Lyra
I had just finished my shower when I heard the door to the dorm room open. Then footsteps. I counted, 1, 2, 3… and he's about to stop on the ninth footstep.
Sure enough, he did.
I went through the same motions I did every time this happened.
I wrapped a towel around myself and walked out of the bathroom door.
He turned around and I saw his face for the 100th time, maybe even the 1000th time. It never got old.
"Who the hell are you? And what are you doing in my room!" I screamed.
However, I already knew his name, Kai Mercer.
My mind filled with anger, I was angry that he'd do that to himself for me, because I was too weak. But then that anger turned to a mix of emotions that I couldn't pinpoint.
"I'm… Kai Mercer." He said, I couldn't help but look at him with pity. I quickly masked it, hoping he didn't see it.
This time, something felt off, like he didn't want to be here. All of the other times, he was beaming with pride. This time, however, he seemed beat.
I walked over to the dresser in the corner of the room and grabbed clothes, then made my way back into the bathroom and changed.
I came out and immediately rushed him. I cocked my arm back and slapped him so hard it sent him tumbling onto the floor.
"What are you doing in my room, pervert?" I made my voice icy cold. Although I knew he wasn't a pervert, I just wanted to mess with him.
He held up a key that had the room number 316 on it while rubbing his cheek where I slapped him.
"This is my room too, Director Skye told me it was, what she failed to mention is that I'd have a roommate." He said.
Classic Skye, I thought, and classic Kai.
I shot Kai a glare, climbed up onto the top bunk, and turned to face the wall.
"My name is Lyra." But you should already know that, but you don't. My thoughts had a somber tone to them.
I'm sorry it has come to be like this, Kai, it's all my fault.
I pictured Kai's older face, his warm gaze when he looked at me, his cold and ruthless gaze when peering at his enemies.
I will make it right this time.
Since things felt different this time, I decided to give him some breadcrumbs to see if he'd pick them up.
"You know, you're not so bad," I said, hoping he would remember something, anything, but it was pointless.
He eventually got up and moved to the bottom bunk, so I decided to tease him.
"You better stay there, you hear me?"
"Loud and clear." He said.
I couldn't help but let a smile grow across my lips.
I hope your memories don't come back too early, I want more time like this. Just the two of us.
I woke up earlier than Kai did, so I decided to cook some breakfast.
10 minutes later, I heard Kai speak up.
"Is that bacon?" He asked.
What a fatass, I thought as I chuckled inward before answering.
"Yes, it is, my parents taught me when I was younger." I turned around to see him deep in thought.
"You think I'll teach you?" I asked.
After that, we talked about the war and its history.
It hit me hard, even after 1000 times, he really did seal his own memories just to save me. It me even harder this time due to the feeling I had earlier. The feeling that something was off about him this time.
Did he already get some of his memories back, or is it the fact that he's tired of all this, even if he doesn't remember it? I think it's the latter. Based on his reactions, he's definitely not got any memories yet. Besides, if he did, I would've attacked him on the spot when I first saw him.
Then we heard a knock at the door. We both looked at each other. I copied his confused look. This was different from all the other times.
He opened the door and saw Director Skye. The words that came out of her mouth were not good for me. I knew what was going to happen, but I couldn't do anything about it. It was he who had to do something about it.
If he wanted to kill me, then so be it. I'm pretty sure that would break the cycle.
He followed Director Skye out of the room.
I sat and waited for about three hours until I decided to take a shower.
I had just gotten out and was headed to the dresser when the door opened.
Kai walked in and stared at me for a couple of seconds. Then he said, "That's actually a good idea." Then he made his way into the bathroom.
I went to the dresser and got dressed in the room, and headed to the bunk beds.
"Lyra?" I heard Kai's voice through the door, "Can you get me some clothes?"
I stayed silent. This was a good opportunity to tease him to see if he had met with who I thought it was.
The door opened, and he walked over to the dresser. When he turned around and saw me with a smug smile, he shot a glare.
"So, you did hear me." He said simply.
"It's payback," I responded.
"Fair enough."
Then he went back to the bathroom to get changed. He came back out and lay on the bottom bunk and fell asleep instantly.
The next morning, he was still asleep, so I gave him a little peck on his cheek.
When I came back to the dorm, he was awake.
He turned to me, eyes wide. I knew exactly what that meant. It was coming… the moment I would kill him.
I had to kill the person I loved, hundreds, if not thousands, of times, over and over and over again.
"Have I met you somewhere before, Lyra?" He asked.
I didn't want to go through that again, so I lied to him, but I knew it was pointless. The rune on my stomach would activate, forcing me to kill him.
At first, the rune on my stomach was made to conceal my powers. The rune on Kai's stomach was made to seal his memories.
It was the Celestial Council that put the runes on us. They put them on us because our potential was too much of a threat.
Each time Kai dies, a new cycle starts, and his memories get wiped.
Whenever Kai starts awakening, my rune forces me to kill him.
He awakens as he gets more memories about his past and past cycles.
What a cruel fate, for both of us. I'm forced to kill the man I love, while he's killed for a reason he doesn't even know.
"I'm sure if I ever met a pervert like you, I'd remember," I said.
He then told me that his memories had been sealed, which I already knew. He then told me that one of his memories had been unsealed.
My jaw and hand clenched, trying to hold back the fear. I knew what was coming. I fought to suppress the urge that the rune was giving me.
I managed it for a while, but when we were in bed next to each other, in such close proximity, I couldn't fight it anymore. However, I did have enough willpower to at least show him the runes, maybe sparking something inside of him.
My wings appeared from my back, and I grabbed a feather, turning it into a sword of burning light.
I couldn't hear my own words. My heart was beating so loudly, I was apologizing in my head, and in my heart. I don't know what I said in those last moments, but the next thing I knew, I was in the air with the top bunk.
What the hell just happened? I thought as I landed on my back and rolled out of the way of the falling bunk bed. I wanted to scream, to tell Kai to run away, far away from here, but the rune was just too powerful. I couldn't control any part of my body.
Damn that council, damn them to hell. I screamed in my head.
I rushed him against my own will. Just before my blade made contact, a devil appeared between us. The devil put a hand on Kai's head, the the next instant they were gone. There was no bright light or big boom; they had just disappeared.
This didn't happen in any of the other cycles. I had to figure out what was different with this, but I was happy I wouldn't have to kill him yet. He'd probably try to avoid me now, which conflicted with my happiness, but at least he was alive. That was all I could ask for.