It has been two weeks since Alana returned back to earth. Back to her old life. The transition felt very strange to her.

One, when she had initially woken up to find herself back her flat, she wondered why she still obtained her memories.

Lylas had clearly reiterated that when she woke up, she would not remember the two weeks in his realm. When she woke, she would go back to being clueless about the existence of immortals fairies and demons. She didn't know what went wrong for her to still retain all the memories she was supposed to have lost.

Two, she couldn't adjust back to her old life. How did she live before she met Lylas? She couldn't remember. It was funny that way. She remembered every detail of what happened in his realm and yet had forgotten how she lived her twenty one years of life prior to meeting him.

Pam and Jake didn't question her much about her trip to "scout out potential clients abroad". Somehow, to them, it was as if those two weeks of her absence hadn't occurred at all.

Alana quickly fell back to her old routine once again. She worked diligently, preferring to spend more hours in the office than home. Why? Because when she was alone, she missed everyone and everything that belonged in his realm. She even missed the chef's healthy meals.

For two weeks, her life went this way, until he suddenly started appearing everywhere and out of nowhere.

How was she to act clueless when Lylas was just right in front of her?

She knew he was there to study her, to assess her moves and to see if she would prove his suspicions. She knew he still believed she was somehow connected with the demon king. At least that was the explanation she came up with to excuse his current behaviour.

Alana pretended not to see him in her apartment as he went through her things. She pretended not to see him when he emerged on the streets of London when she was out for coffee. She pretend not to see him at her work, sitting randomly and studying her workplace and workmates.

All this pretending was getting extremely tiring.

At first she had thought he was a figment of her imagination. That she missed him so much, her brain was conjuring him up in random places. However, after a week of his sudden appearances, she was beginning to get suspicious.

She wanted to touch him to make sure he was real. She wanted to let him know she could see him, however, she feared his reaction. Feared that he will stop surfacing once he found out she knew he was there.

One Saturday night after six days of Lylas constant appearance, Alana made microwave popcorn and downloaded a bunch of movies from Netflix. She binge-watched these movies on the whim, eating her popcorn whilst pretending the man of her dreams—the man she loved—wasn't beside her, staring intently at her.

Halfway through the night she came up with an idea to test his reaction. She decided to lie down on the sofa, specifically on his lap, completely taking him off guard.

"Hmmm. This is cosy." She spoke to herself.

She had expected him to launch himself off her, to scold her daring behaviour. This was what she was prepared for. She wasn't however, prepared for his docile acceptance. The man actually let her borrow his lap to rest her head.

Alana suspected it was because he thought she didn't know he was there, that was why he was docile.

However, his next action completely threw her into a state of confusion. The tingling left behind by his fingers that had removed tendrils of hair from her face, back to her ear, was too hard to conceal.

***

One week later, on a cool mid July night, Alana stared at her closet and sighed. Being used to all the luxurious clothes back in Lylas's realm, looking at her mediocre closet was a wake up call.

Pam and Jake were meeting her downtown to the one of hottest bars. She promised them a night out, her treat and so she couldn't backtrack on her word.

She took her old red v-strip tight fitting dress that was open in one leg. Usually when all else failed in finding a perfect outgoing outfit, this dress always did the trick.

It was the first time Alana was thankful of the diet she had been eating back in Lylas's realm, she lost a little bit of fat. The dress hugged her waist and revealed her toned mid thigh and leg. She topped this with black strapped heels and a black leather jacket.

For her face she minimised her make up, her winged eyeliner wasn't too prominent and she thanked whoever her parents had been for giving her long curled eyelashes. She enhanced those eyelashes with mascara and didn't bother with eyeshadow.

Since her eye make up was minimalistic, for her lips she brightened them with a Mac red lipstick.

It was a classy look and she hoped her business partners would be appreciative of the effort she put in today. She also quietly thanked Mena for she had been the one to influence her to be more stylish with all those clothes back in Lylas's realm.

It didn't take long to reach the location of the bar. It was at the posh area. An uncharted territory in which her Fiat 500 looked so conspicuously inferior compared to the expensive Range Rovers and Audis in the parking lot.

The bar was across the street and when she made her way there, she strung on unwanted attention from onlookers around the area.

Okay maybe the dress is tad bit too much. She worried, self consciously.

No, Alana. Be confident. Who cares what people think. You're here for your friends.

The bar was full but not so overcrowded. Alana texted Pam and Jake in their group chat, asking them what drinks they wanted as she made her way over to the bar area.

After receiving their answers, she put her phone back in her sling purse. As she looked up, she almost tripped on her heels at whom she saw.

Standing besides the bar, looking all so yummy in a black silky shirt that was opened to reveal his chest and tucked at the waist of his equally black trousers, was the one and only, Lylas Fury.

She had not seen him for a week after that night she decided to use his lap as a pillow. The last thing she had remembered was sleeping on his lap. However, the next day, when morning came, she had woken up in her bed covered in a duvet, with him gone.

