“Are you… a god?”
Avey hadn’t even realized she was asking. The words left her lips as if pulled by the weightless serenity around her the clarity, the surreal lightness.
She should have been dead. She had jumped. She had accepted it. Yet, she was here, standing, floating… alive.
The woman seated at the desk tilted her head, as if amused by the question.
“Am I a god?” she mused, tapping her chin. “No, not in the way you understand. But compared to humans? It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call me one. What you consider miracles walking on water, turning water into wine, saving a million lives those things are so… small.”
Her gaze was steady, unreadable.
“I have saved trillions. Maybe quadrillions. I have seen worlds crumble and universes fade, and I have restored them. So, whether I am a god or not…” She shrugged. “That depends on your perspective.”
Avey inhaled sharply.
It wasn’t arrogance in her voice, nor boasting. It was just fact.
“So… you are a god,” she murmured, more to herself than to the woman before her.
Strangely, she felt no fear. No anxiety. Maybe it was this woman’s presence. Maybe it was the sheer weight of her existence that made all emotions fade into stillness.
“Did you save me?” Avey asked, her voice softer now.
Diablo held her gaze for a moment, then nodded with a small smile.
“Yes. I saved you.”
Avey’s throat tightened.
“Do you… save everyone?”
Diablo shook her head. “No. You are the first human I have ever made an exception for.”
Avey’s breath caught.
“The first…” she whispered, unsure of what to make of it.
She wanted to ask why ..why her but before she could, a small voice interrupted.
“Hey, hello, girl.”
Avey turned toward the sound and finally noticed the small figure standing on the table.
Her eyes looking down
A child? No… not quite. It looked like a child soft, round face, bright intelligent eyes but something about him felt… special.
He wore a shark-themed outfit, an odd contrast to the maturity in his gaze.
Avey blinked.
Why did this tiny being feel… familiar?
The child-like figure gave her a knowing look.
“I’m Max,” he introduced himself with a small nod. His tone was mature, nothing like a child’s. “You’re probably confused how you got here, why you’re here at all. And I’ll be blunt with you.”
His gaze softened.
“We had no plans to bring you in.”
Avey frowned slightly.
“But…” Max continued, his voice gentle, almost careful. “You can’t die. Not now. Maybe never.”
A pause.
“It’s not good for Lucian.”
Avey’s entire body tensed at that name.
Lucian.
Her throat tightened. Her heart clenched painfully.
“You… know Lucian?” she asked, barely above a whisper.
Something about the way Max spoke it felt… familiar. The way he said Lucian wasn’t casual. It wasn’t distant.
It was personal.
“Are you close to him?” Avey’s voice wavered.
Max met her gaze. His expression softened.
Before he could respond, Diablo chuckled.
“Heh. Max knows that kid better than anyone. He’s seen him from birth to now~”
But she didn’t get to finish.
Max interrupted her.
“He… Lucys like a son to me.”
Avey froze.
huh
Max’s voice carried no hesitation. No uncertainty.
he felt so genuine
“I’m more like a father to him,” Max continued, his expression unreadable. “Maybe… I don’t know if he feels that way about me. But to me, Lucian has always been like a son.”
Avey’s breath hitched.
Her mind couldn’t process it.
Lucian… had someone like that? Someone who had watched over him, cared for him, seen him from childhood to now?
Why does she don’t know about that then
For a moment, she could only stare.
Diablo, too, had gone quiet. She turned her head slightly, watching Max with raised brows in surprise.
“Like a son, huh…” she murmured, a small smile playing on her lips. “Now I understand why you did all that.”
Avey, still in shock, barely heard her.
“Like a son?” she repeated, her voice barely audible.
She looked down at the small figure this child-like being who had spoken with such warmth, such genuine care.
She wasn’t sure why, but… she could feel it.
It wasn’t an act.
He meant it.
Max met her eyes, his expression unwavering.
And for the first time in a long time, Avey felt something she couldn’t name.
Something close to fear.
Max sighed.
With a casual wave of his hand, the air shimmered.
Huh?
Avey gasped as she suddenly found herself seated in a chair, facing the wooden table. Across from her, the mysterious woman sat with a knowing smile, and on the table between them was Max.
