Yasuo
That day, my heart was cruelly torn from my chest, casting my body and soul into a deep, pitch-black abyss where only the echo of that name — Niran, which meant life to me — resounded deafeningly, killing me with every passing second.
My eyes searched the emptiness around me, right at the spot where everything had ended. That same deceitful moment.
I knelt, shattered, on the grass, as cold as my body. I touched the place where his lifeless body had fallen, and I trembled.
Every breath was torture.
It wasn't life anymore, it wasn't reality anymore — I wasn't myself anymore. Not without Caèl. Not without Niran.
"I couldn't protect you… I'm sorry, Niran. Forgive me."
Warm tears streamed down my cheeks as my mind dragged me back.
I wanted to fight the pain, push it away, but at the same time, I let it carve its way through me.
I wanted to be punished.
Yes, I deserved a lesson.
"Niran…"
I murmured, as everything came flooding back.
I had just crossed the portal that would take me to Ever'En.
The sky was clear as always. Spring, having arrived a few months earlier, was preparing for summer. Time flowed slowly here, unlike in the real world.
Up there, everything was frenzy, rush, appearance.
Always running. Always tied to money, work, fame.
Caèl — my Niran — came from the most hectic city in the universe.
Train stations, crowded subways, advertising everywhere, faces of idols and actors.
A digital world where a person's life only existed if broadcast online.
Where those in the spotlight — idols, actors, models — had no right to a life of their own.
Caèl was nineteen, an up-and-coming actor.
He couldn't stand social media, yet was forced to live within it.
Ever since we met on Ever'En, he had always seemed out of place in his world.
He wasn't at peace, he wasn't free.
The contracts were clear: no private life. And if there had to be one, it had to remain silent. Always.
One kind glance too many… and it could be his end.
A smile to a colleague — male or female — could spark hatred.
Some fans would feel betrayed and demand answers.
Interviews, statements. Denials. Even breaking off a relationship, if necessary.
I thought of all this as I walked the path along Ever'En Lake.
I came from a small town. He, from a metropolis.
I sighed, pausing to admire the road lined with thousands of blossoming trees.
I breathed in.
An intoxicating scent filled my nostrils, followed by another — sweeter, more familiar.
I smiled.
I knew who it belonged to: Caèl.
Niran.
I opened my eyes and saw him: ripped jeans, black bracelet on his left wrist, urban hoodie tee, light brown hair tousled by the wind.
I tried to call out to him, but he was the one who turned to me, smiling, calling me by my nickname.
"Tay, you're late!"
He stood up, dusted off his jeans, and came to me.
We were just millimeters apart. His blue eyes smiled at me.
He stepped closer and kissed my cheek, whispering in my ear:
"I missed you. So much, Tay."
I blushed. Hugged him and replied:
"We just talked on Line a moment ago."
He pouted.
"True, but you weren't next to me."
I melted inside. But decided to tease him.
"Hmm… aren't we being sweet? Are you acting, by chance?"
He laughed.
"Ouch! That's a low blow, Tay. You wound me."
I smiled.
"The low blow's my foot!"
And I kissed him on the lips.
His lips, soft and warm — I adored them.
He kissed me back. We parted just enough to look into each other's eyes.
He was about to say something, when his expression changed.
He looked past my shoulder.
I didn't have time to understand.
The air became unbreathable.
The sky darkened.
In a flash, Caèl threw himself between me and something, pushing me to the ground.
I fell. Turned.
A giant shadow towered over him.
A scream — his.
A deep, dark voice uttered words I didn't understand.
A hiss pierced my mind.
Something warm trickled from my ears.
I stood up, staggering. The darkness vanished.
I saw Caèl's feet lift off the ground.
A flaming blade pierced his chest.
He fell. Hit his head on a rock.
My breath stopped.
"Ca… Caèl…"
I whispered, crying.
I was about to reach him when he, swaying, got back up.
"Who are you?"
He took a step, then froze.
He looked at me. Trembling.
"Ta… Tay… please go…"
I shook my head.
I saw him collapse.
Time slowed.
My heart felt like it exploded.
Tears blinded me.
I felt a dark presence behind me, but I didn't care.
I just wanted to reach Caèl.
I caught him just before he hit the ground.
Held him to my chest. Our eyes met.
I saw the light go out in his.
I tried to speak, but couldn't.
He caressed my cheek with a trembling hand.
"Ta… Tay…"
He coughed.
His blood splashed on my face.
And then… he vanished. Before my eyes.
"Nirannnn!"
I screamed with all the air in my lungs, tearing my throat.
The earth swallowed me.
I kept screaming his name, again and again.
Then that voice — the same one — laughed behind me.
"That Alpha will break… he won't survive up there without you."
Rage burst in my chest.
I stood up, ready to strike.
"May you be cursed!"
I yelled.
But the darkness that had consumed Caèl struck me too.
I fell to the ground.
The impact knocked the air out of me.
A strong hand grabbed my neck.
A voice hissed in my ears, worming into my mind like poison:
"From dawn to dusk your body will change.
One gaze will attract him.
One touch will hurt him.
And after… all will end."
I didn't understand.
Tried to break free. I couldn't.
"Niran… Niran…"
The image of Caèl falling tore me apart again.
His pain was mine.
Everything multiplied.
Ice. Fire. Darkness.
Then… it faded.
Air returned to my lungs like blades.
I touched the ground where Niran had disappeared.
Ripped out the grass.
Brought it to my nose.
I searched for his scent.
But all I smelled was blood. And ash.
"Ni… Niran…"
I whispered.
It was deep night when I was abruptly torn from reality. The voice of that cursed Alpha, Deyan, forcefully invaded my mind.
"Still that nightmare?"
"Get out!" I snapped, voice trembling.
"Oh, how rude," he said with amused tone, "and I even brought you something to eat."
A shiver ran down my spine. The contact of his voice hit me like an electric jolt. A fleeting image formed in my mind: Reika's face, and then, deep in her eyes — Caèl's.
"Ca… Caèl," I thought, but it vanished instantly.
I saw it, as if it were a recent memory: Caèl losing consciousness, his face contorting in pain. Reika's hand—my curse—gently touched the side of his neck to check for fever. That touch, that final contact, reached me in my palm, and shattered me.
Tears streamed silently as my heart mourned what I couldn't do: that touch should have been mine, not hers, not Reika's. She was the curse, the nightmare that Alpha had inflicted on me six months ago, after striking Caèl down.
I shook my head, trying to free myself from those painful images, and glared at Deyan with hatred and disgust. He laughed, a cruel sound that made me tremble. He grabbed my chin with an icy grip.
"Don't think I don't know," he said. "He made it back a few hours ago. And guess what? I was the one who dragged him here."
I looked at him, trembling. In his eyes, I saw a disturbing pleasure, an obsession that had taken root over time, an oppression that made me shudder. His smile was smug, nauseating. The way he touched me, that perverse amusement radiating from his face—it wasn't meant for me. No, it was for Caèl.
I turned away, praying he hadn't noticed, while inside, I clenched my teeth and begged that Caèl was safe.