1869

I've been back at work now for a week now, and everything already feel different.

Lev and I returned from the Passion Pack without anymore sorted out between us. Mercifully, he hasn't brought up anything about what he said to me. Right now, I want to focus on gaining Cian's attention on Noah's behalf, instead of whether I should be dating my best friend or not.

Laying back on the staff couch, I stare at the magazine full of numbing stories and extravagant pictures. Every lunch break has been like for me recently, as I simply wish time would pass by quickly.

"For a second there I didn't think you were coming back," Renna says, falling onto the couch behind me.

"I need this job remember," I tell her. "And believe it or not, I like working here."

If only that were true. I didn't mind working here, back when Cian was only briefly talking to me, and I wasn't involved in all this mess with Stace and Noah. Now I feel frightened being here, like Cian is going to figure me out at any moment and kill me.

"Liar. No one likes working here," Renna laughs, biting back on her carrot sticks. I shake my head at her, assuming she's only here for the money too.

"Trust me, there are worse jobs out there," I mutter, closing my magazine before letting it flop onto the coffee table. This job is arguably terrible, since my life is on the line lying to an immortal. The money I will hopefully get will be worth it, so I don't have to rely on Lev.

"You haven't been down there at all this week," Renna notes.

I pause, knowing exactly what she is talking about. I've employed a tactic in order to gain Cian's trust, that includes completely ignoring him. I'm meant to be angry at him, since the last time I spoke to him, he dragged me away to another realm. So if I came to him, all sweet and buttery, he would know something is wrong.

And Cian can absolutely not know that I have less than honourable intentions.

"I have nothing to talk to him about," I tell her simply, eyeing her sideways. She has a knowing smile, like she knows more than she is letting on.

"Has he spoken to you?" she asks.

"No, of course not," I reply, a little too quickly. The last thing I need is Renna spreading the fact that Cian has spoken to me around the workplace. If she thinks I can, then she might try it too, and I can't have anything interfering with my plan.

"Lying again," she laughs, nudging my side. "How did you do it?"

I sigh. I'm not even sure that I would have an answer for that even if I wanted to divulge it to Renna. Cian has been trying to convince me that there has been more luring me to him than just curiosity, which would make sense, since I've made way too many bad decisions since starting this job. I'm convincing myself it's because he's an Immortal Sin, and not anything else...

"I haven't done anything, Renna," I assure her.

"You got an Immortal to speak to you. One who hasn't spoken to any of us for months," she insists. I sigh, getting to my feet. She knows, clearly, that Cian has spoken to me, which is a terrifying thought, but not one I can avoid anymore.

I pace in front of Renna, hands clasped together in front of me as I speak. "I doubt any of you even tried."

"Oh, we did for a long while. We never got anything out of it," she admits, although that grin doesn't disappear from her face. I can imagine her and the rest of the workers sitting right outside his cell, coaxing him with ridiculous questions.

"Count yourself lucky," I mutter under my breath. I'd do anything to escape of all of this, if it meant I wasn't sacrificing a once in a life time offer in the meantime.

"Maybe he likes you," she exclaims, kicking her feet up to rest on the coffee table. I don't miss the devious glitter in her eyes, daring me to agree, and for that to mean something. "Maybe he's attracted to you."

I can't help but snort, shaking my head at her. I doubt this has anything to do with attraction. I'm a mortal girl working in a medical facility. I may have met an Immortal, an Alpha and another unknown power that is Stace, but I'm not magnificently special in any way, attractive or not. Renna doesn't seem to see that, though.

"Can a Sin even be attracted to a mortal?" I question, voicing my curiosity.

"I'm sure they can," she says, tilting her head back and forth. "But you know what Sin he is, right?"

"Greed..."

"That means wants what he desires to himself," she continues, raising her eyebrows at me. I swallow, but my throat is dry. This is what I want to be hearing right now, but admittedly, I'm becoming as curious as Renna is about it. "And he won't stop until it's his."

"You sound interested in him...Maybe you should go speak to him," I encourage, folding my arms over my chest. I'm saying this knowing she isn't going to bother, since she's made it clear she's already tried. But every time she mentions him, there's a glimmer in her eye, and excitement that I think we all get.

