An Eternity of Dead Sun (An Eternity of Eclipse Novel Book 2) (26 page)

I tilted my eyes back at him. “Why do you have a persimmon in your hand?”

“It’s no regular persimmon.” He placed it on the palm of my hand as we entered the apartment building. “Here.”

I stared at him strangely once we stepped into the elevator. “Why are you giving this to me?”

“The image of you with blood seeping out of your eyes won’t leave me.”

I paused, floored by his admission. We hadn’t spoken about what happened to me when Eclipse used up his full powers since the night it happened. Eclipse seemed to be more inclined on keeping this topic at bay. I was surprised that he was the one who voluntarily brought it up.

“Is that guilt I’m hearing?” I asked absently, admiring the flawless looking fruit.

“Regret,” he amended. The elevator had begun to ascend to my floor. “I should’ve given this to you as soon as I met you. If I did, then perhaps you wouldn’t be so afraid of being near me.”

I felt my tummy flip-flop at the authenticity in his voice. He truly sounded apologetic, like he really cared about me. I gazed at him, slowly seeing him in a new light. I had really underestimated him. No matter how apathetic he appeared, Eclipse was very observant. It was clear that the little things I said (and did) truly stuck with him. All this time, he hadn’t been ignoring my concerns; he was simply figuring out a way to make reparations.

He jutted his chin at the fruit. “Eat it, Teacup.”

Instead of immediately obeying, I reluctantly stared at the fruit. I didn’t know why, but I was suddenly terrified of it. Why did he want me to eat this so badly?

His entertained gaze traveled down to the persimmon in the palms of my hands. I guess he was beginning to grow impatient because the next words out of his mouth had me glaring at him in resentment.

“Are you posing for the cover of a vampire book or something? Are you going to eat the persimmon or not?”

I reddened at the unexpected jab. Suppressing the desire to flip him off, I did my due diligence and suspiciously asked, “What does it do?”

“Protect you and your veil. If you were to bleed out, it will hide your scent and keep your veil intact. No one will be able to figure out that you’re a Source.”

“Seriously?!”

Holy eff! This thing’s a rock star!
My inner cheerleader was cheering with wonderment that this succulent little treat could protect my identity as a Source.

I held it up, my eyes glowing with greed. I didn’t need any more persuasion. I’d be a fool to not eat this when it was being offered so freely to me.

“Do you have anything to peel it?”

“Eat everything.” He smiled when he saw my apprehensiveness. “It will be one of the most delicious things you’ll ever taste.”

“Okay,” I said quietly.

I took my first bite out of the persimmon and felt the contents spill over my tongue. My taste buds tingled in awe as my entire world lit up. It was the best persimmon I had ever tasted. For an impossible moment, I could have sworn I tasted the elixir of life.

“You’re right!” I blissfully exclaimed. “This is the best thing I’ve ever tasted! It’s so good!” I held the remaining half out to him while the elevator doors slid open in front of us. “Do you want some?”

Eclipse shook his head and gestured for me to eat it all. “You have to eat the whole thing for it to work properly,” he said as we stepped out of the elevator.

For a paranoid instant, my eyes morphed into suspicious slits. “You’re not poisoning me, are you?”

I didn’t realistically think that he would, but it felt like the right question to ask at the time.

“Blessing you, actually.” He opened my apartment door with a warm expression. “You should feel blessed, Teacup.”

I laughed, munching on the persimmon. “Why is this fruit so special?”

We closed the door behind us and headed straight for my room.

“There’s a rare elixir in it,” he provided briskly. “It’s highly sought after.”

I beamed, eagerly finishing the persimmon and loving the lingering taste of it in my mouth. My inner fat kid was a fan of this fruit. It truly tasted like Heaven. “If it’s so valuable, why’d you give it to me?”

Eclipse sat on my bed and gave a non-committal shrug while I set OinkOink beside him. The puppy slowly woke from his slumber. He whimpered as he looked around the room. Once he saw that Eclipse was right beside him, he bounced over to him like a little bunny, lay down beside him, and was already falling asleep again.

“Because I wanted to be the one to give it to you,” he told me smoothly, his voice sounding more sensuous than I could handle. He took off his jacket, unbuttoned his white dress shirt, and tossed it aside, unveiling the steel muscles etched in his upper body.

