Drip.
Drop.
Drip.
Drop.
The storm had passed, leaving only the steady rhythm of water falling from the gutters.
Ding dong.
The doorbell cut through the quiet evening. After a few moments, the door clicked open.
"El, just what the hell is wrong with—" The girl who opened the door looked ready to tear into someone, but the words died in her throat the moment she saw him.
Drip. Drop.
Kyle stood there, drenched from head to toe, shivering. Water pooled at his feet on the doorstep.
"Nelia," he said, and pulled her into a tight hug. His body trembled against hers, and it wasn't just from the cold.
She felt the dampness seep through her shirt but didn't pull away. "What happened?" she asked, her voice softer now. When he didn't answer, she wrapped her arms around him properly. "It's alright... just calm down."
But nothing could calm the fear eating away at him from the inside. That conversation he'd had—his mind kept trying to dismiss it as imagination, but deep down he knew.
Something was coming.
Please... not her too.
He held her tighter.
Nelia felt the desperation in his grip. Something was different this time. This wasn't the usual funk he fell into after another failed awakening test. This was something else entirely.
"Come on," she said. "Let's get you inside."
.
.
.
.
Kyle lay on the couch with his head in Nelia's lap, eyes closed. She ran her fingers through his damp hair, the motion automatic and soothing.
Nelia was nineteen, with bright pink hair pulled back in a loose ponytail and deep blue eyes behind thin gold-rimmed glasses. She wore one of his old shirts—way too big for her, hanging loose over her frame. The serious look the glasses gave her was offset by the gentle way she touched his hair.
"You still haven't told me what happened," she said.
Kyle opened his eyes and found himself staring at the chain around her neck. The necklace he'd given her when she agreed to be his girlfriend—the only thing he had left from his past.
"I went for the awakening test," he said.
Her hand stopped moving. Then she grabbed a handful of his hair and yanked.
"Ow!" He winced.
"I've told you a hundred times not to go there. You know how you get after the results."
"Sorry."
She sighed and went back to combing his hair. "What happened after that?"
"I met a man."
She didn't respond, just kept the gentle motion going.
"He asked about my story."
Still nothing.
"I don't know why, but I told him everything. I completely broke down." He let out a hollow laugh. "In front of a stranger."
Her fingers never stopped moving.
"He said I should take care of you."
"What? Why would he say that?"
Kyle's voice got quieter. "He said I was going to lose you, too."
Nelia's hand stilled. She made him sit up so she could look at him properly.
"Look at me, El."
He did.
"That was just some stranger talking nonsense. Don't tell me you believe everything you hear on the street. For all we know, the guy could be completely insane."
Kyle managed a strained smile. "I could tell he wasn't crazy. He wasn't just rambling."
"So you actually believe what he said?" Her eyes narrowed.
He reached up and touched her cheek. "I don't know what to believe anymore. Besides meeting you, all I've known my whole life is bad luck." He took a shaky breath. "Don't go anywhere tonight. Please."
She covered his hand with hers. "That won't be possible."
His face fell. "Why not?"
"I've been summoned."
He bit his lip hard enough to taste blood.
"You can't go. Please, just this once, don't go."
He grabbed both her hands. "You're making this hard for me, El. I'm an S-rank guardian. When they summon me, I have to be there. There are predictions about a rift opening tonight. I have to be ready." She squeezed his hands. "I promise, if you asked me this any other day, I wouldn't go."
"No, no, no. It has to be today. I need you to promise me you won't go today. I'm telling you not to. Please."
"El—"
"Nelia, I'm asking you for one thing. If you do this for me, I swear I'll do anything you ask."
"El, I love you. You know that."
"You don't need to tell me that. Just promise me."
"The rift could open in this city, El. This city. Everyone I know and care about lives here—my parents, my friends, you. I have to be there."
You won't see her again.
The stranger's words echoed in his head. Kyle let go of her hands and moved back to the edge of the couch, clasping his hands together.
"El?" She noticed the change in him immediately.
"I can't lose you, Nelia."
"You're not losing me."
"You don't know that."
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Something was definitely going to happen tonight.
"Come on, you're taking this too far. Nothing's going to happen to me." She tried to touch him, but he held up a hand to stop her.
"El—"
He sighed. "Nelia, please. I'm begging you. Don't go. You can go every other night, just not tonight. Please."
She bit her lip. "I'm sorry."
"If you go, it's over between us." He looked at her, his expression cold.
"What?" She was genuinely shocked.
He said nothing, just kept staring at her.
"You can't be serious. You're kidding, right?" She smiled like it was all a joke.
But he remained silent, and her smile faded.
"You can't be serious. You know I can't miss a summon, especially one this important. This is literally the only way we can keep living here, keep affording anything."
"I know. But I don't care. You matter more to me than any of that. I'll find another way."
"El—"
"I'm serious, Nelia. If you leave, that's it. You won't see me again. Ever."
A tear rolled down her cheek. "El, I can't believe this. You're willing to throw everything away because of something a stranger said?"
"I'm trying to protect you! I don't want to lose you! Please, this is the only way I can do that. Just trust me!"
Ring!
Her phone lit up.
The caller ID read: GENERAL.
"Don't answer that, Lia."
"El—"
"Please."
"EL!" She stood up, pulling off her glasses to wipe her tears. "The only reason I ever chose to awaken and become a guardian was because I wanted to protect you. Because I love you. And that's what I'm going to do."
She walked out of the room.
Kyle stared up at the ceiling. "Fuck."
It was happening again. Just like every time before. He could only watch as everything slipped through his fingers.