THE PROMISES MADE TO BELLE LOVE #ONC2024

Chapter 6.

That night after dinner, Gen was sitting on her bed with homework in her lap, and something was knocking at her window.

She pinched the bridge of her nose and turned up the music in her headphones, thinking the disruption outside was probably just the wind, or a distressed bat. Not five seconds later, though, the knocking continued.

Gen pulled her headphones down around her neck and tossed her homework aside. She was in her pink satin pyjamas, and she had a green facemask on that made her somewhat resemble an ogre. So, when she saw that she was not dealing with a what outside the window, but a who – she was undoubtably humiliated.

It was Dante. He was laughing silently to himself from behind the glass, and was trying to get in. Gen considered just sending him away, or not acknowledging him at all. It was well known to all that knew Gen that she was not to be disturbed past nine o'clock at night. Those were her personal hours.

But Dante, she had to remind herself, did not know her at all. He could not be blamed for this infringement.

With a huff, Gen yanked the window open. Dante poked his head straight in, grinning from ear to ear. "Were you about to leave me out here, in the cold?"

"You might have deserved it," she said. "You're interrupting my time."

"Your time? Who said the time was yours?"

Despite all his irritating cleverness and his invasiveness, Gen was actually delighted to see him. She'd been isolated in this room for a week now, and in spite of herself, she'd actually started to miss him. If only for the secret that he shared with her.

"So?" he said when she didn't answer. "Are you coming?"

"Coming?"she echoed, gesturing to her attire. "I'm on lockdown. Not allowed to leave campus."

"Were you ever allowed?

She shook her head. "But now they're threatening suspension."

Dante sucked on his teeth. "That's a shame. I know some very nice places we could go..."

He was trying to sway her, but it wasn't going to work. Gen shrugged. "You'll have to go on your own, then."

"I guess I will." But he didn't go anywhere.

Gen stepped away from the window, just to see what would happen. It almost did not surprise her when Dante reached up, latched onto the sill, and hauled himself over it.

He flopped into her room in a graceless fashion. For somebody who always seemed the picturesque black swan, this was a moment of vulnerability for Dante – at least, to Gen it seemed that it would be. But he just sat up like normal, swept his hair out of his face and laughed in that boyish way of his, and it occurred to her that she'd been overestimating him all this time. He was not the ornamental thing that all the girls liked to think he was. He was wholly, and wonderfully, human.

"Can I have some?" he asked, waving in vague circular motions around his own face.

"What?"

He pointed at her face now. "The green..."

"My face mask?" She laughed on instinct. "Sure. Shut the window first."

Dante obeyed, and Gen went to get the clay mask for him. She realised once she moved away from him that he was making her nervous. Not because he was beautiful, not because he was Dante Leon – but because Gen associated him completely with Belle, now, and what she'd done to her. Dante was the god that had guided Gen's savage hand. The instigator of her regret. How contrary and bittersweet for him to be both her solace and the reason that she needed it.