Aliya's POV

"You!"

As if having a mind of their own, my hand grabbed onto a piece of decor that was on the nightstand by his bed and threw it in his direction.

Damien dodged it and the ceramic thing made a loud contact with the floor behind him.

I had been pacing in his room trying to make sense of the rumors that I heard earlier, if they were even rumors and nothing more. Then he walked in, out of nowhere. Which was a good thing, because I had so many questions.

"What the-" he turned to looked at the floor behind him before turning to me, "you good?"

"Why do you always hide stuff from me?"

He walked around acting like he was as single as it gets, but he clearly had some arrangements, or maybe it was all part of a bigger plan.

Feeling like I was always kept in the dark about the most important topics, my anger was reaching its peak.

First he hid the truth about the prophecy my entire life, the main reason I was locked up in the first place. And now he had the audacity to get close to me while courting other girls.

"What did I hide now?" He genuinely seemed confused.

My thoughts drifted to the date he had arranged tonight, did he really think I wouldn't find out?

"You know what, I hate you!"

I picked up a bottle of cologne from his vanity, I knew his supernatural speed would catch it in time but I didn't care.

"You know that's not true," he eyed my actions closely, he went around the sofa as if to shield himself from me, "put that down."

If I wasn't so infuriated, the scene would've left  me laughing as he behaved like a child.

Since when was he scared of anything?

Without a second thought, I hurled the object towards him. To my surprise, he caught it with one hand, dropping it onto the soft cushion in front of him.

"I don't know what else I expected from you," without giving him the time to recover, I picked up the vase of flowers that was set on the coffee table in front of me.

"Hey! That can slice my head in two, is that what you want?"

"Yes, if that means you'll finally grow a brain! And some guts to tell me the truth," I breathed out, aiming the vase as if I was going to hit it straight on his head.

He leaned back and ran away from me, "do I need to lockdown my castle because we have a crazy human on the loose?"

"Another day in this place and I might just turn crazy! So many secrets and lies. You don't even care to share such a big news with me, especially after all we've been through in the past few days..."

With every word that I spoke, I walked closer to him, only to have him take that many steps away from me.

And the next thing I know, I started to chase him as we went around in circles around the sofa.

"What are you talking about?" His eyes stayed glued to the vase in my hands, I stopped and tried to change directions to catch him on the other side, but he seemed to have sensed it and stopped midway.

"The news about you getting married, that's what!"

"How did you-" using his vampire speed, he closed the distance between us and snatched the vase from my hand, placing it back on the table in a matter of seconds.

His actions were too fast for me to comprehend and I didn't realize when he took a hold of my waist to keep me in place as he grabbed the item from me.

"Doesn't matter how I found out. You have no right to play around with my emotions like that when you're just going to find someone else to settle down with. Was all of this, what we shared, some kind of sick joke to you?"

"It wasn't a joke; and you know damn well whatever fucking spark there is between us, it's real. It's as real as it gets; our connection, our bond."

Just as he said it, I was reminded of how true his words were with the spark of electricity that his hand on my back sent through my skin.

"Then why are other princesses competing to become the next vampire queen, talking about winning your heart as if you're some kind of trophy?"

"What? How did the word even get out?" He looked confused before adding, "it's the council's decision, not mine!"

"The council?" I took a step away from him, making him drop his hand by his side.

Being in close proximity to him would only fuel a different kind of fire inside me, and not of rage. 

He ran a frustrated hand through his hair, "you won't get it, and I'm tired of explaining myself over and over again to everyone. At this point, they could arrange a marriage for me and I couldn't care less. Someone send me an invite and I'll just show up at the bloody altar."

"So you are willing to get married to just anyone?"

Did I hear him right? How could he act so impulsive sometimes?

"What else do you want me to do? My crown is at stake here and I can't just hand it over on a fucking plate to my brother and his mate. I will do everything in my power to secure my rule for centuries to come, because I am not going to step down until my very last breath. It's the only thing that I have and I am not letting anyone take it away from me."

"That's good to know, at least you have your priorities straight. I was just stupid enough to forget about mine, to stay the hell away from you," I pointed a finger at his chest, poking him through the silk fabric of his tie.

"I never forced myself upon you," he mentioned.

"You never stopped yourself either," I snapped at him, "and I was fooling enough to think that you actually cared, everything you said about how your life was like without me..."

