“I want to kick all of you in the nuts for this bullshit!” I grumbled.
“My nuts are made of steel,” Steel deadpanned, and the other two cracked up.
“I can’t believe this nonsense!” I yelled, but they just herded me upstairs like I was some flight risk.
“Eboeniaaaaa! Are you safe? What are they doing to you?” Sin’s voice echoed down the hall. “Yo, shut that shit up! She’s safe, but you ain’t!” Crash Out shouted out.
“I’m soooo not your friend anymore,” I hissed at Crash Out.
“Damnnnnn, that’s foul,” Crash Out replied, shaking his head.
They stopped at a door at the end of the hallway—different from the room Jinx and Blair were in earlier. Crash Out pressed his fingers to the gear-shaped handle, his touch lighting up the metal as the gears spun and the door opened on its own.
“Wait here until War comes back,” Civil said, nodding me inside.
I rolled my eyes and stepped into an enclosed forest, smaller than the one where War grew his weed. The doors shut behind me, sealing me in with the scent of roses and moss. Jinx was washing Blair’s back in the pool, the water tinted pink and scattered with floating pink roses.
“We thought you and your ‘husband’ were on a honeymoon,” Blair joked.
I peeled off my clothes and slipped into the warm, rose-scented water. “Why does it look like you’ve been crying?” Jinx asked, concern in her eyes.
“I’ll talk to you about it later,” I whispered.
I scooped water in my hands, helping to wash Blair’s hair. She looked out of it, eyelids heavy, barely awake. “I’ll wash yours next,” Jinx offered gently.
“Thank you,” I murmured, managing a small smirk.
Moonbeams spilled through the dome-shaped glass ceiling, vines crawling across the glass and blooming with black roses.
“I could stay here forever,” Jinx sighed.
“Yeah, it’s like being in Charmden but without all the bullshit,” I agreed.
Jinx looked me dead in the eyes. “Did War hurt you?” she asked as tears slipped down my cheeks.
“No, but when he does, I feel better. I just need him right now,” I admitted, my voice trembling.
She frowned, confusion written all over her face. “I don’t get how hurting you makes you feel better.”
I wiped my face and tried to explain, my words coming out paradoxical but honest. “It’s weird, but when War hurts my feelings, it’s like all the stuff I keep bottled up finally comes out. I cry, I get mad, but then I feel lighter—like I can breathe again. It’s almost like he forces me to face my shit, and somehow, I come out stronger every time. It’s messed up, but after the pain, I feel more alive. Like I’m not numb anymore.”
Jinx shook her head, still not understanding, but she squeezed my hand anyway. “As long as you’re not in danger,” she whispered, and I rested my head on her shoulder, letting the warmth of the water and her comfort wash over me.
If Sin is really my twin, I won’t be able to live. I’ll have to join him in death.
Ifelt a breeze kiss my cheek and sat up, rubbing my eyes. Jinx and Blair were curled up beside me in fetal positions, camouflaged among the bed of flowers and the greenery surrounding us.
“Eboeniaaa!” A sultry voice called out.
I stood from our makeshift bedding and walked to the edge of the central pool. A figure stepped from behind a tree—her locs trailed all the way to her ankles, and her midnight skin gleamed like polished leather, adorned with intricate gold-rose patterns. Black crystal charms dangled from her horns, her talons sparkled like crushed diamonds, and she smelled unmistakably of Nectarine Moonlure—a flower that only grew in Charmden, infamous for inducing extreme arousal in men when bathed in its essence. The pointed tips of her fairy ears were pierced with tiny bull’s horns. She looked at me and smiled, revealing sharp, piercing canine teeth.
She flew over with wings identical to mine, and we stood face-to-face, her height giving her a few inches over me. She was like a goddess—her unique fairy form was striking, picture-perfect.
“Why are you confined in this birdcage?” Clover asked.
“I’m not confined to anything. And aren’t you supposed to be dead?”
“That depends on your definition of dead,” she replied smoothly.
