His gravelly voice was scraping my eardrum, and despite being scared of him, I felt a tingling sensation below my navel. His voice was like the best kind of poison. The one that sent you six feet down after one drop.

I had to stop him from doing other perverted things, so I spoke up. "I-I want to know something." My voice quivered.

He stopped moving his nose, and the strength of his hand around my neck loosened but did not move.

"Hmm?" He hummed in response, my ear becoming hot.

As I was thinking of the best question to distract him from going further, he changed the placement of his hands and locked them around my stomach, pressing them hard against my body like a rope.

The time was ticking.

I knew I had to dig deep for him to stop concentrating. Death was always on the alert. So I dug the deepest I could.

I exhaled. "Were you the whole time we were together manipulating me into liking you as you did with Grandma?" I asked.

He huffed and then smashed me against the west wall-the chilly tiles pressing into my bare shoulders. I was now facing him closely. Still, I couldn't see anything past the mist of shadows on his face.

His hands barricaded me, and when the sleeves of his cloak rolled up, I noticed how slender his arms were. I guess he wasn't kidding when he said he's all bones. He was a walking corpse. His gaze moved where I was looking, and he immediately made his sleeves roll up to cover his whole arms and forearms.

I was starting to freeze due to his closeness. The more seconds passed, the more I scolded myself in my head for taking my pendant off. Mistake learned.

Death was quiet for some time, but then he ended the silence. "Every moment we spent together, either me as Madeline or Alec, was real." He tucked a strand of my wet hair behind my ear. "I want to experience everything with you in realness." He added.

I'm not sure if what he said was true. Because I already saw what outcome it had on Grandma, and she didn't remember almost anything. I couldn't trust myself anymore. I couldn't trust anyone.

"If what you said is true, you wouldn't disguise yourself as a woman. Why did you do that?" I asked, clutching my hands around the hem of the towel.

Death let his hands fall, and that was the perfect opportunity for me to run to the sink and grab my pendant.

When I assured myself his hands were resting against the sides of his body, I hastily moved to the sink. I captured the pendant, clipping it quickly around my neck.

I was breathing loudly from the adrenaline. My insides twisted when I looked back at Death. His whole body was turned to me, standing as a statue. He couldn't make a move toward me anymore. He couldn't touch me or whisper into my ear. But he could still be close enough to me to watch me whenever he pleased.

As I thought, I didn't get an answer to my most wondered question from the moment I knew about his disguise.

I took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled. "Please, just leave," I said quietly, fighting tears.

In that instant, he vanished, leaving a gray mist to linger in the air behind him. The weight dropped from my shoulders. I could finally breathe normally. I didn't waste a second, and I hurried to my bedroom. I let myself drown in my bed. Feeling the sheets cover my body. I was trembling from the coldness; I thought my fingers would fall off.

I closed my eyes and imagined I was somewhere else. Anywhere but here. I heard my heartbeat pounding in my ears, and I took a deep breath and pictured myself in a warm embrace. Someone's body was heating me from each side. Filling me with warmth until my frozen bones unfrosted. My skin was no longer uncomfortable to the touch, but desired.

Was I not meant to be with such a person? Was it only possible in my head? Why couldn't I break the vicious cycle of my fate?

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Suddenly, a hot tear ran down my cheek, traveling then down my neck. I couldn't hold the anger and pain any longer inside me. It was eating me alive. I tried so hard to come up with the terms of my life, but it was a pretend. I never liked living here. I always wanted to escape far away. Somewhere warm with sunlight, where the shadows of my mind couldn't get to me. Where I'd be genuinely happy.

I saved some money aside for the day when I got the courage to leave this town, but Grandma was locking me here. What kind of granddaughter would I be if I left her here by herself?

I decided after high school to stay here, work in a bar almost every day, and spend most of my days suffering in loneliness.

The only light that could shine through the crack in my horrid life was Rowan. But I had no idea for how long he'd stay in my life. Who would even want to? Everybody wants to escape from the cave.

I fell asleep somehow with my body shaking and tears flowing from my eyes, but I slept. When I woke up in the morning, my body was in agony-heavy to be lifted. It meant I got cold. Despite feeling like a complete shit, I got ready for work.