I tried my hardest to hold back the tears that wanted to break free.

"I can only sympathize with you, but nothing more than that. There can never be anything more. Look at me, I am a vampire. I am dead, my heart doesn't beat anymore. I was a little boy when I was turned into this monster, every last bit of life was forcefully and painfully sucked out of me, leaving behind nothingness. All you'll ever find now is hollow darkness within me, I can never be what you'd want me to be."

"You're right. I don't need you to remind me how much of a monster you truly are, you kept me imprisoned for ten years. All I should ever feel is hatred towards you, thanks for reminding me that."

My voice made me wince, because of the venom dripping from the words. But I couldn't help myself, everything that he was telling me just added to my anger. He knew all of this long before he decided to break down the barriers between us, both of us were aware of our positions and how different we were.

"You should hate me. That is the only relation that can ever be between us, of hate. You are human and I am a vampire. You have your whole life ahead of you, but unlike mine, it actually comes to an end. My selfishness has already snatched ten years of your life, don't let me ruin the rest of it."

"You should've thought about that before you decided to make a re-entry and opened up old wounds!"

"I messed up, I should've never came to see you again. Maybe we wouldn't be in this mess in the first place," his voice dropped, he sounded defeated.

"I would like to go back," I turned away from him.

"Don't be stupid, don't ruin your fun with my sister for my sake. I know how much you both adore each other, just enjoy the rest of your stay here. You won't see me again, at least not purposely."

"Just be honest for once and tell me this, have you picked your queen already?"

"Not yet, but when I do, you'll be the first to know."

"Get out," I hissed and the made my back towards the bed.

I just wanted to take a long nap and forget that he even existed.

"Excuse me? This is my room."

The surprise in his voice was clear.

"I don't care, find someplace else to call your room for the next few days. I'm not going through the hassle of packing and unpacking again. You'll just have to deal with it."

Sliding myself into the bed, I covered myself with a throw blanket and turned the other way.

"Why are you so mad? Was it something that I said? I'm just stating facts of our reality. We can't run from it," I could tell he took a few steps closer towards me.

I hated how much he was right.

"Are you listening?"

"No. Why are you still here? Don't you have a kingdom to run and girls to judge?"

I'm sure it's not an easy task picking the next vampire queen. My tone might've sounded jealous but at the moment, I didn't seem to care if I can came across possessive.

He was well aware of how I felt towards him. There was no denying the connection between us.

I started to blame myself, what was I thinking all along as I was getting closer to him? I could never bind him to me, he was too important of a figure to be bound to a single person.

Like an ocean that could never be contained in a small bottle. He was everyone's, his subjects', his people's, his family's, even his staff.

He was only loyal to his throne and his crown, and everything that came along with it.

I was never in the picture, nor would I ever be.

He had his responsibilities to fulfill which he put above everyone, including me.

Even if that meant killing his own desires.

But, why?

***

Damien and I ignored each other like the plague.

We didn't make contact for the rest of the day, but I saw him sitting across the room as we had our dinner in the dining hall. My eyes couldn't help but search for him in the crowded room, I saw a few maids walking around serving people while the royals were, well, acting like royalty.

As soon as I spotted him, I only intended to quickly glance in his direction to know if he was here or not, but the scene before me left me gaping at him.

He was sitting at the head of the table, and there were about five girls around my age sitting right in front of him. He rubbed the back of his thumb over his eyebrow as one of the girls went on about something that I couldn't hear. She threw her hands around as if telling a story and his eyes were fixed on her. Meanwhile, another girl reached over to feed him something from her fork, keeping her hand there, insisting even after he shook his head.

What the actual...

Why was he getting so much attention, all of a sudden?

Oh, that was when I realized they were all just trying to woo him.

By being extra friendly.

Maybe it was wrong for me to judge, but some of these girls only cared about his title and looks.

I couldn't blame them, he was devilishly handsome.

Sometime it made me wonder why couldn't he be a little less good looking, at least then I wouldn't feel like I had to fight the world for him.

Woah there, I told myself.

Why would I want to fight for him, anyways?

He made it clear earlier that his crown was the only precious thing to him.

Why would I want to fight for someone who only cared about power?

I pried my eyes off the awful scene, looking down at the Chicken Parmesan that I hadn't even touched.

