Chapter 019

Curiosity compelled me to approach Azriel, my footsteps silent on the cool terrace floor. As I reached his side, he turned, a faint smile gracing his lips. "Couldn't sleep either, huh?" he asked, his voice gentle.

"Are you..." I didn't know how to ask this. I had never asked anyone before because they didn't want to stay close to me. "okay?" I finished my sentence after a short pause.

"Yeah, I'm okay." He whispered, his voice husky and deep still, making stomach do something weird.

"But you are not fine, are you?" I sat down beside him, gazing at the stars when I felt his piercing stare on me. "Take a picture, it'll last longer."

Azriel chuckled, shaking his head. "Oh, Selene, your ego knows no bounds. But trust me, I won't subject my camera to such a cruel fate."

I scoffed, "Whatever, I asked you serious question, dumbo. Plan on answering that?"

He came closer to my face, my cheeks warming instantly, as he said, "No." He smiled.

"No sharing?"

"No sharing," He repeated, his warm minty breath on my face. "Can't have you pitying me." He turned to look up at the stars as I kept my gaze on him.

"I don't do pity."

Azriel raised an eyebrow, his playful smirk still lingering on his lips. "Oh, really?"

I sighed. He wasn't gonna break at all. "You're like turtle. So closed off."

"You're like a cat. So curious."

I crossed my arms, taking offense. "Are you implying that I'm always trying to pry into your secrets, Azriel?"

He grinned, "I'm not implying anything. I'm stating it outright. You have an insatiable curiosity, Fiery. Always trying to dig deeper, unravel the layers. It's both infuriating and endearing and just so insufferable."

He just knew which nerve to push to make me angry, "And you are closed off from everyone. You just know how to make others happy. What about yourself? That is insufferable. You are, not me."

His brows furrowed as he processed my words. A flicker of annoyance danced in his eyes, and his jaw tensed. "You think I'm closed off? You think I don't care about myself? That's rich coming from someone who constantly sticks her nose into everyone else's business and doesn't want to heal or be better."

My eyes narrowed, "Oh please, Azriel. Don't act like you're so high and mighty. You have this facade of indifference, like nothing fazes you. But deep down, I know there's more to you than meets the eye."

He scoffed, a bitter edge creeping into his voice. "And what do you know? You think you have me all figured out? You're just like everyone else, making assumptions without truly understanding."

By now we had eyebrows down, and were looking at each other with nothing but hatred. My voice rose with frustration, "Maybe if you opened up once in a while, instead of hiding behind your walls, people would have a chance to understand you! But no, you prefer to push everyone away and act like you're the only one who has it tough."

Azriel's eyes blazed with anger and stared daggers into mine, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "Oh, forgive me for not sharing my deepest fears and insecurities with the world. I didn't realize it was a prerequisite for being understood."

"Yeah, whatever, keep hiding." I scoffed. "The truth is that you're just a fucking coward. Afraid of 'oh what will people think of me?' You are on of those, aren't you? Newsflash, dickhead, people always judge no matter what, and that makes you a coward-"

His lips crashed on mine with a violent force before I could process anything. His hand tangled in my hair, pushing me closer to him as he kissed me. Angrily. He was blazing with anger and I could feel every drop of it in the kiss. My mind struggled to catch up, but it was too late because the way his lips moved against mine left me breathless, as much as I hated to admit it.

Though a part of me yearned to resist, my body betrayed. As the storm of emotions raged within, my hands, seemingly acting on their own accord, clenched tightly onto his shirt. The fabric strained against my grip, as if mirroring the forceful pull drawing me even closer to him.

He pulled out and stared at me, and I knew from his smirk that my face was beyond flushed.

His whispered words cut through the air, laden with both frustration and an undercurrent of something deeper. "You infuriate me," he confessed, his voice a low murmur that sent shivers down my spine. His eyes, still burning with anger, bore into mine, daring me to challenge him further.

My teeth clenched tightly together as I fought to contain the simmering anger within me. The words slipped through gritted teeth, a defiant response to his smirking provocation. "You're a cocky asshole."

His voice through the silence, tinged with a hint of smugness. "You just kissed this cocky asshole."

"And found out that he's the worst kisser ever." I whispered, my voice coming out a little weak making me boil in frustration.

"Is that so?" he quipped, his voice filled with a mixture of amusement and defiance. "I am sorry to inform you, fiery, but you're blushing the darkest shade of red."

"That's just from the embarrassment of kissing the worst kisser."

"Well," he drawled, his voice dripping with self-confidence, "you know what they say: it takes two to tango, fiery. It's not my fault you couldn't keep up."

"Fuck you!" I pushed him but that did nothing, seeing he didn't even budge.

He smirked devilishly, "Figures why you'd want to fuck me. After all, I am such a good kisser, and your first kiss, aren't I?" The audacity of his words pushed my anger to its boiling point. He had crossed the line of tolerability, becoming an insufferable force that refused to be ignored.

My grip tightened around the fabric of his shirt, my frustration fuelling a sudden surge because of his words. With a forceful tug, I pulled him closer, my lips crashing onto his in a defiant, passionate kiss.

"Who's the good kisser now?" I raised my eyebrows, my cheeks still heating up at his expression of rage. He picked me up, slammed my back to the wall, and crashed his lips onto mine with a force I didn't know existed. Our egos clashed together as we fought with our tongues. My hands found his hair and I pulled at them while he already had his hand tangled in mine, his other hand, grabbing my ass.

He bit my lip, a mix of pleasure and pain intertwining, as his tongue swirled with an intoxicating rhythm. A moan escaped before I could stop it, making him grin devilishly in the kiss.

He pulled out and I took a deep breath, panting. "I guess we both know who's better."

"I hate you." I let out venomously.

"The feeling is incredibly mutual." He said, as he let me down and walked to the door, before turning around with a smirk. "Don't expect more. I don't want you falling for me."

He knew how to hit my fucking insecurities and I hated him for that. I hated him for everything! "I'd rather watch pig sex for life than fall for you, believe me. I'd rather die. I won't fall for you. And for your kind information, I don't need this to keep going on, asshole. I have better things to do!"

"Good. Just what I wanted to hear." He grinned, and walked away, making me feel insignificant.

Of course, no one would want anything from me. Why would he want to continue? I wasn't very nice, and people called me disgusting, and I am pretty sure that's what he thought too which was okay. He was an asshole anyway.

A sense of resignation settled within me, a reminder of the harsh judgments and hurtful labels that others had placed upon me. My eyes filled with tear and I had to blink then a thousand times to suck them back in. So frustrating.

I stared at the shimmering stars for a while longer. Just as I were about to retreat to my bed, a piercing scream shattered the silence. My eyes widened, the abrupt sound pulling me out of my thoughts.

I hesitated for a second, seeing Azriel come out of his room, his eyes hazy and eyebrows furrowed when he looked at me and then towards Jared's room. I felt awkward, but I put that aside, and focused on Jared's room.

"A scream." I said, my voice barely above a whisper.

He nodded, walking toward the doors, as he whispered, "Stay behind me."

I nodded, but then I felt the urge of not doing so. He always said that I was dependent on him, maybe now was the time to prove him wrong. However, before I could do so, a sharp pain on my neck made me fall on the ground. Everything went blurry, all of a sudden and the last thing I heard was Azriel's loud voice calling out to me.