I decided after weeks to have a normal breakfast. When I entered the kitchen, I was surprised to find Grandma sitting at the dining table.

"Good morning," I said to her and strolled to the fridge.

"Morning. Did you sleep well?" Grandma asked, sipping on her tea.

I turned the toaster on and placed two slices of bread inside. "I'd lie if I said I did. But weren't you supposed to go to work today?" I wondered.

"I took a day off. I'm feeling a little drowsy. Maybe having a cold." She laughed and took a bite of her omelet.

When I finished making my breakfast, I brought it to the dining table and sat across from her. I didn't tell her I was feeling sick because then she wouldn't let me go to work. And unlike her, I can't get a day off.

"Will you meet Rowan today again?" She asked.

I almost choked on the toast. I knew she was interested in him, but I didn't want her to be disappointed when Rowan would leave, and her dream of setting me up with him wouldn't work. Because that was exactly her plan.

"I don't know. Rowan is a busy guy." I replied, taking another bite.

We didn't talk much after that, and truthfully, I didn't even want to. Because all she wanted to talk about was Rowan. I know she wanted someone to take care of me after she was gone, but Rowan doesn't see me this way. He only came here to protect me from the Grim Reaper. Nothing more.

• • •

The whole time I was working, I couldn't stop shaking and sneezing. Even my favorite fluffy sweater couldn't keep me warm. All I could think about was lying in bed and drinking delicious tea. The imagination of it helped me calm down.

People kept coming in and out of the bar, and I sometimes had no idea if I made the exact drink they asked of me. I should've gone home, but I didn't. Instead, I kept on suffering, until my boss noticed how awful I looked.

I straighten my posture to look okay. When he approached me, a knot formed in my stomach.

"I was watching you the whole time, and let me tell you, you look like a zombie. You should go home and have a rest before you get me sick as well." He said. I don't know if he was trying to be nice or was truly concerned about his health.

I raised a brow. "If I leave now, you won't fire me?" I asked, and my eyes narrowed.

He shook his head in disbelief. "No, I won't. I'm not such a bastard you took me for." He whispered then, "But before you go, take an order from the customer who's been sitting here since we started talking. After that, you can leave."

I smiled, just imagining my comfortable bed. "Thank you, boss!" I exclaimed, feeling a sweat drip from my forehead. I really had to leave as soon as possible.

After my boss left, I focused my attention on the man in front of me. The first thing that caught my attention was his bald head, which had many tattoos on it. Different kinds of symbols and texts. Despite his haircut, he was dressed like a normal man. Basic black outfit with a leather jacket layered on it. His eyes were dark gray.

"Large beer." He said, his voice low and intimidating. Chills spread through me, and I wasn't sure if it was because of him or the fever.

As I was tapping his beer, he spoke. "You have a beautiful name. Never change it."

I was quite confused by that. Why'd I ever want to change my name?

I simply smiled, as I was used to weird talks from men. This bar helped me create a solid shield around me when it comes to interaction with customers.

The man didn't say anything else; he just kept drinking his beer, and as I was gathering my stuff to go home, Rowan showed up out of nowhere. He looked exhausted.

"Hey, I know I'm late, but it was such a busy day, and I had to make sure you were okay at least." He said.

"No, it's okay. I know you're a busy man! Thank you for checking on me-" My legs broke, and I almost fell onto the floor if it weren't for Rowan's fast reflexes for catching me. My eyelids were hard to keep open, and my entire body was in flames.

"For heaven's sake! You're burning, Vivienne." He shouted, trying to keep me steady on my feet.

I laughed as I thought it was funny; he used the word 'heaven' when he was an angel.

He hoisted me gracefully, and before I knew it, I was lying on my bed. I couldn't understand what he was saying to me, nor could I see what he was doing, but I could recognize my warm pajamas on me. My vision was completely blurry, and I was solely focused on an uncertain point in front of me, which was probably the ceiling.

Rowan placed a cold towel on my forehead, which I had to scrunch my face at because he ruined my styled bangs.

Seconds, minutes, or hours could have passed, and Rowan was still beside me, taking care of me. His gentle touch was unbelievably calming; it felt like my fever had dropped because of it.

His touch was my personal antidote to Death's poisonous hands.