Part 51: Golden
The absolute peaceful silence that covers Anya like a warm blanket is what wakes her and her suspicion.
Taking a deep breath, she moves her weary body, her bones groaning and aching.
Shit.
Slowly, she opens her eyes, needing a moment for her vision to clear before she's able to look around.
This is not her bedroom. This isn't even her apartment.
That, or she forgot about the huge comfortable four-poster bed and the white sheets she's laying in and the entire room with its wooden floor and soft beige curtains in front of the huge window.
What is this place?
Anya's heart begins pounding in her chest as she looks around frantically. Is this rehab? Was it a heroin trip after all?
Before her mind can even form the thought, her mouth opens. "Kyuuuuuuun?"
Wow. Her voice sounds like a cat throwing up. Just as she's about to clear her throat to try it another time, the door to her left opens and the demon walks in.
"Good morning, babygirl!" he says in a soft voice with a gorgeous smile on his face.
Anya's jaw drops.
His usual suit and tie look is gone. Instead, he's barefoot, wearing...sweat-shorts and...is that a muscle shirt?
She always thought she was a sucker for well-dressed men, but this casual look on Kyun makes him even more attractive. How is this even possible?
Wide-eyed, she observes him head to toe, Kyun follows her gaze down at himself and chuckles.
"Suit and tie would've been too much here!" He falls next to her on the mattress, and eyes her soothingly. "How are you feeling?"
"Here?" she asks and tries to sit up.
God, why is—
Suddenly she remembers what happened and her head shoots at Kyun. "The show! Oh my god, what happened? I—"
"Relax, babygirl, please!" Kyun pushes her back into the pillows as she's about to get up. "You need rest. I mean it. Everything is in control, okay? I talked to Coop, he wants you to relax. Just like I do!"
Shit. Shit. Shit.
The last thing she remembers is singing "Devoted" and then... nothing.
"What happened?" she breathes and Kyun sighs deeply. "You broke down on stage and I brought you to Magnus... I... I need you to take something..."
He holds a little bottle between them and she tilts her head. "What is it?"
"It's..." he pauses. "Babygirl, I haven't forgotten what you said to me before you went on stage. I do respect your decision but I need you to reconsider this. This potion will help you get rid of the anxiety of stealing these souls, the guilt that's been eating you up lately. You don't have to take it, but this can help you get this under control..."
For a long moment Anya looks at the potion between Kyun's artistic fingers. He's right, the guilt has been eating her up and was the reason she told Kyun that she can't finish the deal. But the moment she spoke those words in the backstage area she felt herself suffocating, crushing under the weight of facing hell all over again after trying for almost eleven months to avoid it.
Anya knows taking that potion isn't the right thing to do, but it's the best way. The only way. For herself, her life.
Fuck this.
Before she can reconsider, she grabs the bottle, uncorks it and swallows its contents.
Tastes like peaches.
Kyun watches her, baffled, before releasing a deep, relieved sigh. "Thank you!"
He takes the bottle away from her and again Anya looks around. "Where are we?"
"In paradise!" Kyun grins, gets up, walks over to the window, and pulls the curtains aside. "The Maldives! Oh—That was a rhyme!"
Her jaw drops when she spots the ocean right in front of her window—which turns out to be a door.
"Excuse me, what?"
They can't be in the Maldives! This is crazy!
Okay... it's actually not that crazy considering what she's seen over the past months.
The demon walks up to her again. "Babygirl, you really need rest. What happened to you last night, I..."
With desperation reflecting in his eyes, he grabs her hand and Anya feels this touch running through her entire body like an electric shock. Startled by this feeling, her gaze falls to their hands and Kyun pulls his out of hers and clears his throat.
"I googled and found out that the Maldives are beautiful but super boring cause there's legit nothing to do. It's so boring that honeymooners only fight or have sex 'cause they don't know what else to do!"
Anya can't help but laugh. She's not sure if marriage was the best idea for these people if sex and fights are their only hobbies.
"There's nothing but the ocean, the sun, you and me..." He shrugs, grinning "Well, and the staff that will bring us food five times a day..."
"And the fighting honeymooners," she adds, giggling, but he shakes his head.
"Oh, there's no one else..."
"What do you mean?"
"Just us!"
"How—"
"Don't ask questions..." he interrupts her and she sits there for a moment, letting Kyun's words sink in.
She has no idea how to feel about this. How she's supposed to feel that he just grabbed and jumped to the Maldives with her, just like that. Seems like she can't really hide the confusion on her face because Kyun lowers his head, sheepishly.