I shot him a pointed look, trying to ignore the fact that he was half-naked on my bed, looking as welcoming to sleep on as the mattress beneath him.

“That didn’t answer my question,” I said tightly, finding it difficult to catch my breath.

“I know,” he whispered, his head resting against the wall while his eyes appreciatively roamed up and down my body.

The room suddenly felt more heated than when we first entered it.

There was a smoldering look on his face that had me hypnotized. He sensually bit his lower lip, causing me to bite my own as well. Red-hot fire consumed my body, and I distantly wondered if he fed me an aphrodisiac as opposed to an elixir. Oh my goodness. I was really tempted to launch myself at the gorgeous Demon and let him have his way with me.

“I lied to you, you know?”

A sinkhole formed in the core of my stomach.

“Lied?” I parroted shakily, dreading whatever truth he was going to tell me. “Lied about what?”

“When I said the persimmon would be the best thing you’d ever taste.” His gaze grew darker, more carnal. In the huskiest and sexiest voice I had ever heard, he declared, “
I
will be the best thing you’ve ever tasted.”

In a flash, he sat on his knees, wrapped his arms around my waist and with feline grace, tossed me onto the bed with noted care. OinkOink, who was still on the bed with us, was delightfully knocked out and unaware that his two owners were in a wicked world of their own.

Eclipse came over me at once, his forearms rested on either side of me while his beautiful face was inches above mine. The enticing heat of his body and the enthralling scent of him bombarded my senses.

I dragged in an unstable breath.

I was so enamored by how intimate we were that I didn’t have the mental capacity to jump off the bed in protest. Deep down, I was ashamed to admit that a mischievous part of me wanted to simply lie there and be seduced by him. I knew he was a threat to my existence. One kiss on the lips could have me on my deathbed. This knowledge should have been an obstruction, but instead, it became a temptation. I suddenly wanted to challenge death—to test the waters so I could feel alive.

As if reading the thoughts in my congested mind, Eclipse smiled and began to trace his finger over the contour of my jaw.

“Whatever nirvana that little fruit was able to give you, know that my nirvana will be a million times better.”

He chuckled when he saw the intrigue bloom in my eyes. He lowered himself, coming closer but still not touching me. If anything, the subtle move caused me to become drunker with longing.

“And I will keep giving it to you.” His lips brushed my ear, making me shiver. Everything about him was luring the mischievous girl inside me to come out. “Whenever you ask for it, whenever you yearn for it, and whenever you are hungry for it, I will give it to you until you beg me to stop.” Another extravagant chuckle escaped him. “And we both know that once you’ve had me, you’re never going to beg me to stop.”

I felt breathless by the time he was done with his “promise.”

My chest rose up and down in rapid movements. I felt like I had just ran a marathon and my lungs were desperate for air.

After taking a second to compose myself and digest what was happening to my body, I awkwardly announced, “I’m getting a nosebleed.”

It was so lame that I was getting a nosebleed simply because of Eclipse’s words. He wasn’t even kissing me, touching me, or doing anything physical to me. He was merely speaking, making suggestive promises and it was enough for my nose to bleed. Oh God. I was so embarrassed. I wanted to bury my face into OinkOink’s fur and hide.

A doting laugh radiated from Eclipse’s chest. In a swift movement, he withdrew himself from above me, giving me room to breathe and my nosebleed time to stabilize itself. He laid himself beside me, suddenly looking more like an Angel than a seductive Demon.

“Why did you do that?” I asked numbly, coming out of the lustful spell he placed me under. I sat up, feeling utterly intoxicated. My eyes widened when an outraged thought hit me. I shot him an accusing look. “You were warming me up again, weren’t you?!”

His sleepy eyes twinkled with laughter. The expression on his face was one of coyness, one that knew that he had been caught. His lips curved up into a half-smirk.

“I haven’t teased you in a while. I didn’t want you to think I’ve forgotten about the marathon I wanted to have with you.”

Though desire continued to teem in his eyes, I noticed he was starting to look drowsy again.

Placing my outrage aside, I curiously tipped my head at him. “Why’d you really come to walk me home tonight?”

“I have to go into recuperation mode for the next couple of days,” he shared as he began to rest on the pillow, his eyes looking drowsier. “I won’t be able to see you for a while, so I wanted to hang out before I left.” He flashed me an adorable grin. “And I seduced you a second ago because I didn’t want you to forget me while I slept . . .”

