Page 20 of Vexed

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Lily

The rhythmic beep… beep… beep… was the first thing I registered. Then came the whoosh of air, like a giant Darth Vader permanently stuck in inhale mode.

My eyelids felt heavy, like lead weights were glued to them. I forced them open, blinking against the harsh, sterile light. White. Everything was white. White walls, white sheets, a white ceiling that seemed miles away.

Then I heard a soft voice, laced with worry. “Lily? Honey, can you hear me?”

My head swam. It felt like cotton was stuffed inside. I turned, or at least tried to, and saw my mom. Her face was etched with lines I didn’t remember seeing before, and her eyes were red-rimmed. She looked exhausted. Next to her sat a worried Hannah, wiping tears from her cheeks.

“Mom?” My voice was a croak, barely audible.

“Oh, honey!” She reached for my hand. “You’re awake!”

I squeezed her hand weakly. “What… where am I? What happened?”

Her smile faltered. “You’re in the hospital, sweetie. Do you remember anything?”

I racked my brain, but it was like trying to grasp smoke. Nothing. A complete blank. Panic started to bubble in my chest. “No. I… no.”

Mom’s expression grew troubled. “The police think that someone attacked you.”

Attacked? My breath hitched. My heart started hammering against my ribs. By who? Why?

“Attacked?” I whispered, the word tasting like ash in my mouth. “But… I don’t remember anything. Nothing at all.”

She squeezed my hand again. “It’s okay, honey. The doctors said it’s possible that you’ll have some memory loss from the trauma. They’re monitoring you closely. Just try to relax.”

Relax? How the fuck could I relax when I didn’t know who wanted to hurt me? When I couldn’t even remember the attack itself?

“How long have I been here?” I asked, my voice trembling.

Mom sighed, her gaze softening with concern. “Four days, sweetheart. You lost a lot of blood. A massive amount, actually.”

Four days? Four days of my life vanished, replaced by nothingness. Four days where someone, somewhere, had tried to hurt me. Well, by the sounds of it—tried and succeeded. My entire body aches that I can barely move.

The beeping of the machines suddenly seemed louder, more insistent, a constant reminder of my vulnerability. I was trapped in a white room, surrounded by beeps and the scent of antiseptic, with a terrifying blank space where my memories should be.

“I’ll be back in a second. Gonna let the doctors know you’re awake, okay?” Mom says, giving me a quick smile before exiting the room.

Wait, the football game was four days ago. The last thing I remember was having an argument with Austin before walking home. But after that…nothing.

“I’m so sorry I wasn’t there! I should’ve been, I should’ve waited for you. But I saw you talking to Austin and Jason said that maybe you’ll sort your shit out and he’ll give you a ride…” She rambled on, but I stopped her by grabbing her hand.

“Hey, stop. It’s not your fault. It’s mine. I shouldn’t have walked by myself in the middle of the night.” I assure her, mustering a smile. She nods, tears still spilling from her eyes as she squeezes my hand.

“I’m gonna go get a coffee, you want me to bring you something?”

“Something sweet, I need sugar in my body asap,” I say, causing her to chuckle before she stood and headed for the door.

I blew out a long breath as she leaves, trying to comprehend the fucked up situation I’m in.

“Mind if I intrude your thoughts?” A sudden deep voice speaks from the corner of my bed making me gasp.

I stare at him, both confused and relieved, “Vex?”

“Hey, darling. How are we feeling?”

I let out a shaky laugh. “Like I got hit by a train, actually.”

He chuckled, a genuine sound that warmed me from the inside out. He pushed himself off the wall and walked towards me, his movements fluid and graceful. He reached out and took my hand.

“Good to see you,” I managed, squeezing his hand. Then the question I’d been holding onto burst out of me. “Where have you been? I haven’t seen you in more than a week?”

His expression darkened, the humor vanishing like smoke. He released my hand and paced to the foot of the bed, his back to me. “It’s complicated. The Arc Reapers, they… they forced me to break contact. All contact. I wasn’t allowed near you.”

