REBIRTH OF THE PATHETIC HUSBAND

A Visit From Lucifer

I stood there for a moment, my mind still reeling from Lilith’s words. The question burned in my chest, demanding an answer. “Why?” I finally asked, my voice barely above a whisper. “Why did Lucifer offer me a second chance? Why me?”

Lilith paused at the door, her hand resting on the handle. She glanced back at me, her crimson eyes glinting with something unreadable. “That,” she said, her voice smooth and deliberate, “is a question only Lucifer can answer. And soon, you’ll get that answer. But for now…” She gestured toward the bathroom door. “Go take a bath. Clear your head. You’ll need it.”

She walked back toward me, her movements fluid and hypnotic, and before I could react, she leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to my cheek. Her lips were warm, her touch almost tender, but it sent a shiver down my spine. “Don’t think too much, darling,” she murmured, her breath brushing against my ear. “You’ll drive yourself mad.”

And then she was gone, the door clicking shut behind her, leaving me alone in the room. I stared at the closed door for a long moment, my mind racing. A bath. Yes, I needed that. I needed to wash away the confusion, the fear, the disbelief. Maybe the water would help me think, help me make sense of everything.

It was only then that I truly noticed the room around me. My eyes widened as I took it in, the sheer opulence of it all hitting me like a tidal wave. The room was massive, easily the size of a small house, with high ceilings adorned with intricate carvings and frescoes that seemed to shift and dance in the light. The walls were covered in rich, dark velvet, and the floor was a mosaic of black and gold marble, polished to a mirror-like shine.

But it was the furniture that truly took my breath away. Every piece was crafted from what looked like solid gold—the bedframe, the dresser, the chairs, even the chandelier that hung above me, its crystals catching the light and scattering it in a thousand dazzling rainbows. The bed itself was a monstrosity of luxury, draped in silks and velvets in deep, rich colors—crimson, black, and gold. The pillows looked like they were stuffed with clouds, and the blankets were so soft they seemed to shimmer.

I walked over to the dresser, my fingers brushing against the surface. It was cold and smooth, the gold so pure it felt almost unreal. I opened one of the drawers and found it filled with clothes—expensive, tailored suits, shirts, and shoes that looked like they belonged to a king. Everything was pristine, untouched, as if it had been waiting for me.

I shook my head, trying to process it all. This room alone was worth more than anything I had ever seen in my life. The wealthiest man on Earth would go bankrupt trying to purchase even half of the things in here. And yet, it was mine. Or at least, it was Lucifer’s. And now… I was Lucifer.

The thought sent a chill through me, but I pushed it aside. I needed to focus. I needed to clear my head. I turned and walked toward the bathroom, my footsteps echoing softly on the marble floor.

The bathroom was just as extravagant as the rest of the room, if not more so. The walls were lined with black marble veined with gold, and the floor was a mosaic of tiny, shimmering tiles that formed intricate patterns. The bathtub was a massive, clawfoot monstrosity carved from what looked like solid onyx, its surface polished to a mirror-like shine. The faucet was gold, shaped like a serpent, its mouth open as if ready to spew water.

I stood in front of the mirror, my reflection staring back at me. I looked… the same. My face was still my face, my body still my body. But something was different. My eyes—they seemed darker, deeper, as if there was something lurking behind them. Something ancient. Something powerful.

I leaned closer, my hands gripping the edge of the sink. “Hi,” I whispered to my reflection, my voice trembling. “I’m… Lucifer.”

The words felt foreign on my tongue, wrong in a way I couldn’t quite explain. But as I said them, something shifted. The air around me seemed to grow heavier, the light dimming slightly. My reflection flickered, just for a moment, and I thought I saw something else—a pair of glowing red eyes, a smirk that wasn’t mine.

I stumbled back, my heart pounding in my chest. “What the hell…?” I whispered, my voice shaking.

