Dark Heart, Gentle Hands
Chapter 23: When did I agree to be your boyfriend?

Chapter 23: When did I agree to be your boyfriend?

Enzo’s POV

I stepped into my apartment, my head still spinning from everything that had happened. HR told me to take a few days off "clear your head," they said. Honestly, I didn’t even argue. I needed the time. My mind felt like it had been pulled in a hundred directions, each more confusing than the last.

I tossed myself onto the couch with a sigh, one arm slung over my eyes. The silence of the apartment felt heavier than usual. My stomach grumbled in protest, but the idea of actually cooking felt impossible. God, this would’ve been the perfect time for Alaric to show up out of nowhere and make me a sandwich. He did that sometimes swept in like a storm, left chaos and comfort in his wake.

Dragging myself to the kitchen, I poured a glass of water and leaned against the counter. The emptiness gnawed at me, so I fished out my phone from my back pocket and placed an order for pizza. Something simple, greasy, comforting.

While I waited, I headed to the bathroom for a long, hot bath. I scrubbed myself with more force than necessary like if I just cleaned myself hard enough, maybe the restlessness in my chest would wash away too.

By the time I got out and dressed, the pizza guy was already at the door. I paid, muttered a quick thanks, and shut it behind me. That’s when I noticed it.

There was someone sitting in my living room.

At first, I thought maybe Alaric had used his spare key. But the room was dark, the lights off, and this person this silhouette wasn’t Alaric. I couldn’t explain how I knew. I just... did. The posture was wrong. The energy in the room was all wrong.

My hand tightened around the pizza box. "Who are you? How did you get in here?"

The figure stood, unhurried. His voice was smooth, controlled, unnervingly calm. "Who I am doesn’t matter." He started walking toward me slowly, deliberate steps echoing against the hardwood. "What matters is that you stay away from Alaric. You don’t belong in his world. You’re from two different classes. You’ll never be the same."

I blinked at him, the absurdity of his words nearly making me laugh if my pulse wasn’t hammering so hard in my neck. "And who the hell are you to come into my house and tell me what to do? Alaric’s an adult. He makes his own choices."

He chuckled. It was cold. Amused.

And then he was on me. Hands like iron wrapped around my throat. He lifted me off the ground like I weighed nothing. My feet kicked uselessly in the air as he squeezed.

"You’ll stay away from him. Next time you see me, it’ll be your last. You don’t want to cross me, or my kind."

His kind?

Before I could make sense of it, he threw me. My body crashed into the couch with a sickening thud, then dropped to the floor. Pain exploded through my back, my ribs. I couldn’t breathe. My lungs refused to cooperate.

I felt something warm and wet sliding down my spine blood. The intruder walked out, and that was the last thing I saw before everything faded to black.

Later...

When I came to, my head felt like someone had driven a nail through it. Every inch of my body ached.

"Don’t move. You’re hurt."

That voice. I knew it. Alaric.

I cracked open my eyes, panic clenching my chest. "Who are you, Alaric?" I rasped. My hand shot up instinctively when he tried to come closer, and he froze.

"Since you showed up, everything in my life’s been flipped upside down. It’s been one mess after another."

He ignored that completely. "Who did this to you?" His voice was razor-sharp now, eyes burning. "Tell me, and I’ll get rid of them."

"Did you not hear a word I just said?" I snapped, my voice raw. "One of your people came into my house and assaulted me. He told me to stay away from you. Then he strangled me and threw me across the damn room. All because of you. If you hadn’t come into my life, I’d still probably be in a relationship with doc Olivier."

Alaric took a slow, measured step toward me. Something in his face shifted. His eyes darkened. His jaw tightened, he looked so angry it scared me, I gulped my own saliva. If not for the ache in my body I’d have bolted out of the room.

"You’re never saying that name again," he said, venom seeping into each word. "You’re not going to be with anyone but me. And whoever did this to you... they’re dead."

My breath caught in my throat. "What do you mean dead? What kind of person says that so casually? How many people have you killed?"

He didn’t even blink. "More than you can imagine."

I stared at him, heart racing. "Are you... a mafia boss or something? Did I let a criminal into my home? Are your enemies going to come after me too now?"

Alaric didn’t flinch. "No. I’m worse than that."

Before I could question him further, I tried to get up my body screamed in protest. He gently, but firmly, pushed me back down by the shoulders.

"Don’t bother trying to run. I’ll always find you. You belong to me now, little human."

Little human? I hate that damn pet name he keeps calling me.

He patted my cheek like I was a child, disappeared into the bathroom, then returned with my first aid box.

"Which of these is for pain?" he asked, as if this were a normal conversation.

I pointed to the painkillers. He handed them over with a glass of water. I took them in silence.

"You need to rest," he said, brushing hair from my face. "When you wake up, I’ll have made you something to eat. The pizza’s cold now."

I blinked at him, brain still trying to catch up. He says he’s worse than the mafia... but that’s not what I’m worried about, no I’m worried about how sweet he is. I’m worried about how sweet he’s being? Am I crazy?

"Why are you doing all this?" I asked quietly. "Why do you even care?"

He tilted his head. "Isn’t this what lovers do for each other? I’m your boyfriend. I take care of you. Even if it means killing for you, I’ll do it."

A chill skated down my spine.

"I never agreed to be your boyfriend," I said. "When did I ever say that?"

"The day you saved me in that alley. The day you brought me into your home."

I scoffed. "That’s not—"

He leaned down, grabbed the back of my neck, and pulled me toward him with frightening ease. His lips crashed into mine, possessive, dominating. I barely had time to gasp before the air was stolen from my lungs.

When he pulled away, he pressed his hand over my eyes.

"I said sleep. So sleep."

Darkness took me again, but not the unconscious kind this time. This time, it was knowing nothing would ever be the same, because I helped a psycho and I’m falling into his webs.

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