Desire of the damned:The mortals forbidden obsession

Chapter 1 I was terrified. No, terrified didn't cover it. My heart slammed against my ribs so hard I thought it might crack through bone. The morning air felt thick, suffocating, as I stood frozen on my doorstep, staring at the thing in front of me. The man if I could even call him that was dressed as a courier. Standard uniform, clipboard tucked under one arm, a brown package extended toward me in both hands. Tall, maybe six-two, wearing a black baseball cap pulled low. Everything about him screamed normal. Except for his face. Or rather, the complete absence of one. Where his features should have been eyes, nose, mouth there was only smooth, blank skin. Like someone had taken an eraser to a drawing and wiped away everything that made him human. My breath caught in my throat, strangled by the scream building there. I wanted to run. I wanted to slam the door. I wanted to do anything except stand there like an i***t, but my legs had turned to lead. The box sat in his outstretched hands, perfectly still. Waiting. "Heyyyyy Liora!" I flinched so hard I nearly fell off my porch. My head snapped toward the voice. "What you doing standing outside so early?" Mr. Chen called from his balcony next door, coffee mug in hand, grinning like it was just another Thursday morning. Like there wasn't a faceless creature standing three feet away from me. I opened my mouth. Closed it. Tried again. "No... noth... nothing!" The words tumbled out in a stammered mess. I forced something that might have resembled a smile, though my face felt like plastic. Mr. Chen gave me a weird look but shrugged, disappearing back inside his apartment. Why can't he see it? My eyes darted back to the courier. Still there. Still faceless. Still holding that damn box. How am I the only one who can see this? My mind spun in circles, logic trying desperately to catch up with reality and failing miserably. This wasn't possible. This wasn't real. Maybe I was still asleep. Maybe I'd had a stroke. Maybe someone had slipped something into my coffee yesterday and I was hallucinating. But the creature didn't vanish. It just stood there, patient and unmoving. My hands trembled as I reached out. The box was surprisingly light, but I gripped it like it might explode at any second, fingers white-knuckled around the edges. The moment my skin made contact with the cardboard, a chill shot up my arms cold enough to make my teeth ache. I backed away slowly, one step, then another, not daring to take my eyes off the thing on my porch. My shoulder hit the doorframe. I fumbled behind me for the handle, twisted it, and stumbled inside. The box hit my living room table with a soft thud. I whirled around, ready to slam the door, to lock it, to do something, anything... But the porch was empty. The courier was gone. Vanished. Like he'd never been there at all. "No. No, no, no." I rushed back outside, my eyes scanning the street frantically. Nothing. No one. Just the usual morning scene: Mrs. Patterson walking her dog, the sound of traffic from the main road, birds chirping in the oak tree across the street. Normal. Everything was so goddamn normal. Except it wasn't. None of this was normal. I pressed my hands against my face, feeling the cold sweat on my forehead. My pulse hammered in my ears. I needed to sit down. I needed to breathe. I needed to figure out what the hell was happening. Back inside, I collapsed onto the couch, staring at the box like it might sprout teeth and lunge at me. The TV was on some morning show host laughing about a celebrity scandal I didn't care about. The mundane chatter helped. A little. My hands shook as I reached for the package. "It's probably just a delivery", I told myself. "Wrong address". Someone's birthday present. Something completely normal and boring that will make you feel like an i***t for freaking out.