┏━━━✦❘༻༺❘✦━━━┓
Stranger
┗━━━✦❘༻༺❘✦━━━┛
Chapter 4: Stranger (Hades' POV)
She'll fall to her death. My office is soundproof, we're up too high for someone to hear her on the street below us and she's over the railing. She can easily pull herself back up, but she's too drunk to do that.
I'm not meant to interfere in the life and death of any mortals, but I have a feeling there's something different about her. And I say that because her eyes fucking glowed. I sighed and walked over, grabbing her arm and pulling her back over the railing right before her fingers unwrapped themselves from the railing and she fell.
She's still screaming and I'm growing deafer and deafer by the second. It's annoying, really.
I clamped my hand over her mouth, her tears hitting my skin. "Shh!" I hissed loudly.
She stopped screaming and finally opened her eyes, her hands clutching onto my shirt tightly. Then she started crying again, closing her eyes tightly.
I stood still as she threw her arms around me and held on tighter than before. I stared blankly ahead of me, waiting for her to shut the fuck up because wow is this annoying.
She sniffled and then her crying died down.
I thought that was it, we were done, but then she fell limp in my arms. I grabbed her waist quickly so she wouldn't fall and pulled back to look at her.
She... passed out. Great.
I rolled my eyes and put one arm under her legs, picking her up and carrying her to the couch. I lay her down and then closed and locked the balcony door. I walked back over to her, squatting down by the couch, staring at her face.
She seems familiar but I don't know why. It's not just because I saw her earlier today. She looks... like somebody I'm supposed to know and I just don't.
I cocked my head to one side, scrutinizing her face. Something about her is screaming at me and I have no idea what it is. But I can't stop staring at her. She has my undivided attention. She had it earlier in the traffic too but she walked away too soon and we were very rudely interrupted by some lunatic who kept honking at us. We still had five seconds left on the light, by the way.
I could see the tear stains on her cheek. I scratched my eyebrow and watched her with a little more detail, trying to see what about her felt so familiar but... nothing. She's just a stranger.
I brushed her hair away from her face and then stood up, walking back to my chair and sitting down, dialing Adonis.
"Hello," he sang as soon as he answered.
"Where are you?" I questioned.
"I'm working, why?"
"Bullshit," I scoffed.
"I'm pretending to work, why?"
I glanced at the clock. It's barely one in the morning. "Get to the club. You're looking after it tonight."
"What? Why? Where are you going?"
"I have a... situation on my hands."
"A pretty one-night stand situation?" He teased me.
"A situation. Get here now, Adonis," I huffed.
My door opened and he strolled in, his phone still pressed to his ear. "I'm here, what?" He stared at me impatiently. He looked around, getting startled when he saw her sleeping figure on the couch. "What in the name of hell? Who is that? What did you do? Did you drug her?"
"Yes, I drugged her," I said sarcastically while standing up. "She was about to fall off my balcony, I saved her. And then she fainted."
He watched me warily. "Why did you save her? You're not meant to interfere with the Fates."
"She... might not be... human," I sighed.
"What?" His eyes widened in shock.
"I'll explain later. Just look after the club." I stood up and walked back over to her, picking her up.
"Where are you going? You're taking her with you?"
"Should I leave her here then? Yes, I'm taking her with me."
"To the underworld?"
I rolled my eyes. "To my apartment," I drawled.
"Teleport," he suggested. "You'll get out unnoticed."
"Just watch the club," I mumbled before walking through the door. Not opening it, walking through the wood. I stepped through the front door of my apartment, finding myself inside, where I intended to be.
I sighed and walked to my bedroom, kicking the door open and setting her down on the bed. I'm not sure what I'm meant to do, I've never been in this sort of situation before.
She stirred, lifting her arm and draping it over her eyes while she cursed under her breath. "Fuck," she exhaled, lifting her arm and opening her eyes. She blinked in confusion, staring at the ceiling.
I doubt she's feeling tipsy now. The shock from nearly dying must have removed the alcohol from her system.
She sat up and froze when her eyes landed on mine.
"Good morning, sunshine," I said blankly, my arms folded across my chest.
She stared at me, her eyes going down and then coming back up. She pointed a finger at me. "Traffic British guy."
