The Demon’s Bride

Esther had no words to reply. Not because she did not want to but because she couldn't. There was storm of emotions inside her that thunder all over her feeling, causing a lump to form on the back of her throat. 

"And why did you came to me if you wanted to pull me away?" Esther asked. "And why after all that hard work you did to push me away—" she pulled the bracelet from her pocket and threw it across his chest. Beelzebub caught it by time, "—If you are going to ask me for help?!"

"For help?" Beelzebub whispered before he looked down on the silver bracelet on his hands. It took him a while to realize the bracelet that was on his hand, "Where did you got this?"

Esther frowned, "You were the one who had placed that on my window."

"This bracelet?" Beelzebub inquired, taking one step forward to urge her answer. "You found this bracelet on the window of your room?"

Esther was confused at his bewilderedness. "Yes?" And she realized that it was not Beelzebub who had placed the bracelet in front of her window.. "What's wrong?" She asked him. 

"This bracelet belong to my mother," Beelzebub's red eyes quickly turned fierce when he ensured the bracelet indeed belong to his beloved mother who died at the hand of his uncle.

"It belongs to your mother?" Esther never asked Beelzebub about his parents but she silently knew that somewhere his parents had died. Looking at Beelzebub now, she was certain that indeed his mother had died long ago. 

"How did this arrive in my room then? If it wasn't you, who else have access on your mother's bracelet?" Esther asked. She was angered a moment ago but with the new puzzle in front of her, she pushed aside her feelings.

"No one else. Even I don't have access to her belongings. It was burned to ashes before I could retrieve them for my memory," Beelzebub's voice fell into whisper as he neared the end of his words. 

"Who burned them? It's possible that the person were the one to bring the bracelet to me," Esther suggested only for her to see Beelzebub shaking his head once again. 

"That won't ever happen. I killed him, the person responsible to burning my mother's belonging. It was my uncle. After he had killed my parents, he burned whatever we had in our house to show his triumph," Beelzebub reminiscences his younger self who are devastated when he came across his house which was burning on fire.

He could never forget the disgusting victorious smile of his uncle when watching his house burning.

Esther didn't expect to be given a shade of light to Beelzebub's past which she thought she would never know with how secretive Beelzebub was. 

All this time, Esther had guessed Beelzebub was holding a pain of his own, pain that came from losing someone dear to him. Now she knew, like her who had lost his beloved mother to illness, Beelzebub had lost his parents to the hands of his uncle. 

"Which means that there are someone who had retrieved your mother's belonging before it was destroyed, or—" your uncle is still alive, was the words which Esther wanted to say but after seeing the trace of pain on Beelzebub's face, Esther didn't dare to continue her words, letting Beelzebub to fill the words on his own.

She then spoke up when remembering another information, "Ian stated that the person who had given me the bracelet is in need of help."

"In need of help?" Beelzebub whispered. Ian must have known the bracelet was related to him due to the family crest which was embedded on the jewel of the bracelet. 

His family crest could never be found in Hell and no one except those few including Ian know of the crest. And only Ian knew he once belonged to the family of the crest. 

Although the man, Ian, who was here earlier, had tricked him, Beelzebub trusted Ian's keen instinct and knowledge. He wasn't someone who would put a lie that could danger Esther casually for no reason. 

"A person in need of help, mother's bracelet," whispered Beelzebub to himself. He had taken the life of his uncle, making sure to rip the man's head from the body and he was certain of his uncle's death.

But Esther's small remark of someone else who had possible retrieve his mother's belonging before it was destroyed, there was only one person that come to his mind. 

But that was impossible. Welyn died.

"Judging from your face, you know who it is, don't you?" Esther asked.

Beelzebub didn't deny as Esther was correct. Looking at her eyes, he made his determination firm and said, "You should go back home now."

Esther saw his body turned as he went toward the door. In instance, she was reminded to the time when Beelzebub had left her on the garden. She recalled how it took her a year of boredom, thinking of him to finally be able to meet him again. 

When she wondered about the possibility of their second meeting being close to nothing, Esther's hand had grabbed his strong arm without her own notice. 

Beelzebub couldn't swat her hands away, he didn't have it in him to reject Esther when he know it would hurt her.

"I will come with you," Esther uttered. "Whoever asked for my help must know me as well and I want to meet that person."

"You don't have to do it. This person might only have business with me," Beelzebub brushed her words. "I think you know by now, Esther but I don't want you near me."

Esther pursed her lips, glaring at him as his words hurt her. "I don't care. I will go," she stubbornly answered. 

"It's dangerous," warned Beelzebub again, his eyes tried to show intimidation but it could never work to Esther who didn't once tear her gaze away from him.

Esther didn't know if she had mistaken it but she noticed despite Beelzebub's cold words to push her away, she could feel his deep concern for her. 

Esther refuse to believe Beelzebub had decided to cut whatever good relationship they had before only because he had gotten bored of her. And it won't be her to back down when the person close to her seemed to be affected by an illness that she couldn't see. 

Even though she had found out that the person in need of help wasn't Beelzebub, Esther recall Ian's words. 'He might be in need of help'

Esther looked at Beelzebub who sighed at her stubbornness but she remained still on her decision.

"Do whatever you want," Beelzebub knew if he had only rejected Esther, it will end up with her doing her own investigation that would put her to more danger. It was better to keep her close to his sight, decided Beelzebub. 

He wanted to push Esther away, to protect her from him who slowly corroded into a monster of his greed. But Esther didn't know this and he prefer if she doesn't. Knowing Esther and despite her rough words, deep down, she was but a soft person with a compassionate heart and Beelzebub didn't want her pity that could only put her to more danger.

"I will call my servant to give you a room. If you want to help me I only have one warning to you," Beelzebub stressed his word to emphasize the importance. "I need for you to never leave this house without notifying anyone especially me. I don't want casualty that could anger the princess."

Beelzebub saw Esther silent agreement as she simply reply by a nod of her head. He continue to admire her for a few more second, watching how the light hits her red lips, making him to want and taste her lips again.

Once wasn't enough. Simply on the lips wasn't what he wanted. He needed more. He wanted to caress his fingertips over her skin, feeling the curve of her waist down to her smooth hips. 

With his eyes, he could tell all the things he wished to do on her. He didn't want to admit it but he was falling too deeply for her that her flaws were none existent to her and even if there was a flaw, it would only look lovely to Beelzebub. 

Everything about her was lovely. So lovely like rose that urge him to pluck her but like roses, he feared that his action would only shorten her life, causing her to wilt. 

Troublesome, thought Beelzebub and he would have discarded all the things that was bothersome to him but not Esther. 

Beelzebub turned away his eyes hatefully, thinking to better give the room to Esther when he felt Esther's hand had pulled him by his arm again.

Esther pushed him toward the nearest desk, making him to crash, lunging all the things on the desk to the floor. Beelzebub frowned when his eyes widened as a soft and plump sensation had pressed to his lips. 

Esther's warm tongue coaxed his lips to open and he wasn't able to resist closing his eyes when the person he had been wanting had given him the deep, long kiss that he had been dreaming of.

As if it was his first time kissing which was not, Beelzebub couldn't stop himself from returning her kiss. He expand his knowledge of her mouth, how she tasted and how her voice sounded breathy when he had licked the roof of her mouth. 

Beelzebub parted his lips from hers, his warm breaths caused Esther to shudder and her fingers curl over his shirt.

"What are you trying to do?" Beelzebub tried to keep his mind straight but before he could receive his answer, Esther kissed him again, this time fiercer before she left his lips with a lingering stare of heat.