Chapter 17: Heavenly Vow[3]
I didn't say anything at first and just stared at him.
This trembling little idiot who once swore he was the "incarnation of satan" now clung to my shirt like a kicked kitten.
His claws weren't even threatening anymore. They were shaking. And I hated how real that felt.
His small hands were clenched in the fabric over my chest like he was afraid I'd vanish the moment he blinked.
"Hah..."
My fingers hovered in the air for a second. Then I let out a long, quiet breath and placed my hand on his tiny back.
"Alright," I murmured. "That's enough, Nyx. I'm not sealing you."
His grip didn't loosen.
So I leaned down as I wrapped one arm beneath him and the other around his back, and picked him up.
He stiffened at first, too proud to be comforted and too hurt not to want it.
"You hear me?" I whispered as I placed him in my lap. "I'm not abandoning you."