The rain hadn't stopped.
It fell harder now, heavier, as if the sky itself was trying to drown the world—and maybe me along with it.
I couldn't move.
My body refused to respond, frozen in place as his words echoed inside my head.
"I brought you back."
No.
That wasn't possible.
People didn't just come back.
Not after… that.
My hands trembled as I looked down again, expecting to see blood—proof that what happened was real.
But there was nothing.
No wound.
No torn fabric.
No sign that my life had been taken just moments ago.
Only the cold rain clinging to my skin.
My breathing became uneven again.
"I… I died," I whispered, more to myself than to him.
The memory was still there.
Too clear.
Too real.
The pain.
The cold.
The way everything faded.
That wasn't something you imagined.
That wasn't something you forgot.
And yet…
"I'm alive."
The words sounded wrong coming out of my mouth.
Like they didn't belong to me anymore.
Like I didn't belong to myself anymore.
A quiet sound came from him.
Not quite a laugh.
But close.
"You shouldn't be."
My head snapped up.
"What does that mean?"
He didn't answer immediately.
Instead, he took a slow step forward.
Instinctively, I tried to move back—but my body didn't react fast enough. My legs felt weak, heavy, like something invisible was holding me in place.
My pulse raced.
"Don't come any closer," I said, forcing strength into my voice.
But it didn't matter.
He stopped only when he was right in front of me again.
Too close.
Close enough that I could feel the cold radiating from him.
Close enough that the air itself seemed to shift around us.
His eyes locked onto mine.
And once again, I felt it.
That strange pull.
Like something inside me was being drawn toward him.
"No…" I muttered under my breath, shaking my head slightly.
This wasn't fear.
Not exactly.
It was something worse.
Something deeper.
"What did you do to me?" I demanded, my voice rising despite the tremor in it.
His gaze didn't waver.
"I corrected a mistake."
A mistake?
Anger flared in my chest, sudden and sharp.
"You killed me!" I snapped. "How is that a mistake?!"
The rain crashed harder against the ground, filling the silence that followed.
For a moment, I thought he wouldn't respond again.
But then—
"You were not meant to die tonight."
The certainty in his voice made my stomach twist.
"What are you talking about?" I asked. "Who decides that? You?"
He didn't deny it.
And somehow, that was worse.
"You crossed a path that wasn't yours," he said calmly.
My mind struggled to keep up.
"I was just walking home!"
"That path was not meant for you."
"Then whose was it?" I shot back.
His expression didn't change.
"Someone who was supposed to die."
A cold wave washed over me.
My thoughts spiraled.
"So… what? I just took someone else's place? That doesn't make any sense!"
"Your existence in that moment… interfered."
Interfered.
Like I was nothing more than a mistake.
A variable.
Something that didn't belong.
"That's insane," I said, shaking my head. "You're insane."
Maybe this was a dream.
A nightmare.
That had to be it.
Because nothing about this made sense.
But then—
My body moved.
Without warning.
Without my permission.
A sharp pull hit my chest, forcing me forward.
Straight toward him.
I gasped as my feet stumbled, my balance completely gone. My hands instinctively reached out—
And landed against him.
The moment I touched him, a shock ran through my entire body.
Not pain.
Something else.
Something electric.
Something alive.
I froze.
So did he.
For a brief second, everything went silent again.
Even the rain seemed distant.
My breath hitched.
"What… was that?" I whispered.
His eyes narrowed slightly.
As if he hadn't expected that either.
Slowly, I pulled my hands away, but the feeling lingered—like something had connected between us and refused to let go completely.
My heart was racing again.
Not just from fear this time.
Something else was mixed in.
Something I didn't want to name.
"You…" I hesitated. "What did you do to me?"
This time, when he answered, there was a slight pause.
A fraction of hesitation.
Barely noticeable.
But it was there.
"You are bound."
The words sent a chill straight through me.
"Bound?" I repeated.
"To me."
Silence.
Heavy.
Suffocating.
I stared at him, waiting for him to say something else.
To explain.
To fix this.
But he didn't.
"That's not funny," I said, forcing a weak laugh. "You can't just say something like that."
"I am not joking."
Something inside me snapped.
"No. No, I don't accept that," I said, shaking my head. "Whatever this is—whatever you did—you fix it."
His gaze hardened slightly.
"It cannot be undone."
"Then undo it anyway!" I stepped closer without thinking, anger overpowering everything else. "You don't get to just decide my life like this!"
The moment the words left my mouth, the air changed.
His presence shifted.
Darker.
He reached out suddenly, his hand gripping my wrist.
Firm.
Unavoidable.
My breath caught.
"Careful," he said quietly.
The tone was different now.
Dangerous.
"You do not understand what you are asking."
"Then explain it to me!" I shot back, trying to pull my hand away.
But his grip didn't loosen.
Instead, it tightened slightly.
Not enough to hurt.
But enough to remind me—
I wasn't in control here.
"You died," he said, his voice low. "Your soul began to separate from your body."
My heart pounded in my chest.
"I brought you back before it was complete."
"And?" I demanded.
"And now," he continued, his eyes darkening, "your existence is tied to mine."
The words felt heavier this time.
Real.
Terrifyingly real.
"What does that mean?"
He held my gaze.
"If I let go… you will not survive."
Everything inside me went cold.
"No…"
"That is the consequence."
I shook my head slowly.
"That's not possible."
But deep down…
I knew it was.
Because I could still feel it.
That connection.
That invisible thread pulling me toward him.
"You don't get to do this," I whispered.
"I already did."
The rain continued to fall.
The world around us kept moving.
But mine had stopped completely.
I looked at him—really looked at him this time.
At the calm in his expression.
At the control.
At the terrifying certainty.
"Who are you…?" I asked again.
This time—
He answered.
"My name… is not something you need to know yet."
My chest tightened.
"That's not an answer."
"It is enough."
Frustration burned through me.
Fear followed close behind.
And beneath it all…
That same strange feeling.
Pulling me closer.
Binding me tighter.
Like my life wasn't mine anymore.
Like it belonged to him.
I took a slow step back.
Then another.
But even as I did…
It felt wrong.
Like I was moving against something invisible.
Something that refused to let me go too far.
"What happens now?" I asked quietly.
For the first time—
He looked at me differently.
Not cold.
Not empty.
Something else.
Something I couldn't understand.
"You stay alive."
My breath caught.
"And you stay with me."