Page 77 of Fated

My focus narrowed to that single point of light. The ember was surrounded by heavy, impenetrable gates—floodgates. I pushed against them, straining with everything I had left, forcing them to lift. Slowly, agonizingly, they began to give way. The moment they opened, a river of glowing golden light began surging to the ember inside of me, flooding it with energy.

The ember swelled, growing larger and larger until it became a vast river of shimmering gold. As the river expanded, the pain began to melt away.

My breaths came easier, my heart slowing its frantic pace, the arms gripping me relaxing.

“You did it, Areya,” Ash whispered, his voice soft and full of relief. His fingertips brushed lightly across my cheek, followed by the tender press of lips against my brow.

As the very last of the river flowed into me, I let go of the gates, sealing that new well of magic inside. A calm settled over me, and my body went limp with exhaustion.

Slowly, my eyes opened.

Ash’s face came into focus, his eyes brimming with emotion as they met mine, his expression unguarded and raw. He pulled me tightly against his chest, his arms wrapping around me as if he never wanted to let go. His breathing was ragged, mirroringmy own, but slowly, the steady beat of his heart returned to a normal rhythm.

The absence of pain brought a wave of euphoria that I let wash over me, mingling with the sweetness of Ash’s presence. I savored the stillness—the blissful silence that wrapped around us like a protective cocoon.

But then a floorboard creaked. We weren’t alone. I tilted my head just enough to see Lilly standing quietly behind Ash, her hand lightly on his back.

“I’ll let the two of you rest,” she said in a faint voice. As she walked toward the door, she paused and glanced back. “You did well, Areya.” And with that, she slipped out.

I wanted to speak, to ask so many questions, but the soreness of my throat made me wince. Instead, I managed a hushed, “What happened?”

Ash’s arms tightened around me again and his voice trembled. “It almost killed you.”

“Tell me.”

“Your power is really strong, Areya. Lilly believes because you grew up in the human world away from magic, your body sensed the magic as a threat and tried to fight it. If you hadn’t let it in …” He didn’t finish; there was so much fear in his eyes—fear of what could have happened, of what almost did.

“In all the years I can remember,” he continued, his voice breaking, “I’ve never been afraid of anything. But when I thought I was going to lose you …”

A tear slipped down his cheek, and I reached up, my fingertips brushing it away.

“I’m ok, Ash.”

He studied me as if not quite believing me.

I tried to lift myself, but in that moment, my body trembledviolently, making me collapse back into his arms, too weak to move.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“I need to try and heal you,” I muttered.

“Don’t even think about it. You need to rest.”

I wanted to argue, but I was so weak, and Ash’s body felt so warm.

“Stay with me?” My voice was barely audible, my eyes heavy with exhaustion.

“I’m not going anywhere,” Ash promised.

***

I awoke to the bright sunlight filtering through the curtains, finding myself still wrapped tightly in Ash’s arms, his grip protective, as if he feared I would vanish the moment he let go.

I craned my neck to see the clock on the wall—4:30 p.m. My God, had I really slept the entire day? But Ash had stayed right here at my side, just as he had promised.

As I rubbed sleep from my eyes and glanced around, something felt different. The world itself seemed somehow … altered. The ray of sunlight captured my attention, and as I focused on it, individual rays of color shimmered, vibrant colors I hadn’t even known existed—as if they emanated from another realm. These were so much more alive, so vivid.

It was as if everything had been painted in richer, more striking and effervescent hues. Details I had never noticed before now stood out sharply.

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