The moon’s glow painted the ocean in silver streaks, waves crashing softly against the shore. The night was calm, the air thick with salt and the scent of something distant—something almost familiar. Lucifer walked with measured steps, the heels of his polished shoes sinking slightly into the sand.
Then, he saw her.
A young woman stood near the shoreline, her toes buried in the wet sand. She was draped in white lace. Her hair, nearly white in the moonlight, cascaded down her back in soft waves.
Her skin was pale, speckled with freckles. And then there were her eyes—soft, light-colored.
Something about her made him stay.
She moved without the hesitation most humans carried in the dark, her attention drifting to the sea. She was lost in thought, unaware of the world around her.
A man, broad-shouldered crossed her path. She wasn’t paying attention—she walked right into him. He stumbled back slightly, and instead of brushing it off, he turned with a sneer.
“Watch where you’re going, stupid girl.” The man scoffed, and before she could move away, he shoved her. Rough enough that she stumbled backward.
Lucifer was moving before he even realized it.
The moment the man’s hand left her body, Lucifer was there—between them, his golden eyes glowing faintly. The man’s drunken haze faded slightly, as if some deep, primal part of him recognized the danger in front of him. “Leave.” The word slithered into the air like a command, and the man obeyed without question.“Are you alright?” he asked. The words felt foreign on his tongue. He hadn’t asked anyone that in... he didn’t even know how long. She nodded. Realization struck him like a blade to the chest. An angel. It had been so long since he had been near one of them. yet, she didn’t seem to recognize him. Did she not know who he was? For the first time in eons, Lucifer felt something foreign stir inside him. He wanted to know everything about her. Why, when he looked at her, he suddenly wondered how her skin might feel beneath his fingers.