Bound by Flame & Fang

Episode 1

I did not break because of the laughter. It was the groan after that made me crack.

I had frozen mid-step while climbing the stairs leading to Ethan's apartment; I could feel my knuckle muscles getting tighter by the minute on the railing as Lily's voice came drifting through the slightly open door. "Oh...Oh!" Lily said.

That was Lily. That was my Best Friend.

Then there was another noise. Deep and Guttural, a male voice that belongs to Ethan. My Boyfriend!

I repeatedly told myself NO. NO. NO. This could NOT possibly be happening. But the Universe didn't care. The Universe thrust it right in front of me.

The door wasn't even locked. It swung open easily under a small amount of pressure, and my world shattered.

Ethan was pinning Lily against the counter; Her blouse was unbuttoned, and her breasts were spilling over lace fabric as he kissed her like she was his last meal. His hips were grinding between hers; His jeans were shoved low, and his body was already pushing forward, needing.

Lily's moaning grew louder and sharper with every passing moment. She seemed to want me to hear them. Like she knew I was standing there.

"Oh God, Ethan," she exclaimed, her fingernails scraping down his back. "Harder. Deeper."

"Like that? Yes SSS. Oh don't stop Ethan"...

His mouth left hers slowly, long enough for him to kiss her neck. Then he whispered something against her skin, I couldn't tell what it was. And she tossed her head back, laughing - a laugh that was both cruel and breathless at the same time.

They finally looked at me.

There was nothing in her eyes except for a smug look of triumph. A smirk spread across her lips; They were still moist from Ethan's kiss.

"Aria", Ethan stuttered backward, trying to release himself from Lily's grasp. However his hand remained on her waist, and his chest continued to rise and fall. He kept speaking until I stopped him.

"Not what it looks like?" I shouted. My voice snapped and my chest felt like someone had wrapped chains around it. "You're inside her. How could you? How could you do this to me?

“F**K it. I loved you with all that I am."

"Please Aria, please..." he reached for me, but his touch felt caustic and i stepped back.

and Lily? She did not even attempt to cover herself. She simply tilted her head, her blouse opened wide, her skin marred by Ethan's kiss. "you know," she said in an almost purring tone. "Your mom was correct about you."

my blood froze. "what?"

"You're weak. pathetic. never enough. not for him. not for anyone." she let her tongue slide over her lip in a slow motion, as if savoring the moment, her voice dripping with both mock and pleasure. "really? did you honestly believe you were going to satisfy a man such as ethan?" look at yourself aria. fragile. always believing. always so trusting. stupid."

ethan's face contorted into panic. "lily stop"

but she merely laughed again loudly and tauntingly, pulling ethan's hand back to her breast as if to demonstrate. "mmm...see? he doesn't even want to stop."

that was the final blow. my chest collapsed under the weight of betrayal coming at me from both sides. my best friend and my boyfriend. wrapped together in sweat and passion, ripping my heart apart with each gasp, each groan.

the room began to tilt. my ears rang. my mother's words began to surface from the graveyard of memories. "you'll never be enough. never be strong enough. unworthy".

with that, something inside of me broke.

but i didn't scream. i didn't cry. i simply turned and ran.

the cold of the night slapped against me like ice; however, it wasn't cold enough to cool the flames burning within my chest, or the ache in my bones. i continued to run; i ran until i was exhausted. my legs were weak and shaking. and i thought maybe lily was right; maybe i would never find true love.

The city blurred around me as I stood. Neon lights smeared into streaks, cars honked distantly, but all I heard were Lily’s moans echoing in my skull. Every breath hurts. Every step felt like a crack spreading through glass, and I knew if I stopped, I’d shatter.

I didn’t know where I was going until I saw the glow of a sign across the street. A bar.

Not the kind of place I usually went to—dark, tucked into a corner, the kind of place that smelled like smoke and desperation. But right now, it is perfect. I needed noise. Strangers. Anything to drown out the sound of Ethan’s voice, the look in Lily’s eyes.

Inside, the air was thick with whiskey and old leather. Music thumped low, heavy bass that rattled my bones. I slid onto a stool, my hands trembling as I ordered the first thing I could think of.

“Whiskey,” I said, my voice barely steady. “Neat.”

The bartender raised a brow but poured it anyway. I lifted the glass, the burn searing down my throat, and for one blessed moment, the ache dulled. Not gone. But dulled.

I stared into the amber liquid, trying to lose myself in its depth. Trying not to see Lily’s smirk every time I blinked.That’s when I felt it.

Eyes, burning and crawling over my skin like a flame that wanted to devour me whole.

I froze, glass halfway to my lips. Slowly, I turned my head.

And there he was.

At the far end of the bar, half in shadow, a man sat watching me like he’d been waiting his whole life for this exact moment. His body was huge, filling the surrounding space effortlessly, all hard muscle and sharp edges. But it was his eyes that rooted me in place.

They were Gold. Not hazel, not amber, just pure gold.

They glowed faintly beneath the dim lights, alive in a way no human eyes should be.

My heart stuttered. For a second, I wondered if I was hallucinating, if heartbreak and whiskey had fried my brain. But then his lips curved—slow, dangerous, like he knew every secret I’d ever buried—and the truth slammed into me.

This wasn’t a man you stumbled across by accident.

This was danger. And he was looking at me like I was prey.

I tore my gaze away, chest tight, but the burn of his stare clung to me like smoke. The room felt smaller. Hotter. Charged with something I couldn’t explain.

When I dared to glance back, he was still there. Still watching.

Our eyes locked. And in that instant, everything shifted.

The betrayal. The pain. The echoes of Lily’s cruel voice. They all faded, replaced by a single, undeniable truth:

Whoever he was, he wasn’t going to let me go.