CURSED TO LOVE HIM

Episode 3:The First Awakening (Part 3)

Darkness.

Endless. Heavy. Silent.

Aria couldn’t feel the ground beneath her feet anymore.

She didn’t even know if she was standing.

Or floating.

Or falling.

Her breathing echoed strangely, like the sound didn’t belong to her.

“Where am I…” she whispered.

No answer.

But something was there.

She could feel it.

Watching.

Waiting.

Her chest tightened as a strange energy moved around her—slow at first, then stronger. It brushed against her like cold wind, then wrapped around her like it was trying to recognize her.

Then—

That voice again.

Low. Deep. Not human.

“Finally…”

Aria froze.

Her heart pounded violently.

“Who said that?” she demanded, her voice shaking.

Silence.

Then the darkness shifted.

Not like something moving through it—

But like the darkness itself was alive.

“You took long enough,” the voice continued, closer now.

Aria turned sharply, trying to find the source.

“I don’t understand! What is this place?!”

No answer.

Instead—

Images flashed.

Fast.

Too fast.

A forest burning.

A symbol glowing on someone’s skin.

Chains made of light.

And eyes—

Eyes just like hers…

But not hers.

Stronger.

Colder.

Powerful.

Aria gasped and grabbed her head.

“Stop—STOP!”

The images shattered instantly.

The darkness trembled.

And then—

Everything snapped.

Aria’s eyes flew open.

She was back.

Back in the courtyard.

Back in the chaos.

Back in her body.

But something was different.

Very different.

The air around her felt… wrong.

Too still.

Too heavy.

Like everything was waiting.

Kael was in front of her, his hand still gripping her wrist.

But his expression—

It had changed.

Completely.

He wasn’t calm anymore.

He wasn’t controlled.

He was… shocked.

“Aria…” he said slowly.

But she barely heard him.

Because she could feel it.

Inside her.

That same energy from the darkness.

But now it wasn’t around her.

It was in her.

Her fingers twitched.

Light flickered faintly under her skin.

Gold.

Bright.

Alive.

“What… is this…” she whispered.

The shadow creature shrieked.

Loud.

Violent.

But this time—

It didn’t move toward her.

It moved back.

Like it was afraid.

Aria’s breathing slowed.

Not because she was calm—

But because something inside her was taking control.

Kael stepped closer, his voice low.

“Don’t lose control,” he said.

But Aria wasn’t sure she had control anymore.

The energy inside her surged again.

Stronger.

Her feet lifted slightly off the ground.

The air around her began to ripple.

Students screamed louder, backing away completely now.

No one was near her anymore.

No one except—

Kael.

And the shadow.

Aria looked at her hands.

The golden light spread further now, crawling up her arms like fire—but it didn’t burn.

It felt…

Right.

Natural.

Like it had always been there.

“Aria,” Kael called again, sharper this time. “Look at me.”

She didn’t.

Her eyes were locked on the shadow.

And for the first time—

She wasn’t scared of it.

The shadow let out another screech and lunged toward her again.

Fast.

Deadly.

But this time—

Aria didn’t run.

She lifted her hand.

Instinct.

Nothing else.

And the moment she did—

The world reacted.

A pulse exploded outward from her body.

Golden. Blinding.

The shadow froze mid-air.

Then—

It shattered.

Not like something breaking.

Like something being erased.

Gone.

Completely.

Silence fell over the courtyard.

Heavy.

Unreal.

Aria’s chest rose and fell slowly.

The light around her faded little by little.

Until—

Everything was normal again.

No shadow.

No cracks.

No glow.

Just her.

Standing there.

Shaking.

“What… did I just do…” she whispered.

Her knees gave out.

She collapsed.

But before she could hit the ground—

Kael caught her.

His grip was firm, steady.

Real.

For a moment, neither of them spoke.

Then Aria looked up at him, her eyes wide with fear and confusion.

“Tell me the truth,” she said weakly. “No more lies. No more half answers. I need to know what’s happening to me.”

Kael held her gaze.

Long.

Careful.

Like he was deciding something important.

Then he exhaled slowly.

And finally—

He said it.

“You’re not human, Aria.”

Her world went silent again.

Her heartbeat echoed in her ears.

“What…?” she whispered.

Kael’s eyes didn’t leave hers.

“You were never supposed to live a normal life,” he continued. “You were hidden. Protected. Kept asleep.”

Aria shook her head slowly.

“No… that’s not true…”

“It is.”

Tears filled her eyes.

“Then what am I?” she asked.

Kael hesitated.

Just for a second.

Then—

“You’re the one they’ve been waiting for.”

A pause.

Then his voice dropped slightly.

“The one they fear.”

Aria’s breath caught.

“Who is ‘they’…?”

Kael’s expression darkened.

Before he could answer—

The air shifted again.

Both of them felt it instantly.

This time stronger.

Heavier.

More dangerous.

Kael’s head snapped up.

“Damn it,” he muttered.

Aria felt it too.

That same pressure.

But worse.

Like something bigger was coming.

“What is that?” she whispered.

Kael helped her stand quickly.

“We don’t have time,” he said sharply.

“For what?!”

He looked at her.

Serious. Urgent.

“To run.”

The sky above them darkened slightly.

Not naturally.

Something was coming.

Something worse than before.

Aria’s heart started racing again.

“This is just the beginning, isn’t it…” she said quietly.

Kael didn’t answer.

But his silence said everything.