Beyond His Evil

TWENTY-THREE.

~~~

It had been forty minutes and sixteen seconds since I asked Devon to leave.

He had told me to call him when I was decent, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it.

How could I face him after he had seen me naked?

I took a deep breath, trying to steady my racing heart. "Devon."

Silence.

I swallowed, nerves coiling in my stomach. "Devon," I called again.

Still nothing.

Just as I was about to say his name a third time, he appeared—right there, sitting on my bed.

His sudden presence sent a shiver through me. I had no idea how he moved so quickly, how he always seemed to hear me no matter how softly I spoke or where I was.

There were many things about him I didn’t understand.

And maybe... I didn’t want to.

"I'm sorry, Kira," he said, voice low. "I didn't know..."

I cut him off before he could say more. "It's okay."

It wasn’t, not really, but I wasn’t ready to talk about it.

I folded my arms, keeping my distance. "Did you need something? Why are you here?"

His crimson eyes darkened. For a moment, he just stared at me, unmoving.

"I haven’t seen Evelyn all day," I added. "If she’s who you’re looking for, then—"

"I'm not here for Evelyn," he interrupted.

A tense silence stretched between us.

I wanted to stay angry at him—I should have stayed angry at him—but when I saw the look in his eyes, something inside me softened.

He looked... lost.

"Are you okay?" I asked, even though I wasn’t sure I wanted to hear the answer.

His gaze flickered, and I could tell he was hesitating.

"Devon," I said more firmly. "Look at me."

When he did, I felt a pang in my chest. His eyes were darker than I had ever seen them, a shade of crimson so deep it bled black. My first instinct was to step back. I resisted.

"What’s wrong?" I asked.

His lips parted, but for a long moment, no sound came out. When he finally spoke, his voice was hollow.

"My existence," he said, like the words alone were too heavy.

Something inside me twisted. I had never seen him like this before—never seen his usual confidence stripped away so completely.

"You’re not—" I stopped, shaking my head. "Devon, there’s nothing wrong with you."

He exhaled, running a hand through his dark hair, but he didn’t look at me. "You say that like it makes a difference."

He stretched his hand toward me. "Come here ... please."

I didn't move, folding my arms. "Why did you kiss Evelyn?"

He withdrew his hand, raking it through his hair instead. "I kissed her and spent the day with her to forget about you and all the emotions you rake out of me."

His words made my heart pound, and I swallowed. "That isn't fair to Evelyn. You should know she has feelings for you. Everyone in Safeland knows that."

He looked away. "I know. I apologized to her, and... Come here, please."