Well, this chapter was the saddest chapter I ever had to written. I was crying while writing. Hope you like…and don't hate me for doing this. It will get better!

I woke up to Adrian's arms wound tightly around me. I knew he was awake because he was softly kissing the bareness of my shoulder. I smiled immediately formed on my face. I chuckled quietly. He instantly noticed my change and he knew I wasn't asleep anymore. The soft kisses turned a little bit deeper as he moved his way up to my lips.

The calm breath I had was now ragged. "Hey, beautiful. Wonderful night, right?"

"Perfect night." I whispered, still having my eyes closed.

"Open your eyes, lovely. I want to see those beautiful brown eyes."

I opened my eyes and he started attacking me with kisses all over. It was cute and awesome. I had never seen such a gentle side to him.

"Rose, love. Let me ask one question."

"Go ahead . . ."

"Marry me?" I froze and he continued to kiss my bare shoulders, neck, lips, waiting for me to answer. "We would make the perfect married couple and the prettiest kids."

He tried meeting my gaze but I was looking at anywhere but him. Thankfully, my phone beeped, claiming I had a voicemail. Without saying anything, I checked the message. It was my mother saying that she wanted me to go somewhere within an hour.

"Jeez, what could my mother want now?"

"What's wrong?"

"She wants me to meet her in an hour."

Adrian pulled the blanket off me that was wrapped around and he took over the blanket's spot. My whole insides warmed. "Well, that gives us an hour to enjoy ourselves. . ." I giggled, but soon had to stop because he wasn't kidding about enjoying ourselves.

I immediately found the place after some time of walking around the academy. I opened the door to find a circle of people. They were all young dhampir girls, classmates of mine. They were the ones who I recognized as dating Royals. My suspicion began to rise. There was an open seat beside my mother who seemed to be the oldest in the room beside Guardian Jacobs.

"What is going on?" I asked my mother in a whisper because the room had gone quiet all of a sudden.

My mother nodded to a blonde dhampir with brown eyes at the front of the room. The girl was one who would cause pity at the site of her. All the skin that was visible had scars. There were three kids by her side. Two boys and one girl. They were probably her children, I supposed.

"Well, hello everyone. I'm Amber." I felt like I was in a Alcohol Anonymous group/meeting whatever the fuck you called those because everyone around me muttered "Hello, Amber."

Okay, lady, on with the show. I want to know why I am here.

"You ladies are all young. So filled with life." She paused for a breath and it sounded like she was in pain. "That's how it used to be for me. Everything was perfect. I used to party every night, ditch school now and then, have a girls night every now and then, have crushes . . . my life was the average teenage life you guys have." In no way, shape, or form was she right about our lives being that way. All we were allowed to do was . . . train, train, and train to kill the undead dead. It was a lucky thing if we were allowed to do one of the things she had just mentioned. My suspicions grew even higher.

The What happened? question was in the air. Nobody had to voice it out loud in order for Amber to continue.

"All it took was one night and my life changed forever. At that time, it seemed like it had changed into something good, but now I realize that it was the worst change my life could have made." She looked sadly around at us. "My friend and I were at a party. We were having the fun of our life. Just about when we were about to leave, I bumped into what I had to say the sexiest guy in the world. I just stared at him and he stared right back. An instant connection, no doubt. My friend wanted to leave already but I told her I wanted to stick around a little longer. The guy, Seth, said he would take me home."

I wanted it to be otherwise, but I was very interested in the story.

"It went from there. Since the night we met, we couldn't get enough of each other. We talked on the phone for hours. We spent most nights together. Days were spent together as well. It was just three weeks that I had met, and he proclaimed that he loved me. And I loved him back. We loved each other and we wanted to be together." She paused. "Oh, I forgot to mention. Seth was a Royal Moroi. An Ivashkov."

I looked at my mother from the corner of my eye and she was staring at me with a meaningful look in her eye. I turned back to Amber.

"Seth Ivashkov was the perfect man. Two months into our relationship, he asked me to marry him. I was young and didn't give a second thought to anything . . . I agreed. A month later, we were married. It was all fun and games. It was a good marriage. He treated me like a princess, his princess. Our marriage lasted a year when it started going downhill. We would fight for whatever reasons and it seemed normal as all perfectly sane marriages have arguments."

I agreed with her. All sane marriages, I had heard, were supposed to have arguments and a good sex life.

