My Silent Devotion

Chapter 1: Unknown

The snow falls in thick, silent flakes, muffling the world around me. It’s the perfect shroud. I stay rooted in the treeline, a shadow among shadows, my eyes fixed on her.

My obsession.

Beside her, the other girl—Lily—is a loud, grating smudge on a perfect canvas. Her complaining about the cold is white noise, easily tuned out. My focus is singular. I watch as my girl bends down, scooping up a handful of snow. Even in the biting frost, she has a spark of mischief that makes my chest tighten.

Then, he appears.

I watched the boy run up to her. I watch his arms wrap around her, hoisting her into the air. Jealousy rears its ugly head—a hot, oily slick in my gut that makes my vision tunnel. Every instinct I have screams at me: Take her. Make her yours. Tear his hands off for touching what is meant for you.

But I don't move. I can’t. Not yet.

I’ve spent my life in the red. Nothing brings me more joy than the act of taking—killing people who think they can hold onto things that don't belong to them. Life is the most fragile gift, and I enjoy being the one to rescind it.

I watch him whisper in her ear, watching her expression shift from warmth to confusion, then to hurt. He’s a fool. He has the sun in his hands, and he’s trying to extinguish it with his own pathetic ego. He doesn't deserve the air she breathes, let alone the touch of her skin.

I reach into my pocket, my fingers brushing against the cold, serrated edge of my favorite toy. My knuckles are white. I could end him right here. I could leave his blood to stain the pristine snow a beautiful, violent crimson.

But I have to be patient. I have to wait for her to realize that the world is a cold, dark place—and that I am the only thing in it that is permanent.

I watch them walk away, the boy’s arm draped over her shoulders like a shackle. I feel a low, guttural growl vibrate in my throat. He thinks he’s won. He thinks he’s safe. He doesn't know that I’m the one who decides when his heart stops beating. He doesn't know that I’ve already marked him.

Because if I can't have her, nobody can.

I step out of the shadows as they disappear around the corner, my boots leaving no trace in the fresh powder. I’ll be at the party. I’ll be in the corners. I’ll be the reason she feels that tingle on the back of her neck. And if Josh puts so much as a bruise on her... I’ll show him what a real monster looks like.