Chapter 2

• Artemis Thaleia's Perspective
• After we had dinner, Saffron drove me straight home like I promised my father.
• "Be careful on your way home, Saffron. Let me know when you get back to your apartment." Saffron nodded before she maneuvered her car away from my house.
• I couldn't help but hug myself as the cold wind welcomed my body.
• "I'm dizzy, damn it," I whispered to myself as I opened our gate.
• I cursed once more as the key slipped through my hand and fell to the ground. I immediately took it, and when I noticed a figure standing not far from where I was. I straightened up and turned around to look in that direction again, but I didn't see anything there except for the tree.
• I lost my drunkenness as fear and dread that someone might be following me sunk into my head after I heard footsteps that weren't mine.
• I snatched the pistol out of my bag and cracked it before I turned to look at someone who was behind me.
• "Woah! What's with the gun?" I heaved a sigh and put the gun back in my bag as I saw who it was. It's Calvin, a good-for-nothing ex-boyfriend of mine.
• "What are you doing here?" I scoffed and threw my bag on the couch. Calvin smiled and stretched out his hand to hug me. I grabbed his hand and twisted it harshly before pinning him on the door.
• "Thaleia, let go!"
• Calvin tried to get away, but I pinned him harder, making him wince and groan in pain.
• "I am asking you, Calvs."
• "How am I supposed to say anything when you are breaking my bones?"
• I let go of him. Calvin, still in pain, he glared at me.
• "I came here to sort things between us. I'm sorry. Can we fix this now?" I laughed hysterically upon hearing that. I had to bite my lip to stop myself from laughing.
• "Woman, what the hell is so funny?" He hissed.
• "Because you are a joke. Do I look like someone who'll tolerate your shits?" I asked. Calvin grinned and tried to touch me, but he immediately put his hand back in his pocket after I glared at it.
• "Don't tell me that you didn't expect this much when we started to date. You know my history. I'm a bad boy, exactly why you fell for me."
• "Calvin, you're not a bad boy but a wanna-be. Learn to differentiate those two. I would rather have Sin Cruorem, that psychopath, as my boyfriend than you. Now, go away."
• "I love you, still. Take me back, and I promise I won't do that again. I promise I won't hurt you," Calvin countered.
• "Aren't you going to leave? I'm exhausted. I need to take a rest." I mumbled in a calm tone, holding on to the last string of my patience.
• "I'll count to three, and you should be gone by then."
• "One —" I began.
• "Come on, Thaleia, I know you're just mad at me," Calvin said. I took my gun from my bag and attached its silencer.
• "Two."I stood up and walked back to the door.
• "Three." Calvin turned pale and was stunned for a few seconds before he ran away when I fired near his feet.
• "What a scaredy-cat," I whispered to myself and closed the door. Still carrying the gun, I went straight to my bedroom.
• The following day came fast. I found Papa reading his newspaper and having coffee in his usual spot.
• "Good morning, Thaleia," Papa greeted. I picked up a loaf of bread and Nutella from the counter and sat down.
• "Good morning, Pa. What time did you get home last night?"
• Isaiah Belmont put down his newspaper.
• "At the crack of dawn," he answered. I nodded and took a bite of my bread when Papa placed an empty bullet shell on the table.
• "Calvin came. He needs to learn a little lesson, that's why." I dropped the bread on the plate and then turned to look at him.
• "I scared him a bit so he would stop bugging me. Don't worry, I didn't really shoot him." Papa sighs.
• "I'm going back to NBI. I'll check Sin's vitals and clean his wound; then, I'll go to the hospital to report to my supervisor. I'll be back to NBI afterward." I jived towards the living room for my bag and left the house afterward.
• Before I could be in the part of the headquarters where Sin was, I put on my white coat and face mask.
• "Good morning, Dr. Belmont." Agent Segovia and Agent Enrile, who were guarding outside the door, greeted me politely.
• "Good morning, too," I muttered.
• Agent Segovia stood up but was too shy to speak. "It's an SOP, Dr. Belmont," Agent Enrile spoke on behalf of Agent Segovia. A small smile curved on my lips. I raised my arm, and he quickly sized me up. And when Agent Segovia was sure that I wasn't carrying anything, they opened the door and let me inside.
• Sin lies on his bed wearing his mask.
• "I wonder who put this on your face?" I whispered.
• After I prepared the tools I would use for his treatment, I replied to Saffron's text message, then put my phone back in my white coat's pocket and sashayed towards his bed.
• I noticed his hands and feet were both cuffed to the bed.
• "He's a criminal. He took so many lives. You shouldn't feel pity for him, Thaleia."
• After I was done with his wounds, I sat next to him for a while, and when I was about to get up to leave, I suddenly remembered what Saffron had asked me.
• Curiosity struck.
• I slowly brought my hand closer to his mask. With trembling hands, I removed it from his face slowly, for it felt like it would break if I weren't fragile with it.
• I was left with no words to speak as I finally saw his face. Sin doesn't have any prominent scars or anything on his face like what everyone assumed was the reason why he always wore his mask.
• "To sum it all up, his face is the opposite of what everyone thought it would be. He's obscenely handsome and innocently looking," I said to myself.
• I screamed in shock, and his mask fell from my hand when his eyes suddenly opened. I instantly retreated when the door opened, and the agents entered.
• Sin turned to me and gave me a small smile before Agent Enrile took Sin's mask from the floor and put it back on Sin's face.