GENESIS
"Do you like it, princess?" Kieran asked.
I pulled my eyes away from the ceiling I’d been staring at. It was covered in tiny lights—like little suns, but cold. The whole room, this place he called a restaurant, was loud. Too loud.
People sat in chairs just like ours, packed in all around. So laughed. Others talked quickly, their hands moving like they were casting spells. I didn’t understand most of what they were saying. I didn’t try to.
The table between us was shiny. When I touched it, I could see my fingers reflected on the surface, like little ghosts. There were two cups. Two plates. Napkins folded like little triangles. The knife scared a little—it looked sharp.
The chair beneath was soft, not too deep. The lights weren’t too bright, but not dark either. Like the room didn’t know whether it wanted to be day or night.
A little boy at the next table dropped his spoon. It clattered to the floor with a sharp, tallic ring. My heart jumped. My fingers curled around the hem of my skirt as I turned quickly to Kieran.
He was already watching .
His eyes softened. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. "You okay?" he asked, voice lower now, just for .
I nodded, even though I wasn’t sure.
This place wasn’t bad. But it wasn’t safe either. It was open. Too open. Too many faces. Too many voices. Too many slls. I didn’t even know what half of them were.
Then a buttery sll drifted by, and my stomach growled loud enough to make freeze.
I folded my hands in my lap, cheeks burning.
Kieran smiled like he’d heard it. Maybe he had.
He reached across the table and brushed his thumb across the back of my hand. "We don’t have to stay long, baby," he said gently. "I just wanted to give you sothing special. A normal night. Sothing nice."
I nodded again. Kieran was nice. And the more ti I spent with him, the more that old fear—the one that whispered he might snap like my stepbrothers used to—started to fade.
Then soone appeared beside , and I froze.
"Kieran, my brother!" The man bood, voice deep and rich, every word rolling out heavy and strange. His English was mixed with sothing else—I didn’t know the word for it, just that it sounded... different.
I flinched at the sudden volu, shrinking back into my seat.
Kieran stood with a grin and clapped hands with the man. "Luca. Good to see you."
Luca was big—not scary-big, just... loud. Warm, like a fireplace turned up too high. He wore a white apron over a dark shirt, his sleeves rolled to the elbows and dusted with flour. His hair looked like he’d been running his hands through it all day, and his smile practically swallowed his face.
Then he turned to —and his eyes widened.
"And who is this beautiful ballerina with you?" he asked, grinning like he’d just discovered sothing rare.
Oh. Right.
I was still in my ballet clothes. I hadn’t changed. So of the other girls had gone ho like this, but still... I should have changed.
Panic rose quietly in my chest.
Everyone else in the restaurant looked so elegant, like they belonged. And here I was in tights and a leotard. I must’ve embarrassed Kieran. He hadn’t said anything, but what if he was just being polite?
What if he changed?
What if he got angry?
Please don’t be angry. Please don’t change on .
That feeling returned—like invisible hands pressing down, one of them tightening around my throat.
"...is she your cousin or sothing? She’s so cute—"
I flinched when a hand—rough and unwanted—touched my face. My eyes snapped open.
Luca.
"Get your hand away from her, Luca," Kieran said, voice like a blade.
He didn’t shout. He didn’t have to.
Luca turned, surprise flashing in his eyes. Then his expression shifted—like sothing clicked.
"S-she’s your girl," he said, stumbling over the words.
"Of course she is," Kieran said coldly. "And I don’t like when people touch what belongs to ."
The words should’ve scared .
They didn’t.
He was protecting .
And sohow, even with my heart pounding and my throat tight, that made sothing warm flicker inside .
"Of course, of course. Forgive —I thought she was..." Luca trailed off, scratching the back of his head as if words had abandoned him.
He cleared his throat. "Anyway, what can I get for the both of you?"
Kieran gave a tight nod, still tense, but he lowered his gaze to the nu in front of him.
"I’ll have the carbonara. No bacon," he said, his tone flat, the earlier edge still simring beneath the surface.
Luca gave a sharp nod, then turned to again—this ti more carefully, like he was afraid even looking too long would spark sothing.
"And for the lady?"
I swallowed, panic rising. What was I supposed to say? I didn’t understand most of the nas on the nu. It was like a secret code I hadn’t learned yet.
Before I could fumble for my notepad, Kieran stepped in, his voice gentler now. "She doesn’t eat at. No beef, no pork—nothing like that."
Luca blinked, then smiled, softer this ti. "Ah. No at. Got it." He rubbed his hands together. "I have sothing perfect—soft gnocchi with butter and herbs. Maybe a little cheese, yes?"
I gave a small nod, grateful.
"Good." Luca took a step back. "Ten minutes. And..." His eyes flicked to Kieran, his tone turning serious. "Sorry again, brother. I ant no harm."
Kieran didn’t smile. He simply nodded and reached across the table, his fingers wrapping around mine. "It’s okay. Just don’t do it again."
Luca gave a stiff nod and walked off.
We sat in silence after that. The noise around us continued—clinking glasses, bursts of laughter—but at our table, the air was still.
Kieran opened his mouth like he was about to say sothing—then his phone buzzed.
He sighed, the softness in his eyes fading.
He raised a hand in a silent gesture and stood, walking away to take the call.
I stayed seated, glancing around the restaurant that still didn’t feel like it was ant for . No—I knew it wasn’t. The colors, the sounds, the slls, it was too much, too different, too far from what I knew.
A voice pulled from my thoughts.
"If it isn’t the beautiful Genesis."
I looked up, startled—and my breath caught.
Those strange blue eyes.
It was him.
Reviews
All reviews (0)