Chapter 24 NEVER
/Edlyn/
Moon and Vamp were already arguing in my head like they were trying to rip the steering wheel from each other, and honestly the chaos was so loud I almost forgot Nelson was literally right there holding me like I was something fragile. Moon was all gentle confidence telling me we belonged to him just as much as he belonged to us while Vamp was pacing around like an unhinged cat asking if Nelson would ever accept the real us. Not the watered down version but the full chaotic hybrid disaster we truly were.
Moon pushed again with that calm tone she always used whenever she wanted her way and said I should just ask him. Ask him what he thinks about an hybrid and the supernatural world.
So I inhaled quietly and said, “Nelson… what do you think about hybrids… and supernatural beings outside the packs… like vampires… and witches… and fairies?”
He froze.
Not physically but in that soul deep way where someone’s entire energy pulls back before exploding.
His jaw tightened. His hand on my waist tensed. His eyes got darker and there was this storm inside them that made my chest suddenly feel way too tight.
“Why are you asking about them,” he said slowly, voice low in a way that did not sound safe, “instead of telling me what you feel about me?”
I swallowed and he continued because apparently that question unlocked something ugly inside him.
“I hate the vampire king,” he said with no hesitation at all. “I hate him more than any creature walking this damn earth.”
His voice cracked at the edges, not soft but sharp, like glass that already broke and was trying not to crumble again.
“The witches who serve him destroyed my family. The fairies? They stood by and watched like cowards instead of helping.”
His grip on me tightened and his breath shook as if he was trying not to give those memories any more power.
“My parents died because of them. Every single one of those monsters walked away untouched while I was left cleaning blood off the floors of my own home.”
He let out a harsh exhale and looked at me like I had personally dragged all those ghosts back.
“So don’t ask me about hybrids or vampires or witches or fairies,” he said, voice low and burning. “They are the reason I grew up without a mother. Without a father. Without a damn childhood.”
His eyes returned to mine, softer but still aching.
“Tell me what you feel about me instead,” he whispered. “I’ve told you what I feel. Now it’s your turn.”
My throat felt tight in that annoying way where emotions tried to choke you before you even figured out what emotion you were supposed to be feeling. He was staring at me like the universe hung on whatever I said next. Moon was whispering say yes he yours while Vamp was in the background muttering girl don’t you dare commit to anything until you know he won’t try to behead us when he finds out what we actually are. Usually Moon was my voice of reason in situations like this not Vamp but the mate bond is literally messing with Moon right now considering am literally sitting on his lap, the spark was insane.
So I took a shaky breath and said the only thing my brain could form without combusting.
“I don’t know right now.”
His whole body stilled like I’d hit him with a freeze spell. Not pulling away but absolutely not breathing either. And because the universe hates me being calm for more than three seconds I added,
“And besides… what about Jackie?”
His eyebrows crashed together so fast I thought they were going to fuse.
“Jackie,” he repeated with this confused irritation like I had just insulted his entire bloodline.
“Yes,” I said, trying not to wilt under the intensity of his stare. “Your ex. The one the elders want you with. The one who keeps staring at me like she wants to set me on fire. That Jackie.”
Nelson let out a breath that was half annoyance and half disbelief as if I had said the most ridiculous thing on earth.
“Edlyn,” he said slowly, “there is nothing between Jackie and I.”
He lifted my chin so I had to look at him and his eyes were so stupidly sincere it almost made me forget how dangerous he could be.
“She is my past. You—” he stopped like he had to steady himself before the next words came out, “you are the one I am choosing with every part of me. I don’t care what the elders want. I don’t care what anyone wants. I know how I feel.”
My heart thumped so hard Vamp perked up like oh? we blushing now while Moon was basically nodding proudly like see I told you.
He pulled me a little closer and softened his voice.
“So don’t hide behind Jackie,” he said. “Tell me what you feel, not what you think you should feel.”
I dragged my hands down my face because this conversation was turning into emotional cardio and my heart was not trained for this level of intensity. He was looking at me like I was supposed to give him some grand declaration of loyalty and destiny, but my brain was hanging on by a thread while Moon and Vamp were clawing each other inside me like toddlers fighting over a toy.
So I blurted out the truth, the messy inconvenient truth that refused to stay quiet.
“It’s not even up to a week since we met,” I said, letting the words spill out in one long breath because stopping halfway felt impossible with how fast my mind was spinning, “and you are sitting here telling me you feel something huge and real and intense for me while I am still trying to understand why my life suddenly feels like one supernatural soap opera that refuses to slow down even for a second.” He fucking hates other supernatural creatures… and I am one them, he will never accept me completely.
His eyes flickered, but he didn’t interrupt, so I kept going before I lost the courage.
“And what happens,” I said quietly but still pushing the words out, “when it turns out I’m part of something or part of people you hate. You basically listed every supernatural creature like they personally offended you, and I am standing here trying not to panic because what if I belong to all the things you want wiped off the planet.”
He tensed so visibly his jaw clenched, and for a moment I thought he was going to bark out something fierce and defensive, but instead he stared at me with this mix of confusion and stubborn protectiveness.
“Edlyn,” he said, and his voice was low in that way that made my chest tighten, “what are you even talking about.”
I looked away because facing him while saying this felt like jumping into a fire voluntarily.
“You said you hate vampires. You said witches disgust you. You said fairies can go to hell for all you care. You said the vampire king is the one you despise the most. You said you want nothing to do with any of them. So what am I supposed to do if I wake up one day and I’m literally the thing you hate the most.”
His eyes widened at that, because he could hear the sincerity under my panic, and he leaned forward like he was trying to catch every small shift in my expression.
“Edlyn,” he said again, slower this time, “I hate them because of what they did. Because they destroyed everything I had. Because they killed the people I loved. My hatred is for the monsters who took my family from me, not for you.”
I swallowed and forced myself to meet his gaze because something in me needed to hear the rest.
“If you think,” he continued, voice thickening with something raw and painful, “that anything about you could ever make me see you the same way I see them, then you don’t understand how deep this thing between us already runs.”
Moon practically preened inside me like see he already yours while Vamp was pacing with suspicion because she clearly did not trust joy.
My voice came out small, not weak just overwhelmed.
“So even if I turned out to be something you were taught to hate, you wouldn’t look at me differently.”
He didn’t even hesitate.
“Never. Not for a second.”