Warmth flooded over me.

I really couldn’t deny how cute his answer was.

“Are you going to sleep now?” I asked, already knowing the answer.

He nodded, his lethargic eyes staring up at me. It was the most innocent I had seen him since we met.

“Will you stay here with me until I fall asleep?”

My logic said no, but my body behaved differently.

Instead of walking away and making some smart-ass comment, I continued to sit on the bed. Then, I did something I thought I’d never do: I actually sat there the entire night and watched him sleep.

I couldn’t fathom what had gotten into me these past few days.

I was not this person. I wasn’t the girl who genuinely hugged anyone because I was relieved that he was healthy again, and I wasn’t the girl who watched someone sleep because that person had asked me to stay there with him.

I wasn’t that person, yet there I was behaving just like that girl.

I was thankful that no one else saw me like this. Eclipse was drifting further and further into his slumber, OinkOink was nuzzled quietly between us, and the world seemed distracted with the rain outside. At that suspended moment in time, I was the only one who played witness to this strange behavior. I suppose in the bigger scheme of things, I was the only one who mattered. Nevertheless, much like all the other aspects of my life, I didn’t allow this to have any profound effect on me.

“I’m just tired,” I whispered to myself, sounding more uncertain than I would’ve liked. “This means nothing. All of this means absolutely nothing . . .”

“Then I don’t know what would.”
18
: Punishment on Earth

Eclipse was officially in “recuperation” mode when the next morning arrived.

I had assumed that Eclipse “resting” would equate to how humans rested, which was that he would wake up every so often. To my surprise, his sleeping cycle was far from normal. Evidently, recuperation mode in demonic terms meant that said Demon would sleep like the dead. Absolutely nothing would jar him from his slumber. Even when OinkOink, who could be pretty obnoxious when he was seeking attention, was barking and whimpering at his ear, Eclipse remained as he was: quiet and unresponsive.

Even though I was still slightly worried about him, a big part of me was also relieved. This was unlike the hibernation mode he went into on the bus. He had color to his face and appeared to be in perfect health. I had no doubt that in several days, once he was fully recharged, he would be back to himself.

Feeling assured, I slowly found myself thrilled to go back to the normalcy of my life. I had nearly been driven over the edge of insanity ever since Eclipse entered my life. I was excited for a break.

So with all the drama in my life momentarily suspended, I got into the shower and relished in the tranquility of being alone. It felt incredibly nice. It was absolutely relaxing and peaceful until—

“What the hell is that little midget doing in there?” squawked a voice that interrupted my serene thoughts. “Why is she showering for so long?”

“Shh!” said another voice. “Just let her be!”

H
uh
?

“How can I let her be when I have to watch her? Why can’t you watch her?”

“Because his Dark Majesty is asleep and he needs protection as well. Plus, you’re a girl. It’s more natural for you to do ‘girl’ things with her.”

W
ho was talking so loudly outside the door
?

“This is so unfair! She’s so annoying and small and short. I don’t want to do this!”

Curious about all the noise, I mindlessly poked my head out from behind the curtain.

“Ahhhhh!” I screamed my ass off when I saw the two culprits standing right beside the sink, a few feet away from me. “What are you two doing in here?!”

I automatically latched onto a towel and wrapped it around me. I stared at them while the soap from my hair dripped all over my face. Although I was stunned that the Demons had been able to find my apartment, I was more shocked that they were in the bathroom with me.

“His Dark Majesty said that we have to watch over you or he’d feed us to his hellhounds if we screw up!” Phix shouted with a shaky voice. It was clear that Phix knew he was treading the line with Eclipse. He was adamant about no longer being on Eclipse’s bad side.

“Not when I’m frigging showering!” I manically cried over the running water. “Even Eclipse gives me more privacy than this!”

“Oh really?” Phix asked, genuinely astonished. “He doesn’t guard you while you’re in the shower?”

“No!”

“Oh man! He’s such a risk taker!” Phix gushed like Eclipse was the bravest entity he had ever met. “If my existence was dependent upon someone else’s, I would guard her 24/7 and stick to her like white on rice!”

“Phix,” I began impatiently, the once warm water getting cold on my feet. Though my voice was feeble, my threat was anything but. “If you don’t leave right now, I’m going to lie and tell Eclipse that you pushed me and made me slip in the shower.”