"I'm sorry, babygirl, did I scare you with this?"
This damn demon!
In the past week, Anya tried everything to forget about him, avoided him at any cost, and it didn't help at all. On the contrary, her feelings grew even stronger, she felt like she couldn't breathe. And the fact that he did all this for her so she can rest means the world to her.
"No!" She smiles at him, trying to restrain the urge to hug him. "No, it's perfect..."
Kyun tilts his head and grins at her, in a way that shows his dimples. His entire expression is so beautiful and so...human that Anya forgets who she is for a moment. Suddenly a loud gong makes her flinch.
"What the?"
The demon laughs. "Get used to it. That's the signal that they're about to serve the food. Are you hungry?"
Immediately, she hears her stomach howling, so she nods.
"Do you think you can take a shower by yourself? Or do you need my help?"
The last thing Anya can think about right now is wanting to have sex, even if that is the only pastime available in the Maldives. Still, she can't help but smirk at the unintended innuendo.
Kyun laughs and gets up as she chuckles. "Take a shower! Your clothes are in the drawer over there!" He points at the cute little cupboard next to the window. "I'll wait outside for you!"
Still chuckling, he shakes his head and leaves the room. And as the door falls shut behind him, Anya can't help this huge firework in her chest. Having him around again, it feels like everything is right with the world.
Just like Kyun wanted her to, Anya takes a long shower. To her surprise, all her usual products for her skin, her hair and her body are waiting for her neatly sorted in the fancy bathroom. Seems like demons can get a lot of shit done with the ability to jump and no need for sleep.
Anya does her routine, combs her long hair, brushes her teeth, and can't quite shake off the crushing thoughts in her head. She wonders if her fans, her friends and family are okay after her accident. She wonders if Kyun took care of them. She definitely needs to talk to him about it. It's one thing not to give an official statement; she broke down on stage, she's sure her fans understand that she's stepping back from the public for a while. But her family deserves to know.
"Oh!" Her jaw drops when she opens the drawer after walking back into her room and finds the clothes Kyun brought. Something inside of her expected that he would only bring the nasty clothes, the revealing ones, her lingerie and the small panties but no. Her comfy underwear, oversized shirts and shorts, sweatpants, it's all in here. Her bikinis seem to be the only pieces one could consider as revealing.
Smiling to herself, she slips into her favorite black bikini and pulls a thin, wide shirt over it.
At last, not sure what to expect, she opens the huge door and steps out of the room.
The bright sunlight kissing her face makes her close her eyes and inhale deeply. She hears the ocean, smells the salty air.
Slowly she opens her eyes and her jaw drops. Right in front of her, on the wooden deck of the terrace is a pool, and this pool seems to merge with the endless turquoise ocean right underneath it. The entire deck with their little cabin looks like it's floating on the water. Palm trees in combination with the dark wood of the loungers—which look like the four-poster bed in her room—make this one of the most stunning places she's ever seen.
Anya can't help but smile when she spots Kyun sitting at a table set with breakfast.
"It's so beautiful here!" She looks around as she walks up to him. The demon eyes the ocean and shrugs, looking unimpressed.
"If you say so..."
Again, she chuckles. How can he see all this and not be touched by it?
Her cheeks are already hurting from this grin on her face. She's traveled a lot in the past but this is her first trip that feels like vacation. And the fact that Kyun is the one that brought her here makes it all even better.
Shaking her head in utter disbelief, she looks at the huge table after sitting down. So many fresh fruits, vegetables, pancakes, waffles, bagels, eggs, coffee, juice... all decorated so nicely.
"Dig in babygirl!" Kyun says and their eyes meet. "I want you to eat as much as you can!"
It takes Anya a ridiculously long time to figure out what she wants to try first.
"How is it?" the demon asks, laughing, as Anya finally bites into her bagel with egg and avocado topping.
"Awesome!" she munches and dances happily in her seat. "And your peaches?"
Kyun bites into it and smirks. "Better than in California!"
"Maybe we should take a few home then..."
Anya bites her lip when Kyun tilts his head. She doesn't know how long they'll stay but no matter how long, she only has six weeks left and a deal to finish. "Will be hard to buy a reasonable amount of peaches again once you're gone..."
She doesn't know why she has to hurt herself with these kinds of thoughts right now. Kyun observes her in silence, his crimson eyes like a blazing fire in the morning sun.
"Sorry!" she mumbles when she realizes that Kyun probably isn't even able to understand the ache in her chest when she thinks about separating from him.
"Don't be babygirl!" Anya has no idea how to interpret the expression on his face."Eat!"
