21st November 2019

NOAH

"Are you here to stare at me?"

I asked Renee, noticing the way she was watching me, transfixed. Her eyes had widened considerably, her cheeks painted a blaring red, even her mouth hung open, everything making me drown in self-consciousness.

"W-What?" Renee blabbered, snapping her eyes away and turning away from me almost immediately. "I... I came here because I had q-questions..."

"On how hot I am?" I smirked casually as if I hadn't been affected by the whole situation. I was every bit embarrassed as Renee was, my hands nearly jumping to grab a t-shirt, but I also enjoyed how flustered she looked.

"Of course not," Renee scoffed, turning around to face me, although her eyes were fixed upon the ceiling. "I only came here to ask you about the video."

I had a retort ready for whatever she said, but the last word threw me off guard.

Video?

"What video?" I asked, praying that she hadn't found out about GhostGuy. Why did the very person I wanted to hide from be the first one to see the video?

"Don't play dumb," She threw me a glare. "You're GhostGuy, aren't you?"

Damn it.

I cursed under my breath, hating the universe for not keeping this one deed of mine a secret. I continued to look clueless, hoping I could play it cool and convince Ren that it wasn't me.

She didn't need to know that I was helping out Johannes.

"I don't know what you're talking about," I muttered incoherently and slipped a black t-shirt over my head. Seducing her could wait for another day.

"Hmm, maybe your watch does," She wandered over to my bedside table, picking it up and waving it in front of my face. I suddenly remembered the sheet slipping down my left wrist for a second, exposing my watch.

It awed and annoyed me that she was so observant.

"Does this bring back memories?" She frowned. "Or are you determined to keep a billion secrets from me?"

Ah. There it was, the very reason for our fight.

How sneaky old Noah had a sudden urge to hide everything from his girlfriend.

"I... Yeah. I was GhostGuy," I admitted, hanging my head low. "I didn't want to hide it from you, but I was worried about your reaction."

"My reaction?" Renee repeated, flummoxed.

"Yeah, you're mad at me, aren't you?" I questioned in a low voice.

"Noah, why would I be mad at you when you've just saved a thousand lives?" Renee sat down upon my bed, the corners of her mouth lifting. "I'm proud of you for coming up with something like this."

Seeing Renee happy made my heart flutter again. And that's exactly when my brain overdosed on serotonin, effectively making me dig my own grave.

"Thanks, Ren," I told her, blushing slightly. "But it was Johannes's idea, not mine."

And the damage was done.

"What?" Ren was initially confused. "Why would Johannes want you to hack into LOLtube? Isn't he the founder of the channel?"

I explained to her how his ex-comrades had abandoned him, how Johannes sought revenge and how hacking into LOLtube was the perfect way to sabotage their plans.

"You see Ren, Johannes wants to be the one doing evil. He can't stand it when other people do it better than him, especially when they use up his ideas." I told her, not noticing the look of disbelief on her face.

"So, you helped him with his evil scheme?" Her voice was soft, yet dangerous.

I swallowed nervously.

"Y-yes," I stammered. "But only because I wanted to save lives, not because I wanted revenge-"

"Are you even Noah Stark?!" Renee cried out, pointing toward me in horror. "Oh my gosh, I can't believe I was stupid enough to fall for it!"

"Not again," I groaned, rolling my eyes. "Renee Durvont, calm down-"

"Oh, I will not calm down, you evil minion!" She balled her fists. "Who are you, and what have you done to my Noah?!"

"Look, I can prove to you that I'm the real Noah Stark, alright?" I grabbed her shoulders, making her look directly at me. "I'm the only one who can bring back your memories."

"And you expect me to trust you?" Renee said with a hollow laugh.

"You have two options," I sighed, tired of her. "Either you trust me and regain your memories. Or you walk out of this room, losing the only boyfriend you've ever had."

The words stung as I said it, but it worked, softening her stubborn gaze.

"Can you bring my memories back?" She asked, her grey eyes alight with curiosity rather than wariness.

"I'm positive," I said with a smile.

Brushing away her fringes, my fingers touched her cool forehead. I tried to sense the Shield, and I found it awakening under my touch, smooth and fluid as it flowed through the various crevices. I drew my hand away, only to notice the swirling material upon the palm in my hand, looking like a portable galaxy that I could entrap in a jar.

It was hard to believe that something so tiny had the power of straining our relationship over the past few months.

Were we really that fragile?

I looked at Ren, observing the way her face moved as the memories came crashing onto her. Somewhere throughout the process, her hands found mine, entwining tightly like she needed my support.

"I... Remember," Renee breathed, her eyes closed. "I... Remember... You."

I exhaled in relief. It was happening.

"Slowly, Ren," I told her gently, guiding her onto my bed so that she could lie down. "It's going to be overwhelming, to say the very least."

She didn't reply, still absorbed in the memories gushing past her.

I watched her quietly, trying not to interfere with the process. A few minutes later, I placed a cautious hand on her forehead, only to sense that it was burning up. Even Ren looked sick, her cheeks flushed with the effects as her lips quivered. I had no choice but to pry away her hoodie, noting that she had only a tank top underneath.

Wow.

I knew that Renee was pretty, but this was the first time I noticed that she was also super-hot. Her frame was slight as always, but my human hormones didn't fail to point out the intricacies Spirit me had missed.

Had her skin always been so smooth? And her collarbones? And how her waist-

Renee coughed softly, yanking me forcefully out of my forbidden thoughts.

I looked away quickly, busying myself with finding my water bottle, while she lay upon my bed like a sleeping beauty. My cheeks burned in shame, as I tried to get her image off my head, something that was easier said than done.

A lump rose in my throat, threatening to choke me. The human world had a way of bringing back my deepest desires, making the blood rush through my veins, hypnotising me into walking into my wildest fantasies.

