Chapter 17

Kellan

A s soon as she chose to drop the blade, I knew her purpose had been fulfilled. She chose to live. The Others didn't need to tell me because I could sense the change in the air. I can always tell when the souls in my realm complete their purpose.

I appeared in front of her as soon as her decision was made because I wasn't wasting another moment without having her in my grasp. She seemed shocked to see me, but I could tell she was also relieved. She could have chosen to end it all, and I could have lost her forever. The demon would have tried to take her, but she chose life. She gave us a chance forever, even if she doesn't know it yet.

There is still so much she needs to know. Now that her purpose has been fulfilled, I am free to tell her. If she is going to stay here in my realm, she will need to have full knowledge of everything. No more secrets. It will be out on the table, and my only hope is that she will still look at me the way she is right now after she finds out the truth.

"Stay here. Let me go grab you some clothes so we can talk," I tell her and vanish, only to reappear at the trunk of her car. I grab a pair of black leggings, lace panties, a bralette, and a long-sleeve red sweater with stars on it.

When I get back, I hand her the clothes and wait for her to dress. I materialize a pair of black jeans and a hoodie for myself. One of the more convenient things about having the magic I do is that I can clothe my human form in whatever I want with the snap of my fingers. I take a seat on the bench next to the blanket, and once she is fully dressed, she comes over to sit next to me.

"Pet, there is something you need to know." I reach out to caress the side of her face with my palm.

Her eyes fill with worry. Her entire human life was plagued with people disappointing her. After some reflection, I've realized it was part of her journey here in my realm for people to test her in order to see if she would succumb to the same temptations she did before I brought her here.

"I have never in my entire existence felt for a soul the way that I feel for you. I've never loved anything before you, and I will never love anything other than you. You changed everything, Lena."

"Kellan," she whispers, eyes filling up with tears.

"I love you, Lena Hill. I love you so much that it consumes me. I feel whole when I'm with you. There was a part of me that I never even realized was missing until I saw you. You complete me."

The sides of her mouth tip up slowly, and a huge grin spreads across her face. She goes to say something, but I reach out my hand to hush her. I know what she's about to say, and I don't want her to regret it.

"Before you say what you're thinking right now, I need to tell you everything. You need to know what you are walking into here."

"Okay." Her brows furrow and she opens her mouth to say something else but snaps it shut, waiting for me to continue.

"Two years and five weeks ago in your time, I laid eyes on you for the first time to reap your soul. You were lying in a puddle of blood, and you looked so weak, barely hanging onto your human life. Your mother rushed in to try and save you, but she was unsuccessful."

I hear a sharp gasp as her eyes widen. She is piecing together everything she knows about me and why she can see me now.

"You have been a soul in my realm, on your path to fulfill your purpose since the first moment I saw you. I carried you here and placed you in the hospital that you woke up in after the incident. Everything you have experienced since that bathroom floor has all led up to today when you fulfilled your purpose."

"You're going to have to pause here for a damn minute because I have some questions."

"I will answer any questions you have."

"Has this all been fake? Carson, Lexi, Thorn Grove? It's all made up?"

"No, they are also souls on their own individual journeys to fulfill their purpose. Every interaction you had with them was genuine. Everyone here is a human soul, aside from me. The Others make the rules regarding purpose, but it is my understanding that certain souls are meant to cross paths and interact with one another as tests. It is how they separate the pure souls from the impure ones."

"But nobody knows they're dead? Nobody is old? Why are there so many others going to a fake college?" she questions.

"It would be hard to test the purity of a soul if they knew they were dead and being tested, would it not?"

"I guess."

"Once I leave the soul on their path in my realm, all memories of their death are forgotten. In my realm, their age is based on what is required to fulfill their purpose. Most of the time, humans experience major growth and development between the ages of 18 and 30. It's why that age is so common here."

I push a stray piece of her hair behind her ear, and she leans into the touch. Good. I haven't scared her away. I was worried this would be too much for her.

"Once a purpose is fulfilled, the angel or demon appears to take the soul from here. They are the official representatives of each, good and evil. God and the Devil are in command, but their angel and demon both have access to my realm."

"Balance," she says.

"Yes. As far as the college goes, this is not the only area of my realm. This is just one corner. There are other towns, islands, forests, boats, you name it, and it's an available option here."

"Kellan..." she trails off, and I think this is it. This is when she decides it's all too much for her .

"Yes?"

"You're telling me there's an endless number of places for me to live, and I've been living with my ex-douchebag at a college where everyone bullies me? Why did you let me stay there?"

