Selene sat at her desk, staring blankly at the sketch in front of her. It wasn't the city skyline she had meant to capture, nor the still-life fruit her professor had assigned. No, once again, her page was filled with sharp lines and fierce golden eyes.
She dropped her pencil with a frustrated groan.
"What is wrong with me?" she muttered, dragging a hand through her hair. She had classes, deadlines, and a life to worry about. She couldn't afford to obsess over a stranger. Especially one who seemed more nightmare than dream.
But every time she closed her eyes, Damon Nightshade was there. The way he had appeared from the shadows. The way he had ordered her to stay behind him. The way his hand had burned against her wrist.
Her heart thumped wildly at the memory, and she pressed a hand against her chest as if she could calm it.
Get it together, Selene.
She shoved the sketchbook shut and tried to focus on her phone. Messages blinked from her best friend, Clara.
Clara: You disappeared after class yesterday. Everything okay?
Clara: Don't tell me you went near that forest again.
Clara: Selene…?
Selene bit her lip, guilt washing over her. She typed a quick reply.
Selene: I'm fine. Just needed some air. Don't worry.
It wasn't a lie… not completely. But she couldn't tell Clara the truth. No one would believe her.
By evening, her restless energy had returned. She paced her tiny apartment, torn between fear and curiosity. Damon had warned her twice. He had told her to stay away. But something in the way his eyes had lingered on hers—half anger, half something else—pulled her back like an invisible tether.
Before she knew it, she was standing at the forest's edge again.
The sun dipped low, staining the sky in streaks of orange and violet. The air was cooler here, tinged with that wild, musky scent that made her skin prickle.
Selene hesitated. This was reckless, stupid, maybe even suicidal. But her feet carried her forward anyway.
She walked slowly this time, sketchbook clutched against her chest like a shield. Every creak of branches and rustle of leaves made her pulse quicken.
When the forest finally shifted into silence, she knew he was near.
"Do you have a death wish?"
The voice came from behind her, deep and rough. Selene spun around, her heart leaping into her throat.
There he was—Damon. Emerging from the shadows as if the darkness itself had shaped him. His golden eyes burned, sharper than she remembered.
Selene's breath caught. For a moment, she forgot every word she had planned.
"I—I came to draw," she stammered.
Damon arched a brow, unimpressed. "You came to find me."
Heat flared in her cheeks. "That's not—" She broke off when his gaze pinned her, sharp as a blade. Her protests melted under the weight of it.
"You're reckless," he said flatly, stepping closer. "Humans who enter this forest rarely walk out alive. And yet here you stand. Again."
Selene clenched her fists, trying to find her courage. "Maybe I'm not afraid of you."
For a heartbeat, silence stretched between them. Then Damon let out a low, humorless chuckle. "You should be."
The sound of it sent a shiver racing down her spine.
She lifted her chin, though her body trembled. "If you wanted me gone, you could have let those wolves tear me apart yesterday. But you didn't. Why?"
Damon's expression hardened. His jaw clenched, and for a moment, he looked away.
"You wouldn't understand," he said at last.
"Then make me understand," Selene pressed, surprising herself with the desperation in her voice.
Damon's eyes snapped back to hers, glowing brighter. His intensity made her breath hitch, but she didn't back down.
Something shifted in his expression. Not softness—no, he was too guarded for that—but something like conflict.
"You're human," he said finally, his tone laced with restraint. "This world isn't yours. You don't belong here."
Selene's chest tightened. "Then why does it feel like I do?"
The words slipped out before she could stop them. Her own honesty startled her.
Damon stared at her, silent. The forest seemed to hold its breath around them.
Then, in a blur of motion, he was closer—too close. His hand braced against the tree beside her head, caging her in. Selene's pulse skyrocketed, every nerve in her body screaming.
"Careful, little human," Damon murmured, his voice low and dangerous. "Curiosity is what kills most prey."
Selene's lips parted, but no sound came out. Her mind screamed at her to move, to run, but her body betrayed her. She was trapped, yes—but not entirely unwilling.
Her breath mingled with his. His golden eyes flicked down, just for a second, to her lips.
The forest crackled with unspoken tension.
And then Damon pulled back, as if burned by his own thoughts. His jaw tightened, his gaze hardening once more.
"You should forget me," he said, his voice rough. "For your own sake."
Before Selene could reply, he vanished into the shadows, leaving her trembling against the tree.
Her knees threatened to give way. She pressed a hand to her chest, her heartbeat racing.
Forget him? How could she, when every part of her being screamed that she was already bound to him?
Author's Note:
🌌 Damon's walls are high, but Selene is already cracking them. Did you feel the sparks between them? The story is just starting to burn! If you're enjoying it, please vote with Power Stones and drop a comment—your support fuels the next chapter! ❤️