Control (Dark Romance)

Chapter 4

Curses spew from my lips as I try harder, only for the catastrophe around me to worsen.

I could not fray, not tonight. Not tonight... but I was.

Unravelling at the seams and losing all the control I'd worked so hard for, and I hadn't even seen him yet.

Maybe I should take over - Neo suggests even though we both knew his control over my magic was satisfactory on his best day - Hey! I'm getting better!

That is true, but tonight is worse than usual.

Accurately speaking, tonight was horrific.

You've done all you could to prepare - Neo reminds.

That was also true. 

I'd seen Damon first thing this morning to go over our plan for tonight. Afterwards, I'd made sure to take his advice to get rid of any extra energy that might distract me.

I'd run for as long as I physically could on four legs, then drained my energy banks with the most intricate spells I could find in Ma's grimoires, and finally had Jacob siphon as much dark magic from me as he could.

That was supposed to be enough, more than enough, but the current state of my family home argued otherwise.

"Nikola!" Ma shouts once more, her worry audible as the sound of approaching steps grows louder. "Are you okay?!"

"No!" I bellow back, because what kind of question was that when there was apparently lava in the living room. 

I could feel her magic pressing into mine, trying to calm it at first, then contain it, and finally to overpower it when harsh rains and thunderstorms start outside in rebellion.

That wasn't ideal.

In the worst kind of situations, ones like these where I could not control my magic, Ma used her magic to overpower mine, but that wasn't working tonight.

Mine was too chaotic, running rampant from me like an uncapped jar that had burst under all the pressure, and there were no signs of thwarting it now.

It was terrifying in a way I found few things were, but my magic had always alarmed a part of me.

It still did, even though it had been a very long time since I'd lost control of my magic to this extent.

This hadn't happened since I was a kid when I used to wake everyone up nightly with the horrible earthquakes I'd cause in my sleep.

I raise my wrist again, 9:35 pm.
Fuck.

A knock on the door followed by the familiar scent of vetiver and sandalwood has everything stilling at once.

Dad pokes his head in before I can call for him, offering me one of his easy smiles that make the ache in my jaw ease.

"You're losing your shit,"

I feel the corner of my lips twitch a little, "I am."

"Once you know," he mumbles before he ambles inside as if the dark magic around us couldn't tear him to shreds.

It doesn't, wouldn't dare. My raw energy, even untamed as it was, knew better.

Closing the door behind him, I watch as my dad casually makes his way to my bed, where he smoothes out my comforter before he sits down without a care in the world.

It helps it ease back, the chaos under my skin. His fearlessness made it all seem more manageable. It always did.

"You don't usually get nervous, for anything," he comments with a slight tilt to his head, "this is new terrain for me."