Chapter 136: _ You Are Tearing Us Apart
"I’ll hear the story from you later. Maybe over a drink? You look like you’d have a better eye for detail anyway." Ace winks at poor Val who does nothing but turn pink.
She stares at him like he’s grown a second head. Her lips part, shut, then part again. For a second Heidi is afraid her friend might faint. But then, miraculously, Val nods shyly and awkwardly, cheeks pink as she mumbles something like, "Uh... okay."
Heidi nearly laughs out loud. Of course Val would get flustered by Ace. The guy could charm mold off bread if he wanted to. Still, seeing Val’s eyes flicker with the tiniest spark of life makes Heidi’s chest unclench a little.
At least, something to distract her from all that death and grief.
Finally, mercifully, they reach the dorm building. The building is lit with old bulbs and carved with a stone facade. Lucan stops at the entrance and brushes his hand lightly against Heidi’s shoulder in a firm but not pushy way.
"Get some rest. I’ll be here to pick you up tomorrow. We’ll head home then." He says to her.
Something in Heidi’s throat tightens. She nods and murmurs, "Thank you," and means it with her whole chest. For everything... for the hug, for the escort, for being someone who didn’t look at her like she was dirt.
With that, they head inside the dorm that is alive.
Dozens of Omega Moon Blessed line the corridor like soldiers awaiting a parade. And parade it is, apparently. Because the second Heidi and Val step inside, the clapping starts.
Applause. Cheers. Whistles.
Heidi freezes. Val freezes. The corridor becomes a tunnel of sound, every wall bouncing back praise they don’t feel worthy of.
The ones who had gone into the Labyrinth with them are nowhere in sight—probably tucked away in their rooms, too exhausted or too haunted to join in. But the ones who got to stay back in the school are gathered like this is some kind of triumphant return.
Hands slap together, voices rise. Someone even shouts, "Heroes!"
Heroes. Heidi wants to laugh and cry all at once.
She catches Val’s eye and sees the same emotion mirrored back: embarrassment twisted with grief. Eighty-four of their peers died. Eighty-four. And yet here they are being celebrated like they didn’t just crawl out of a pit of blood and fire.
Still, refusing the goodwill would feel like spitting on their own kind. So they walk, stiff-backed, cheeks hot, smiles small and forced but genuine enough to pass. The clapping follows them down the hallway like waves chasing a shoreline.
Upstairs, seniors who had sent them off with jeers and chants about their deaths lean over the banisters and throw around jabs disguised as flirtation.
"Look at these strong little Moon Blessed."
"Bet that strength translates in other ways, huh?"
"I wouldn’t mind smashing some Labyrinth survivors."
Heidi grits her teeth, her hand curling into a fist. Val stiffens beside her, keeping her eyes down. They ignore it, walking faster even as their shoulders brush. It’s better to get out of here than to let some idiotic seniors get on their nerves.
Finally, blessedly, they reach their room. The door closes behind them with a solid thunk, shutting out the noise.
Whew... Some real privacy at last.
For the first time in days, they’re alone with their grief.
Val sits on her bed, back to the wall, knees pulled tight to her chest. Her face is pale and her eyes are empty. Heidi sits on her own bed, staring at her hands, waiting for Val to speak... but she doesn’t utter a single word.
Heidi knows better than to push. She’s just as raw, just as hollow, so she leaves Val to her silence. The weight of death heavily weighs in the air between them, unspoken but suffocating.
Later, when the silence grows unbearable, Heidi gathers her toiletries and heads to the public bathroom down the hall. The tiles are cold beneath her bare feet, the mirrors fogged with lingering steam. She showers quickly, scrubbing herself raw, as though the water can wash away the memories of blood and demons.
It doesn’t.
Back in the room, she crawls into bed, exhaustion dragging her under like an anchor. It takes a while, but sleep comes. And with it, nightmares.
In the dream, she stands in the middle of a courtyard bathed in blood-red moonlight. The Bellamy brothers surround her; Amias, Darien, Morgan, and Grayson. Their eyes glow like embers, but instead of protecting her, they turn on each other.
With elongated fangs and claws, they tear into one another with feral fury. Blood splatters across stone, the sound of snarls and screams ripping through the night.
"Heidi," Amias gasps even though his chest is clawed open. "Choose me. I’m the eldest. The most mature. These kids have nothing to offer you. I have a plan for us, Heidi. Just trust and be with me."
"Like hell, she would! You’re nothing but the son of a cheating mother! It is I who looks after the family. My mother and sisters count on me because I am able. Tell me, brother, can you boast of that?" Darien scoffs, spitting out blood. "Hell, you can’t even look after your poor mother. You break the woman’s heart day in and out and you want a mate? You don’t deserve one!"
Amias’s chest is heaving heavily now, fury overtaking him. "HOW DARE YOU?! At least, unlike you, I’m not a hypocrite about my personality. It’s not me who acts high and mighty when he’s nothing but a mama’s BOY!"
With that, Darien jumps at him, teeth sinking into his throat. Heidi screams, but her legs won’t move. She’s rooted in place, helpless as they destroy each other, piece by bloody piece.
Morgan collapses with Grayson’s claws buried in his back.
W-what?! Even the twins? Even they who had simultaneously marked and claimed her would fight each other for her?
Grayson turns, eyes wild, begging her with a look that burns worse than fire. They’re dying. Killing themselves. Because of her.
"You’re doing this to us. You’re tearing us apart." Morgan hisses, eyes burning like a furnace as he gawks at her, lying on the floor while Grayson’s claws continue to tear into him.
Heidi vigorously shakes her head in response. "I didn’t—I never..."
But the blood keeps flowing. Too much blood. It floods the courtyard, pooling around her ankles, rising higher and higher until it reaches her calves. It’s warm, sticky, every ripple lapping at her skin like hands dragging her down.
And just when she thinks she’ll choke on the horror, Lucan bursts through the shadows. His presence is a sword of calm cutting through chaos. He pulls her into his arms, shielding her from the carnage, and whispers in her ear:
"I’ve got you. You’re safe now."
But behind him, the Bellamys fall one by one, and their blood stains the moon.
Heidi wakes with a strangled cry, sweat clinging to her skin, the image of Lucan’s arms around her seared into her mind—and the Bellamys’ deaths burning holes in her heart.
"You too?" A voice suddenly whispers from beside her, causing her to jump so hard, she falls off the bed.