BOOK 2: A Parallel Universe

Belmore: A Parallel Universe

Prologue:

Yuki closes the book as she realizes that her tears have started to fall.

Her heart hurts, not for the demon fox and the heroine.

Her heart hurts for Jiro, the antagonist.

Was it because her name is the same as the protagonist, and the man she loves bears the same name as the demon prince?

Or perhaps, is it possible, to be much more than that?

**** Book 2, Chapter One:

A White Christmas ****

Yuki Sora

I couldn't recall a time when I had not loved him. I loved him ever since I saw his raven hair and his beautiful golden eyes that somehow spoke to my soul.

I loved him ever since I was a kid.

I remember chasing after him during parties, staying by his side every time he visited.

I remembered smiling even when he chastised me and called me an idiot every time I followed him around.

For most of my childhood, I have always just been the fat silly kid who chased after him.

I thought then that I would always be just someone who completely loses her mind over him.

But then, the silly child who held her heart in front of that man died years ago on a white snowy Christmas eve.

**** Book 2, Chapter Two: A Parallel Universe ****

It was Christmas Eve and the Takeshis came to visit our mansion.

The Sora's mansion is not our residence, more like a vacation house purchased on a whim by my father on my parents' 20th anniversary.

My mother, a red-haired woman with a gentle nature and a feisty appetite had the misfortune of falling in love with one of the richest billionaires in the world.

Theirs is a cinderella love story that for years had been at the center of the news in the city of Belmore.

Belmore is known as the heart of the world. Only those blessed by the gods with supernatural powers were allowed to live inside the city.

I was an exception, for I was not born with any powers. I was allowed to stay because my father was an undefeated warrior of the Demon's Lair. This was the only reason I was allowed to continue living inside the city.

My father is Ulysses Sora. He is nicknamed "The Duke of Atlantis", a blue-haired handsome man with unrivaled powers, even in the magnificent city of Belmore.

Nonetheless, my mother was happier staying on the island owned by my father, a fishing village that thrived on nothing else but the catch of the day.

My father purchased the whole island when the former owner tried to establish a factory of poisonous chemicals right in the center.

He named the island Atlantis, the lost world, for it remains untouched by the modern influence of the city situated just beside it.

Yes, poisonous chemicals are allowed in Belmore. The world has changed, after all. This was the year 5053 when human superpowers have been awakened, the assassination was a thriving business, and mafia leaders are considered lords.

I closed the book and wiped the tears from my eyes. This is a weird book, I thought.

There were so many similarities between the world illustrated in the book and the world and people that lived in mine. And yet, somehow the circumstances were different.

How come I have the same name as the protagonist and at the same time, the antagonist has my beloved's name, Jiro Takeshi?

I thought for a while, but not finding a logical explanation, dismissed it as nothing more but an unfortunate coincidence.

**** Book 2, Chapter Three:

Jiro Takeshi of Belmore ****

Yes, I was just a mere child. A mere teenager. But in my heart, I'd known I was in love.

I recall catching my breath as I looked at him. I smiled when my eyes caught sight of his long raven hair that reached his shoulders.

He was a very handsome man. Exceptionally tall, well built, exquisitely dressed, and his eyes, his eyes are the color of molten gold.

I have always referred to him as devastatingly handsome. Of course, considering that we are in modern times, I don't believe in gods and demons.

But you know how it is when good girls fall for the bad boys because they are hot. That kind of unexplained magic was his charm.

He would exceptionally play an antagonist's part if he was a storybook character, and yet the reader would be sure to fall for his charms instead.

The thought of him kept me awake when Iwa supposed to be dreaming soundly in my sleep.

I'd been in love with him for so long.

It wasn't an adult kind of love.

It was irrational.

Unplanned.

Unwanted.

A love born from innocence and whimsical illusions of a young, tender heart.

I was in love with Uncle Lucifer's favorite brother. Lucifer Takeshi was my father's best friend. My uncle, as I dared to call him, is number one in the assassination business.