For a moment they eat in silence until she dares look at him again. "What about my family, Kyun? They must be worried!"
The demon smirks. "Don't worry! I called them last night and explained things. I told them I will take you here to relax and promised that you'll call them every other day. But be smart and wait a little before you text them. Flying all the way here takes a day!" He winks at her and Anya smiles.
"You could rule the world on your own, couldn't you?"
He huffs a laugh. "That'd be too much responsibility for my liking!"
Over the next couple of days, Kyun makes a hundred percent sure Anya gets the rest her body needs. She spends the whole day lounging on those comfortable beach beds, reading, eating, falling asleep, and doing it all over again. The days are filled with good food, naps, more food, more naps, and books—so many good books have been published since she started her career, it's insane! Anya used to love reading so much, but with her tight schedule and her mind all over the place almost every minute of the day, she barely had the headspace in the past years.
The best part about this is that Kyun doesn't leave her side for a single moment. He's with her when she reads—reading as well. He's with her when she takes a nap and when she wakes up, he's with her when she eats, when she takes a dip in the pool.
Kyun is there.
And having him there doesn't feel like pressure, doesn't feel overwhelming. They both are so used to one another that hanging around all day talking or just sitting in silence never feels old.
Three days later, deep in the night, Anya lays on the huge beach bed and stares up at the thin, white, fabric that's draped over it to protect her from the sun during the day.
Being with Kyun feels so good, so incredibly good that she has to remind herself over and over again that none of this is real. He's probably doing this for her to relax, to feel better—and she loves that!
But the wish that he would look at her and see in her what she sees in him grows with each day passing by.
"Do you wanna be alone?" Kyun's soft voice appears and she lifts her head, finds him standing next to the beach bed as the light of the lanterns around it shines on his face.
"No. Come here!"
She taps on the spot next to her and the demon falls next to her with a wide grin.
They stare up at the white fabric, enjoying the peace, the silence.
"It's so quiet here..." she whispers and he turns his head to look at her.
"Are you scared?" he asks. "Some people can't stand the silence..."
She nods. "I definitely can't stand it. But with you here, I'm fine!"
For a long moment, they look at each other and her heart is screaming for him to touch, to hold her.
"Wait a moment!" Kyun suddenly says and stands up.
Before she can ask what he's doing, he has already pulled the white fabric off and revealed the night sky glittering with countless stars.
Anya gasps "Oh my god. This is so beautiful..."
"Thought so!" Kyun grins and falls next to her again. "Humans love the stars, it's ridiculous!"
She shoves him playfully and they laugh before falling silent for a long time.
Kyun was right. She loves the stars. And usually, she's so captivated by them that she can barely lower her gaze. But they have huge competition with Kyun lying here next to her. The amount of strength Anya needs to not turn her head to admire him is exhausting. Especially since there are still so many things she wants to talk about...
"Changkyun?" she dares to say after a while.
"Babygirl?"
Again their eyes meet and she takes a deep breath. "I think we need to talk about our fight. We—"
"Please don't!" he says in a low voice and turns his body to face her. She does the same. "I don't want you to get upset! I get that the way I acted was cruel..." He lifts his hand and Anya's heart explodes with anticipation, so needy for his touch. But to her disappointment, he lets his hand sink again. "I still hate it that you love me," he whispers. "But I also realized that... It's not your fault that you fell in love with me. I made it seem like you had a choice, but that was unfair. I get you, okay?"
Anya can't even express how relieved this makes her feel. This is all she wanted. He doesn't get her feelings and that's okay! But she wanted him to validate them—which he just did. This means the world to her.
"Thank you!" she breathes and again they stare at each other for a long moment. The desperation of being so touch-deprived grows into a vastness.
"Now keep on watching the stars!" Kyun smirks and turns onto his back again. "They're way prettier than me!"
Anya hates that she just won't stop expecting more from him than he's able to give her.
Until deep in the night, they lay there together, talking about everything and nothing while the waves crashing in the distance send her into some kind of trance.
Just when she's about to fall into a deep slumber, she feels Kyun slipping closer, his hand gliding over her cheek, his lips over her forehead. Too tired to react, and not even sure if this is real or a dream, she sighs happily.
Nine days, endless food comas, and half a dozen novels later, Anya has kind of had enough.
"I'm bored!" She looks up from her book and blinks at Kyun, who's focused on reading.
A few days ago he decided to just quit bothering with shirts. As if she weren't tortured enough by his mere presence. The urge to touch him, to lick and bite every inch of him, is immense and she's glad she's not a man. Otherwise, she'd be sitting here with a boner all day long.
