Chapter 1

Sebastian POV

The city outside my window was too quiet for a Friday night. The usual noise of Austin seemed to fade away, almost like it knew I was alone. I sat on the edge of my plain sofa, my laptop on my lap. A half-empty coffee cup sat on the table nearby, growing cold. My apartment was quiet, clean, and very neat. It was the kind of emptiness people might think meant I was in control, but really, it just meant no one else was here with me.

I had no one waiting for me. No calls to make, no messages lighting up my phone with friendly greetings or even simple hellos. I hadn't really noticed it before, but the quiet felt heavy, pressing on my chest, filling every corner of the apartment like unseen smoke. But I liked it. I liked being able to choose exactly what I wanted, when I wanted it, without having to change for anyone else. The world outside could be crazy, messy, and full of surprises—but in here, everything belonged to me. Everything was perfectly kept.

But even perfection has small flaws. Even when you're in control, you can still feel a deep wanting.

It was one of those nights when I couldn't sleep that led me to search online. I looked at websites with names that sounded like secrets whispered in quiet, forgotten places. That's when I saw him. He wasn't advertised as a person, but as a "Perfect Companion." The ad said he was a Succubus, but the word didn't scare me. It promised he was handsome, loyal, and would meet all emotional needs. No returns or exchanges were allowed.

I leaned closer, looking hard at the picture. The person in the photo was incredibly beautiful. His silver hair seemed to flow like liquid light, and his red eyes sparkled like precious stones. His skin was pale but seemed to have a soft, warm glow. He wasn't just good-looking. He looked dangerous, captivating, and his gaze seemed to look right through me, even in the picture. My heart started beating faster, and I didn't know why.

The description went on: "He doesn't complain. He never fails. He offers company with no strings attached. Made for connection, loyalty, and closeness."

I closed the laptop for a moment, letting the words sink in. Closeness, company—these weren't things I shared easily. In fact, I rarely experienced them. Yet, here it was on my screen, promising all of it without any trouble.

My sensible mind tried to warn me. "It's just a product," it said. "A machine. Something you'll regret later. You don't usually do things on impulse." But the quiet hum of my apartment, the soft night outside, and the ache of loneliness pulled at something deeper inside me. I opened the page again. I read the ad one more time. And I only paused for a moment, thinking about how strange it was, before I decided.

I bought him.

The confirmation page appeared, plain and cold: "Thank you for your purchase. Your Perfect Companion will arrive soon. Please handle with care."

I gave a small, humorless laugh. The sheer strangeness of it almost frightened me. I had just bought… what? A machine? A creature? A companion made to understand my deepest, most private wishes? My fingers hovered over the keyboard as I thought about canceling the order. But the urge—that part of me that longed for warmth, even fake warmth—was already too strong.

The rest of the night was a blur of waiting. I made more coffee, looked at articles online, and cleaned the apartment without really thinking about it. Every sound, every distant door closing, made my heart beat a little faster. What if he wasn't what I expected? What if he was broken, or worse, dangerous?

I told myself I was imagining the danger, that the excitement was just in waiting. But my mind wouldn't stop. I pictured him being alive, stepping out from a dark corner, his red eyes shining with interest—or need. I imagined his hair falling across a face so perfect it hurt to look at, his presence filling a room completely, all without saying a word.

I shivered.

A sudden, loud knock on the door broke the silence. My heart pounded as if it had a mind of its own.

"Delivery for Sebastian Wilder," a man's voice said. He held a plain, ordinary-looking box.

I blinked. That was it? Just a box? No grand arrival, no warnings, no instructions on how to handle something that could possibly defy everything I knew? I took the box, my hands shaking a little as I adjusted my sweater. The delivery man nodded and walked away, his footsteps fading down the hall.

I put the box on the dining table and took a step back. It was heavier than I thought. It was smooth, sealed, and looked very ordinary. But still… I could feel something from it, as if the box held a heartbeat. My own pulse seemed to match it in the quiet apartment.

I stared at it for what felt like a long time, not sure if I should open it now or wait until morning. The night felt too delicate, too full of energy for waiting.

Finally, my curiosity took over. I knelt beside it, my hands shaking slightly, and pulled the tape. The cardboard opened to reveal soft foam, carefully shaped to hold something precious. And there he was.

Reed.

At first, he was completely still, his eyes closed, his lips slightly open. He looked so still that it was almost beautiful, but it was also very strange. His silver hair lay like flowing silk on the foam, a sharp contrast to the deep red that was just visible under his eyelashes. I could see his chest rise and fall with a faint, steady breath. It made me think I could almost hear it in the silence.

I swallowed, trying to calm my racing thoughts. "Hello," I whispered, not sure if he could even hear me.

His eyes opened. They were red, glowing softly in the dim light of my apartment, looking at me with a gaze that felt deep, assessing, and incredibly alive. It wasn't recognition—it was something more basic. Something demanding.

I stumbled back, putting my hand on my chest. He didn't speak. He didn't move. And yet, I felt him. His presence filled the apartment in a way my own loneliness never had.

For a moment, I couldn't move. All clear thinking vanished. The world outside—Austin, my carefully controlled life—simply ceased to exist. There was only this. Only him. Only those impossible eyes looking into me, as if judging my worth, my readiness, my… fitness for him.

And in that moment, I knew I had crossed a point of no return. I had invited something amazing, something dangerous, something both exciting and all-consuming into my life.

I cautiously reached out, my hand trembling as I gently brushed a strand of silver hair from his forehead. Reed moved his head ever so slightly into my touch, and a faint shiver went through him. It was small, almost invisible—but it was enough.

My apartment, my carefully protected space of control and being alone, suddenly felt too small. Too quiet and delicate.

I swallowed hard, trying to keep my thoughts focused. This was a product. A companion. Something made just for me. Not even a person. Not real.

But every feeling inside me insisted he was more. That he was alive. And he was hungry.

I carefully closed the lid of the box, stepping back, trying to make sense of the impossible thing I had just seen. My heart was still racing. My mind was filled with fear, desire, and fascination, all twisted together in a knot I couldn't untie.

It thrilled me.