary." 

Cora sighs, after she's done crying. "So what do we do next?" she asks helplessly. "I don't think I can face Ryan without a) crying b) screaming at his face c) throwing something at him." 

Even saying her ex's name makes her heart hurt. 

"It's going to be as hard as I expected it to be." Cora scowls up at the sky. "I don't think I can move on from him." 

Asher looks like he's deep in thought, interlocking his fingers together. 

"Why do you think Brielle decided to seduce your ex?" he suddenly says, as if it just occurred to him. 

"Well, I can think of a couple of reasons," replies Cora. "It's obvious. She said she was going to give me a harsher punishment, for struggling. So she's trying to hurt the people I hold close." 

A sardonic smirk appears, a wry twist of his mouth. "That was one of my thoughts, too." Squinting, Asher kicks a pebble. "Honestly, I thought she was going to kill Ryan because she's a demon whose job is mainly assassination. It would solve all our problems if she did that, if I had to be honest." 

When Cora glowers, Asher shrugs. "I mean, wouldn't it?" he says defensively. "You would be forced to move on from him, if he were dead." 

"You're surprisingly dark for someone who likes sweet stuff and unicorns," says the girl. 

Asher waves a dismissive hand around. "Anyway. I know why Brielle approached Ryan now, after a few minutes of thinking. It's for bait." 

Bait. Of course. 

Brielle could back Cora in a corner if she kept the people Cora loved close. It wasn't about hurting them — it was about keeping them trapped in a sticky spider web, one that could keep all of them contained so that Cora would have to be careful about how she handled things. 

Hurt me, and it'll hurt. Hurt the people I keep close, and it'll hurt a thousand times. Hurt the people I love, and it'll hurt tenfold. 

"What do we do, then?" Suddenly, Cora feels worried. "What if Brielle already tracked where I lived? She found Ryan, then it's a matter of time until she finds Harper." 

The biggest concern echoes inside her: What if she already got to Harper? 

Cora shoves the worries down, though unease electrocutes every part of her body. Asher's expression looks determined. 

"Brielle and William will make our plan harder," he says slowly. "So we'll need to make a backup plan specifically for them." 

Author Note: 

omg, we're at chapter ten! thanks so much for the readers who have stayed up till here! question: if you were in cora's shoes, what would you do about brielle and william?