"You okay?" I asked her in a low voice, finally having the courage to look at her.

"Hmm," She mumbled, right as her eyes flew open. It took a while for her vision to get steady, and then I found her staring back at me, unblinking.

"Noah," She said, her voice tinkling with delight. Her grey eyes lit up almost immediately, her pretty face flooding with relief. "You did it."

"And my Ren is back," I smiled down at her.

She sat up, took the water bottle from my hand, and drank it up like she'd been parched for a hundred years. Throughout the gesture, her gaze never left mine, our hearts throbbing as though they were one.

"I noticed something weird," I told her apprehensively. "I can't sense your aura at all."

"I've been severed, that's why," She shrugged casually. "Apparently reaching the White Realm isn't enough. Joining the Enlightened is the only way you can escape being severed."

"Ah, it fits," I nodded, taking the water bottle from her. Renee shrugged, her eyes wandering around my room, looking like she was lost in thought.

"Noah, can I ask you something?" She started a moment later, watching me carefully.

"You don't have to ask to kiss me, Ren," I gave her a lazy smirk.

In response, she shoved my shoulder rather painfully, proving that strength and size were two different things.

"You, and your kissing," Renee huffed, sounding rather annoyed, but her smile said otherwise. "Even when we'd reached the After Realm, it was all that you could talk about, couldn't you?"

The way her eyes sparkled with adoration like I was a little puppy, only seemed to warm even the coldest depths of my heart.

"Well, I've got bad news," I pouted, trying to look guilty. "Now that I'm a human, it's all that I can think about too."

"Oh no, that's too bad," She played along. "Especially since mean old Renee is very stingy with her kisses."

Her sentence barely ended when her lips brushed against my hollow cheek.

"Very stingy," I shook my head, appearing slightly disappointed. She giggled softly, before kissing me again, this time against my jaw.

"Ren, there's a thing called lips," I reminded. "You know, in case you've been too busy staring at me in biology to not pay attention..."

"Hahaha, Noah Stark thinks he's hilarious," She teased, clutching her stomach in mock laughter. "But, on a serious note, I have one question to ask you."

"You and your curiosity," I complained. "Go ahead, mean Renee, fire away!"

"Why in the world did you hide stuff from me?" Renee actually glared this time. "You've never hidden things from me, Noah Stark, this isn't like you!"

"I did hide stuff back then," I pointed out. "I never really told you about my void of pain and the ISA-"

"You told me everything the day I'd become your girlfriend," She retorted. "And maybe you haven't noticed it, but I am still your girlfriend."

I stayed quiet, trying to answer her question. She was right, I'd never really been this secretive before, hiding things from her.

Then I remembered the Pit.

"It was that thing," I blurted out, delighted to blame everything on that monstrosity. "The Pit showed me a hundred scenarios of us breaking up, reiterating the fact that I wasn't good enough for you... That I was a Spirit, and you were a human and we could never be together-"

My voice shook as those suppressed feelings arose, and I could see the pain being reflected in her eyes.

"Noah-"

"So when I came to the Earthly Realm, I only wanted you to see the best version of me. The heroic Noah who'd braved the Pit, only to return to his true love. I didn't want you to see me hanging out with Johannes... I was afraid that you'd leave me... Just like the Pit had predicted."

I breathed out in relief, my chest felt lighter than it had in months.

"Even now, I was worried about being GhostGuy, I didn't want you to find another reason to leave me," I turned away, quickly realising that a tear had crept its way to my cheek.

"Noah," Renee turned my face, her hand wiping away at it. "You don't have to hide anything from me."

I looked at her, grateful.

"I don't want a heroic boyfriend, I want you. All of you, even the parts that cry in the Pit of Darkness and the ones that laugh at Johannes's lame jokes..."

"I don't laugh at his jokes," I frowned.

"I wouldn't hate you if you did," She laughed. "He is evil, but he's also helped you out-"

"I don't trust him, Ren," I shook my head. "I mean, he's the guy who murdered Mike."

"Well, he did say that he was innocent-"

"Ren, you're amazing and everything, but that evil bat can put up an Oscar-winning performance... It's still too early to trust him, and I don't want you forgiving him this easily, just to get into my good books."

Renee sat up straighter. "You really aren't possessed."

"I thought it was obvious," I said, puzzled.

"I had to be sure," She gave me a slow smile. "I only said that to see if Johannes could be lurking inside you, ready to make a reappearance in case he found me to be a worthy ally."

"What the heck, Renee?!" I gaped at her. "Whatever you said about him, was that all a lie?"

"Yes, it is!" She exclaimed. "Do you think I'd easily forgive a man who'd ruined my brother's life? I may be severed, but I'm not stupid, Noah. My hatred for him only grows with every passing day..."

I grinned at her.

"This is what I like the best about you," I said, pulling her closer with my hand on her waist.

"My kisses?" She asked innocently.

"That too," I smiled. "But you awe me, Renee. That's the very thing that prevented Augustus from brainwashing me."

"With a soulmate and everything, right?" She supplied, giving me a careful glance. "We need to have that talk too."

"Definitely," I muttered. "But first-"

"Yeah," She sighed, her chest heaving as I neared her.

And then we kissed, simple and perfect, yet very much us, the warmth of familiarity leaking through our beings as we felt like puzzle pieces fit together. I didn't know how long I'd gone without her presence, how I could've endured such a torturous existence when being together was the most whole I'd ever felt.

The ISA wasn't entirely wrong. Maybe soulmates did exist, and maybe they were scattered across different Realms. Fate might throw obstacles, but when the time came, the twin souls had a way of flitting back to each other.

After all, they had felt the most powerful emotion a being could experience.

Love.

*****