I pointed a finger back mockingly. "Traffic American girl."
She tucked her hair behind her ear and looked at my bed before scrambling out of it, pulling the hem of her dress lower. Her dress isn't that revealing, I don't know why she's getting flustered. There's nothing for me to look at and lust after here. "What..." She pulled her lips into a thin line, looking around in confusion. "What am I doing here? Did we meet at the club? Why am I here?"
I laughed, letting my arms drop to my sides. "Wow, you really remember nothing when you're drunk. I own that club," I explained, watching her. "And you broke into my office, which is off-limits to customers. You went into my balcony, nearly fell off the railing, and almost died."
She stared at me, her lips parting and jaw falling slack in shock. She frowned, marching up to me. "Do you think I'm stupid to believe that story?"
"Are you calling me a liar?"
"Yes," she scoffed.
I took a step forward and she quickly retreated, walking around the bed. Each step I took forward, she took one back until she had nowhere to run to and was trapped between me and the wall. "You nearly died, darling. And I saved your life."
"Then why am I here?" She stuttered a little.
"You fainted and I didn't know where else to take you."
She took in a shaky breath and fell into thought. "I nearly died?"
"Yes," I nodded.
"Okay," she said slowly.
I can feel the panic radiating from her, I can read it on her face.
"I'll go then. Thanks for saving me?" She tried walking around me but I moved first, blocking her way.
"Is that all I get for saving you?" I smirked.
"You should let me go before I pass out again, I'm getting dizzy just by looking at you," she rambled, swaying in place.
"Here's what you should do." I put one hand on the wall beside her head and she took another shaky deep breath, looking at my bed instead of me. I chuckled. "Flustered, are you?"
"Dizzy," she mumbled.
"Get some rest, sweetheart. Let's talk when you're sober and not so... dizzy, as you said."
She slowly lifted her eyes and met mine, pulling her lips together. "I should go home," she mumbled.
"Can you?" I lifted a brow at her questioningly. "You seem too shocked to do anything on your own."
"Maybe if you could get me a cab, I could—"
"No," I cut her off.
"No, okay," she nodded, looking out the window, swallowing. Gosh, she's so nervous. She's scared, not even nervous, she's... horrified.
"I'm not going to do anything to you, so you can stop shaking and panicking. You should sober up and calm down. How about I get you a cab after that, hmm?"
I took a step back, giving her some space and she let out a huge sigh of relief, covering her face with her hands, letting out a muffled, "Oh, my God."
I'm probably not the god she's thinking of, huh? "Water?" I offered.
She peeked at me through her fingers.
I raised my brows, asking again. "I'm not going to drug you. You can get it on your own," I deadpanned.
"Water's fine," she said softly.
"I'll be right back." I left the room and went into the kitchen, grabbing a water bottle from the fridge and then going back to her.
She was sitting on the edge of my bed now, picking at her nails while her leg bounced up and down. She's an entire ball of nerves. I cracked the bottle open, standing in front of her and holding it out. She looked up at me, taking the bottle with a shaky hand, and took a sip or two while I stared at her. She pulled the bottle away from her lips, holding it in her lap. "I should go." She stood up quickly.
"Sit back down," I demanded, stepping forward, towering over her while her body almost pressed up against mine.
She fell back down, sitting on the bed while looking at me with pleading eyes.
"We're strangers, so I understand why you're nervous. But you should calm down." I reached into my pocket and took out her phone. "Here. You can call for a cab when I let you go." That probably just makes me sound even more like a kidnapper, for fuck's sake. "There's just something I need to ask you," I added, placing my hands in my pockets.
She stared at me warily. "What?"
I opened my mouth to ask if she was human but that's the worst possible way to go about this. "Your name," I said instead.
She hesitated but I shot her a pointed look and she sighed, running a hand through her hair. She's much calmer now that she has her phone. "Persephone."
I fell quiet, staring at her while my heart rate picked up. "Your name is..."
"Persephone," she repeated.
"Persephone," I whispered to myself.
Persephone.
.
.
.
.
.
Chapter 4
This is low key the most unrealistic book I've ever fucking written it's like Darkling but I love writing this sm omg lmao I find it low key funny I hope you guys are liking it because I'm loving writing this
next chapter: fool