The flames of Hades roared endlessly around me as I stood before the throne of Azazel.
Rivers of fire crawled through the dark stone floor like veins of molten blood. The screams of the damned echoed through the cavern, rising and falling like distant thunder.
Azazel sat on his throne of black stone, watching me with that familiar smile , the one that meant he already knew something I didn't want him to know.
"Well," he said slowly, his voice carrying through the burning abyss, "what a magnificent job you've done."
I folded my arms.
"She wasn't meant to die yet," I replied.
Azazel leaned forward slightly, resting his chin on his knuckles.
"Oh?" he said softly.
"That's interesting."
His eyes gleamed.
"You, Andre… the man who has harvested souls for over two thousand years… suddenly decides to rescue one."
I didn't answer.
A slow grin spread across his face.
"Tell me something," he said casually.
His voice lowered.
"Are you… falling in love?"
I scoffed instantly.
"Don't be ridiculous."
Azazel laughed.
"You ran across a road to save her," he said. "You broke the order of death itself."
"That's not love," I said firmly.
He tilted his head.
"No?"
"It's strategy," I replied coldly.
Azazel's eyes narrowed with interest.
"Oh this should be entertaining," he said.
"Go on."
I began pacing slowly across the cracked black floor, firelight flickering across the walls.
"You said something earlier," I reminded him. "A person who escapes death becomes a hole in reality."
Azazel nodded once.
"Yes."
I stopped walking and looked directly at him.
"So let me fix that hole."
Azazel raised one eyebrow.
"How?"
I inhaled slowly.
"You send me back."
"To the same school she attends, make me look younger and boom we are done."
Silence filled the cavern.
Then Azazel burst into thunderous laughter.
"You expect me to believe," he said between laughs, "that this is about maintaining reality?"
I stared at him.
"You just want to spend more time with your newly discovered love."
"That's not true," I said sharply.
"Oh really?" he said, still smiling.
"Yes."
He leaned back lazily in his throne.
"But I must admit…" he said slowly.
"I like the idea."
My eyes lifted.
"You do?"
Azazel smirked.
"Watching you struggle with feelings you don't understand could be very entertaining."
I exhaled impatiently.
"So you'll do it?"
"Yes," he said.
"But under conditions."
I waited.
"First," he said, raising a finger, "you will remain poor."
"Second… no fighting."
"Third… you will never reveal your immortality or your true identity."
His eyes gleamed with amusement.
"And lastly…"
"I will place you under the care of a human woman."
"A woman named Mrs Jenkins."
He leaned forward again.
"Do we have a deal?"
I nodded.
"I agree."
Azazel snapped his fingers.
"Excellent."
The world spun violently.
The flames stretched and twisted.
Darkness swallowed everything.
And I passed out.
The Gonzalez Residence
Across town, the modest Gonzalez Residence buzzed with nervous tension.
Rick Gonzalez sat at the dining table staring at a stack of papers.
His wife, Bially Gonzalez, stood near the kitchen doorway with her arms folded tightly.
"You're serious about this?" she asked, her voice filled with worry.
Rick nodded firmly.
"I'm enrolling the kids at Emirates Academy."
Bially stared at him like he had just suggested something insane.
"Rick," she said slowly, "that school is for billionaires and politicians."
"Do you know what their entrance fee costs?"
"Our entire life savings."
Rick remained calm.
"I know."
She shook her head in disbelief.
"What if they fail the entrance exams?" she asked anxiously.
"That money will be gone forever."
Rick leaned back and smiled gently.
"I trust our daughters," he said.
"Talk to that rascal son of yours instead."
He chuckled softly.
"Misheal and Maria will pass for sure."
He rubbed his forehead.
"But Marco…"
Bially sighed deeply.
"Yes."
"Marco is another story entirely."
The Dimitri Mansion
Inside the enormous Dimitri Mansion, sunlight poured through the tall windows.
Esmeralda sat on the floor laughing softly as her puppy Whisker chased a toy across the carpet.
Suddenly the door opened.
Her older brother stepped inside.
She looked up and smiled warmly.
"Welcome home, brother."
His expression hardened instantly.
"For the last time, Esmeralda," he snapped.
"Do not call me brother."
"My name is Maxim Dimitri."
"Put that inside your tiny brain."
Esmeralda raised an eyebrow and chuckled.
"Tiny brain?"
"At least I'm not the dropout."
Maxim froze.
His face darkened instantly.
"What did you say?"
Esmeralda shrugged casually.
"Nothing."
"Your brain might be too tiny to process it."
Maxim stepped closer, anger radiating off him.
"Just because father protects you like some fragile princess doesn't mean you get to talk to me like that."
Esmeralda crossed her arms confidently.
"When you start getting good grades," she said calmly, "come talk to me."
"Until then… you're not on my level."
Maxim's eyes burned with hatred.
"You know something?" he spat.
"That trailer should have turned you into ground meat."
"I would've thrown the biggest party at your grave."
"You stingy little—"
He stopped himself and laughed bitterly.
"You know what?"
"Forget it."
"Fuck you."
Esmeralda didn't even flinch.
She simply shrugged.
"Fuck you too."
Mrs Jenkins' residence
Darkness slowly faded from my vision.
My body felt… strange.
Different.
Lighter.
I sat up slowly and looked around the room.
Too clean.
Too normal.
I stood up and walked toward the mirror.
The reflection staring back at me looked familiar.
Same pale skin.
Same dark blue eyes.
Same face.
But younger.
Much younger.
I examined my hands.
My shoulders.
My height.
Azazel had kept his word.
Before I could process it
The door burst open violently.
An elderly woman stormed inside.
Her sharp eyes locked onto me immediately.
I frowned at her.
"And who the hell are you supposed to be?"