I reach out and hold her hand in mine. "I couldn't reveal this to you and risk The Others taking you from me. I know that was selfish of me, and I'm so sorry, pet. I intended to show you my true form and figure out the rest, but that plan went to shit when I appeared in your bathroom, and you realized it was me."

"That's your fault! You could have appeared outside the apartment door or something."

"Hmmm. I suppose I could have," I admit.

Her body visibly tenses. "Anyway, back to Carson. Please tell me I don't have to go back there. Tell me I can stay with you now, that I don't ever have to see any of those people from Thorn Grove again."

"You do not have to see any of them again. We can go wherever you like. If you'd like to stay near this cemetery, that can be arranged. Or we could curate a place together that we can call our home. Wherever or whatever you decide, I will be by your side." I've never sounded so hopeful in my entire existence. I never desired a home for myself, but a home for us sounds perfect.

She breathes out a sigh of relief, the tension leaving her body. "How long do people usually stay here?"

"It varies. It could be a matter of moments, years, or decades. There is no real sense of time here, only the illusion of it. Time ends when a soul 's life ends. How long someone is here directly relates to fulfilling their purpose."

She sits on those words for a moment before her eyes meet mine. "How long have I really been here? It feels like it's been two years and five weeks, but is that how long it's really been?"

"There is no appropriate answer to that question. What I can tell you is that every moment of not being with you was pure torture."

"What do you mean?" She seems a bit thrown off.

"I told you before, I was drawn to you from the moment I first laid eyes on you. I wasn't joking. I had to bring you here and watch from a distance for so long. Time works differently for me. As I've already said, there is no start or end. The only reason I even came out of the shadows when I did was by accident. I was terrified of messing with your path. I thought if I did, The Others would take you from here sooner. I got a little too close to you the day we met here, and well, you know how that day ended."

She smiles briefly at the memory of the day before her face falls flat. "What happens to souls once they fulfill their purpose and leave here?"

"That I do not fully know. They are taken to a place where I have never been and will never go."

Her body tenses up, and immediately, I am worried all over again. Fuck. All of her emotions are so intense they terrify me. She has me spiraling around, wondering just what she is thinking .

"What is it?"

"I'm dead," she finally says out loud. "I fucking did it. I killed myself, but I still came here and felt completely worthless." Tears fill her eyes, and I pull her into me to comfort her.

"I know it's a lot to take in. Take your time."

"Does that mean they will take me now? You said I fulfilled my purpose, and that's why you were able to show yourself to me again. Will I ever see you again?" Tears spill from her beautiful eyes and her chest heaves.

I can tell she is starting to panic. I try my best to soothe her, but she's become inconsolable. Snot covers my hoodie, so I push back on her shoulders, forcing her to look at me. I hold her in place, staring down at her as two shadowy tendrils extend from me to wipe her tears away.

"You are mine, Lena. Nobody will ever take you from me. Do you understand?" I look at her with nothing but fierce determination. "I would eradicate the entire Cosmos before allowing someone to take you from me. The only way you will ever leave my side is if it is your choice."

That seems to stop her sobs completely. Again, my smoky extensions wipe her face clean from the snot and tears before dissipating back into the air.

"I don't think I'll ever get used to that."

"What?"

"The fact that you can morph between a shadow and a human so easily. It's warm and cool at the same time."

"Do you not like it? I can be in whichever form you prefer."

"I want you to be you. It doesn' t matter to me what form you are in. Whatever makes you the most comfortable. Besides, both forms have their benefits." She grins devilishly.

"Please tell me you wish to stay with me. I would never force you, but I don't know what I will do if you decide you want to leave."

Her hand reaches out to cup my face in the most tender way. I've never been someone's sole desire, but when I look at her, I can sense that I am. I still need to ask her the questions, though. I never want her to think she doesn't have a choice in any of this. I won't spend eternity with someone who feels trapped.

"I think my soul recognized you. I've always belonged to you, and I'll always be yours, just as you have always belonged to me, and you will always be mine," she tells me, her eyes shimmering with admiration and vulnerability.

"You're right about that, pet." I lean in and kiss her, letting our tongues twist along one another.

She tastes so sweet. I could lose myself in her until the end of time. Another soul calls out to me in the recesses of my mind. They need reaping, but they will have to wait. There is no way I'm leaving my girl right now. I pull her under my arm, and we sit like that for a while in silence, enjoying each other's company. I know she has more questions, and I will answer them all whenever she asks.