They couldn't be more different. Ridley is a knight in shining white armor, so perfect in every way that it makes people hardly able to stand him. Prince Vandel on the other hand (aka the evil demon prince of darkness) is the sworn enemy of the king...
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Author's Note: Sharing this utterly breathtaking art work from @cassmfmg on IG! Honestly, I think this picture perfectly encapsulates this chapter. Also, content warning, the second half of this chapter is going to feature NSFW content. If you are uncomfortable reading mature content feel free to skip it.
Vandel
I had really hoped I'd be able to fall asleep after the events of the day. Getting a little shut eye after this shit fest of a week really didn't seem like too much to ask. But of course (as always) the bloody Gods seemed to have other ideas for me.
Instead, I proceeded to toss and turn, slipping in and out of consciousness. Maybe the reason for my unrest, despite nearly everything being resolved, was him. I still couldn't erase that image from my mind, that last heartbroken look he'd given me.
Fucking, Ridley.
Who gave him the right to make me think of him so often? Who let him take up so much of me?
It appeared I was the perpetrator—as always.
I hoped Tuttle had found him easily enough. It seemed he'd managed to break free from my mother's spell just before Stefan's murder. He'd be happy about all of this, wouldn't he? Everything we had worked so hard for had actually come to fruition for once.
We had won.
Well...if the humans and demons had hated each other before it was nothing compared to now. My maniacal speech may have helped the princess prove her innocence but it certainly hadn't won me (or the demons) any points with the humans.
Ridley and I were enemies and that was never going to change in our lifetime.
We'd achieved what we needed to and now I had to finally let him go. I couldn't keep seeing him, I couldn't keep thinking about him...fuck , I couldn't keep wanting him.
This is it, Vandel, I thought, after today this is all over. This time, FINALLY, I won't be a fucking dumbass and still end up crawling back to-
"Vandel?"
I had to be imagining it...he couldn't be....
Slowly I sat up to see Ridley emerging from the shadows at the back of my room. As always, the moment I set eyes on him all my resolve instantly crumbled. My heart nearly skipped a beat before it took off, thundering in my chest like it had a vengeance.
He took another step towards me and instantly I knew something was wrong.
"Did you get my message?" I asked, awkwardly attempting to break the silence that had fallen between us. "We won."
"Yeah..." he said, his voice a little more than a whisper. "We actually did something right for once." He stepped into the moonlight streaming in from my window and I realized with a start how red and blotchy his eyes were.
