I’m about to speak when movement on my right catches my eye. A few students pass us by, openly gawking at the scene.

From their perspective, I’m standing on one leg, the other slightly bent. Asher’s front is almost covering mine, and his hand is around my throat. No idea if it looks flirtatious or threatening.

But then again, Asher only appears threatening to me.

I place both hands on his T-shirt. The hard muscles ripple under my touch as I attempt to push him away.

He doesn’t move. Not even an inch.

“People are staring,” I hiss.

“Since when do you care?”

“Of course I care.”

“No, you don’t. Stop fucking around, Reina.”

“I’m not fucking around.” I lower my voice so no one hears. “I don’t want to be seen being manhandled by you in public.”

The corner of his lips tugs in a smirk. “Oh, but you have no say in that, remember? You’re my property and I touch you whenever and however I damn fucking please.”

The arrogance of this damn man. I’m tempted to punch him in the throat, but with his screwed up personality, he’ll just hurt me tenfold worse.

So I choose a different approach. Swallowing all the profanities, I soften my tone. “You know, those who claim their property in public usually suffer from trust issues. Now, I’m sure that’s not the case for you.”

His expression remains neutral, but I know I got him. Considering the level of Asher’s arrogance, I figured he wouldn’t like to be accused of anything, let alone trust issues. Besides, he’s the type who’d do everything to appear perfectly normal in the eyes of others. His perfect public image is everything he has and he’ll protect it with all his might.

I wait for him to let me go, but his grip tightens.

No, no, no.

What…?

Hot breaths tickle my ear as his lips graze the sensitive shell. “That’s where you’re wrong. Do you know what I’m doing right now? I’m staking my claim in public so no one dares to trample with what’s mine.”

I suck in a breath, digging my fingers into his T-shirt. “People are watching.”

“That’s the point, my ugly monster.”

“Ash—”

My words die at the back of my throat as his lips find the sensitive spot beneath my ear.

His lips latch onto the skin and he sucks it into his mouth. For someone as cold as Asher, his lips are burning hot. It’s like I’m being set on fire and he won’t stop until I turn to ashes.

Something unrestrained and wild grips me by the chest. The bottom of my stomach twists into itself, clawing and contracting as if it’s about to fall.

My senses kick up in intensity and everything becomes heightened tenfold. The rustling of the nearby leaves. The stone of the wall digging into my back. The scent of the earth surrounding us. I can even hear the chirping of a bird in the distance.

My fingers curl into the cloth of his T-shirt. I meant to push him, but my hands remain there, colliding with his heartbeat.

The risk someone might be watching doesn’t even sway me; if anything, it heightens my senses even more, as if that were possible.

Since the moment I woke up in the hospital, I’ve been a member of the walking dead, going through the motions like a robot. That’s why depressive thoughts have been kicking in and dragging me into their merciless clutches.

Right now, as Asher ravishes my neck, it’s the first time I’ve felt a burst of life running through me.

It hurts, you know.

Being dead for so long only to wake up all of a sudden hurts like a son of a bitch.

It’s like a baby taking his first breath. The moment his lungs kick into gear, he bursts out crying.

That’s what I feel like doing right now.

The rush of life is so strong I want to cry.

Asher’s mouth trails from underneath my ear to the lobe. He bites it into his mouth, sucking and nibbling so hard I expect him to break the skin and feast on my veins like some vampire.

My head turns hazy and disoriented. It’s like he’s put me on a staircase and the more I climb, the higher I get.

For the first time since I woke up in the hospital, something feels right and yet so utterly wrong.

Whatever black magic he’s performing on my skin is working. It’s loosening my muscles and turning me into a liberated soul. I would’ve given anything to feel alive after waking up like the dead.

A moan rips from my throat, uncaring if anyone hears.

I feel his growl against my skin before I hear it.

Asher pulls back, chest rising and falling with his short breaths. His jaw ticks before he tucks his reaction away. “Why did you do that?”

“D-do what?” I’m genuinely confused.

“Moan.” He says the word with distaste. “You don’t moan.”

What in the actual…?

“Am I not supposed to moan? Did I miss the memo somewhere?” I sound as perplexed as I feel.

“Who the fuck are you?” he asks with a semi-astonished tone as if seeing me for the first time.

“I’m…” I trail off. How the hell am I supposed to answer that question?

“You’re nothing, Reina. You’re only something when I decide you are.” He lowers his hand to my collarbone in a threatening caress. “Stop playing these fucking games with me.”

“What games?” I’m panting. The skin where his mouth was feels like wild flames. “You’re the one who trailed my ass and cornered me. Stop being so hot and cold, damn you.”

“Hot and cold, huh?”

“Yes. You’re giving me freaking whiplash, dude.”

“Dude?” He tightens his hand around my neck as if he’s pining for patience. “Oh, you’re good. You’ve become so good at this. What will it be next? Spreading your legs for me?”

“You’re the last person on this planet I would ever fuck.” There isn’t much conviction behind my words, but I stand my ground anyway.

“As if I would be interested in a monster like you.”

I try to pretend it doesn’t hurt. I try to ignore the pang creeping under my skin after how good he made me feel seconds ago.

The place he sucked on is turning ice cold all of a sudden. The fire has been extinguished and there are only ashes now.

I’m not the unfeeling monster he paints me as. It hurts, you know. Being this strongly hated and not knowing the reason pains me as much as my injuries.

Tears well in my eyes, but I blink them away. No one will see me weak and vulnerable.

No. One.

Instead, I puff up my chest. “Then why do you keep touching me?”

“I touch what’s mine whenever I fucking please.”

Anger bubbles under the surface, but I strike back in a cool tone. “Well, newsflash, Asher: I’ve decided I’m no longer yours. I’m calling off the engagement.”

I’m surprised I lasted this long. I should’ve ended the whole thing when he called me a monster in the hospital.

This is another one of Old Reina’s wrong decisions that I’m fixing for her.

You’ll thank me later, girl.

True, she was the one who got engaged to him and she has the right to end it on her own. However, I can’t possibly stay with this asshole when all he ever wants to do is hurt me.