But the moment passed, and my reflection returned to normal. I stared at it for a long moment, my breath coming in short, shallow gasps. This was real. This was happening. And no matter how much I wanted to deny it, no matter how much I wanted to wake up from this nightmare, I knew I couldn’t.

I stood there, staring at my reflection in the mirror, my mind racing with thoughts of the Prestwicks. The family that had treated me like dirt, like a servant, like nothing. The family that had taken everything from me—my dignity, my love, my life. And now, I had the power to make them pay. All of them. Except Mr. Prestwick. He was the only one who had shown me even a shred of kindness, the only one who had treated me like a human being. He didn’t deserve my wrath. But the others… Eleanor, her mother, and Christopher, the man who had pulled the trigger and ended my life—they were going to suffer. They were going to pay for what they had done to me.

A slow, dark smile spread across my face as I imagined it. The fear in their eyes, the desperation, the realization that they were no longer in control. That I was no longer the weak, powerless man they had once known. I was something else now. Something far more dangerous.

But then, something strange happened. My reflection… moved.

I froze, my smile faltering as I watched my reflection continue to smile at me, even though I had stopped. My heart skipped a beat, and I took a step back, my hands gripping the edge of the sink for support. The reflection’s smile widened, its eyes darkening, its features shifting and changing until it was no longer my face staring back at me.

It was him.

The man I had seen in the darkness, the man who had offered me a second chance. The man I had sold my soul to. Lucifer.

His face was sharp, angular, with high cheekbones and a strong jawline. His skin was pale, almost luminous, and his eyes… his eyes were the most striking thing about him. They were a deep, burning red, like embers glowing in the dark, and they seemed to pierce right through me, seeing everything, knowing everything.

“Hello, John,” the reflection said, his voice smooth and velvety, with a hint of amusement. It was the same voice I had heard in the darkness, the same voice that had offered me the deal. But now, it was coming from my reflection, from the man who was supposed to be me.

I stumbled back, my heart pounding in my chest. “What… what the hell is this?” I stammered, my voice trembling.

The reflection chuckled, a low, dark sound that sent a shiver down my spine. “Oh, John,” he said, his tone almost pitying. “You still don’t understand, do you? This isn’t hell. This is your new reality. And I… I am you. Or rather, you are me.”

I shook my head, my mind reeling. “No,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper. “No, this isn’t real. This can’t be real.”

The reflection’s smile widened, his red eyes glowing brighter. “Oh, it’s very real,” he said. “You made a deal, John. You gave me your soul, your body. And now, we are one. You are me, and I am you. And together, we are going to do great things.”

I stared at him, my breath coming in short, shallow gasps. This couldn’t be happening. This had to be a dream, a hallucination, something. But deep down, I knew it wasn’t. This was real. This was happening.

“Why?” I asked, my voice trembling. “Why did you choose me? Why did you offer me a second chance?”

The reflection tilted his head, his smile fading slightly. “Because you have potential, John,” he said. “You have a fire inside you, a darkness that you’ve been suppressing for far too long. I saw it. I saw what you could become. And I knew that together, we could unleash that potential. Together, we could rule.”

I shook my head, my mind racing. “I don’t want to rule,” I said. “I just want… I just want revenge.”

The reflection chuckled again, a dark, menacing sound. “And you shall have it,” he said. “But revenge is only the beginning, John. There is so much more we can do. So much more we can achieve. But first, you must accept who you are. You must embrace the darkness within you. You must become… me.”

I stared at him, my heart pounding in my chest. This was too much. Too much to process, too much to accept. But as I looked into those burning red eyes, I felt something shift inside me. A spark of something dark, something powerful. Something that had been buried deep within me, waiting to be unleashed.

And in that moment, I knew. There was no going back. I had made a deal with the devil, and now, I was going to have to live with the consequences.

The reflection smiled again, his eyes glowing brighter. “Welcome to your new life, John,” he said. “Or should I say… Lucifer.”

And with that, the reflection shifted back to my own face, leaving me standing there, staring at myself in the mirror, my mind racing with thoughts of revenge, of power, of darkness.