This Side Of Heaven

Chapter Three- Tate

Although they were both seductively smitten with each other, their mutual stubbornness kept them from portraying this, and instead brought forth expressions of hostility and annoyance with the other. For Avery, she looked at this handsome figure caked with moonlight on one side of his face and shadow on the other, and saw someone who had broken into her room at an inappropriate hour of the night-not that breaking and entering ever had an appropriate time of the day. But for Lorentate, he stood annoyed for the reason that he was trying to help her and she was proving difficult to these attempts.

“Special? Do you say that to all the girls?” She retaliated with a sense of humor as his brows c****d upright for a single second before returning to a gaze of contentment inflamed with a mix of curiosity and frustration.

“What do you want?” She finally asked, calling out the elephant within the room; which so happened to be a six foot four demi-God of a man fighting a grimace made of his full lips, while his eyes seemed to hold the sole purpose of observing her.

“I was hoping Vince would be able to answer your questions...But I take it, you still have some.”

“You too?”

“There is something about you-”

“I got the spiel already...I’m a...thing that sounds like a sneeze…”

“A Nephilim.” He corrected her. “You are part angel and part demon. However..the way it works with you is that you must enact either side before a specific time in order to lean one way or the other.”

“Oh yeah? And how do I do that?” She challenged, her arms rising to her chest and folding in irritation.

“Well to give in to your celestial side, you would have to sacrifice your life for someone...and for the demon side...You would have to kill someone-” She scoffed, slowly shaking her head, and crossing the floor until her toes nearly touched his, this pause of her step informing him that she was at the ready to challenge him, if it was needed.

“In my seventeen years, I have yet to take a life. However, if you make a habit of breaking into my home-that might change.” His lips lifted into a momentary smirk before he turned and began making a lap around her room, taking consideration in her lifetime memorabilia. His fingers came over a series of unread books having since collected dust, CDs and movies of romance and comedy lining a separate case, and a desk with completed school work on the wall beside the bed.

“There is nothing more tragic than dust on books...Unread potential...much like you-”

“Does this work for you? Sneaking into girls’ rooms and criticizing their housekeeping?” He chuckled once more, before finally resting against her desk with his weight supported on the ledge and his arms pushed at either side on its surface.

“Sorry to break your heart...But you aren’t exactly my type. You’re too...annoying.” Her eyes sharpened at him as she had reached her limit of banter.

“I don’t even know why I didn’t kick you out of here the second I saw you, but if you think for a second-”

“Curiosity.”

“What?”

“It’s why I’m still here. You know you want answers but you’re terrified to actually know the truth. Even if it is right before your own eyes...”

“What truth would that be? The nephilim? Destiny Falls?” He tensed, believing she was without the knowledge of these specific and damning details that made Ameleigh correct. But his shoulders then fell back in relief when she continued. “Mister Sydney-Vince already tried to convince me of this. So I don’t know if this is some weird roleplay or something, but it’s not funny. So unless you get out of here, I am going to scream my head off and-” Suddenly his head lifted to her to showcase a set of crimson eyes peering through the darkness of her room as she stilled.

“You’re-You’re one of them?” The words came from her lips with a heavy tone of disappointment but not exactly surprise. In her mind, it made perfect sense that he was able to toss Josh around without much of an effort. However, there was something comforting about his angelic appearance that was now tarnished; thus the presence of dismay.

“I am not exactly anything...not anything with a name, anyhow….” His eyes lowered as they now returned to their normal mint. “But I think this has been proof enough to keep you from rationalizing this-”

“No. You could be wearing contacts or I could be losing my mind or-” Lorentate now took hold of her arms, pulling her into the desk herself, exposing the extent of his features when enticed. His teeth were horribly sharp as his sable scleras were marked with busted blood vessels and his once evergreen gaze having faded and altered into crimson. The shadow of an incoming beard shaven down to shade had disappeared beneath sunken cheeks and his grip was similar to that of Josh; sharp and cold-something she couldn’t break from, even with the greatest use of her own strength.

But as he expected her to scream or faint, she lifted her hands to his features out of curiosity. But he was aware that if she were to make contact with his skin that he would be unable to release her as that warmth, that only she gave him, was beginning to return once again with a simple touch of her skin. He tossed her with minimal effort onto the safe mattress of her bed, before crossing the room, with his expression returned to ‘normal’ again.

“For argument’s sake...Not that I’m agreeing with anything...But if it WERE to be true...What does this mean?”

“There is this veil separating the world I came from...Destiny Falls...There was a war between demons and angels and creatures that even the most fantastical minds of this realm would crumble into fear at the feet of, and it was locked-this world was built over it. But there is this...key of sorts...And when used...would lift the veil; unleashing these...trapped demons. At least...it was supposed to. Something happened that makes it so these things can slip through.” Her eyes narrowed as she tried to find an explanation or a hole in his confession, but was too struck by her inquisitiveness to interrupt. And so he continued.

“You are that key. Half of the world wants to make you a sacrifice to open the veil and the other half wants you to give yourself willingly to it...I have to ensure it doesn’t happen...That world should never be unveiled. But it is written...in prophetic glory that you will open it. But I have to admit...I’ve looked for you for quite some time...and you are not exactly what I expected.”

“Why’s that?” She asked with immature exasperation.

“Well it spoke of a specific criteria that you would have to meet...A checklist of sorts...And the only thing that is true of it is the fact that you’re...raven haired…”

“Has it crossed your small mind that maybe I’m NOT her? Maybe I’m just a girl trying to be normal?!”

“Normal girls would have run away when you saw what I turned into. Normal girls wouldn’t be wearing relief over their face right now-”

“It’s not-”

“It's a relief because something actually makes sense. Even if it seems impossible, it fits with the empty parts of your life….Doesn’t it? The questions that you were desperate for but never had answers to...”

“No-No...All of this...you...it’s all wrong.”

His eyes fell for a moment before rising back to her. “There is nothing that I want more than for it to be anybody but you. However, it is my job...to protect this…’key’...and so until further notice...Seems as though we are stuck with each other.”

“No-”

“There may be a few things you should know before then, however…” He disregarded her objection before now playing with the snowglobe atop her dresser; watching the orbs of styrofoam to float about the Floridian scene, before returning flat to the bottom by the time he finished speaking.

“First is that you’re in danger...these things you can see are stuck between veils and are finding a way through...It is only a matter of time until they find you...and you need to be prepared when they do. Second, is that I can tell if you’re lying...consider it a ‘gift’ for me and a ‘curse’ for you...Therefore any attempt you’ve made...I know…” His eyes lingered at hers as if he was prepared to relinquish a kind word, before retreating once realizing he had become too lost in her own mocha gaze.

“And finally...You have to listen to me in order for this to work. Disobeying can be a line between life and death. Not just for you, but those you care for as well...”

“You want me to trust you? You killed my boyfriend and broke into my house!”

“And yet, I’m the only person that makes you feel safe...Or are you going to try a feeble attempt to lie to me again?” She clenched her jaw as he moved back into the direction of the window.

“But no...I don’t think you should trust me.” Her eyes narrowed as he was now straddling her window sill, making her eyes dance throughout him in reservation and intrigue.

“After all, I am mostly demonic and I could kill you at the drop of a hat…But I won’t...At least, for now.” He slipped from her sight before she had a chance to counter him. Her steps rushed into the direction of the window, slamming it closed, before her eyes played through the glass in search of this handsome figure who left her with a pulse in both swift beats and palpitations. She continued to tell herself this had been a horrible dream; but the evidence before her was enough to keep her aware that it may have outlandish properties...but it was becoming hard to rationalize…