* I tore open the cardboard flaps, half-expecting what? A bomb? A severed head? My imagination was running wild. Inside was light paper. Cream-colored, delicate. And beneath it, something that caught the light a shimmer of gold. I pushed the paper aside. A f*****g letter. That's it. One envelope, sealed with actual wax who even does that anymore? Stamped with a symbol I didn't recognize. Some kind of crescent moon intertwined with thorns. I went through all that shock, all that terror, for a letter. A laugh bubbled up in my chest, slightly hysterical. "You've got to be kidding me." I picked up the envelope, turning it over. The front had my name written in elegant, flowing script: Liora Vale. And above it, two words embossed in silver: Nocturne Academy "What does this mean?" I muttered, running my thumb over the seal. The air in the room shifted. Subtle, but enough to raise the hairs on the back of my neck. The chandelier above me the cheap one I'd gotten from a yard sale began to sway. Gently at first, then more insistently, crystals tinkling against each other like wind chimes. But all my windows were closed. My grip tightened on the envelope. I broke the seal with my thumbnail, the wax cracking apart easily. Inside was a single card, the same cream color as the tissue paper, with more of that perfect calligraphy: Nocturne Academy welcomes those destined for greatness. Arrive at the next full moon. Your world will change forever. I read it once. Twice. Three times. "It's a prank." My voice sounded hollow even to my own ears. "This is really funny. Very creative. Ha ha." I tossed the letter onto the coffee table and stood, heading toward the kitchen. Coffee. I needed coffee. And maybe something stronger. Or maybe I needed to check myself into a hospital because clearly I was losing my ... "Liora Vale." The voice came from behind me. Soft. Whisper-quiet. But unmistakably real. The spoon I'd been holding clattered to the floor. I spun around so fast I nearly tripped over my own feet. The letter was floating. Actually, legitimately floating in the middle of my living room, hovering at eye level, glowing with a soft golden light that pulsed like a heartbeat. "How the fuck.." The word barely made it past my lips. "How is this..." "Liora Vale," the voice came again, and I realized with a jolt of pure, ice-cold terror that it was coming from the letter itself. "You have been chosen as one of the new members at Nocturne Academy." My back hit the kitchen counter. I couldn't look away. Couldn't move. Couldn't breathe. "On the next full moon, go to the Shallow Tree in Newland Forest, and you will find your way." The letter shook violently, the glow intensifying until I had to squint against the brightness. Then, as suddenly as it had started, the light died. The letter dropped to the floor like a stone, just paper again. Lifeless. Ordinary. I stood there for what felt like an eternity, my chest heaving, my mind completely blank. Then, slowly, one thought crystallized through the chaos: "I think I've finally lost it." I walked over on shaky legs and picked up the letter, half-expecting it to start talking again. It didn't. I shoved it into the trash can under the sink, burying it under yesterday's coffee grounds and takeout containers. This wasn't real. Couldn't be real. Faceless couriers and floating letters didn't exist. They were the stuff of horror movies and fever dreams, not Thursday mornings in a crappy apartment in the suburbs. I needed normalcy. Routine. Something to ground me back in reality. Work. I had work. I glanced at the microwave clock and my stomach dropped. 8:47 AM. I was supposed to be there at nine, and the cafe was a twenty-minute drive with traffic. "s**t. s**t, s**t, shit." I bolted for the bathroom, jumping in the shower without waiting for the water to warm up. The cold spray shocked my system, washing away some of the fog in my head. I scrubbed quickly, barely taking time to rinse the shampoo from my hair. Clothes. I needed clothes. I threw open my closet and grabbed the first things I saw black blazer, white pants, a blouse that was probably wrinkled but whatever. Good enough. I didn't bother with makeup or breakfast. Food could wait. Sanity could wait. My paycheck couldn't. I grabbed my bag, my keys, and ran out the door, nearly tripping down the front steps. The morning air was crisp and normal. Cars drove by on the street. Someone's sprinkler system hissed to life. The world kept turning, completely indifferent to the fact that mine had just tilted sideways. I flagged down a taxi at the corner, sliding into the backseat and giving the driver the address. As we pulled away from my apartment, I caught a glimpse of my living room window. For just a second so brief I might have imagined it I thought I saw a flicker of golden light from inside. I forced myself to look away and stared straight ahead, jaw clenched, hands fisted in my lap. Whatever that was, whatever was happening to me... I'd deal with it later. Right now, I just needed to survive today.