I had writer's block- on top of my weekends being busy because the holidays and all that- which was why there was a delay. I would like to thank the Ithaca Saga (from Epic the Musical) for finally getting me out of this writer's block and allow me to write- as I've had the saga on repeat for several hours to write this.

Caius POV

The study was dim, the heavy blinds shutting out the blinding Italian sun that mocked me with its warmth. The air was stifling, thick with the weight of my thoughts, and the oppressive silence filled the room. I sat in my chair, staring at the wall- lost in my thoughts. Thoughts that I couldn't shake. One that kept going back to Bella- with the image of her face, with the pain of her wide, tear-filled eyes, the disappointment etched so deeply in them.

And here I was, another name on that list that hurt her.

I never meant to hurt her like that.

The memory from the other day was relentless- dragging me under to that one moment. I could almost feel the soft warmth of her wrist under my grip, the way her pulse fluttered like a caged bird beneath the bandages. Or the way, my actions had finally caught me and hurt the one person I never meant too:

"So she's always been such a prickly person, so what. It doesn't mean that you should always kill them. Killing people isn't always an answer, Caius," Bella had told me.

"Are you sure about that?" I had responded to her without a hint of hesitance.

Of course, Bella seemed irritated about the answer and instead huffed, and stood up. In an act of desperation, I grabbed her wrist out of habit and realized the mistake immediately. I had felt the wrapped bandage through one of the long sleeves and pressed hard on it. She gasped out in pain, tears had swelled in her brown eyes. She let out a loud gasp as a result.

"Let me go, Caius," She had told me.

She had pulled away, retreating from me, her steps quick and uneven. Her heartbeat echoed in my ears, racing like thunder, and I smelled the salt of her tears as they fell. The sound of her soft, broken sobs just beyond the door had hollowed me out. Jane's voice had followed- calm, soothing- but it only twisted the knife.

I had failed her.

Perhaps, if I had done something differently. If only I had been more willing to listen to her. To never let my pride get in the way of my actions, or cloud my way of thinking, or even stop and consider how my words would possibly affect her. But I knew, no matter what I knew now- it wouldn't change the past whatsoever.

The only important thing now was to be able to fix the mistake.

It was honestly interesting in a way, that my actions now had importance- of realizing the consequences of them. Never once in my three thousand year existence had I cared about what people thought of me. Me, who had weathered centuries of battle and bloodshed, laid down the law without a hint of remorse or even hesitance, who had never been questioned once- at least until now.

Because now I had a human mate. A human who had been broken, who had seen the horrors of our world and managed to get entwined into it- without a regard to her own safety, or her own life in general.

I couldn't get her out of my mind. The thought of her- so fragile, so human- kept pressing against my mind. The way she smiled sometimes, fleeting and hollow, as if she didn't believe she deserved happiness. The way she hesitated before speaking, as though she feared her words might be the wrong ones. It infuriated me to see her carry that weight. Or how she had somehow managed to open up to me in her broken heart- to give me a small piece of trust and a small piece of her at the same time.

And I messed it all up.

Now, I had to fix it. I needed it to fix it.

Because somehow in all of this, I had fallen in love with her. Otherwise, there wouldn't be a need to see her smile- a real smile that reached her eyes. To watch her walk freely through these halls without the ghosts of her past weighing her down. To convince her that here, she was safe. That she was mine to protect. That I will always be there for her, for all eternity- no matter her wishes.

But I knew all of that couldn't be true, if I couldn't knock away the pride and fess up an apology- to admit that I screwed up to her- because otherwise, everything that I had built and the trust she gave me was all for nothing. Because while I had all eternity, Bella didn't have the luxury. She was human.

And humans were so fragile. Oftentimes, their emotions were so volatile and consuming. Bella's thoughts had always been her own worst enemy, twisting her into knots she didn't deserve to bear. I couldn't help but worry that those same thoughts were spiraling now, devouring her from the inside.

The idea sent a cold rush of dread through me. I couldn't let that happen. I wouldn't. She could try to push me out, to retreat into her pain, but I wouldn't allow it. Not this time.

I stood abruptly, the chair scraping against the floor. My resolve was firm, but as I reached for the door, a sudden, suffocating wave of dread swept over me. My chest tightened, the unease coiling around me like a predator.

Something was wrong.

The thought hit me like a blow. It wasn't just guilt or fear- it was something deeper, darker. An instinct, sharp and unrelenting, screaming at me to act.

Bella.