“Okay, okay. We’ll leave,” Phix placated, taking my warning to heart. He looked relieved that he didn’t have to stay in the bathroom with me either. The Demon grinned innocently, giving me a sheepish expression before asking, “Uh, can we eat your food? It took Coco and I the entire night to find where you live. We’re starving.”

“Yeah,” I replied, eager to get them out. “Help yourself.”

“Thanks, Gracie,” he replied. It felt odd to be greeted so chummily by Phix, but with a personality like his, he could get away with murder. “Oh, by the way, Coco and I have split up the duties. I’ll be watching his Dark Majesty during his slumber. Coco is going to watch you because I figured you’d be more comfortable bonding with her than me. If you need anything, Coco’s your girl.” He gestured his head towards the other Demon, who was silently standing there, glaring at me. “Let’s go, Coco.”

Phix exited the bathroom, but Coco continued to stand there, her eyes appraising me critically. Judgmentally, she asked, “Are you a former fatty?”

I felt the former overweight girl in me shrivel in uneasiness. Instead of confirming her invasive question, I just stared at her blankly and softly said, “What would make you say that?”

She gave a long pause and then vacantly said, “You act like one.”

And on that insightful and positively upbeat note, she left, leaving me to flip the bird at the area where she once stood.

“Poop-face,” I mumbled immaturely before returning to my now horribly screwed up shower.

●●●

Six hours.

It had been six hours of misery as I sat in my last class of the day with Coco buzzing in my ear.

“Let’s skip class.”

“No!”

“Come on! You’re so boring!”

“Leave me alone then!”

“If I could, do you think I’d be sitting in this boring class with you?”

If we weren’t in a lecture hall filled with forty witnesses, I would’ve unleashed my sadism and showed her exactly who she was pissing off. The girl had no boundaries and no zipper for that big fat mouth of hers. Any fascination I had with her when she was a famous actress was completely gone. I felt like I was stuck listening to a radio station that I couldn’t lower the volume for. I was losing my mind.

C
alm down, Grace. Calm down
.
I took in a deep breath. Despite my overwhelming urge to stab her, I did well to keep my composure.

“Coco,” I fired back coolly, my eyes turning into calm but threatening slits. My Business Law professor was still lecturing on the podium, moving on to the next PowerPoint slide in his presentation. “I know that you’re just doing your job, but I swear to the God-who-will-never-answer-me, if you don’t shut your mouth, I’m going to jab my Hello Kitty pencil into your eye. Since I have a track record of violent tendencies, I think you should check yourself before you continue to annoy me.”

Alarm stirred in Coco’s eyes. I had no doubt that she was running over my résumé in her mind. I was certain that the extracurricular activity my six-year-old self participated in ran prominently in her thoughts. She was aware that I was more than capable of bringing this threat to fruition.

With a soft gulp to save face, she feigned carelessness and said, “Ugh, you’re so melodramatic.”

Then, without another word, she placed her head on the table and moaned in misery before falling completely quiet. She remained like so as the day wore on, but regrettably, she didn’t stay like that when evening came.

“God, how long before they come and take our order?”

“Just be patient. They’re giving us time to look over the menu.”

Coco sat beside me at the private booth I had reserved at one of my favorite restaurants: Blossom. She was as impatient as ever and I was doing my best to be tolerant for the sake of civility. I ignored her and admired the restaurant. The lights were dimmed with chandeliers hanging above. There was a candle set on every table, as well as beautiful floral centerpieces. It was a handsome restaurant with really great food, but after seeing a restaurant like Luxuria, there were few man-made restaurants that could match up to the Demon of Gluttony’s.

For a brief moment, my queue of thoughts wandered over to what occurred with Sloth and Tony. My unpleasant reaction to them aside, I pondered the reason behind Tony gifting Eclipse with a portion of his powers. What was coming up? What special event was coming that made Sloth give Eclipse the aid of Phix and Coco? What was so special that caused Tony, who clearly disliked Eclipse, to be nice to him?

As expected, my questions to myself yielded no answer.

Discarding those dead-end thoughts for the time being, I focused on the menu before me. I mindlessly petted OinkOink as I did this. Before we went to the restaurant, I had stopped by the apartment to check up on Eclipse. Due largely to the fact that I didn’t want to suffer with Coco alone, I brought OinkOink, who was napping beside Eclipse, with me. While Coco continued to yap and complain about my presence, OinkOink was glaring at her from my purse, seemingly very annoyed with her and her negativity as well.

