Pretty Things Bleed Too

Shadows Start To Follow

Waking up in the hotel room still felt unreal. The sheets were too soft, the lights too warm, and my heart was beating too fast because I kept remembering Damian’s almost-kiss on the rooftop. My lips tingled every time I thought about it. I touched them with shaky fingers, staring at the ceiling like it could tell me if this was all a dream that was about to get ripped away.

I got ready slowly, reapplying my strawberry gloss like it was armor. My cheek was still a little swollen from Luca’s slap, but I covered it with concealer the best I could. When I looked in the mirror, I didn’t just see the weak pretty boy anymore. I saw someone who had been held by Damian Valenti. Someone who had cried on his chest and heard him say he was falling for me.

It made me smile. A small, scared, hopeful smile.

Damian was waiting outside the hotel like he promised. Leaning against his black car in his usual dark clothes, hands in his pockets, looking like he owned the whole street. The second he saw me, his scary face softened just a tiny bit. Only for me.

“You slept okay?” he asked, opening the passenger door for me like I was something precious.

I nodded, sliding in. “Yeah. Thanks to you.” My voice was still soft and shy. I couldn’t help it. Being around him made me feel all fluttery and nervous and safe at the same time.

He drove me to school with one hand on the wheel and the other reaching over to hold mine. His thumb kept rubbing gentle circles on my skin, right over the fading bruises. Every time he touched the marks, his jaw would tighten like he wanted to go back and destroy Luca all over again.

At school, everything felt different. People didn’t just stare anymore — they moved out of our way like we were royalty. Or maybe like we were dangerous. Whispers followed us everywhere.

“Valenti is obsessed with the femboy…”

“They spent the night together…”

“Kai Reyes is actually dating the Devil…”

I kept my head down, cheeks burning, but Damian squeezed my hand tighter. “Ignore them,” he muttered. “They don’t matter.”

During lunch he bought me strawberry milk again. It was becoming our thing. My favorite thing. I sipped it slowly while he watched me with those intense dark eyes. The eyeliner I put on him at the festival was gone now, but I could still picture how hot he looked with it.

“You’re staring,” I whispered, smiling shyly.

“Can’t help it.” He leaned closer across the table. “You look cute when you drink that.”

My face went bright red. I almost choked on the milk. Damian smirked — that rare half-smile that made my stomach do flips. God, I was so gone for him already. It was scary how fast it happened. One day I was invisible and getting juice poured on my drawings. Now the most dangerous boy in school was looking at me like I was his whole world.

After school, instead of taking me straight to another hotel, he drove somewhere new. The car climbed up this winding road until we reached this quiet viewpoint overlooking the city. It wasn’t the school rooftop, but it felt just as special. The sun was setting again, turning everything golden and pink.

Damian parked and turned off the engine. For a while we just sat there in comfortable silence. Then he reached over and pulled me into his lap like it was the most natural thing ever. I straddled him carefully, my hands resting on his chest. My heart was pounding so loud I was sure he could hear it.

“Kai,” he said seriously, his hands settling on my waist. “I meant what I said yesterday. I’m falling for you. Hard. But my life… it’s not simple. There are things about my family. Dangerous things.”

I bit my lip, tracing one finger along his jaw. “The mafia rumors?”

He didn’t deny it. Just nodded once. “Yeah. Valenti Syndicate. It’s real. And being close to me means you’re stepping into shadows. People might try to hurt you to get to me.”

I should’ve been scared. Any normal person would’ve run. But I was tired of being normal. Tired of being hurt by people who were supposed to love me. I leaned forward and rested my forehead against his.

“I don’t care,” I whispered. “As long as you’re with me. I’ve never felt safe before. Not like this.”

His grip on my waist tightened. His breathing got heavier. “You’re too good for this world. Too soft. But I’m selfish. I don’t want to let you go.”

“Then don’t,” I said bravely. My voice shook but I meant it.

That’s when it happened.

Damian cupped my face with both hands and kissed me. For real this time.

His lips were warm and a little rough, but so gentle with me. Like he was scared of breaking me. I melted against him, kissing back shyly at first, then deeper when he made this low sound in his throat. It felt like fireworks exploding in my chest. Like all the pain and bruises and tears were worth it because they led me to this moment. To him.

We kissed until the sun disappeared completely. Slow. Sweet. Hungry. His hands stayed on my waist, never pushing for more. When we finally pulled apart, both of us breathing hard, he pressed his forehead to mine again.

“You taste like strawberries,” he murmured with a tiny smile.

I laughed softly, feeling dizzy and happy. “Good. I like that.”

We stayed there for hours. Talking about stupid things. Favorite colors (mine was soft pink and black, his was just black). Dreams. Fears. I told him more about VelvetGhost and how it was the only place I felt strong. He told me a little about the pressure of being the Valenti heir. How his dad expected him to be ruthless. How he had to fight to survive.

“I don’t want to be a monster,” he admitted quietly. “But the world makes me one. Except when I’m with you. You make me want to be better.”

My heart swelled so big it hurt. I kissed him again, softer this time. Just a quick press of lips. “Then be better with me.”

The drive back was quiet but nice. He held my hand the whole way. But when we got closer to the city, his phone started blowing up with messages. He glanced at it once and his face went hard again. The Devil mask sliding back on.

“Everything okay?” I asked nervously.

“Yeah,” he said, but his voice was tight. “Just family stuff. Nothing you need to worry about yet.”

He dropped me off at a new hotel, paid for the room again, and kissed me goodnight at the door. Longer this time. Deeper. Like he didn’t want to leave.

“Text me before you sleep,” he whispered against my lips. “And lock the door.”

“I will.”

That night I lay in bed replaying the kiss over and over. My first real kiss. With Damian Valenti. The boy everyone feared. The boy who chose me.

I opened my laptop and logged into VelvetGhost with shaking, excited fingers.

[Image: Two boys kissing on a viewpoint at sunset — one soft and glowing with pink tones, the other wrapped in black shadows that looked protective instead of scary. Strawberry milk spilled like stars around them.]

Caption:

“he kissed me tonight.

really kissed me.

my devil tastes like safety and danger mixed together.

i’ve never felt anything like this.

my heart is screaming.

pretty things bleed too… but right now the bleeding feels like butterflies and hope and maybe love.

don’t wake me up if this is a dream.”

The post got likes almost immediately. People in the comments were going crazy.

“THIS IS SO ROMANTIC 😭😭”

“VelvetGhost is in love confirmed”

“Protect this boy at all costs”

I smiled at my screen, feeling warm inside. But as I was about to close the laptop, a new private message popped up.

**GoldenSeraph:** Your art is beautiful. The emotions feel so real. Would you ever do commissions? I’d pay anything for a custom piece.

I stared at the message for a long time. Something about the username felt… familiar? But I was too happy and tired to think much about it. I just replied “Maybe someday :)” and closed the app.

I fell asleep with my fingers touching my lips, dreaming of Damian.

But shadows were already moving.

Luca was getting worse. Damian’s family was watching. And somewhere out there, a girl named Seraphina Devereux had just discovered VelvetGhost… and couldn’t stop staring at the art.

The real storm was coming.

And when it hit, it was going to destroy everything we just started building.

But for tonight, I let myself be happy. For the first time in my life, I let myself believe I deserved strawberry milk, rooftop confessions, and kisses from dangerous boys who called me theirs.

Even pretty broken boys like me deserved a little bit of love.

Right?