Chapter2

A chill seeped into my bones. After all, the plot of the novel mirrored my current situation perfectly.

What terrified me more was what came next. In the story, after the protagonist's third refusal, the little boy didn't just vanish. A few days later, he slipped right back into her dreams.

"He said that since I had turned down his windfall three times, he would find another way to repay his debt."

"He wanted to be my son and bring me good luck every single day. Naturally, I refused."

"I had a boyfriend. I figured that as long as I didn't sleep with him, there was absolutely no way that Fae could ever have a sliver of a chance to be born."

The chapter ended abruptly right there. I frantically tapped on the author's profile. The bio read: Updates nightly at midnight.

I glanced at the top right corner of my screen: 11:58 PM. Biting down hard on my lower lip, I stared into the pitch-black room, waiting for the minutes to tick by. 12:00. I frantically swiped down to refresh the page.

A new chapter popped up. The title consisted of four glaring words: The Protagonist Is Dead.

My finger froze in mid-air. How did she die? Did she take the little boy's money, or did something else happen? I immediately scrolled down to the main text.

"For the first few months, everything was completely normal. I actually thought the Fae boy was gone for good."

"Until six months into my separation from my boyfriend, I visited the campus clinic. The blood test results showed that, despite having zero sexual contact, I was pregnant."

The comment section below had already exploded.

"How do you get pregnant without sex? Author, is your main character some new species capable of immaculate conception?"

"Pregnant with her boyfriend's baby without even doing the deed? The guy must be getting cucked so hard he's glowing in the dark."

"Even urban legends need to stick to basic logic. I'm out, what a trash ending."

Reading the sarcastic comments, I couldn't bring myself to crack a smile. Keeping my thumb pressed to the screen, I kept scrolling.

"The Fae boy appeared in my dreams again."

"He giggled: 'Mommy, I knew you would keep me in the end.'"

" 'Because Daddy promised! He took the money, and once I'm born, he can take me to live in a big, beautiful house!' "

White noise blasted through my skull, wiping my mind completely blank.

Before I left, I had warned Liam, word for word, that if the little boy came to him, he shouldn't trust the monster and absolutely shouldn't agree to any conditions! But Liam's feverish expression at the mere mention of money flashed before my eyes again.

I practically clawed at my phone. Just as I was about to dial his number, a new message notification dropped down from the top of the screen. It was from Liam.

Mia! I met that Fae you were talking about!

Even through the screen, I could feel his sickening, overflowing excitement.

He really gives out cash! He said he could pass the good luck onto me and get me out of this broke life. I told him, hell yes, I need the money!

I bolted upright from the bed, my hands shaking so violently I could barely dial his number.

"Liam! You absolute idiot!" I screamed hysterically the second the call connected. "Don't you realize that everyone who takes a dime from him ends up dead?"

"I know, just chill out!" His breathing was heavy, and I could hear the rapid clack of his keyboard in the background. "The Fae said I'd receive a sum of money in my student account today—money I wasn't supposed to get. Babe, if this is real, we are totally saved! We won't get kicked out!"

"Don't touch it!" Hot tears pricked the corners of my eyes. "I am begging you, Liam, that blood money will kill you!"

A scoff came through the receiver. "If the school system deposits the cash directly into my account, why shouldn't I take it? It's rightfully mine anyway!"

"Look, don't kill my vibe."

He hung up on me.

At exactly 3:00 PM, my phone screen lit up. It was a screenshot of a bank deposit from Liam. The bold numbers glared across the screen: $26,000.00.

Barely a second after the image came through, my phone buzzed with an incoming call from him.

"Did you see it, Mia?! Did you see it clearly!" he shouted. "That missing federal grant they've been dodging for two years—the financial aid office actually just approved it and wired it straight to my account!"

"With this kind of money, I don't care if it's an evil spirit! I'm just going to pretend I never heard all that paranoid buzzkill crap you were spouting last night!"

My fingernails bit so deeply into my palms they almost drew blood. "Liam... right now, do you feel sick or hurt anywhere at all?"