"You okay?" Emma asked, placing a hand on my shoulder.

I gave her a nod.

"Did something happen between you two?" She glanced at Damien before questioning me.

"Nothing can ever happen between us, he's the vampire king and I'm just... me."

"I swear, if my brother is acting like a dumbass again" she paused for a second, "wait, is this about what you heard earlier at my bridal shower? Let me assure you, he is not getting married anytime soon. He will find a way out of this."

"That's not what he told me, he said he's willing to go to any lengths to secure his crown, whatever that means."

Cutting a piece of chicken, I picked it up with my fork, "and frankly, I don't even care. It's his life, he can do whatever he wants."

I placed the food in my mouth even though I had no appetite, I didn't want to end up feeling hungry later on as I lay in bed.

"I know you care about him, everybody can see that. Everyone except him. I can't even blame him to be honest, everyone who he has ever gotten close to has ended up dead or turned into a betrayal."

I knew who she was talking about, "like Katrina?"

She nodded and took a sip of what seemed like blood, sometimes I forget that no matter how nice Emma might be, she was still a vampire.

She continued on, "but not just her. There are things about his past that you might not be familiar with; Katrina was only a small part of it and not even the most significant. My brother has had a long, sad life, before I was even born. I was too young when that bitchrina murdered my father in cold blood, and my mother had already died giving birth to me. I was a toddler who didn't even comprehend what was going on or what I lost. But Damien, he carried the weight of that loss, the grief, losing both of our parents in such a short amount of time."

I thought back to the time when I would have dreams about his past, as if I was watching a reel of his core memories playing out right in front of me. Most of them were from his childhood or teenage years, but never when he was older than that.

There were gaps in those memories too. All I knew was he was taken from his real mother's cottage in the middle of the night. His innocent, scared eyes forever embedded in my mind, as the guards forcefully shoved him into the carriage. That was the last time I ever saw fear in those eyes. His new "father" stripped any hint of that fear from him, turning him into a killing machine. His body and his mind wasn't his own anymore as he spent day and night obeying his father's orders to train and fight mercilessly. That poor, innocent boy who was safe under his mother's umbrella of love turned into a heartless weapon to be used by his father in the battlefield.

His life wasn't his own anymore; he grew up serving his father and then his people.

I just don't know why he learned to embrace his fate, instead of trying to change it.

When he was physically strong enough to defy his reality and shape it into what he could possibly desire, but he continued to live as is.

Maybe because it was all he has ever known.

Somewhere while becoming an obedient son, a loving brother, and a great king, he lost himself.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you before, but I think I've had dreams about his past, back when I was living in this castle." I told Emma, keeping my voice down so nobody else could hear.

Emma gasped, I could tell she had a million questions running through her mind so I elaborated.

"Only from the earliest parts of his life, like I know he wasn't born into royalty, he was turned into a royal vampire. I know he's not your real brother and not just because you told me, but because I've seen him being taken from his actual mother."

Emma looked at me as if I just grew a pair of horns over my head, "that can't be a coincidence, Aliya. Why would you dream of his past when you barely even knew him? It doesn't make sense."

She was right, I had those dreams when I barely knew who he was as a person.

When I was first released, I used to think he was like this because he had never been on the other side and experienced such loss and grief. He took lives of others as if it was his favorite hobby and it brought him pleasure. But that was far from the truth, I now realized how wrong I was.

Every killing that he was a part of was to protect his kingdom or his people. It made perfect sense that he couldn't sit back and simple watch as threat loomed over this place.

The last time he got into a fight was when he was protecting me from those kidnappers.

There had been multiple occasions where he had been my knight in shining armor.

Sometimes, he had no choice but to kill.

Did that make him a monster or a savior?

"You know the weirdest part of that dream? I never got to see what his mother actually looked like, maybe I did in the dream but when I woke up I had no memory of her face. Every time I try to think of her, my mind goes blank."

Emma hummed, "she was a goddess, that's all I know. She found sanctuary in the vampire realm and my father captured her only hope of peace and happiness. Nobody heard from her ever again. It is a classic bedtime story that vampires tell to their kids today. Although, I wonder if she is still alive... Do you think your dreams might be related to her, as if she was controlling them?"