“Why are you looking at the desserts if you can’t eat them anyway?” she asked, dragging me out of my thoughts.

I eyed her from the top of my menu. “There’s no harm in looking.”

“I’m sure you’ve been saying that quite often these days, haven’t you,
OinkOink
?”

I scowled at her. I was certain I was going to burst into a ball of fire because I was fuming with so much anger. How dare she call me by OinkOink’s name? Even OinkOink, who was typically a friendly puppy, was growling at her from my purse.

Coco shifted uncomfortably when OinkOink’s growls grew louder. Though she seemed afraid of my puppy, she wasn’t intimidated by me.

“Sorry,” she apologized in an inauthentic tone. A fake smile shaped her mouth. “I meant to say, ‘Gracie.’ I don’t know how I could’ve slipped.”

I closed my menu, mortified. The former overweight girl in me was feeling sick to her stomach. I had suddenly lost my appetite.

“What did you decide on?” she asked nonchalantly, consulting her menu.

“Salad and tofu,” I replied quietly.

I was disgruntled with what I ordered because I wanted fatty food. But since my offensive dietician was sitting next to me, it felt appropriate to further my misery by eating healthy.

Coco nodded in approval. “I’m going to have the same as you.”

I didn’t say anything to her; I merely began bit
c
hing at her in my head and fantasizing about beating her up in a dark alley. In lieu of giving in to my sadism, I kept my poise and set all those violent (and tempting) thoughts aside.

“Oh my God! Hi Grace!” two chirpy voices greeted from across the room.

My eyes instantly brightened when I saw that it was Dawn and Ara, my friends from school. They had just walked into the restaurant with Kina and Missy, both of whom were their childhood friends and also my subtle “frenemies.” It had only been a few days, but it felt like it had been forever since I last saw them. It felt good to run into Dawn and Ara like this, even if Kina and Missy were with them.

“Hi girls!” I cried, waving at them from the booth. The girls, all dressed in white dresses, approached our table. “What are you guys doing here?”

“We’re here to pick up the to-go food we ordered for our church group meeting,” answered Dawn. Her eyes traveled to Coco, who was sitting quietly in her seat. “Is this your friend?”

“Friend?” Coco asked, laughing obnoxiously. “Yeah, right,” she muttered under her breath.

Dawn and Ara smiled awkwardly at me, darting their eyes from me to Coco. I knew they were wondering who this rude girl was. Behind them, I saw Kina and Missy smile in amusement.

I laughed nervously, trying to act oblivious to the negativity that was shooting out of Coco.

“Dawn, Ara, Kina, Missy.” I began to point at Coco, who was blinking flippantly at them. As this occurred, OinkOink continued to growl at her from my bag. Recalling quickly that the girls were probably familiar with
Tears of the Rainbow
—and that Coco was actually a famous actress—I changed Coco’s name. I didn’t need my friends wondering why I was hanging out with a supposed dead actress. “This is my friend . . . Chanel!”

“Chanel?” Ara asked amiably, giving Coco a small wave. “Hi Chanel, nice to meet you!”

Coco nodded at her while sparing a glance at me. There was approval in her eyes. She was proud that I had given her such a cool and fashionable alias.

Missy stared at her in awe. “Hey Chanel. From this angle, you kinda look like Coco Cho! Has anyone ever told you that?”

Coco pretended to give a careless shrug. “I get it all the time, but I don’t think so. I think she’s prettier than me.”

I gave Coco a dry look, aware that she was fishing for compliments.

She was wearing a black leather jacket and form fitting black jeans. She had on very heavy makeup: dark eyeliner with smoky eye shadow, blushed cheeks, and glossy red lips. She looked gorgeous all the same, but definitely did not have the natural look that Coco Cho was famously known for.

For a pompous celebrity like herself, it was clear that Coco preferred to be adored for her natural beauty rather than for her contrived one.

“No, I think you’re prettier than Coco Cho,” Ara assured her. “Coco is cute, but she doesn’t have the ‘wow’ factor going on like you.”

“Yeah!” Dawn beamed. “And oh my goodness I love her dramas and all, but I still can’t get over that kissing scene from
Tears of the Rainbow
. Why was she so stiff when she kissed Jae? That was such a bad scene for me—”