Chapter 94: The Tension Between Us

The house was quiet, far too quiet for Dominic's liking.

He stepped into the living room, eyes scanning the room, but there was no Elijah. Not where he thought he would be, anyway. He felt the weight of everything that had happened settle on his shoulders.

His body was bruised and battered from the fight with Matteo's men, but it wasn't the physical pain that gnawed at him. No, it was the gnawing emptiness in his chest as he stood there.

Where the hell was Elijah?

"Dominic," Vincent said from behind him, his voice low. "You need rest."

Dominic didn't turn around. "I don't need rest," he growled. "I need him."

Vincent said nothing more, and Dominic's steps grew faster as he moved through the house, searching.

And then he found him.

Elijah was sitting by the window, staring out at the night sky, his back to Dominic. The glow from the city lights bathed him in a soft, almost ethereal light, making him seem almost untouchable. Dominic's heart stuttered.

"Elijah," Dominic said, his voice thick with emotion.

The younger man didn't turn. His shoulders were stiff, and the quiet between them was like a physical wall, separating them in ways Dominic didn't know how to fix.

"You should be resting," Elijah said quietly, his voice distant.

Dominic moved closer, but he didn't touch him, not yet. "You're angry."

Elijah sighed, and for a moment, Dominic thought he was going to say something cutting, but instead, Elijah whispered, "I don't know what I feel anymore."

Dominic's chest tightened at the words. He could hear the exhaustion in Elijah's voice, feel it in the air between them. But there was something else too. Fear. Doubt.

"Look at me, Eli," Dominic urged, his voice breaking a little.

After a long pause, Elijah finally turned his head, his eyes full of questions, of pain.

"I'm not good for you," Elijah said, his voice shaking. "I've seen what you've done... the lengths you go to... and I don't know if I can handle it. I don't know if I can be part of that world."

Dominic moved closer, kneeling down in front of him, his heart racing.

"You don't have to handle it alone," he said softly, reaching for Elijah's hands. "And you're not part of it—you're mine, Elijah. You belong with me. But I can't force you to understand that, can I?"

Elijah looked at him with something like regret, but there was also a flicker of hope buried deep in his gaze. "Dominic... What are we doing here? What am I to you? You're not just a mafia boss. You're someone who'd burn the world for me, and I don't even know if I want that."

Dominic's breath caught, his hands tightening around Elijah's, as though holding him close could stop the words from cutting deeper.

"You're everything to me, Eli," Dominic whispered. "Everything I've ever wanted... but I'm dangerous. I've always been dangerous, and I won't apologize for who I am. But I will never let anything hurt you."

Elijah's voice cracked as he spoke. "But everything hurts, Dominic. I don't know how much more of this I can take."

Dominic's heart twisted painfully in his chest. "I won't let you fall. Not again."

Elijah pulled away from him, standing up and turning his back to Dominic again. "I don't need to be protected. I need to figure out who I am in all of this."

Dominic stood up as well, not giving Elijah the space he was clearly asking for. He didn't want to let him go. Not now. Not when everything felt like it was hanging in the balance.

Elijah paused, his back still turned, and in that moment, Dominic could feel the weight of the decision Elijah had to make.

But there was no time. Matteo, the war... the darkness of the world they lived in—it was closing in around them.

"Do you want to be with me?" Dominic asked, his voice raw, vulnerable. "Even if it means stepping into this world with me, knowing what it could do to you?"

Elijah's hands clenched at his sides. He finally turned around, his eyes filled with conflicted emotions. "I don't know," he whispered. "But I know this—I can't keep running from it. From you."

Dominic took a step forward, closing the distance between them, and for the first time in a long time, he let his guard down completely. "You don't have to run. I'm here, and I'll never leave you, Eli. You can hate me for the things I've done, but I'll never stop loving you."

Elijah's eyes softened, his breath shallow. He took a step closer, his voice almost breaking as he spoke. "I don't hate you. But I don't know if I can love you in this world."

Dominic's heart hammered in his chest. He took Elijah's face in his hands, pulling him closer. "You don't have to love me in this world. Just love me... at all."

The kiss was slow. Hesitant at first, like they were both testing the waters. But then it deepened, and Dominic felt the weight of everything—everything they had been through and everything they still had to face. And for a moment, nothing else mattered.

---

Adrian hadn't meant to overhear them. He'd only come down to grab a glass of water, maybe some air. Instead, he found himself frozen in the hallway, heart pounding as Dominic's voice spilled through the cracked door.

"You don't have to love me in this world. Just love me… at all."

The kiss that followed was so full of pain and longing that it rooted Adrian in place. He'd never seen Elijah like that—fragile, unsure, vulnerable.

And worse, he didn't know what that made him feel.

He backed away quietly, not wanting to intrude. But as he turned toward the kitchen, he bumped straight into a wall of muscle.

Vincent.

"Eavesdropping?" Vincent asked smoothly, eyes glinting in the dim light.

Adrian stepped back, scowling. "No. Unlike some people, I don't find pleasure in creeping around corners."

Vincent smirked. "Funny. I could've sworn you were glued to that wall like a cat in heat."

Adrian scoffed, brushing past him. "Go to hell, psycho."

Vincent didn't follow immediately. But then, his voice came low and close, right beside Adrian's ear.

"Careful, pretty boy. I've been there. Hell's not so bad if you know how to play."

Adrian turned sharply. "You think this is a game?"

Vincent tilted his head. "To you? Maybe not. But me? I like games. Especially when the prize is someone as mouthy as you."

Adrian's jaw clenched. "You're disgusting."

"And you're in denial," Vincent shot back. "You like danger, don't you? That's why you're still here. That's why you haven't run the second Dominic let you go."

"I'm here for Elijah."

Vincent stepped closer. "No, Adrian. You're here because you're addicted to the chaos. Just like me."

Adrian's heart skipped a beat, his breath catching for half a second before he shoved Vincent away. "Stay the hell away from me."

Vincent let him go this time, but not without a satisfied smile. "Sure. For now."

---

Back in Elijah's room, silence filled the space after that kiss.

Elijah sat with his head against Dominic's chest, his fingers curled into the fabric of his shirt.

"I'm scared," Elijah admitted softly.

Dominic didn't respond right away. He just held him tighter.

"I know," he said at last. "But I'm here. And I'll fight every demon this world throws at us... even the ones inside me."

Elijah closed his eyes. "Just don't lie to me again."

"I won't," Dominic promised. "Not ever again."