- Eros -

I punched the dummy harder, firmer, faster, with everything I had.

Her eyes flashed through my mind every so often, confident, daring, fearless.

"You hit like a pussy," Payne called out from somewhere behind me and I growled.

I rammed the dummy in a final blow as the head flew off the figure and crumbled on the ground.

I grabbed Payne by the collar and roughly pushed him up the mirror, cracking it in the process.

"I WANT TO DIE PAYNE! I WANT TO FUCKING DIE!" I shouted at him and my voice rang out in his empty gym.

"WELL YOU CAN'T, CAN YOU?!" He yelled back and kicked my torso.

I flew back slightly and the rage scorched through me like it never did.

I raised a fist and slammed it down on his face, he fell back and coughed out blood.

"KILL ME!" I roared and he ran to me, throwing a flying kick to my head and I toppled backwards. 

He grabbed the barbell and slammed it on my leg before swinging it to my head. The crack I heard and felt was like sweet victory to me.

He grabbed me by my neck and lifted me up, I choked and felt the pool of blood in my mouth flow down the sides of my face.

"You're a fucking coward you know that?! I may not have lived forever but every lifetime I'm reincarnated I see you in the same pathetic state since the day you paired Psyche. You've barely gotten yourself out of that and now you have a fucking crush on Destiny?! It's been two weeks dude! Get over it! You're not even living anymore Eros!"

I couldn't breathe, Payne swung me down on the ground and I heard my spine snap. The pain sizzled within me and I smiled.

"D-Dude you h-hit w-w-worse than an ant," the words jumbled up in my bloodied mouth.

He stood up and glared at me, "You're not the only one being punished Eros, the fact that I reincarnated so many times is my punishment because I didn't stop you from entering the human realm. And for you bringing her to Heaven. My sentence is to watch you wasting your forever away. Tormenting and trying to kill yourself because of your lack of will to live.

If you're sick of living then I'M SICK OF WATCHING YOU LIVE LIKE THIS!" He fired and swung a punch at my cheek.

The sweet sick feeling of pain that pumped through me made me feel more alive than I've ever been.

My broken body splayed on the floor as blood kept rushing out of me. 

Kill me, please.

Payne screamed something out into the empty space and strode out angrily. He knows I'll be fine, I know that too. 

It's sick that nothing can happen to me.

My bones started cracking and I cringed, feeling my body start to heal itself. Blood stopped flowing out of me and I groaned, lifting myself up.

My phone chimed from the other end of the gym and I stared at it. The annoying tone that has been ringing out for centuries.

"AND GO AND PAIR THAT DUMB COUPLE!" I heard Payne yell from somewhere outside and I wiped the blood off my mouth.

My back ached like a bitch, Payne beat me up good this time.

Not good enough for me to die though.

I sighed and limped over to my phone, a pair of arrows were done and I had to pair another couple.

"Serena and Benjamin. An Elite couple, how lucky," I smirked and took a deep breath. I stretched and my back straightened itself.

Let's get to work then.

***

I collected the arrows from the machine and placed them into my case.

I scrolled through Destiny's Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat and Twitter.

I wasn't stalking her, definitely not. But it worried me that it's been two weeks and there wasn't a single update from her.

Articles had nothing on her, I even resorted to reading the papers for her, watching the news.

There was nothing.

Say I'm overthinking, say I'm clingy.

But everything was telling me that something was wrong. Because Trevor hasn't updated anything as well.

I checked their previous posts and they have been updating regularly almost every day. But not since I paired them.

I felt incredibly uneasy but there wasn't anything I could do.

My phone chimed and I read the message from Payne. As usual, rushing me to get out of my house.

I shook the dreaded thoughts out of my mind and strode out with my cases.

Payne held the door to my car open and I slipped in. He got in the driver's seat and drove off.

He was incredibly quiet and I know he felt guilty for beating me up earlier.

"You need to hit harder next time, what you did earlier," I shrugged, "It barely felt like a pinch."

He scoffed and raced down to the club, "I'll be sure to brush up on my knock-out punches."

The neon lights that flashed by made me feel electrified and excited. Not very much alive, but it was the closest to being so.

We stopped at the entrance of the club and I saw the female I was supposed to pair rush in with her best friend.

Her friend giggled like a school girl while she rolled her eyes and I felt the chill from her.

Payne nudged me, "She's an Elite, isn't she? The same Elite bullshit they tried to get you in a few days ago?"

I nodded, "Doesn't matter, she has a pair like every other human. I'll have to pair you too."

He sighed, "I'll never understand your pain Eros, but it'll probably make you feel better if you talked about it for once in your whole fucking life."

I took my seat belt off, "It's not like you don't know what I'm feeling or what I'm going through."

"I know but it will relieve some pain if you actually talked it out."

