The cacophony of female voices swirled and blended, merging into a throbbing headache behind Phainon's temples. He sat locked in his room, trying to block it all out. Damn it, they were at it again—women clamoring at his door, each desperate to claim a piece of him for herself.

His gaze fell upon the open window, and a plan, desperate and simple, ignited in his mind. Without a second thought, he launched himself through the opening, soaring directly toward the shimmering portal that led to the human world below. The cool celestial air rushed past his feathers as he cast one last look at the familiar skies of his homeland, then plunged through the vortex.

He emerged in the cold, unfamiliar air of the human realm, his wings snapping open instinctively. The atmosphere felt heavy, dense compared to the light air of Anemoidos. He fought for control, trying to steer for a gentle landing, but his exhaustion and the strange air currents betrayed him. Momentum carried him helplessly forward, and he crashed through an open window into someone's apartment.

The landing was a tangle of limbs and feathers. Glass shattered around them as the world settled, and he realized he was pinning a girl to the floor. The scent of her hair—something sweet and earthly—filled his nostrils as he looked down, and his breath caught in his throat. She was beautiful. Her eyes, wide with shock, gazed up at him, pulling him in like the gravity of a distant star, beckoning him closer.

"Have I returned to the heavens?" he murmured, his voice laced with wonder. "Why else would I see an angel again?" He leaned closer, his massive wings unfurling further to envelop them in a dark, private canopy that blocked out the rest of the world.

Driven by a lifetime of ingrained certainty—that every woman dreamed of his touch—he closed the distance, his lips meeting hers in a soft, presumptuous kiss. Her skin was warm against his, softer than anything he'd ever known in his celestial home.