Rival Lovers-A Solangelo STORY

Chapter 14

I said I would give you all faster updates, didn't I?

"Princess, I-"

Atalia delicately removed her hand from his shoulder, instead folding her arms across her chest. "Please just call me Atalia," she suggested to him.

"Um, Atalia, I can go get those drinks now, I am very sorry for making you wait and remain with no partner-"

Once again, Atalia interrupted him. "Please don't worry, I think my thirst is gone. However, it would mean a great deal to me if I can speak to you privately, if that is no bother?" She tilted his head up with one dainty finger on his chin, and looked deep in his eyes. Her piercing gaze dug into his mind, and suddenly, he couldn't refuse anything she said.

As Atalia took him by the arm and gently dragged him away to an even more concealed spot, he felt a weird gut feeling, like something wasn't right. Almost as if he was being influenced by obscure powers. He didn't have much time to dwell on it, however, because Atalia swiftly pushed both his shoulders against a wall, leaning in her face close to look at him intensely. Immediately, both her irises began to smolder a crimson color, filling up like red wine in a glass.

"Who was the boy you were speaking with earlier, Nico di Angelo?" She snarled in his ear. Her voice had changed to sound like metal scarping against metal, baring her teeth to reveal chalky fangs. Her skin went colorless, and her eyes kept flickering between bright red and pitch black, like they couldn't decide what color to stay on.

Nico felt like his whole mind went blank. The only thing he was able to hear was Atalia's voice, commanding him to answer her. He couldn't refuse her, and he didn't know why.

"Will Solace," he whimpered out, trying to regain his train of thought back in place, yet he still could not find it.

"Mmhmm, and how do you two know each other?" Atalia flicked out pallid tongue, tracing her ivory teeth, and growling from deep in her throat. She made sure to tip his head closer to her face in order to lock gazes with Nico's nut-brown eyes.

Her stare did something to him, and in that moment he felt like he had to answer every one of her questions or requests.

"We met in the forest, when I was hunting," he choked out, which Atalia emphasized by wrapping her two manicured hands around Nico's neck.

"What is he to you? What is you relationship like?" That was her final question.

"H-He's-"

"Princess Atalia!" A voice cried out, from somewhere out in the party.

Atalia's eyes went back to her normal color, and so did her face. Her fangs retracted, and she immediately unwrapped her hands from Nico's throat. Nico wanted to scream out, but he couldn't seem to speak, or use his voice at all for the matter.

"Yes?" she called back, taking several steps back from Nico's body.

A man in a suit emerged from behind the wall where they had both come from. He seemed winded, like he had been searching for a long time for the girl. "Oh, here you are. I was simply making sure you weren't lost," he winded out.

"I am alright, Gerard, I was just having a private talk with the prince," she spoke out slowly, gesturing one hand to Nico. The man took one look at Nico, who was currently pressed against the wall, breathing a bit heavier than normal. His hair was all over the place, and Nico realized that to an outsider like Gerard this must've looked wrong. Gerard blushed, and left immediately. Nico tried screaming to him again, but to no avail.

The princess swiftly turned her head back to Nico, and gave him a cold stare.

"Nico, you can't tell anyone about what just happened here, or your father will get it. And trust me, I'll know," Atalia bared her fangs one last time at him, before strutting away, her heels making loud click-clacks on the marble floor.

Nico took a moment to process everything.

Was Atalia a vampire?

The only thought that surfaced its way to his head, was that Apollo must've sent her to get her married to Nico in order to cause the fall of both Hades' and Nico's reign.