Poem Afterglow Novels & Stories

And we had just celebrated our first turn. The final notes of the song faded, leaving a silence that was rich and full, like the quiet after a gentle rain. The torches were extinguished, not with a hiss, but with a soft sigh, plunging the compound into a darkness softened by starlight and the lingering warmth of shared purpose. The great, turning circle of light was gone, but its impression remained, etched into the night air and into every heart.

(Aria’s PO‌V) ‍ The ligh⁠ts brighten again befor‍e I’m r‍eady f‍or them. Morning, or what passes for morn‌ing here. The white glow has n‌o warm⁠th; it erases shadow⁠s instead of making them.

Loyalty had been her only code, even when it cost her everything. Even when it cost her Natalie. Her baby girl had been eight when they took her away. Now she was twenty-two, somewhere out there in the world, maybe still angry, maybe not. Meekey had written every year. Birthdays. Christmas. The day she first walked. The day she lost her first tooth. All the moments she missed, she tried to stitch back together with ink on paper. But only one letter had ever come back. "I don’t know who you are anymore. Stop writing."

His grey eyes—dull, human, defeated—tracked upward, found my belly, stopped. "You carry," he whispered. "You carry still." "I carry what you tried to kill." I descended one step. Then another. Close enough to see the marks on his arms—self-inflicted, jagged, my name carved upside down and backwards, as if written in a mirror. "What is this, Leon? Poetry?" "I thought—" His voice cracked. He tried again, throat working. "I thought if I wore your name, the moon might return my wolf. Might return... you."

I spent all my life with you, and that makes it worth living. The edge of the flame licked Grace's flesh before it ruthlessly consumed her whole. Then, a faint, weak voice reverberated in the air. "The sky is bright, and the moon is so high. And precious Willow's sleep drew nigh."

And I would rise gloriously from the ashes. The waiting was agony, but triumph blazed so near at hand I could taste it - rich honeyed wine upon my tongue. Just a little longer before her end. Our end was in sight.

With a determined focus, I channeled my energy, willing it to return to me and release her from its grasp. With each passing moment, I could feel the familiar surge of power coursing back into my veins, the glow surrounding Allegra slowly fading as the bond between us shifted once more. But even as relief flooded through me, a faint shimmer of light remained with her; a faint glow remained with Allegra, and when she started to wake up, the glow retreated into her body, a silent testament to her sacrifice.

There, in the garden, with the sun shining on her face, surrounded by those she loved and listening to their laughter, she realized that that old song was true: LOVE AFTER LOVE, MAYBE, MAYBE IT LOOKS LIKE THIS RAY OF SUNSHINE AND NOW THAT I'VE SEARCHED AND NOW THAT I'VE FOUND THE PERFUME THAT CARRIES THE PAIN IN THE ESSENCE OF SOULS ALL RELIGIONS SAY FOR ME, THAT IS LOVE AFTER LOVE. (Fito Paez)

My whole body shook and I couldn’t stop the shriek that escaped me. He began licking my gushing juices hungrily. His muffled groans matched my moans. Mike’s tongue must have been unusually long because it hit all the right places, including my g-spot. It took me beyond the clouds and into another dimension. I felt my orgasms approaching and gritted my teeth to hold my cry of ecstasy. Then he pulled back, licking his lips.

She sat down again, with a meaningful space between us which got me to smile lightly, of course, she wasn't aware of my smile, because her face was buried in the book she was not reading, she was just avoiding my eyes. "Back to the poem; Poem for My Love by June Jordan." I read out the title of the poem and its poet before handing the script back to Adrian. "Read out the poem Miss Williams." She took it from me and began reading, "How do we come to be here next to each other in the night Where the stars that show us our love are inevitable Outside the leaves flame usual in darkness In the rain Falls cool and blessed on the holy flesh." She raised her head to glance at me, "That's all Dr Raph