Speaking of which, Anya wonders how Kyun is keeping himself under control since she looks so fucking hot in her bikini! But maybe he doesn't want her like this anymore since he fucked her. Who knows what's going on inside his head...
"It's been only two weeks, babygirl!" he says without looking up from his book. "You need to learn to handle boredom!"
She scoffs, playfully. "Says the one that saved my soul out of boredom!"
"That's completely different!"
"Why?"
Finally, Kyun looks at her, and yet another time she's so mesmerized by the shocking brilliance of his crimson eyes in the sunlight."Cause you can't compare your life to mine!"
Anya rolls her eyes and tries to focus on her book again. But it doesn't take long until her gaze falls back to the demon.
"You're getting a tan..." she says and takes the chance to let her hand glide over his arm. His skin is so soft...
Except for the goosebumps that pop up underneath her fingertips. It's kind of cute that her touch causes this reaction.
Kyun looks up from his book and smirks. "I wonder why demons refuse to go into the sun. It's sexy!"
"It really is!" She grins and bites her lip as her eyes wander over his golden skin. The demon laughs and pushes her in response.
"Get your hormones under control!"
He puts down his book, and turns his back on her, apparently planning to get up. And once again her eyes get stuck on the huge tattoo on his back.
"When did you get that tattoo?"
Kyun shrugs. "About ten years ago?"
Ten years ago. So, after they met?
Unable to hide her curiosity any longer, she crawls over the beach bed to him. She's never had the chance to see it this close. Carefully she lets her fingertips glide over the three inked roses.
Kyun growls, equal parts irritation and pleasure.
"Sorry!" She giggles but refuses to stop, loves to make him weak.
She inhales every detail of the tattoo and it's only now that she realizes the roses aren't wrapped around a cross but a dagger.
Abruptly her hand flinches back. Yet another time her heart skips a beat.
"Kyun," she says, irritated. "That looks like the dagger I have! The one that's able to kill you..."
"Is that so?" He grins over his shoulder at her.
Wait, what?
Did he...?
In that smug smirk of his she can see that he will not give her an explanation for this.
And even though this is a secret she wants to know more about, she's so used to his games by now that she shakes her head, chuckling, and lets her hand glide over the lettering instead.
"One who wants to wear the crown
bear the crown..." she reads out loud, wraps her arms around his shoulder from behind and leans closer to him. "Can you bear the crown, Kyunnie?" she whispers into his ear.
The demon grabs her wrists around his chest and shrugs, snickering. "Not really!"
Kyun gets up and walks over to the edge of the deck.
"What are you doing?" she asks and he shrugs.
"You said you're bored!" With these words, he jumps off the deck and into the ocean.
Excited, Anya crawls off the beach bed and walks to the edge as well. The water isn't deep; it barely reaches his chest. The way he leans back and wets his long hair before slicking it back makes her lower abdomen twitch.
Damn it.
"Come in here!" he says and she giggles again. A little clumsily, she falls on her butt and dips her toes into the water.
It's so refreshing.
Without further hesitation, she lets her body dangle from the deck, and Kyun catches her.
"Hey there!" He smirks and pulls her closer. Anya is just about to wrap her arms around him when he suddenly pushes her underwater.
The next thing she hears is his roaring laughter as she reaches the surface again, gasping for air.
"You... ass!" she snorts and attacks him.
Squealing and laughing, they splash water at each other and pull each other under the surface at every opportunity. Kyun is so much quicker and stronger than Anya but he makes it ridiculously easy for her to catch him.
"Please!" she giggles after a pretty even fight, so out of breath from the effort this took.
With a teasing grin, he walks through the water over to her and she can't help but stare at him, mesmerized by him, by his appearance. There's something in his eyes that makes her so damn weak. Her breathing grows more irregular with every step he takes in her direction. Not sure what exactly he's up to, she takes a step back for each step he takes forward, kind of scared he will push her under water again once he's close enough.
Suddenly she finds herself underneath the wooden deck of their hotel and her breathing echoes through the hollow vault.
Kyun smirks and her legs begin to shake. With gentle movements, he takes her hand and pulls her close to his body. Wide-eyed, she lays her hands on his broad chest and stares at it, watching it rising and falling a little too quickly. The demon lays his hand underneath her chin, forcing her gaze up at him. His crimson eyes sparkle like fresh blood in the setting sun as droplets of water fall from the tips of his overlong hair onto her forearms. His thumb glides over her bottom lip, his eyes fixed on her mouth. Anya feels her heartbeat in her throat as Kyun leans closer and kisses her softly.
~*~
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