I ran and ran until I stopped before a very tall tree. I didn't run too deep into the woods; I stayed on the edge of it to not get lost. I was overwhelmed with every single emotion I could feel.

At that moment, I stopped my feet from moving. I was out of breath, sweat trailed down my body, and I needed a gallon of fresh water. I leaned against the tree, taking deep breaths. I heard birds chirping in the distance, and the rain only got heavier; it looked like it would never stop, and we'd be forever covered in raindrops.

The chilly wind made my body tremble, and I realized he was just behind me. I did not want to turn around. I merely wanted to run further until I arrived somewhere else. In another town or village. I knew it wasn't possible and that I'd die in hours, but I wanted to feel free.

"Go away," I shouted.

The sound of his footsteps made me quiver. I despised every aspect of him. I despised the way my body responded to his presence. He was like a virus, infecting me with his evilness.

He grabbed my right hand and whirled me around. I yanked myself, but in vain. His touch was so strong, it hurt me. "Let go of me!" I yelled into his shadowy face.

His other hand gripped my chin, and that made my head stop moving. The sound of my heart was ringing in my ears.

I was again afraid of him.

He lifted my cursed hand in the air, and I shifted my gaze to it. I swallowed the lump in my throat. "Do you even know what this means?" It wasn't a question, but a warning that I'm buried in deep shit.

I exhaled through my nostrils and pushed back tears. It was really hurtful to be held by him. "You're hurting me," I whispered.

He tugged me to him, and I crashed against his chest. I could feel his cold breath against my skin. "Good, perhaps you need a lesson." He seethed.

I breathed quickly like I was still running. My heart was pounding, and it felt like I had just sprinted a marathon. I was staring into nothing, and I had enough of arguing with a wall.

"Do you know what the dagger you killed two demons with was made out of?" He clutched my hand tighter.

I slowly shook my head, and tears silently escaped my eyes.

"The blade contains a part of me. Why do you think it can kill demons? Because I can kill demons. I'm the Death." He whispered, and my eyes widened.

He let go of my hand so harshly that it slapped against my body. I hugged myself and rubbed my cursed hand.

"You could've died when you touched it; instead, the dagger cursed you." He added.

I finally spoke, "Is that why was I acting so out of character?"

He chuckled and placed his hand on his hip.

I frowned and took a step back. I spun and started to sprint. I almost slammed myself against the trunk of the tree, but at the last second, I dodged it. The muscles in my legs were burning with flames, and I knew I'd soon crash to the ground in defeat.

The universe had a different plan for me, though.

I smashed right into Death. We fell together on the grass, and I knew I was finished. No more running from the Devil. I was caught.

I pushed myself up with my hands and realized I was sitting on his hips. I don't think my heart has ever beat so fast. As I tried to stand up, he caught my wrists. The rain had no plan to stop, and I was soaking wet from head to toe, covered in mud. R.I.P. to my Converse.

He leisurely let go of my wrists and attached his hands to my hips. I moved back and forth, and a low groan left his throat.

"Don't rock your hips, or I'll do something very, very nasty." He said, and cackled in his husky voice.

Blood rushed to my cheeks. "You can't possibly be turned on right now—" His thumb began to rub the inner part of my thigh.

Maybe I was turned on right now?

I cleared my throat and blinked repeatedly. I swallowed the temptation. "I'm done with your lies and pretending Death. Let me go, let me live; I hate even the slightest glimpse of you—"

His upper body rose, and I was locked in by his arms on my back.

He quietly and slowly said, "Lying is a sin, Mademoiselle. If you hate even the slightest glimpse of me, explain to me why your thighs are so tense at my touch. Why is your heart beating so fast when I'm close to you?"

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I placed my hands on his chest and looked away.

I can't do this, I thought.

I instantly rose up and turned my back on him. My hands were shaking, but not because I was freezing to death.

A second later, his hand landed on top of my shoulder, and a shiver ran down my spine. I sighed loudly, and rubbed my eyes. "Tell me the truth. All of it. I need to know it." I demanded.

He withdrew his hand from my shoulder, maintaining a distance between us. "I don't know what you want to hear."

I spun and pointed a finger at him. "Don't act clueless! I want to know how you knew my father wanted to kill me. I want to know why you pretended to be Madeline and Alec. I. WANT. THE. ANSWERS." I yelled so loudly that I lost my voice for a moment.

His eyes began to glow red. He spoke so fast, I had to pay attention to every letter he said.

"I knew about your father a few days after we met because I couldn't leave you alone! He wanted to kill you long ago, but I played with his mind and tried to remove him from your life. Every day, I stayed close to your house or your work to protect you! But then the wild demons fucked with him, and of course, I could no longer play with his mind but theirs. That's why I sent my demons to look after you. The night he came into your house, I was enlightened by Azra, and I came as fast as I could. I had to break the mind game with the wild demons; that's why they attacked your house."