Seeing him looking so delicious in that causal attire, nursing what looked to be a glass of brandy on his right hand. Alana thought she was imagining him again. She thought that she was only one that could see him. However, all around her, all eyes were on him. It made sense, he looked out of this world, too handsome to be in this local bar.

Alana slowly approached him and as he turned to face her, it was as if the whole room disappeared and just the two of them remained. She gasped in shock and at the fluttery feeling he educed from her.

It was odd because she had been accustomed to his ever-scowling expression and so the ghost of smile that was present on his face flustered her. Once she reached him, she felt she was still under his trance. However, she turned away from him to face the bartender and ordered the drinks her business partners wanted.

There was no way she was going to initiate the conversation. Absolutely no way she was going to make a fool out of herself if it turned out that he was invisible to all mortal eyes apart from hers.

"Long time no see," He suddenly greeted next to her, startling her. "It has been what, a month since you left?"

Now, there were two options she could chose to where this conversation could go. Judging by the look in his face, Alana knew that he was trying to test her to see whether she still retained her memories. Alana chose option two, pretending that she didn't know him.

"Do I know you?" She voiced with a steady tone, surprising herself how calm she was.

His eyebrows shot up and he stared intensely down at her, as if to study her deeply. Alana knew he didn't buy into her faux act and so before he could read her facial expression, she quickly turned back to face the bar.

"Alana—"

She feigned a gasp and looked at him, "How do you know my name?"

His eyes narrowed in slits at her odd tone.

"Alana, I know you didn't lose your memories." He stated.

Alana sighed in response, her shoulders dropping.

There was a reason why she failed drama for her GCSE, Alana was no actress. There was no acting bone in her body and what was worse, she was terrible at lying. So it wasn't a surprise that Lylas caught on her act.

"Fine, I haven't lost my memories." She admitted. "So were you watching me closely last week because you suspected this?" She asked, also letting him know that she'd seen him.

Lylas was surprised by this. Lately since this mere mortal invaded his realm and life, he's been questioning the strength of his powers. How she could bypass that strength in every seal and spell he citied was beyond him.

"I won't lie to you. So, yes I did." He admitted too.

She nodded as if she long understood this was the case.

"So what happened to screw your memory wiping magic from affecting me?" She asked curiously.

"My highest guess would be because of the dormant essence in your immortal womb." He informed her.

Alana nodded once more. "So why are you here, Lylas? If I remember correctly you were very adamant on getting rid of me a month ago."

"A few things have changed." He declared.

"What things?" She questioned, her interest piquing.

"One of the change is the mere fact that I've adjusted to accepting you have an immortal womb." The ghost of a smile retuned.

"Oh." Alana spoke stoically, entranced by how much more handsome he was when he wasn't glaring.

Lylas hesitated as he regarded her. He looked yearningly down at her stomach before retracting his gaze back to her eyes.

Alana empathised for him. She could imagine his point of view. For how long has he waited earnestly to save his son? To give him life? The answer to his yearnings was so close to him and yet so far away.

"You don't have to hesitate anymore." She stared squarely unto his eyes. " Just ask, I'll do it." I'm willing to do anything if it means your happiness. She added internally.

"It doesn't seem appropriate considering our lack of ties." He made the excuse.

"Then look at it this way. It's my payment to you for saving me from the fire demon, for helping remove the foul energy and for forgiving the mess I caused back in your realm." She gave him a viable rationalisation to why he should use her.

"Alana, you do understand your life is at stake, right?" He reminded her once again of the disadvantage.

She nodded once again. "I understand. I understand it all. But if in all my twenty one years of life this is what I will amount to? Then I heartily accept. You have suffered for long and if there was anyway I can relieve your pain and give you something, I would do anything." She admitted her feelings.

"You don't know me well enough to feel that way." He discouraged those feelings.

"I may not know you well enough, but I know enough of my heart and it wants me to give you this." She revealed her heart, as if cutting it open and offering it to him.

"I can't accept." He rejected that heart, as if slapping it to the ground an stomping on it.

"Please." She pleaded, picking up her crushed heart, grateful it wasn't chirped or marred. The irony of the situation was how she was the one pleading instead of him.

"Alana—

He was interrupted by the bartender announcing her drinks. Then her phone buzzed on her purse. Pam had texted her wondering what was taking her so long. Alana replied she bumped into a good looking guy and love bells were ringing. Since this bar was fairly big, with a throng of people already surrounding them to get some drinks, Alana knew Pam and Jake weren't able to see her at all.

The drinks she ordered finally were in front of her. Alana took a shot of vodka to ease the edge and then grabbed the two beers belonging to Jake and Pam.

"I'll be right back." She told Lylas, her eyes willing and pleading for him not to disappear again.

Alana caught his neutral eyes and then he nodded as if to release her.

***