Lucifer's entire family had trained to become assassins, from his beautiful wife to his children. Every single one of them.

So it goes without saying that Jiro Takeshi was an assassin, a world-renowned one at that.

He was blessed with the ability to control lightning. Inhuman strength, inhuman speed, together with his ability, has made him the undoubted heir of their family business.

He was my hero. And now, my sworn enemy.

***** Book 2, Chapter Four:

A Memoir *****

That night, while everyone was gathered by the bonfire, I followed Jiro as he sneaked out of the house.

The snow was already thick.

And because of my weight and the heavy silly sweater I wore that night, I started to get stuck deep in the snow.

I cried out his name, and that was when he saw me, half-buried in the snow, unable to wriggle out of the hole I found myself in.

He helped me get out of the hole and looked at me with irritation.

"Why are you always causing trouble for me, Yuki?" he asked, scolding me like an older brother will reprimand his younger sibling.

"I'm not your sister, don't treat me like one." I started to cry.

I was just a fat, silly child crying before the love of her life.

"Yes, you are not. A good sister would not cause me any trouble. But you, little girl, you are a different story." His golden eyes stared at me, his stare told me he meant every word.

"I am not your younger sibling, Jiro. We have different parents! I'm not your younger sister! So look at me! Just this once... please look at me!" My hands reached out to his sweater and tugged on it to get his attention.

He smirked, finding my words silly.

For he had always seen me as nothing more but a little child.

Nothing more than a younger sibling.

"Then how do you want me to see you?" he asked.

He trapped my back against a tree and looked straight into my eyes.

Anger was written on his face as he tilted my chin up and inched his face closer to mine.

My heartbeat so fast, I could hear it pounding in my chest. My breathing became shallow, and suddenly he was all that I could see.

Those beautiful golden orbs stared through me. Has he finally seen me as a woman?

"Baka, is this what you want?" Jiro cursed and asked. His voice chilled my very soul.

Somehow, I knew then that he was about to break my heart to a million pieces. But I closed my eyes as I anticipated and waited for the kiss.

I nodded my head as he closed the gap between us and gave me my first kiss. I closed my eyes and felt his lips on mine.

I felt his tongue on my lips seeking to explore further. But I was too naive and unable to open my lips to meet his kiss.

He let go of me, his eyes full of anger and restraint. "Do you understand what you are doing? Damn it, you are nothing but a child!"

His words echoed in my ears even when I was finally back in front of the mansion.

**** Book 2, Chapter Five: Coming of Age ****

I tried to smile in front of everyone.

I received gifts as always from the Takeshi family members. Even from Jiro.

But he did not return that night.

I heard uncle Lucifer tell everyone that Jiro might be meeting with a girlfriend since he is already of age.

My dad agreed to that and even proposed a toast to Jiro's coming of age.

"Does Jiro have a girlfriend now?" I asked my brother, Louis, when he accompanied me to the front door of my bedroom.

"Well, I think so. I'm even younger than him and I already have a girlfriend. So Jiro probably does too," Louis said, explaining everyone else's assumption.

"Do you think he is spending Christmas with her right now?" I asked my brother. I did so with a catch of sadness on my breath.

"Probably. Why would he sneak out on all of us if that's not the case?" Louis patted my head. "You better go to bed. Don't forget to brush your teeth." Louis opened my bedroom door and left me to join the adults since it was supposedly past a teenage girl's bedtime.

I stared at the box of candies given to me by Jiro as a gift.

I always clean the boxes of Jiro's candies on every occasion he gave me.

I religiously cleaned the box with an alcohol swab and put it on a shelf.

My Jiro shelf. A big cabinet with all the Jiro things I have. A silly collection of memories from someone I considered my first love.

I stared at the boxes of candies facing me. I smiled as I clutched my chest, my heart felt like it was about to explode from the sharp, stabbing pain.

If I am nothing but a mere child, how am I able to feel this much misery from those simple words?