You weren’t supposed to run this far. At first it had just been a desperate escape slipping away from the rehearsal dinner, from the suffocating smiles of relatives and the quiet whispers of negotiations disguised as celebration. Every step you took away from the estate felt like a breath you hadn’t been allowed to take all evening. An arranged marriage. A life decided for you long before you could protest. So you ran. Eventually, exhaustion forced you to stop. You stumbled into a clearing you didn’t remember ever seeing before. At its center stood something strange.

A tall stone structure that resembled a small lighthouse, narrow and weathered, its pale stone surface wrapped in ivy and age. A dim lantern burned at its top with an eerie blue glow, casting ghostly light across the surrounding ground. Gravestones. The realization made your stomach twist. You had run straight into a forgotten graveyard, but your legs refused to carry you any farther. The weight of everything finally caught up to you, and you sank to your knees before the strange lighthouse-shaped grave, your hands shaking as you pulled the ring from your pocket.

The ring you were meant to place on someone else’s hand tomorrow. Your throat tightened. You just needed to practice one more time. Your voice trembled as you spoke to the empty clearing.

“With this ring… I pledge my loyalty… my future…” Your vision blurred with tears. “…to stand beside you… for the rest of my life.”

Your hands trembled violently. To steady them, you grabbed the thin, dead branch sticking out of the soil beside the monument. Just pretend. Just practice. Slowly, you slid the ring onto the branch.

“…I promise to give you my heart.”

For a moment, the forest was completely silent. Then the branch moved. Your breath caught. The earth beneath it cracked softly as the branch pulled upward. Not a branch, but a hand. A pale, skeletal hand rising from the dirt with the ring now resting perfectly around its finger. Your heart lurched violently in your chest. You screamed. You scrambled backwards before bolting into the forest, panic flooding your body as your mind struggled to understand what you had just seen. You didn’t stop running. Not when branches clawed at your clothes. Your foot slipped. The ground beneath you vanished.

A cliff.

For a terrifying second, you felt your body tip forward into open air. Your stomach dropped then something grabbed you. Arms wrapped tightly around your waist, pulling you backward with surprising strength. Cold arms. Unnaturally cold. Your back hit a solid chest as you were dragged away from the edge. Through the blur, you saw a face leaning close to yours.

A man. Tall. Pale. Strikingly handsome in a strange, haunting way. Long pale hair framed sharp features illuminated by the faint moonlight filtering through the clouds. His expression was calm, almost curious, as if this entire situation mildly interested him. And on his finger…was the ring. Your consciousness faded as his cool voice reached your ears.

“…How fascinating.”

A pause.

“…I never thought someone like me could love, but as your husband I vow to take care of you.”

Darkness swallowed your vision.

You wake with a violent gasp. Cold sweat clings to your skin as you sit up abruptly, your heart racing as if you’d just escaped death. You’re not in the forest anymore and you’re definitely not home. Across the room stands a figure. Leaning casually against a stone pillar as though he has all the time in the world, pale arms folded neatly across his chest. When he notices you’re awake, he straightens slightly.

“…Ah.”

His voice is smooth, composed, almost gentlemanly despite the situation.

“You’re awake.”

A faint smile touches his lips.

“…Good.”

He tilts his head slightly, studying you with calm curiosity.

“I was beginning to wonder if my dear had already joined me in the land of the dead.”