Meanwhile

I peered at the transparent body above the bed, nothing remaining in my heart… as usual.

“Ugh… I-I should’ve died… what g-good have I ever done?”

“I-I’ve lied to the only p-person who’s a-always cared about me for y-years… I’ve helped put my f-father turn into an u-unstoppable conquerer… everybody hates me except for S-Steve. E-Even my own mother hasn’t t-talked to or even looked at me for y-years…”

You can still make up for some mistakes you’ve made… starting with this one, Raen said.

“W-What does it matter? I-I’ve tried. I don’t know enough about m-magic to control my o-own powers, and e-even then… it’s filled with c-conditions. I-I might… make t-things worse…”

Bap. Bap. Bap.

Oh shit… someone’s there. Please don’t let it be Steve. Anybody but him…

I hesitantly stood up, took a step forward to open it, but then remembered.

“Y-You can come in.”

The door flew open, and Rose stood in the doorway.

“H-Hello…”

“Hey, uh… I’m throwing a party at the bar to… celebrate our victory. You coming?”

“I-I h-hate to be a d-dissapointment, b-but… I don’t think any of us a-are in t-the mood for a p-party.”

Rose walked over, wrapped her arm around my elbow, and tugged, saying “That’s exactly why we need a party! To lift our spirits!”

I ripped my arm away, dropped my butt onto the bed, and crossed my arms like the whiny bitch I am.

“Oh, c’mon! What else are you gonna do? Pout yourself to sleep?”

“…Probably.”

Rose bent down, and sat on her legs.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

“Did you know I’m a therapist, at least technically?”

“N-No.”

“Well… I can tell you’re hurting. Hurting because of your love… for Steve.”

I perked up.

“Y-Yeah… W-Wait. How do you…”

“But he’s in denial about his feelings. You know it too… which means he’ll need help to be set straight.”

“B-But… I thought y-you had a crush on him…”

“I crush on everybody. I’ve done it with Isabelle and Luke too,” she said with a wink.

“And besides… I’ve already felt the feeling of someone’s lips. You haven’t. It’s only fair you get him, and not me.”

“T-That… feels kinda s-selfish.”

“It’s okay to be selfish sometimes. It’s part of what makes us human.”

“B-But I’m not human… not r-really.”

Rose sighed, and sat down next to me.

“Can you keep a secret,” she whispered into my ear.

“I-I guess… all I seem t-to be good f-for is hiding.”

After a bit of silence, she inevitably said “There are more Grim Reapers in this universe than you think.”

…

“You’re a G-Grim Reaper?!”

“Shh. I told you it’s a secret!”

“S-Still… w-why didn’t you tell me e-earlier?”

“Because the entire reason I’m here involves me being as unseen as possible.”

“S-So… you liking S-Steve… that was all a l-lie?”

“I love everybody. That’s my thing.” She pulled down the left side of her buttoned-up shirt, revealing a red rose birthmark on her shoulder, stretching out just barely onto her neck.

Red rose… does she control love?

“A-Are… y-you a reincarnation too?”

“Think so…” Rose grabbed my shoulders, looking dead in my eyes, “look, you gotta promise not to tell anyone. Not even that I exist. Not your father, not Steve, and especially not *******”

“I-I’m sorry, what was that l-last one?” I asked, unclogging my ears by digging out wax with my index fingers.

“Dammit… at least spend some time grieving me…” Rose mumbled to herself.

“I… w-wha?”

Rose groaned, closed her eyes, and let her head hang low for several minutes.

When the silence started getting unbearably awkward, I shook her, but nothing happened.

“R-Rose…? You… okay?”

About another minute later, her head jerked up, accidentally hitting my jaw.

“Shit! You okay?”

“Y-Yeah… w-what… were you doing?”

Her eyes changed color, still green, but a little lighter.

“Alright… look. We have 2 hours, at best. We need to throw the party I mentioned earlier, now.”

“W-Why? W-What’s happening?” I asked, my heart racing.

“As cliche as this is, I have no time to explain. Just make sure Steve goes. That’s all that matters right now.”

Rose stood up to walk away, but I sprung up and asked loudly “W-What’s going on?!”

Rose stopped, turned her head to see me, and her legs started shaking.

“Do you trust me?”

“I-I…”

“Do. You. Trust. Me.”

Remembering time was of the essence, I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, and remembered something Steve told me, long ago.

“The only ones deserving our trust are those willing to make risks for us.”

I slowly opened my eyes, seeing Rose’s pleading expression, and nodded.

With a relieved smile, Rose ran out of the room. I took another deep breath, walked to the doorframe… and started walking to Steve’s room.

One thing I love about being a writer. Even a simple change can completely shift your plans for the overall story.