"I don't know. It's been years since then, if she was alive she would've found her way back to her son," I couldn't help but think of the possibility of his mother being dead, even though it was the last thing I would want.

Damien had experienced too much pain and suffering to also mourn over his mother's death.

When we were done with dinner, Emma and I exchanged good nights while she assured me everything would turn out to be fine, and that Damien would come to his senses soon enough. I highly doubted it, he seemed to be denying any form of intimate connection between us, giving it the name of sympathy.

Although watching him interacting with other women made me feel like my body was on fire, I decided to think with a clear head instead of letting my jealousy cloud my judgment.

Sympathy, my ass.

He could sympathize with himself when I finally give him a taste of his own medicine and watched his reaction with a bowl of popcorn.

I was determined to uncover his secrets as to why he avoided talking about his feelings, and also try to understand why he needs to pick a bride soon.

Feeling like I was always trying to figure him out and put the pieces together like he was some sort of puzzle I had to solve, my heard started to hurt. But this time, I was determined to get the full picture.

Maybe then I could finally meet the real Damien, the one who was lost somewhere deep inside of him.

I knew I would have to dig past years worth of rage and agony, but it would be worth it.

Not just for my sake, but for his.

He deserved to live a full life, just as much as anyone.

If he thought pushing me away would erase his emotions that he tried so hard to hide, he would have to think again.

The two guards he assigned me followed me closely as I made my way back to his room. A new energy seeped through my body with every step that I took.

To avoid the awkwardness of our long walk, I tried to engage in a conversation with the guards, asking them how long they had been serving the king for. One of them replied with "a very long time", while the other kept his mouth shut and completely ignored me like a statue.

After a few more attempts and receiving one word answers, I gave up ever getting to know them.

Sighing, I realized I would be a loner for the remainder of my stay here, surrounded by vampires.

When I was inside the safety of the king's chambers with a few nightly guards patrolling outside, I made my way into the closet to find something comfortable to change into. Deciding on a pair of shorts and a cami stop, I placed the clothes on the vanity inside the bathroom. My body craved a long shower to wash off the stress that I had accumulated throughout the day.

It seemed like a long day indeed, with many revelations about the king's life, and trying to understand how it mingled with mine.

Our lives were somehow intertwined but I didn't know how that was possible.

With what seemed like an hour in the shower, I finally stepped out and got dressed. I blow dried my hair rather quickly so I could get warm under the covers, the castle got uncomfortably cold at nights.

The room was even colder now that I was alone in it, I hadn't though of the aftermath of kicking the king out of his own room. But I was seriously dreading my decision.

I wonder where he was now... it took every fiber in my body to not go searching for him.

What if he actually was on a date with that girl?

Just as I was contemplating going wearing a robe and going to find him, there was a noise that came from the balcony, making me eyes snap open.

My eyes shifted towards the balcony doors, which were closed and covered with long white drapes to block out the view.

Maybe I had just imagined it, I thought.

But my suspicion was confirmed when another screech came from outside. My body instantly sat up on the bed, eyeing the area careful to make out where the noise was coming from.

My feet landed on the plushness of the carpet surrounding the king's bed. I froze as a knock echoed through the glass of the balcony doors.

My first instinct was to call upon the guards who were just outside the room, but something told me to keep moving towards the source of the noise.

Snapping out of my thoughts, I ran towards the balcony and pushed back the curtains slowly to reveal the darkness of the night.

It was very dark outside, but my eyes caught the attention of some golden orbs that stared right back me, glowing through the pitch blackness.

The eyes that I was much familiar with now.

Not wasting another second, I reached out to unlock the balcony door and pulled it open, inviting the coldness of the night in.

As my eyes adjusted, they landed on the figure kneeling just a few feet away from me. My breath got caught in my throat as I made out the outline of his wings, but they were in a resting position, almost touching the floor behind him.

Damien.

But something else caught my attention, the front of his shirt was coated in blood, dark and soaking red.

Was it his blood, or someone else's?

I was too terrified to even find out.

He looked at me through his lashes, his eyes were a bright gold but still bloodshot as if he just spent hours in the battlefield. Suddenly, his wings disappeared out of my sight as he put them away. As if not being able to hold himself up anymore, his body gave out and he coughed.

I ran over to him to capture him in my arms just in time before he hit the floor.

"Damien!"