"I don't do girly talk Payne."

I got out of the car and went in, seeing my target at the bar with her friend drinking a bunch of things.

She wasn't hard to spot, she had platinum blonde hair, due to the cold within her and she was rather good looking.

I kept my eyes on them as I went up to the bar to get some shots.

Her not-yet boyfriend should be coming soon.

I glanced around, the crowd already filling up the dance floor. 

I saw Payne trying to slip through with my cases and smirked, God my cases were so bloody inconvenient and bulky.

But I didn't really care, Payne was there to carry them for me.

I ordered some hard liquor and drank slowly, watching the two friends still laughing and drinking.

Her partner is taking some time to come.

I looked around and saw a flash of red enter. My eyes widened.

Hell no. Don't come back here Destiny. Please don't.

The red-headed girl strode up to the bar a distance away from me and I heaved a sigh of relief. Just some random girl with her hair dyed red.

She caught my eye and I realised I was staring. She looked pretty good though, good enough.

Her natural hair colour was probably black, judging from her black eyebrows.

She managed to scoot over to my side and I smiled.

What better way to forget about a girl than by flirting with another one?

"Here alone?" She batted her long lashes at me seductively.

She had no idea how alone I was.

She wasn't that bad though.

But it'll be better if it was Destiny.

I scoffed the voice away in my head, I've had enough of it ruining my life.

"Not anymore," I looked into her eyes and her pupils dilated sexily.

I probably just need to get laid.

She grinned cutely, "That makes two of us."

I leaned towards her slightly, "Your company would make my night."

She giggled, "You're smooth."

"You're honest."

She shrugged, "I try my best."

She's going to be a bit of a challenge.

"Want to dance?" I offered her a hand and she eyed me.

"I would like to at least know who I'm dancing with."

I've not talked to a girl in two weeks and I forget to introduce myself, how clever of me.

"I'm Chad, and you?"

"I'm Melody, it's nice to meet you."

"Likewise," I took her hand and kissed the back of it.

I smiled at her and glanced around, realising the girl I was supposed to pair had disappeared.

"Shit, I'm sorry Melody. Will you please excuse me? I have something to attend to."

She raised an eyebrow, "Something wrong?"

A firm hand grabbed my shoulder, an oddly high-pitched masculine voice called out, "Oh my God babe, where did you go?" 

I turned around and saw Payne with an annoying girly face as he pouted his lips at me.

"What the fu-" 

"Why are you talking to her?! Are you becoming straight babe?!" He whined and I swear I wanted to punch his face.

"Oh oh no no we were just talking," she gave me a look and I groaned.

"Well I'm going to be giving him a talk, let's go babe," Payne dragged me away with my cases still hanging on his arms.

I let him drag me away to save myself the embarrassment of trying to explain things to a girl I met a minute ago.

We reached the bottom of the staircase leading up to the VIP section and Payne shoved me slightly, "Sorry boss but the male partner is here."

I looked towards the corridor that led to the entrance and saw three guys come in. 

Elites.

I could immediately identify the man I was supposed to pair with the girl earlier. I could feel the heat coming off him from here.

The other two though, I'm guessing the blonde guy had ice powers too. The last guy however, I can't really tell.

"Dude, we gotta get a move on," Payne pushed me up the stairs and I hurried up.

We reached the top and Payne pushed my bow to me but I stopped him, seeing the platinum blonde-haired girl catch my gaze.

Turn away please, I need to pair you now.

Her partner went up to her at that moment and stole her attention away from me.

I grabbed the bow and arrow from Payne quickly and aimed. God why must they be hugging one another so tightly?

A shade of red caught my eye. I wasn't mistaken this time. I'm sure it's her. 

My heart thudded loudly, pair this couple first.

"Give me the other arrow," I demanded.

"You're going to shoot both at once? Did you even practice-"

"Payne now," I instructed.

He handed the second arrow to me and I strung both, I pulled the string and aimed at the two who were lost in their own world.

The moment there was a gap I let the arrows go and they pierced them at their hearts. They barely even moved, Elites had a higher tolerance for pain.

But their aura merged together beautifully and that idiot of a guy finally kissed her.

"About time," I mumbled and tossed my golden bow to Payne.

"Where are you going?"

I looked towards Destiny who was finding her way through the crowd, her eyes in distress.

"I'll be right back," I jumped over the barriers of the second floor and down to the first. 

Some people gave me weird looks and I quickly found my way through the crowd, looking for Destiny.

Where did you go?

I felt someone ram right into me and I found Destiny looking up at me, her once cheerful and carefree eyes now clouded with fear and doubt.

She was wearing a white satin nightgown with dirt and stains all over it.

"What's wrong?" I held her close to me as she gripped my shirt.

"H-Help me," she begged.