Chapter 425: Calm And Emotionless
(From Blue's Perspective)
When I woke up, my body felt better. I did not feel as weak as before, though I was not completely energized either.
I moved my hands and legs. I was free to move, but I could hear the sound of metal clicking together.
I opened my eyes slowly. "Haa…"
"Darling, you are up."
"Dem… Honey…," I broke out in tears once again.
His black eyes, black hair, and those brownish-pink lips- these all belonged to my husband. He looked very tired. There was a dark circle under his eyes. But he looked just as handsome as before.
"Ah… I… I…"
"Shh…," he said, pressing his index finger on my lips. "I will say and you will listen. Then, I will listen."
"I heard about your sudden disappearance from Luc. I came back right away. I could not believe what was happening. Trust me, I trusted you. Even though sometimes my mind thought otherwise, my heart always trusted you. I believed you would not run away from me."
"I… did not…"
"Love is based on trust, you always said that. I tried to believe it. I tried to believe you won't run away. It doesn't matter how, but in the end, you did leave me."
"Dem… It's…"
"I came back to the palace and you truly were not there. I searched everywhere. I questioned everyone. There were only questions, but no answers. Even the guard I sent was missing. Your assistant was missing.
Your mage had no idea where you or they were. I asked Ava. She could not say anything. No one could say anything," he said. His voice was calm and cold as if he was reciting a poem without any emotion. I had never seen him acting this quiet about a matter like this.
People, who did not know him, would think nothing of it. But I knew him.
And I knew how scary and serious the situation was.
"I was sacred… anxious. I have never felt like that ever before. Ah, no, I did. You know when? It was when you were not waking up. I felt so helpless standing by your side; I could only watch.
This time, I could not even see you, feel you. You were not with me… And I realized how much I needed you, how much I wanted you and how greatly my whole body and mind choose you."
"I looked for you everywhere, every single place I could think of," he continued, his eyes fixed on mine. The blackness in his eyes seemed to be consuming me. But I did not hate it. "I went to the lavender field as well. I could the dead body of my Lady Caerlion. And… I found a letter in a bottle.
You know what it was?"
I shook my head.
"It was a letter with your handwriting," he said. "You left a letter for me."
The worst part was not Dem looking cold and emotionless. It was the fact that I had never left him any letter, nor did I ever hear about a letter.
"Dem… L-Listen…"
"You wrote you found a new place. You found out how amazing freedom is. And you did not want to leave like a captive with me. My question is- did you feel like a captive with me? I never locked you up, Blue. I only said so… I was jealous, but I tried to keep myself in check regarding my excessive jealousy.
I tried everything. Then, were you unhappy with me?"
"N-No…"
"Did you want something that I could not give you?"
"N-No… I… I just wanted… to have… a family… I wanted us… t-to be… the perfect family," I said. "I wanted a kid… Or maybe more. I wanted… the love… between us… t-to stay… forever…"
"Your voice…," he said, running his fingers over my neck gently. "What happened?"
"L-Long story…," I chuckled. "It will… get b-better…"
"Yeah, I have a long story too, a really long story," he said.
"Dem… can… we please… talk later?" I asked.
"If we talk later, it's going to be really late. Are you okay with that?"
I did not want to tell him about what I went through right now. I wanted to talk about nothing. I just wanted to hold, and feel him as close to me as possible, so I could finally believe that he was with me.
"Yeah…"
"No…," he shook his head. "No, Blue. Don't say yes."
"Please… D-Dem…," I said, touching his face. "I want you."
"I am barely controlling myself here. I don't want to hurt you. And if I start, Blue, we will stop only when I am done. I won't be able to control myself," he warned.
"It's… alright… So, please…"
"Alright," he said dangerously. "That said, it's surprising how you still haven't taken a good at your legs and hands.
That was when I found out what the clinking sound was.
"You… You chained… me?" I asked in utter disbelief.
"I did."
"Dem… I… I did not run… away f-from you…! It's not me…! Azure… M-My father… took me… away, Dem…!"
"If only I had locked you up, you wouldn't have gone to the lavender field. If only, I knew."
"Dem… No…"
"But I feel like I am doing something wrong, very very wrong," he said, touching my nose with his. His face was very close to mine. The chain was very long, so I could move my arms and legs freely. I touched his face and neck. I wished I could ease his mind in some way.
"But I feel guilty," he said. "I really don't want to have you like this. I wish you will want to be with me. But you know, what if someone takes you away from me? Even seven days ago, you were not here!"
"Seven… days?" I asked.
"You were treated. You were too weak. Even that girl, Athena, came to heal you."
"She… healed me?"
"She has healing power, just like I said after reading her mind. Your body had some bruises on your arms and shoulders as if someone held you from there really hard."
'Lloid did, when he tried to take my clothes off.'
"There was a mark on your cheek."
'It's where Lloid hit me.'
"A burn mark on the right side of your neck."
'Probably when Azure tried to break the barrier. I knew I was hurt, but that was not the important thing at the moment.'
"And… a fucking brand on your back! On my wife's back!" he suddenly exploded. "Who dared to do this? Who did this to you? Not only did they brand you, they also hurt you, and made you weak! Was it just your father?
Who made those marks on your arms? Who slapped you? And who burned the side of your neck? No, first tell me, who branded you alive?"
"… Dem… Please… Can we please… t-talk about it… later?"
"Baby, there is no… Haa," he sighed, standing up. He looked devastated as the emotions suddenly burst on his face. "Do you want me to hold you?"
I nodded.
"There is no going back. I am going crazy here! I am losing my freaking mind! Blue, I am a beast. Beasts don't mind going crazy, but they mind hurting the one and only thing they love."
"I am… fine…"
He stared at me. Then, he touched the bedside table. At that moment, I realized it was not the palace. We were somewhere else.
Before I could ask, my sight went blank. He put a blindfold over my eyes. "Dem…?"
"Your eyes… They confuse me, they make me forget everything- pain, sorrow, everything," he said. "But this time, I do not want to forget anything. I need to remember what it felt to be without you. I need to remember how desperately I looked for you. And I need to remember there are people who I need to kill because they hurt you. For a while, let me remember everything."
"Do I need… to remain… l-like this?" I asked.
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"Please. Just until I can calm down by myself," he said, giving a small kiss on my neck. "Just be patient, baby."
I did not say anything. I did not know what to say. He took the silence for a yes. I felt the heat of his body getting closer until his lips touched mine.
As if like music, our lips moved in sync. He mingled our tongues as I opened my lips, inviting him.
"Darling, did someone else kiss you?" he asked, biting my earlobe.
"N-No…"
"Did someone try?"
"… Uhm…"
He bit harder. "Ah!"
"How did you avoid? It was a guy, wasn't it?"
"Azure's… servant," I replied. "H-His name… is Lloid… I hit him… a… f-few times… But… I just couldn't… Cyan helped me."
"Cyan?"
"He is… my brother…"
"Ah, you told me about him before. And he is the one you were calling back in the forest. I was so angry that I forgot about it."