"We were celebrating his birthday, his family didn't disapprove of my lowness, so we were at his parents' house. I asked him what he wanted as his birthday present and he said he wanted a son. I was young and I wasn't very much into taking care of a small person who would cry all the time. So, I said no. That upset him, I guess. When we got home, he and I both started getting drunk. He was the one who drank most. Alcohol impairs your judgment . . . his judgment was impaired."

She closed her eyes as she began telling us this part of her life. "He became very violent and he said he was the king here and he got what he wanted. He got what he wanted." She closed her eyes as tears rolled down her cheeks. "He raped me." I had to struggle to hear that part of her story. "He beat me. The most horrible things you can imagine, he did to me. The next day he woke up like he owned the damn world."

I didn't have any words to say. I was shocked.

"Our first son was born eight months later, thought the beatings and raping still continued. A few months after our first son was born, our second son was conceived. You would think that he would change for his children, but no. Everything was the same." She lowered her voice. It was hard for her to talk about this, I could see. "Our last child was my miracle baby. She was the one who saved me, who changed my life, who encouraged me to seek help. I did it. Seth was not thrown in jail for a long time like I would have loved. He paid major amount of money to not go to jail for the amount that was expected." She closed her eyes briefly and then opened them again. "So that's my story. Moral of the story: Never fall in love with a royal Moroi. They only want you for several things. And when they get tired of you, they will just throw you away and get another one. They say they love you but it's not true. Never believe it. Get out now before it's too late and my story repeats with you." She looked so serious into our faces.

Millions of thoughts were going through my head as I stood up. It was all a jumbled mess in my head. Ivashkov . . . love . . . deceiving. . . not true . . . rape . . . used . . . beat. . . no way out . . . end this now. End this now. I have to end this now before it is too late. Ivashkov men deceive. You have to end this now. Now. End. Now. Before it is too late.

. .

I rose from my chair, confused and depressed, wishing I were somebody else. I walked around the academy with the worlds end this now swirling my thoughts. That's all I could focus on. Seth Ivashkov. Adrian Ivashkov. End this now. Gathering strength I didn't know I had, I made my way to his room, feeling emptier than a person who hasn't had food in three days.

I knocked on Adrian's door. He opened it up and I felt confused. End this now.

He wore that smile that I used to find attractive and now I didn't. "Babe, come back for more?" He took one look at me and he began instantly alarmed. "Love, what's wrong?!"

The way he called me love didn't bring out the feelings that used to start me as he called me that.

He tried putting his arms around me. "Don't touch me." I said, coldness in my voice.

"Rose, did I do something wrong—tell me what's wrong?"

"I'm sorry. I can't keep doing this. I don't want it to go on."

"It's killing me, Rose . . . what is wrong?!" He seemed a little crazed now. He reached for me again.

"I said don't touch me!" I growled. "I want it over with, Adrian. I don't want it to happen to me."

"Babe, nothing is—"

"Don't call me that! You deceiving person!" I was so mad. I hope tears didn't start falling soon.

"Rose . . ." Adrian whispered with so much pain in his face that it melted the ice that had formed in my heart.

"It's over, Adrian."

He looked at me like he hadn't understood a word I had said. "It's over. I am breaking up with you. It's never going to work out. Your rich and I am poor. Your high-class I am low class. Don't you get that; it can never work out."

"Rose, we love each other. We are soul mates. We can make anything work out. That's what we do. We are always there for each other."

"Understand, Adrian! I can't be with you! You and I are not soul mates. Soul mates are meant for each other and they are the same. They have everything in common. We don't."

I started walking towards the door. He wrapped his hand around my wrist and turned me around. "Rose, you can't leave me. I love you so much. I can't bare a day without you. You are my soul mate and you know it!"

I almost caved. Almost.

"Adrian! The reason I am breaking up with you is because I don't love you anymore! Okay, I suddenly lost interest." I put on my hard mask. I felt not one bit strong, though.

I had never seen Adrian cry. Never. It killed me. He got down on his knees. "How could you go after such a wonderful night and morning like the one we shared? How could you, Rose? I love you, isn't that all that matters? I love you!"

"I don't care!" I let go of his hand and walked even farther away from him.

"I am begging you, Rose. Don't leave me." He whispered all the signs of yelling gone from him. "I beg you, Rose, don't leave me. I am nothing without you. My soul is no longer something I will have without you. My life will no longer be real without you. I need you. Rose, I beg don't go."

"I lost interest, Adrian. Too late. My heart is somewhere else."

I left, knowing that the words I had just said were not one bit true. My heart, now broken, was still in there, with the man I couldn't be with . . .

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