#suitedshadow

You walk along the isolated path, shivering slightly. If you knew the winds were going to be this cold, you wouldn't have worn shorts. Honestly, you can't remember how you got here. You'd downloaded this app on your phone for urban exploring.

You'd set your intentions on it to love as a joke, expecting it to take you to a restaurant or a cute cafe. But no, it sent you to the middle of nowhere. You gazed at your phone's map again, feeling just a little relieved. You were getting closer. Only a few more steps till you were there.. And then you tripped over a branch of thorns, falling face first into the dirt. Your phone fell from your hand as you groaned, hearing it fall onto the grass.

You prayed to whatever deities might be above that it wasn't cracked as you got up and wiped the dirt off of it. Another cold breeze pushed you forward, further into the woods. The further you walked, the more roses you found growing along the path, which was strange. These weren't wild roses that you'd typically see blooming around this time.. The roses had to have been planted here by somebody.. But who?

The app buzzed, urging you to move forward. You sighed, already kind of sick of this. But you've walked for way too long to give up now. You just hoped it would be worth it. Walking forward once more, the smell of rose fragranced candle wax hit your nostrils, feeling soothing and..familiar?

Your phone buzzed once more, urging you to continue moving forward through the thick brush of weeping willows before you. You approached the trees, dread filling your senses. A part of you feared what lay beyond the thicket of leaves and branches, however, a much stronger part of you urged you to grow closer. You were so close..

Wearily, you pushed aside the long leaves of the canopy, bracing yourself for something horrifying.. Only to find a grand mausoleum made from polished marble. Your phone buzzed again.

Keep going!

There was no other way to go except for..inside.

Keep going.

You glanced at the trees behind you, then back at the structure before you.

This is such a bad idea..

You walk up the steps of the mausoleum, observing the candles and roses meticulously placed around with an astonishing amount of care. You hesitate at the last step before the large doors of the tomb. Was whichever goal you were trying to achieve worth disturbing whoever rests here?

Your phone buzzes.

Come closer.

The mausoleum doors open wide, almost as if inviting you inside. You bite your lip, still incredibly uncertain. You take another step.

Entering the mausoleum, you are immediately overwhelmed with a sense of deja vu, something familiar lingering in the air around you..

Step forward.

Once you do, a harsh breeze immediately shuts the door behind you, leaving you in near darkness. Moonlight starts to peak through the stained glass window high above the coffin. You'd been out here for much longer than you thought.

You turn around to leave, but a loud ringing pierces through the silence.

You weren't alone.

Your phone buzzes again.

Turn around.

The ringing is overwhelming.

You still don't turn around.

It gets louder, and your phone keeps buzzing.

Turn around.

You desperately try to open the doors.

They're sealed shut.

You're trapped.

You try again.

There's no point.

You have no choice.

You turn around, and are met with a terrifying sight. A well-dressed man with grey skin and void-like eyes stands before you, an aura of red and blue emanating from him. He holds a bouquet of white roses. Something about him is so..familiar to you.

Your phone buzzes with a much sweeter noise.

Striding along the hall, elegant, poised, collected, and holding back his rage. The sound of an ear-piercing ring intensifies with every footstep the demon takes. Any egos present within a 12 meter radius of him immediately scramble away for their lives, not wanting to be the next target of his wrath.

"Oh Dark! There you are, old friend! I was just about to go looking for you! What brings you by?" The eccentric spins a pen between his fingers, watching Dark take a seat at the desk in front of him, both the seat and part of the desk turning grey in the process.

"We need to put out want ads for a new studio assistant. Our current one had...an unfortunate incident." He explained with a sigh, a small cloud of frigid breath escaping from his lips.

"Darky, buddy, pal, I think you need to uh-" The temperature in the office quickly drops as a thin layer of ice starts to form around Dark's chair.

"Give yourself a day off! You need a well-deserved break after.. bossing people around all the time!" Dark stares at Wilford with an unreadable expression for a moment, before humming in approval.

"I suppose you're right. I'll take a day or 2 off. I trust you know how to run the studio, and that you will hire the best person for the job?" Dark asks, folding his hands on his lap as he awaits Wilfords response.

"Of course, of course! Go relax, I can handle everything!" Wilford waves his hand around, assuring Dark.

"Don't let Trimmer do the interview by the way."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Urgent: Notice of Termination" 

You groaned, not even bothering to open the email before you slammed down the lid of your laptop. This was the 4th time you'd been fired or laid off from a job. You were starting to feel hopeless, and you didn't even have enough money to pay your rent for the next month. Great, first you get fired, and then you're going to get evicted. 

Just wonderful.. You sigh and place your laptop back into your backpack, standing up to leave and maybe grab a coffee, your bus wouldn't be here until 11:45, and the current time was..11:43?!

You hurriedly made your way out of the shop. There were only 2 minutes to catch this bus, and the next one wouldn't be here for another hour. And then suddenly

CRASH

You fell onto the ground with multiple papers scattered all around the sidewalk.

"O-Oh god, I'm so sorry!" A boy stuttered, quickly picking up the scattered papers.

“Oh, uhm, It’s alright.” You mutter silently, helping him pick up the papers he’d dropped. You look to the side and frown, seeing your bus drive away. 

“I’m sorry again, um, bye!” He quickly walked away, dropping one of the papers in front of you. You pick up the flyer and turn it around, curious about its contents. 

“Now hiring! Assistant for Iplier Studios!”

Well, it couldn’t hurt to apply, right? There didn’t seem to be any complicated prerequisites. The second bus wouldn’t be here for another hour, so you should probably get some food. 

About an hour later, you exit the coffee shop once more, feeling a bit less put down with a drink in your hand. Unfortunately, you failed to notice your surroundings and ended up tripping while walking out of the door, your coffee spilling onto the person in front of you. 

“Please watch where you are walking next ti-” The man in the suit starts before his gaze lands onto your face. 

Dark stood beneath the moonlight, clutching a bouquet of white roses and a small black box covered in velvet, waiting patiently for you. Despite the cold weather, Dark was sweating and fiddling with his wrist cuffs as he panicked internally. He took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves.

He knew that this moment would be one of the most important events of his life and he was determined to make it perfect. He fixed his gaze on the garden gate, anticipating your arrival. What if you said no? What would he do then? Was he moving things along too quickly? He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, trying to clear his head.

You feel your heart flutter as he kisses your hand. "I could say the same about you my dearest. Every part of you is ever so intoxicating." He purrs as he runs his cold hands along your waist, your lips inches apart. "Which brings me to the reason I wanted to meet with you here." Dark gets down on one knee, taking one of your hands in his as he reaches into the pockets of his suit. You gasp as he pulls a small box from his pocket and opens it to reveal the most gorgeous engagement ring you've ever seen.

He knew he had to remain calm and focus on the task. He had to make this special moment count… You soon appeared, wearing the black knee-length dress he'd gifted you. He gazed at you, absolutely enamored by the way you looked in it. "You said you wanted to meet me? Something about an important matter?" You asked nervously as you stepped closer to him.

"Yes, darling. There is something I have been…itching to tell you." He says, his voice low and silky. "Oh, I almost forgot…A bouquet of roses for my sweetest rose~" You smile as you take the bouquet from him. "Oh Damien, you're much too sweet.." You take a deep breath and look into his eyes.

"My love, will you make me the luckiest man in existence and marry me?" Tears of joy flood your eyes as you nod your head in agreement. Dark slips the ring onto your finger gently as he stands up, sealing your lips together in a passionate embrace. "I love you so much, Damien.."