In The Shadows

36

Kim

Gasping for air, the memory of my recent actions replayed in my mind like a relentless cinema of regret. I could wholly comprehend the depth of Chay's fury. The unexpected behavior with the door frame completely jolted me. The heat of his touch scorched through my skin, a searing reminder of our closeness, while his dangerous flirtation with my knife set my nerves ablaze. He has more control than I do.

I had reacted on pure, unfiltered instinct. The sound of his voice, a dark melody that, combined with the looming threat of the blade, sent tremors down my spine and shook me to the core. My heart ached with the love I harbored for Chay, a love that eclipsed all else, yet my impulsive behavior might have conveyed a painful misunderstanding. There was a risk that he now sensed my interest as the mere surface-level desire with his allure, an attraction to his outward form, which strayed so far from the truth.

"Go ahead and sleep outside, for all I care! I don't want to see you for the rest of the night," Chay yells when I regain some of my senses. "Once you regain your senses, you get to be around me again!" He said he was taking two or three steps at a time; I feared he would fall and hurt himself. I wanted to say something, but my voice was still in my throat with Chay's earlier assault. But this is my fault...

I had told him the depths of my feelings, how I care and treasure his heart and mind and nothing else. His body and how we get intimate is a plus, yet here I am, trapped in my messy emotions, pondering the labyrinth of ways I could mend the unsettling bridge between us. How can I make this right for him? I hurried off my chair to go after him, but I heard his bedroom door slamming shut with a loud bang, and some of my men came rushing in with Chay's friends.

They didn't notice the hours slipping by during their intended brief training session. Their weary postures clearly showed that they had exhausted themselves. I couldn't help but silently nod in approval, hoping their fatigue was a testament to their diligent effort.

Echoes of objects moving resounded from the floor above. I recognized Chay's movements; he reinforced his room to keep me put. My pulse quickened with the noise. I was no stranger to Chay's transformation into something darker and more sinister. Yet, the fierceness in his current demeanor was new. It felt different. I recalled the intensity of his previous episode—the one sparked by a flood of painful memories. Even still, this latest display of anger held a different shade, and I braced myself for what might emerge.

After a while, the noise stopped, and the air suddenly erupted with a piercing cry, thick with vexation, that echoed through the house, "Damn you to hell, Kim!" I stopped in my tracks, my feet frozen at the bottom of the staircase. With a surge of irritation, I cursed under my breath and slammed my fist against the wooden railing, "Damn it." The force of my blow splintered the wood, leaving it cracked and broken.

Ohm teases with a smile curling at the edge of his lips, "What have you done now, Kimhan?' His laughter doesn't comfort me. It pisses me off even more. I respond quickly, laced with a spite he probably didn't expect, "That's none of your concern!" But he persists, his words provoking, "Keep that attitude up. Just imagine the day he finally decides you're not worth the trouble!" His words are like a spark to dry tinder, setting my temper ablaze. Before anyone has the chance to intervene, I have Ohm pinned beneath me, my fists flying toward his smirking face. Around us, a cacophony of screams and shouts erupts, but I barely hear them over the rush of blood in my ears.

I could sense hands gripping me, making a desperate attempt to drag me out of the blinding rage ignited by his words. "Khun Kim, you'll kill him; stop before you do," Wrath's voice reached me, his tone infused with urgency. My Angel's soothing presence, now confined to his room, would restore my peace. My actions mirrored the unthinkable, a testament to my fury. "Chay belongs to only me! "I will never let anyone tear him from my side!" I shouted, my voice ringing out as I confronted Ohm, his figure disfigured and stained with crimson.