Bound in ashes

Aria When Socrates said death may be the greatest of all truths, I dismissed him as one of those eccentric philosophers who glorify pain and madness, but death has a way of revealing life's carefully arranged lies, a way of exposing the lies we try to hide behind smiles and laughter. I stepped into the diner, and my heels clicked softly against the floor. Today was the day I would meet Ethan's parents; everything had to be perfect. Ethan sat across the diner smiling and waving that smile that once made me believe everything in life could work out as planned. I smiled back and lifted my hand in a polite wave and was about to walk towards him when I felt a pair of eyes slicing through the air across the diner. My gaze drifted from Ethan, and he looked in the direction of the eyes, scanning the room until it landed on the man in the shadows black shirt, strong frame, eyes like ice. It felt like gravity betrayed me. For a moment, I forgot my fiancé and his parents were in the diner with me. He sat relaxed but dangerous, like a predator watching its prey. It wasn't admiration in those eyes of his, it was something sharper and darker. My pulse hammered in my ears. My breath hitched it felt wrong entertoxicating wrong. I felt like I was cheating not with touch, but with a glance that stripped me of my ability to move or breathe for a moment. In the next moment, a waiter stumbled and spilled wine all over the mysterious man. Crimson engulfing his black shirt. Oh my God, sir, I’m so sorry, “he said,” I didn’t see…please pardon me. The waiter panicked The man didn't look at him; his eyes were still watching me relentlessly. It's fine,” the man said. No, sir… your shirt, your meal, the waiter stammered. I can get you… The waiter hesitated, confused by the man's demeanor, but nodded quickly. Yes, of course, sir, this way please The man stood slowly and deliberately, his eyes never leaving mine. There was a faint smile tugging at his lips, a ghost of a smirk as if he knew the effect that gaze had on me. The man, low and deliberate, “lead the way, he said, and they both left. The waiter was still stammering apologies, whilst his gaze still clung to me until the shadows swallowed him whole. “Aria,” my fiancé called out, waving his hands, half smiling. I drew in a shaky breath and walked towards him. My fiancé stood as I approached him, his face glowing with pride and warmth. “What's wrong, you froze back there? Ethan asked I chuckled awkwardly and said, 'It's nothing, just thought I saw someone I knew.' He didn't seem to buy the explanation, but he let it pass. Ethan introduced me to his parents, Aria, my dear,” his mother said, her eyes lighting up.” Ethan's said so much about you. You’re even lovelier in person, she said. I smiled politely, “Thank you, Mrs. Stone It's such a pleasure to finally meet you both. “Oh, please call me Emily,” she said, her smile gracious Ethan's father leaned in and said, So when's the big day? I assume my son has already put a ring on that finger “Dad,” Ethan said, chuckling slightly. I laughed lightly and raised my hand so they could see the ring, the diamond catching the soft diner light. “He did,” I said, feeling warmth in my chest despite the lingering chill that stare had left behind. His mother clasped her hands together. “It’s beautiful. You must be thrilled.” “I am,” I said. “More than I can say.” The dinner passed on smoothly, conversation flowed. I nodded, laughed at the right times and played my part flawlessly, cutlery clinked against plates as laughter rose and fell around the table, but my mind had long drifted from the conversation at hand. The man's gaze lingered in my thoughts like a bruise I couldn't stop touching, my hand trembling almost uncontrollably as I reached for my drink. I'll be right back, I said to Ethan. Let me just fix my lipstick. He nodded, evidently distracted by the conversation he was having with his father. My reflection at the glass door looked composed, but my pulse betrayed me. The closer I got to the bathroom, the louder it pounded. I excused myself to the bathroom, convincing myself it was not to see the mysterious man but to adjust my lipstick. As I hurried into the bathroom, I bumped into a hard chest and lost my balance, but then a hand caught me and steadied me, slow and deliberate. I noticed it was him, the man from across the diner. It was as though he had been waiting for me to walk right in, as if he knew my next move. She couldn't see his face clearly, as the room was lit dimly. “I'm sorry, piccolata, “he said softly to my hearing, only his voice quiet but edged with danger. I tried to pull back, but he held me in place, his grip gentle but firm. My heart hammered in my ears, and I could swear he could hear it. My struggle against his grip on me was futile. He slipped something small and metallic into my hands. I wouldn't have felt it if the cold edge hadn't pressed against mine. Then I felt a sting on my neck. “You…what are you?” I couldn't complete my sentence. The last thing I remembered was dropping to the ground. I was woken up by the sound of a gunshot. I shuddered, cold in a car, my phone half-dialing 911, a call I was sure I had not placed. The door was slightly open. I tried to remember the last events, but I could not. A bad feeling washes over me as I step out of the car, tripping over the pavement and falling on something soft, unmoving and warm: my fiancé. Ethan lay lifeless on the floor, his white shirt stained red, his blood staining the road and trickling down the paths. I looked around screaming for help and crying profusely, panicking, begging my fiancé to wake up, reminding him of all we planned to do. I caught a pair of familiar eyes, cold and unforgiving, watching me amidst the crowd already gathered at the scene. It disappeared into the shadows like he was never there. I sunk to the ground holding Ethan, and rain poured over us, washing off the blood that had stained the paths. The flashing red and blue lights blurred in my vision as I held my fiancé and wept more, the USB clutched in my hand, its drive wet from the heavy downpour. I didn't know who that man was, nor why Ethan was dead, but I had a feeling the two were connected, and from now on, nothing would be the same again.