I processed everything he said as fast as I could, but it was impossible as he wasn't done speaking.

He took a step forward to me and continued, "I took the disguise of a woman who was extravagant and funny like me. She loved partying and social life. She lived a good life until some motherfucker killed her in the alleyway. I wanted to get closer to you, and I noticed you had no friends except for your grandma. So, I played the role of a woman to talk to you, to be the closest I could be to you, but then—" he took a deep breath and put his hand on my waist.

"I completely lost control over myself. I wanted to touch you, kiss you, and do unspeakable things to you. That's when Alec came to the scene. He died in a motorcycle accident. I stole his identity, and that's when I realized I could be near you as a man, not a woman."

His body towered over me.

"You were terrified of me to the point I couldn't take it. Because I knew that once I revealed my true self to you, you would never want to be close to me. I'm nothing unlike Mr. Sunshine. All perfect, without flaws. I don't resemble him one bit. Because I'm a monster."

I stared at him with my lips parted and my eyes popping out of my skull as he, with his free hand, removed the hood that cast a shadow on his face. His face was parted. One-half of his face was human-like. He had a beautiful, caramel brown eye that was shadowed by his full, straight eyebrow. His skin was pale, with a distinct olive undertone, but his neck was pitch-black, and it perfectly faded over his jawline into paleness. His chiseled jaw and cheekbone resembled the work of a precise knife. His raven hair cascaded down to his abdomen.

The other side of his face was like out of a horror movie. I could hardly look at it as my eyes urged me to look away. The other side of his face still had skin with forehead, eye, and eyebrow, but his nose, cheeks, and mouth was just a skull. No flesh, just bones.

I always wondered why he never showed me his face. Now I see the answer, I thought.

I took a step backward, and he, in a split second, took a step forward. However, I was too lost in my thoughts to see what I was seeing in front of me. I may have underestimated Death's look. He looks much creepier than I imagined.

I looked back at him and came to comprehension; I could see his face—well, half of it. No disguise. The man I was looking at was truly the Grim Reaper's true face.

I cleared my throat and focused solely on the left side of his face. "W-What do you want from me now?" I asked with my broken voice, hugging myself.

That's the moment. I saw him smirk at me for the first time, and something inside of me snapped. He was truly the most beautiful man I have ever seen. Not even Rowan could match his beauty. Of only his whole face looked like his left side.

He took another step forward, and I stumbled upon a branch. My back instantly hit the ground, except for my head, because it was secured by Death's hand beneath it. His body was pressing on me, and despite his slender arms, he weighed a lot.

I was inches from his face, and I kept my focus on only one side of his face. His hair matched mine, soaked and plastered against our faces. The raindrops directly fell on my face; I had to blink my eyes consistently.

His eyes slowly trailed from my eyes to my lips, and all I wanted to do at that moment was run. My insides were burning that I no longer felt his coldness or the chilly weather.

An instant later, his tongue found my lips. He licked them like they were a cone of ice cream. I wanted to resist, but before I could utter a sound, his tongue invaded my mouth. His lips smashed against mine, devouring me. My heart raced as his tongue explored the depths of my mouth, sending bolts of electricity coursing through me, as if every nerve in my body was lit up. My body felt both paralyzed and alive at the same time. Despite my wanting to pull away, a small part of me couldn't deny the undeniable pleasure that washed over me from his kiss.

He kept on kissing me and licking me until my lips felt numb. I've never kissed a man, but I didn't mind one bit that this was my first experience.

With a low growl, he straddled me, his body pressing firmly against mine. I could feel his need, the evidence of his desire pulsing against me. His mouth was everywhere, his teeth nipping at my earlobe, his tongue tracing a hot, wet path down my neck. His lips claimed mine again, his tongue diving deep. His fingers tangled in my hair, tugging with an urgency, desperate desire.

My eyes stayed shut as I couldn't look at his full face. However, I never felt his bony side. As if it were never there, and the flesh was still intact to his right face.

He finally broke our lips apart, and I had to take quick breaths into my lungs. The smirk never vanished from his face; it only intensified.

He brushed his claws against my cheek and softly spoke, "I already told you that it's you I want. I will keep you safe with me because they are all terrified of me." He licked his lips while staring into my eyes. My heart skipped a beat.

I blinked multiple times. I was really buried in deep shit now. Love my life.

"W-Who said I wanted to be with you?" I said with raised eyebrows.

He glanced away for a second with a low chuckle, and the goosebumps on my skin rose to life. He returned his eyes to me and grinned. "That wasn't a question, Kitty. You're already mine." He shifted his face closer to my ear. "Only fucking mine."