She blinked, looking around in confusion. How?
Magic?
Max let out another deep sigh, his small body still, his round eyes dark with emotion.
Lucian would go crazy if he knew this idiot tried to kill herself.
The thought weighed on him.
Max didn’t hate Avey.
Even though she had caused Lucian pain, even though she had broken him, even though in another life Lucian had ended himself because of her Max didn’t hate her.
No, what he felt was pity.
Not just for Lucian.
For both of them.
Because he knew.
Others might not, but Max did.
She had no choice.
The fog of fate bound her. The more she tried to be near Lucian, the more she ended up hurting him. It wasn’t her fault.
And in a twisted way… Max was grateful to her.
Everyone else might forget, but he wouldn’t.
She was the only light in Lucian’s life when he was drowning in darkness.
She had been his reason to endure.
Max exhaled sharply, rubbing his temples.
And even if she had been at fault… what right did he have to judge?
Hadn’t he done worse?
Wasn’t he the biggest reason for Lucian’s suffering?
If he had never stepped into Lucian’s life… maybe things would have been different.
But in the end, Lucian loved this woman.
So Max couldn’t bring himself to dislike her.
Whoever Lucian calls family Max does too.
The silence stretched.
Avey fidgeted under Max’s intense gaze.
His eyes held too much.
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Too much knowledge. Too much sorrow. Too much understanding.
Why was he looking at her like that?
She swallowed. “Max…right umm?”
Max didn’t answer.
Diablo simply smiled, watching the two of them, letting the heavy air settle.
Avey clenched her hands in her lap.
She wanted to ask something, but… for some reason, she was scared of the answer.
The room remained silent.
And in that silence, everything was understood.
Max exhaled, dragging a hand down his face.
Damn it.
Lucian really does pick the hardest paths, huh?
Avey shifted in her seat, feeling the weight of Max’s gaze on her.
Too intense. Too sharp.
It made her uneasy. She wasn’t used to this kind of silence this kind of scrutiny.
Finally, she spoke.
“Why…” She swallowed. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
Max blinked, as if snapping out of deep thought. He tilted his head, studying her for a second longer before responding.
“Because I’m trying to decide if I should scold you or just feel sorry for you.”
Avey stiffened.
That… wasn’t the answer she expected.
From across the table, Diablo chuckled softly, clearly entertained. But she didn’t interrupt. She just leaned back, watching, letting the conversation unfold.
Avey hesitated, staring down at her hands.
Then, finally, she spoke again.
“You guys can do all this… magic.” She gestured vaguely. “You even saved me from dying. You said I’m special. So I think… you already know the reason, don’t you?”
She let out a breath, forcing a bitter smile.
“You must know what a disgusting person I am.”
Max didn’t react. Diablo didn’t either. They just watched her. Listening.
Avey clenched her fists.
“I treated the person who loved me like dirt.” Her voice was quieter now. “And when I finally tried to fix things… he said he hated me.”
She swallowed the lump in her throat, shaking her head.
“I couldn’t take it.”
Her fingers dug into her lap.
“I thought… maybe running away from everything was the best option.”
Silence.
Max’s jaw tightened.
“Stupid,” he muttered, his voice low but sharp.
Avey flinched.
He hadn’t raised his voice. He didn’t need to.
“I didn’t give you a second chance just for you to waste it like this.”
Max’s small hands clenched into fists.
“Do you have any idea how much I lost to give you this chance?”
His voice trembled not with anger, but something deeper.
Something Avey couldn’t quite place.
“Do you really think this kind of miracle comes for free?”
Avey opened her mouth, but nothing came out.
Max exhaled sharply, shaking his head.
“Damn idiot.”
He rubbed his temples, clearly trying to calm himself.
She had just attempted suicide. She wasn’t in the best state of mind. He knew that.
He shouldn’t scold her too harshly.
But still
He was frustrated.
Because if Lucian knew what she’d tried to do…
He’d break all over again.
Max leaned back, pressing his lips into a thin line.
“Don’t you dare pull this kind of crap again,” he muttered.
wait second chance….you?
——-