Enamored | ✓

19. Midnight Visits

I took the bus ride from the hospital and gazed into the starless sky of LA. Pollution masked the once radiant moon that shed its light over the city. Once I arrived, I took off my jacket and went inside my parents' room where my mother laid in bed to kiss her goodnight.

Walking back to my room, I noticed the seemingly innocent bouquet of blue roses Daemon gave me on my wooden desk. I've forgotten that they were there since Summer's death and her funeral.

None of the buds or the silky petals have dried up and died even after weeks of neglect. The untainted roses reminded me of the pressure and heartache Daemon brought me that I grabbed the flowers from its vase with the thorns piercing the palm of my hand and threw it in the trash can next to my desk. Putting the roses out of my mind, I decided to continue reading through the book Angelo gave me about my identity.

I laid on my stomach and crossed my ankles behind me while resting my chin on the palm of my hand. Reviewing what I have learned recently, everything about me from head to toe was desired by both Heaven and the Nether Realm.

"Daemon wants to eat your heart and throw your useless body to the creatures of the Nether Realm." I remembered Angelo's words causing me to shiver and wince in fear from the memory. I remembered the wishes my friends and I have left from the apples we ate and decided against suggesting them to my friends to use. The last time we utilized them, Daemon found a way to threaten the lives of the people I cared about.

Flipping through the pages of Fructus Est Nuptialis, I learned about the five levels of the Nether Realm which reminded me so much of Dante Alighieri's Inferno which had nine, instead of five levels in Hell. The book described each horror of the first four levels of the Nether Realm and how each soul is sent to each level depending on the gravity of their sins when they were alive.

However, not everything was all doom and gloom in the Nether Realm. In the fifth level, also known as the Empyrean fields, lived Daemon in his wicked glory and his obedient followers that served him when they were alive. The Empyrean fields mimicked most of Heaven's glamour and buildings except for the rubies, diamonds, and so much more gems that paved the roads of the Nether Realm.

Although the Nether Realm may have its precious and rare gems to offer, it will never beat the beauty of Heaven, I thought.

Unlike the Nether Realm, Heaven had nothing to offer but purity and goodness to the souls that entered through its gleaming pearly gates. The streets were paved with gold and mansions lined the streets as the souls that lived there basked in the never-ending warm daylight that Heaven offered.

After reading for awhile, I decided to take a hot shower and prepare myself for bed. Once I finished taking a shower, I did my usual routine of drying my hair, brushing my teeth, and moisturizing my face. After finishing my routine of getting ready for bed, I realized I forgot to bring in my clothes to change.

Wrapping my rough maroon towel around my body, I stepped out of the bathroom and screamed my lungs out when I saw Daemon lounging lazily on my tiny bed with one arm behind his head and reading the book I left on my bed. His cheshire cat grin grew when he saw me gripping my towel closer to my body.