Revenant's Kiss | ONC 2022 Shortlister ✓

S E V E N T E E N

He looked at me with soft rosy cheeks and sparkling eyes. His hair was a complete mess from our night of intense adventures, and in the bright morning sunlight he looked more handsome and more human than I'd ever seen him. "Good morning, beautiful," he whispered, his voice thick with sleep.

I blinked slowly as a full smile took hold on my lips when he kissed my forehead. "Good morning."

He shifted and his nude body brushed against mine beneath the covers, making him hum softly. One of his hands cupped my hip and innocently ran along my butt cheek and the leg I had thrown over his waist, while the other gently gripped my back and kept me close. He looked into my face as if I were the most beautiful woman in the world, and maybe to him I was. "Day?"

"Yes?" I breathed softly, cuddling closely against him as he felt warm and strong. Despite not telling him, I loved that nickname. It sent a feeling of fuzziness spreading through every part of me each time I heard it.

He planted his lips against my cheek. "Thank you for last night," he murmured against my skin.

"It's my pleasure." Biting the inside of my cheek, I didn't stop my mind from wandering. The way he responded to my body had been the most sexy thing I'd ever experienced. And the dominance that took over him during it. . .fuck. I could still feel the way his solid member hit me in all the right places when he bucked up into me while I remained on top.

I never would've guessed Soren had a dominant bone in his body, but oh had he proved me wrong!

"I meant what I said during it," he said, punctuating each word with a caress to my face.

The air left my lungs for a moment because I knew what he was talking about. His confession of love I never returned. Regret rose in my throat like acidic bile. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be." He smiled, and I noticed the sharpness of his canine teeth. Brushing the stray locks of hair behind my ear, he stared directly into my eyes. "When I said 'I love you,' it wasn't just to hear you say it back. It was to make sure you knew."

My eyes blurred with tears and I blinked them back. No, I wouldn't cry. Not right now.

"Aww, sweetie. You're crying." He smoothed away the escaping drop with his thumb.

Okay, I was crying. At this point I couldn't deny it or ignore the steady stream of teardrops raining down my face. His words struck a chord in my heart, and all the emotions I'd buried for so long burst forth from the restraint of the walls I built around them.

When he pulled me against his chest, I didn't resist but leaned in so closely my face was completely against his skin. The dampness of my tears leaked from my face and onto him, but he paid them no mind. Instead he kept me close in his embrace and whispered words of comfort.

He didn't even ask what was wrong, but I guessed that was what made me want to open up. I wanted him to know the deepest darkest secrets I held so far away from the world. How I never went a moment without fighting against the pain of loss for those I loved and had to put a bullet in.

"I'm scared to love you," I admitted tearfully, my voice slightly muted by his chest. "But I do."

He nodded and kissed the top of my head, his fingertips stroking my bare back. "I know you do."

"It's just," I paused, a hiccuping sob shuddering through me. Fear of rejection threatened to freeze my attempt of opening up, but I shoved it down.

It was now or never.

"Everyone I've ever loved ended up taking a bullet from a gun in my hands," I managed to get out. My ribcage heaved with unsteady breaths and a whimper of fresh grief left my lips despite how much I didn't want it to. "When LycanZ came to my town, my husband of one month got infected protecting me. When he turned, I shot him."

He squeezed me for a moment. "Day, I'm so sorry."

I shook my head with a sob. "That's not even all. Once I got to the Boston QZ and chose to become a part of the EGL, I slept with so many men to forget about Jonathan. But I never could. No matter what I did, his loss was always there."

He remained silent but I knew he was listening, and it pushed me onward even though I felt like I couldn't finish the story.

"And then I got my own team. Azrael was a part of it, but we became more as time went on." I sniffled and forced myself to take some deep breaths. "I never told him I loved him, but I did. Remember the helicopter crash site and the men you buried?"

He nodded. "I could never forget that."

"He was one of them. I shot him in the head because he turned, just like Jonathan." I shook my head and tried swallowing back the salty tears but to no avail. "I. . .I don't want it all to repeat with you."

He pulled me up from his chest, his hands gripping both sides of my head as he looked down into my wet face. "Daytona, that will never be the case with me. You're the one who keeps me grounded and sane. Without you, I'd be a monster or God knows what else. I need you, and I need your love. It's what helps me combat the beast inside me."

I hiccuped softly. "Really?"

"Really." He nodded. "If I ever thought I'd turn on you, I'd eat a gun. I won't put you through that. Not now, not ever."

My face scrunched in my fight to end my crying. Funny how just yesterday I was the one assuring him on this, but the tables had turned. "Soren. . . ." I couldn't bring myself to say it, so I did it in the only way I knew how.

My lips collided with his as I threw my arms around his neck, locking him into a makeout session. When I finally pulled back, my tears had vanished and I looked at him with a tiny smile.

"What now?" He booped my nose with his.

I filled my lungs with as deep a breath as I could, ignoring the twinge of pain in my side. "We find the Stars."