“Why?” I asked, my voice barely a whisper.

He turned back, his eyes filled with a kind of desperation I’d never seen before. “It doesn’t matter. What matters is I’m here now.”

“But if you’re not allowed near me, then why are you here?”

He hesitated, running a hand through his already disheveled hair. “I… I can’t go back, Lily. I did something bad. Really bad. They’ll come for me. I know they will.”

My heart pounded in my chest. “What did you do, Vex?”

He looked at me, his eyes pleading. “I can’t tell you. Just know I had to. And being here, with you… it’s the only thing that feels right anymore.”

I reached for his hand again, and he instantly grasped it. “Okay,” I said, my voice stronger now. “Okay, they’re coming for you? Then we figure it out. Together.”

He squeezed my hand tightly, a flicker of hope igniting in his silver eyes. “Together,” he echoed.

I had to stay in hospital for further observation for another two days. Police also came by and asked me a bunch of questions regarding what happened to me. But I couldn’t answer any of their questions. I feel so hopeless, violated.

Not only was my body bruised and aching, but I could feel that I was sore down there too, which made me realize that the unthinkable might be a possibility. I guess it’s a good thing I don’t remember anything.

Vex has been staying with me since I got released. He can’t go back…home, I suppose. It was a little awkward in the beginning. He doesn’t sleep, he just lays in bed with me all night, watching me sleep.

Which isn’t as creepy as it might sound. I feel safe with him. Like the entire world could come crashing down and I would be fine just being with him.

“Everything alright?” He asks, twirling a piece of my hair around his finger. I smile, nodding.

He keeps his eyes locked on mine, like he’s searching for something. “What’s going on in that head of yours?”

I smirk, feeling my face heat up, “Can’t you, like, hop into my mind and find out?” I ask with a chuckle.

His smile widens and he shakes his head, “Well, I can. But I’m trying this new thing where I don’t invade your privacy anymore. It’s been going good and I don’t want to fuck it up now.”

I can’t help but laugh at him, playfully hitting his arm. He stares at me for another moment, “I’m tempted, but I’d rather have you tell me, darling.”

I suck in a breath, trying to be more confident. I lift my hand and graze my fingers across his jaw before whispering, “Kiss me.”

My heart is hammering against my chest as he stays silent, watching me. We’ve never kissed. Even though he has touched me in ways that no one else ever has, I’ve never felt his lips against mine.

I can see the hesitation in his eyes, which makes me feel embarrassed now for even asking. I remove my hand from his face, “You…you don’t wanna kiss me?” I ask, my voice soft and trembling.

“I—um, fuck, I do, of course I do. I just… I’ve never kissed anyone before.”

“You’ve never kissed anyone?” I blurted out, my face burning. I swear, my cheeks could probably power a small village right now. “But, all the things you did to me—“

“Yeah, I’ve done a lot of sexual things. But never kissed anyone. It seemed too…affectionate. And me being, well, me—affection isn’t really my strong suit.”

I’m taken back by his words. A little hurt to know he has been with others, but what did I expect? He is about… a million years old or something.

“Well, that’s just ridiculous,” I say, my voice firm despite the tremor in my hands. I grab him by the nape of his neck and pull him slightly closer.

“Lily, I—“

“Shh,” I interrupt, placing a finger on his lips. “I think you’re missing out.”

I can feel his warm breath against my lips as he leans down closer before pressing his lips against mine.

All the air is sucked from my lungs as he grabs me by my waist, pulling me closer to him. His lips part and I take the opportunity to slip my tongue in his mouth.

A distorted groan vibrates through his chest when my tongue grazes his and suddenly everything in the room, including the bed, starts to shake. Like a earthquake is hitting us, everything on my desk starts to fall to the ground.

I quickly broke the kiss and almost instantly, the shaking stopped.

“What the—“

“Sorry about that,” He says, his voice sounding more and more distorted. I glance back at him and I almost can’t comprehend what I’m seeing. His face.

The skin is almost transparent, and the skull of his face is starting to show, his eyes turning black and almost hollow. He looks…terrifying. Yet, the undeniable warmth in my body starts to spread like wild fire.

