Dark Chemistry |18+| (Under editing)

11 || Accompanying Him In Hell

“You got me sippin' on something
I can't compare to nothing
I've ever known, I'm hoping
That after this fever, I'll survive.”

✿

NATALIA

I awoke in the middle of the night, my throat dry, lips parched, and a dull ache behind my eyes, the kind that comes from crying yourself to sleep. The estate was silent, a heavy blanket of darkness pressing in, the only sign of life the faint glow from the outdoor lights filtering through the curtains. Outside, the guards patrolling, but inside, it was as if the world had stopped, frozen in the dead of night.

I slid out of bed, rubbing my face as I padded down the grand staircase, the steps cold beneath my feet. The shadows seemed to stretch longer in the stillness, swallowing the house whole. Silence clung to every corner, making the air thick and oppressive. The living room loomed ahead, a dark void save for the faint glow seeping in from the outdoor lights.

I made my way to the kitchen, my breath catching in the stillness, the silence too loud, too thick. As I opened the refrigerator and grabbed a water bottle, the hairs on the back of my neck prickled. A deep unease washed over me.

Turning to leave, I froze.

A silhouette, dark and unmoving, sat at the counter, bathed in shadow except for the faint outline of a glass in his hand, catching the stray light from outside.

My heart stopped, terror gripping my chest with icy fingers.

The bottle slipped from my hands, crashing to the floor with a loud thud, and my scream tore through the silence of the house—sharp, panicked, and piercing. But before I could make another sound, a hand clamped over my mouth, silencing me.

Familiar cologne filled my nose, wrapping around me like a cage. The hand over my mouth was strong but somehow gentle.

“Shh... It’s me.”

Nickolas. His voice, low and rough, rumbled through the darkness as he slowly removed his hand.

Relief came in a dizzying rush, followed quickly by a surge of anger.

“What the hell is wrong with you? Couldn’t you just turn on a damn light?” I jerked away and hissed, my voice trembling with anger, my heart still thudding painfully against my ribcage.

His response was silence, his ocean-blue eyes fixed on me, unreadable in the half-light, his gaze sharp and piercing. There was something unnerving in the way he watched me make my skin prickle, like he's studying me, and I hated how it made me feel—small, exposed.

I backed away, needing to put distance between us, but he stepped forward, closing the gap again.

“What? Did I scare you?” he asked, his lips quirking into a faint smile. There was something sinister in the way he spoke, as though he enjoyed the fear he had sparked.

I scowled, furious that he found amusement in terrifying me.

“Scared?” I echoed, my voice brittle. “You think it’s funny to scare the hell out of me in the middle of the night?”

He chuckled, a low, dark sound that sent a chill crawling up my spine. His blue eyes glinted in the dim light, face illuminated by the faint glow from the window, and the shadows played tricks with his features, giving him an ethereal appearance, like a fallen angel draped in darkness.

I hated how breathtaking he was, even in the dark and the dancing shadows, how his mere presence seemed to unsettle my entire being.

What am I even thinking? Aghhh!