Dianna Raquel was a normal girl, at least, she thought she was. She took after her mother with her caramel brown hair and her luminous viridian eyes, mixed with her pale skin. Her face was the adorable heart shape that many a girl desired. She wasn't tall, but she wasn't short by any means. If you were to ask anyone at Belivantry High School, they would tell you that she is one of the best, if not the best, students in the school. Whether it was studying, sports - even music - she could do it and be good at it. They would also tell you that she was the prettiest girl in the city. Any of her friends, even those that weren't, would tell you she could easily become an actress, an idol, or a model. However, a person that one day came into her life, rather violently, would change all of that. His name: Cole Shanraz.
It was a Tuesday like any other when Dianna stumbled upon a scene so out of the ordinary that when she looks back at the situation, she has to laugh that she didn't notice until it was too late. A scene that would change her fate and bring her close to the kind of person one would normally avoid at all costs. It was just her luck to stumble upon an attempted murder.
As Dianna walked through the market of her hometown on her way home, she passed an alley partially covered with garbage and heard a gunshot and froze. She looked around for the source and heard a voice from the alleyway. When she went to investigate, she saw a boy not much older than herself, maybe 18 or 19 years of age. He was muscular, but not overly so. His raven hair glinted in the shadows. Even from a distance Dianna could tell that his skin was tan, as though he had been kissed by the sun itself. She noticed a man on the ground a few yards away from him speaking a foreign language that she didn't recognize. When the boy answered, it appeared that he was trying to calm the other, who seemed to be in pain.
It was then that Dianna noticed that the boy was holding a gun.
As he began to raise it, without a thought, she dashed forward and snatched it from his hand. The boy didn't seem too surprised that she was there. In fact he took out a lollipop and began unwrapping it while the man on the ground began trembling at the sight of her. From the front Dianna could clearly see the boy's dark eyes, seemingly black in the shadows of the alley. His face was chiseled, yet soft in an indescribable way. He was wearing a worn pair of jeans with a rather baggy hoodie over what seemed to be a plain red shirt. The boy began speaking again and it took Dianna a moment to realize that he was speaking English and to her.
"Are you sure you should be doing that? You don't even know the situation" he said as he put the candy in his mouth.
Oh jeez, arrogant much? Dianna thought before she replied, "I don't have to know the situation. I just need to keep this gun away from you. Both of you."
"And how did you come to that conclusion, little blossom? Did you perhaps hear the shot and assume that I was the one that did it simply because I was holding the gun?"
Little blossom? I've been called that before but by whom? And when? She thought as she remained silent.
"Maybe that man you are seemingly trying to protect tried to kill himself. Or me, for that matter. What would you know, little blossom? Nothing."
Dianna was getting angry now. Who does this guy think he is?! He is so arrogant, and why does he keep calling me little blossom?!
"I know that a gun was shot, you were holding it, and this man is injured. I don't know who you are, and I don't necessarily care, but I refuse to give you this gun at least until I do know what is going on."
He began waving the candy through the air as though to wave away her questions, yet answered one anyways. "Alright, fine. You win. My name is Cole Shanraz. This is my acquaintance, Mr. Santiago. He decided to try and pull the wool over my eyes and not pay his side of a deal. I am simply here for retribution. May I have my gun back now?"
Dianna was astounded. "You admit to me that you were the cause of this man- Mr. Santiago's- injury, and you fully expect me to return your weapon? What do you take me for, an idiot?"
"Oh, not at all, little blossom, though you seem to have misunderstood me. It wasn't a question, I just don't want to hurt a pretty little blossom, such as yourself," he replied as he returned the lollipop to his mouth.
"Okay, for one: my name is Dianna, not 'little blossom.' For two, what makes you think you could hurt me?"
"Little blossom, you really don't want to test my patience. While that is not the only gun I own, it does happen to be my favorite. Besides, it most definitely is not the only weapon on my person. With my training, I am 100% certain that I would hurt you if I didn't hold back at least 80% of my strength. Of course, I don't even need a weapon if I really wanted to kill him."
"What training? Are you a military guy or something?"
"Or something. Now, d'you mind? I'd like for you to return my gun, Dianna."
"Not happening."
The second the words were out of her mouth, he was behind her. She froze, completely shocked that this random stranger had quite literally disappeared in front of her eyes and reappeared behind her. Before she could react, he had the gun returned to the waistband of his jeans and was holding her arms behind her back. Dianna whimpered lightly from the pain.
"I apologize, but it was to be expected. I figured I should at least give you a chance to do the right thing. It seems as though you enjoy making life that much harder for yourself."
"I have only one question before you do… whatever it is that you plan to do with me."
"And what would that be, little blossom?"
"...Why do you call me little blossom?"
He paused for a moment, seemingly hesitant to give away the information freely, or perhaps scared of her reaction to it. "...I call you little blossom… because you are indeed much too pure for this world… and especially for me."
"What do you mean 'especially for you'?"
"I mean, little blossom, that you are mine in more ways than either of us could know."
She looked over her shoulder at him. "One last question."
"By all means, little blossom."
"What are you?"
He looked stunned, "What do you mean by that"
"For one, you disappeared from in front of me just to appear behind me. You quite literally disappeared before my very eyes. No human could do that, even with special training."
"You are much too smart for your own good, little blossom," he replied, smiling in self-loathing.
"So tell me, what are you?"
He didn't answer for a moment. Instead, though he made no noticeable movements, her world began to fade to black.
Just before she was completely taken over by the darkness, she heard a single word.
"Fallen."