Without a second thought, he wraps his hand around my throat, pulling my closer and smashing his mouth back to mine. This time, he doesn’t hesitate, he starts devouring me. His tongue explores every inch of my mouth causing me to let out a strained moan.

I open my eyes just for a moment when I feel the room temperature dropping and I witness as a cloud of black smoke circled around us. Then, the kiss is broken as I’m pulled flat on my back and dark shadows wrap around my wrist, holding my hands in place above my head.

He rests his thighs on his heels between my legs, reaching to undo his sleek black pants.

“Vex,” I say breathless.

He halts his movements, his now pitch black eyes holding me in place, “You still want this?”

I stare at him for a moment, my chest rising and falling before I nod twice.

“You sure?” he taunts with a grin.

If these shadows weren’t holding me down, I swear I would’ve slapped him.

“Just fuck me already.” I blurt, my frustration clear at this point.

“Yes ma’am,” he says, letting out a low chuckle before opening his pants and I immediately regret every life choice I’ve made. I forgot how big it is. Well, at least, this seems like a good way to go.

I can tell he sees the uncertainty on my face. As more shadows detach from him and start pulling my clothes off, he softly says, “I’ll go easy on you, darling.”

I swallow hard, mentally preparing myself. As soon as my clothes are off, his eyes lock with my bare pussy and he lets out another distorted sound.

I watch as he pumps his cock twice in his hand and before I could think, I feel him slowly pushing in to me. I gasp as the mixture of pain and pleasure spreads through me. I tightly shut my eyes, trying to relax as he stretches me far beyond what I’m used to.

The pain slowly subsides as he starts picking up the pace. Sliding out so fucking slowly before thrusting back in.

“Eyes on me, little human. I want you to watch as I fuck you.”

Thrust.

“I want you to witness how I ruin your pussy,”

Thrust.

“Your body,”

Thrust .

“And your soul.”

I force my eyes open and see exactly that. I watch as he fucking ruins me with each thrust getting harder and harder and my moans growing louder and louder to the point where I can’t even breathe anymore.

He leans forward, going even deeper as he grabs the headboard. “Fuck,” he whimpers, throwing his head back. The feeling of his dick pulsing inside me is enough to send me over the edge. My entire body stiffens and my vision blurs as he pulls the most intense orgasm from my body.

I pull on the shadows still constricting my hands, but they don’t budge. It feels like my head might explode from over-stimulation.

A black plague of shadows still dance around us and I can’t even tell if we are still in my room or if I died and went to hell with his cock buried inside of me.

He slows his movement until he stops moving, still deep inside me. My lungs are on fire and I think I’ve gone blind because all I see is white and black spots dancing across my vision.

I inhale a deep breath into my air depraved lungs before focusing my eyes on him. He still hasn’t pulled out of me. The shadows disappear from around my hands and I bring my hands down, rubbing my wrists.

I slightly lift myself onto my elbows, staring down where we are still connected. “Did—Did you finish inside of me?” I ask, feeling my face heat.

He chuckles, “Oh, sweet little human. I don’t even have a beating heart never mind producing cum.”

I can’t help but let out a shaky laugh, not sure how to respond to that. But I try anyway, “So how do you know when you’re done?”

He slowly pulls out of me, making me flinch at the feeling before buttoning his pants and laying down next to me. My eyes stay on him as he reaches out a hand and brush away some strands of hair from my face.

“I still get the whole feeling of an orgasm, just without all the bodily fluids.” He says, pulling me by the waist so my back meets his chest.

We lay there for a few moments, in each other’s arms and I can’t imagine anything better than this. But there is something we have to discuss. Something we can’t avoid forever. I slightly turn in his arms, my gaze locking with his.

“What are we gonna do about the reaper police? Are you gonna go back before they come and find you first or just keep hiding away with me?”

He gives me a soft smile, enough to make my insides melt before he leans forward and presses his lips against mine.

“I would rather share a fleeting life with you than an eternity alone in the dark.”