"I'm not going to pretend like he is attractive. But that kind of beauty is lethal," she admits.

How true she is.

"Yes, so let's both stay away from him," I tell her firmly, reaching for my hook to pull my coat over my shoulders. It gets cold in the underground depths of this place, so covering myself up is the only option.

"You're on check-up's in that aisle this week," Renna says deviously, getting to her feet, nodding to where our roster is posted up in the wall. "Good luck."

***

I glance toward Cian's cell, the darkness shading every inch of it as my eyes adjust.

Part of me wonders whether he is still in there, as I service a cell close by, before picking up my broom, knowing this entire hallway needs sweeping. I didn't think today would be the day I'm forced back into speaking with Cian again...Unless of course, he's gone, or ignoring me too.

"You're still working here," his voice drifts from his cell as I sweep nearby, the scrape of the brush echoing back down the hall.

I grit my teeth, the sound of him speaking dancing along my skin, making me quiver. Instead of focusing on that, I keep my eyes trained on the floor, letting him know that I'm still upset at him for dragging me out of this realm and to his own.

"And you're ignoring me..." he comments.

Sighing, I continue my brushing. This is the first time he hasn't needed to be encouraged to speak, which means me ignoring has worked, and he's bothered. Part of me is surprised he's still here, since he can clearly leave as he likes. It's benefiting him being here, in whatever way that might be.

"Abella," he continues, his voice more pressing, more demanding in a tentative way. He knows I'm upset at him, and he wants to fix it. I have to wonder why...

Resting my broom up against the wall, I wince, cutting myself on a nail I couldn't see through the dim lighting. Pulling my hand back, I cure, immediately feeling blood seeping down my finger and onto my palm, a think scarlet strip.

"Ow..." I mutter.

"Come here," Cian prompts from behind me.

Facing his cell, I clutch my injured finger. It's only a minor scratch, but it stings, haven given me a fright. Cian stands, looking taller than I imagined in his cell, dressed in the same clothing as always. Even in this lighting, the gold in his hair glistens magically, I constant reminder of what he is, as if the power he emanates isn't evidence of that enough.

"I thought you wanted me out of your life," I growl flatly, regardless of my bleeding finger. He steps toward the door of his cell, gliding his arms through before resting them on the steel cross-bar.

"Abella, come here," he encourages again, waving his hand.

Relenting, I step forward, until we are close enough for me to smell him. Despite spending all this time in this cell, he has a wonderful scent. Something like amber and citrus, otherworldly and foreign.

"It doesn't even hurt," I mutter, holding my hand up for him to see. His eyes narrow as he examines it, as if he has the ability to heal it from his gaze alone. I shift uncomfortably under his scrutiny, not in pain anymore, although the feeling of my blood drying against my palm isn't exactly nice.

"You're bleeding," he comments, reaching for my hand, but I pull my own back, not wanting him to touch it. A tension I hadn't realised was there releases from his shoulders.

"Why do you look so relieved?" I question uneasily, worried that my personal infliction of pain brings him pleasure.

"Maybe you should go home for the night," he relents after a moment of long silence, stepping back into the shadows of his cell.

My brow furrows as I step forward, clutching the bars of his cell as I look in at him. "You would like that, wouldn't you."

"Why are you still working here?" he questions, sounding defeated.

When he first saw me arrive back here, he didn't bother hiding his disappointment. I'm not sure what bothers this Immortal so much about me working here. He acts as though I'm getting in the way of whatever insane plan he has, which now I suppose I am. All I know is that he killed Alpha Noah's mate, which is why I'm doing all of this.

"Why are you talking to me?" I retort right back. Neither of us are willing to impart answers, although I can guess why he is speaking to me. It irritates him that I'm not talking to him, nor am I providing answers since we last spoke.

"Go home," he insists, almost dismissively.

I grit my teeth, as he leans against the wall, sliding down into sitting position. He doesn't look at me again, ending the conversation. I have to hold myself back from opening the cell door and running in to strangle him.

"You don't get to tell me what to do," I growl, although I know I don't want to spend another moment down here with him. "Goodnight Cian."

He doesn't say anymore as I walk back down the hallway. I'm going to win this.

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Sophie_Midika

Midikacrane

~Midika 💜🐼