Rule and Ruin

nineteen; the villain she was

chapter nineteen.

✧ ✧ ✧

SHE RAN.

She wanted to laugh and bathe in her victory as Dino bled shades of peony in front of her, but her mind, her heart, and her soul all felt like they were about to collapse. So she ran. She kept running.

There was no one to stop her.

Just like the last time she ran from Dino, Selene ended up at Nix's hideout. She stumbled into the tiny, empty room and fell against the bed. Her fingers curled against the cold bed sheets. It was the first time in a while she had felt softness like that.

She wanted to rip her skin off because she could still feel their hands on her, their bodies against her, their poisons inside her. She felt everything and nothing, and she was just so fucking sick of feeling at all. Her entire body was broken and bruised, but the physical pain was nothing compared to the way her heart ached.

Escape had never felt so harrowing.

When she managed to collect her thoughts, it had turned dark out. She knew she was too weak, but she continued moving. She could not stand staying in one place, because just like the rest of her, her mind was on the run. She slipped out of that dirtied haven and mimicked Nix's tricks as she navigated the city's shadows and tunnels. She let herself fade into the darkness and wished she could fully disappear into it.

The moon shone overhead, as if guiding and protecting her. It sought her out in those lonely moments and cold shadows. It beamed down at her, an invisible companion that whispered encouragements.

So she continued moving even when the pain in her ribs was making it hard to breathe. She pushed herself ahead, even when she began to see stars in her vision that outshone the ones in the sky.

She wasn't sure how long it had been when she rounded the familiar corner and stumbled into the street that felt like the only home she'd ever known. She clutched the wall and decided this would be a nice place to die.

Death didn't seem like a bad friend at the moment.

But then a new shadow appeared and chased the eager shadow of Death away. She blinked up in conditioned fear.

Nix.

Dear god, had he always looked like that?

Nix and his beautiful eyes and his untamed hair. Nix and his winning smile and his dangerous promises. Nix.

"Selene," he breathed, taking a step forward as if to embrace her but thought against it last minute.

Her name sounded right when it came from his lips.

"You're alive," he whispered, as if he was speaking in a dream.

His words echoed through the air, and she began to wonder if it really was a dream when her vision began to blur. She struggled to keep her eyes open, clutching her stomach and the thousands of bruises that ate her inside out. She stumbled forward slightly.

He frowned, his eyes narrowing as he scanned her injuries. This time he approached her with purpose. He sounded like a promise. He walked like an illusion. She wondered if he bled like a hero.

She wondered why she came here. Was she here to slay the hero or be slain by him like the monster she was? Was she here to die at the end like a villain does?

She couldn't stop herself from cowering when he neared her, but then decided she was too tired to care. She decided she didn't mind whether he wanted to rule or ruin her.

She fell, and he caught her.