Halley raised an eyebrow and shot Rowan a brief glance before shaking his head.
Halley felt it was tough to change someone's nature and countered, "I don't think you'll have time to watch someone else's drama if your own is intense enough to handle."
Rowan rubbed his temples, his hand on his forehead, before replying vaguely, "I don't know if my drama will ever get a good ending. It's been going on for years, and still, no solution."
Halley chuckled and let the matter drop, while Rowan remained lost in his thoughts.
•••••
Luzella slept peacefully in Alaric's arms, her gentle breathing a soothing melody that calmed Alaric's soul. He gazed at her unblinkingly, his eyes tracing every detail of her serene face, lost in her world.
Luzella felt a growing discomfort from sleeping in the same position, and as she tried to move, she found herself restricted by gentle but firm hold. With a reluctant effort, she half-opened her bleary eyes, only to be met with a blurry haze.
Luzella blinked repeatedly, her eyelids fluttering like butterfly wings as she struggled to clear the fuzziness from her sleep-heavy eyes. As her vision slowly sharpened, her gaze focused on Alaric's figure before her, his chiseled features illuminated only by the soft, ambient light in the room. Still disoriented from the haze of sleep, her mind lagging behind her waking body, she murmured in a soft, husky voice, "Who are you?" Her words were laced with confusion, her brow furrowed slightly as she tried to place the familiar yet indistinct face so close to her.
As Alaric gazed at Luzella, his eyes crinkled at the corners with a gentle smile, a stark contrast to the cold distance he'd once shown her. His face inches from hers, his voice was a soft whisper, "I'm Alaric" the sound of his name spoken in a tender tone that seemed to wrap around her like a warm breeze.
Luzella's gaze locked onto Alaric's, her eyes searching his face as the haze in her mind finally began to clear. The fog lifted, and her vision sharpened, revealing the contours of his features in precise detail. As she took in his familiar face, recognition dawned on her, and now finally knowing his name, she whispered it "Alaric." The sound was tentative, as if testing the name against her memories, trying to reconcile the face with the sound of his name she had just heard.
As Alaric heard his name on her lips, a sense of déjà vu washed over him. Something stirred deep within his heart, and he couldn't shake the feeling that it was a memory he'd long forgotten, perhaps a fragment of their past that had been buried deep within himself. He nodded his head, a soft "hmm" escaping his lips in response to Luzella's utterance.
As the fog cleared from her mind, Luzella's memories came flooding back the every detail of how she'd ended up in Alaric's arms. Without attempting to pull away from him, she gazed blankly at his face and asked, "Why did you bring me here, to this place, to your mansion?"
Unlike before Alaric didn't try to intimidate her and chose to give her an answer that made Luzella's heart feel settled without burden or worry. "From now on, you are going to be with me, wherever I am."
Luzella's gaze faltered, and she nodded slowly, her eyelids drooping from his gaze as she lowered her head. Her soft hair locks fell forward against her shoulders. Her voice was barely audible when she finally spoke and the single word tumbled out "WHY?" The question hung in the air, heavy with unspoken emotions, as she waited for Alaric's response.
Alaric's fingers brushed against her skin as he gently put her hair locks behind her ear, sweeping them back over her shoulder. He leaned in closer, his gaze fixed intently on her lowered face, and asked in a low, husky tone, "Don't you want to be with me?"
Luzella didn't lift her head, and she questioned back, her voice barely above a whisper, "Do I know you to be with you? We're practically strangers."
Alaric put his fingers gently on her chin and lifted her face, his eyes locking onto hers as he asked, "Look at me and say it again, am I really a stranger to you? Will you just sleep like this in some stranger's arms?" There's a hint of fury in his voice.
Luzella's gaze met Alaric's, her eyes flashing with a mix of uncertainty and resolve as she said, "No, but it's the truth that I don't know you." Her words hung in the air, sincere and unflinching, as she held his intense stare. Then, her voice barely above a whisper, she added, "But I felt you were familiar everytime I saw you. It's just that I can't put my finger on how or why."
A flicker of rage ignited within Alaric at her words, but as she added that he felt familiar to her, his anger melted away in an instant, replaced by a warmth that spread through his chest.
Luzella's eyes searched Alaric's face, but he remained silent. Despite the softening of his expression, he offered no response. So, Luzella asked him again, her voice laced with a hint of curiosity, "Who are you? Why I have to be with you?"
"As I've told you earlier, you're with me now, and you're going to stay with me from now on, wherever I am," Alaric's low voice rumbled, the sound sending a gentle vibration through the air. "You have plenty of time to figure it out, so find out for yourself," he said, his words lingering in the silence. "Who am I to you? And why do you have to be with me? Ask within yourself and ask the familiarity you felt." The words seemed to echo off the walls, leaving Luzella's mind to wander through the possibilities. "Did you get it now, my little chick?"
"If I have to be with you every time, what about the orphanage I grew up in and the people who became my family, the work I'll have to do that I've studied hard for, and my life.... how will it all turn out?" Luzella snapped, voicing her sudden concern.