Vain - Chapter 75 Meeting

Aileene didn’t know how she was supposed to react, she knew so clearly that Lucian was here. But she didn’t know what to do, her mind went blank and she froze. She wasn’t sure if she was afraid, afraid to confront him, afraid to lie to him or if she was truly happy to finally see him again, the one she was longing for all this time. Once again she couldn’t discern her feelings, time seemed to freeze for her. Until the abrupt voice of her knight brought her back to reality.

“Miss, there’s an intruder?” Knights came into her room armed and on guard. Her hands shook and she quickly hid it behind her back, she nervously glancedd to the curtains and back to her knights. They didn’t notice her subtle gaze and she was glad that they couldn’t see Lucian. She didn’t want her own knights to attack Lucian and mistake him for an intruder. She took a deep breath and calmed herself, she couldn’t show them her anxiety. She’ll hide Lucian for the time being.

“It was a false alarm, I had thought there was some suspicious noise. When I checked myself, it had just been the wind.” Aileene lied smoothly without any falter, she wavess her hand to dismiss the knights. Though they still showed some unwilling expression.

“Miss, don’t inspect anything for yourself next time. It could be dangerous.” The head of the knights tells her with a serious gaze, warning her to be careful. Aileene smiled without answering him, but when he finally felt assured enough he left. She shut her door and waited for a few moments so that everyone would be settled far from her room. She turned back to her curtains, which remained the same as it had before. She didn’t expect for it to change, but the emotions in her eyes changed greatly. She had confirmed that Lucian was there on the other side of the door, so she’ll be able to see him.

Aileene took slow and steady steps to the curtains, she prepared herself. But her breathing was still shallow, and her hands were still shaking. She grabbed the curtains and parts it to reveal the door out of of her balcony. There was no one visible to her at first, but she could sense that Lucian was there. The moon wasn’t full that night, so there were still many pockets of shadows that she couldn’t see clearly. Her hand grasps the ornate doorknob and turns it quickly stepping out onto the balcony. She was still in her nightdress, which was thin coming down to her ankle.

Her body was hit with the cold wind that blew past the balcony, her hair was swept across her face. And as she tried to pull her short hair behind her ears, she was engulfeded in a warm embrace. It was a warmth that she was used to, it was a hold that was unspeakably familiar to her. Aileene wrapped her arms around Lucian with no hesitation, she leaned into his chest, feeling his steady heartbeat. Even if she was distracted with all that surrounds her, she still couldn’t forget Lucian. She would never be able to, how could her heart let her?

“Lucian.” Her voice was barely above a whisper, it was just loud enough for him to hear her. As if reacting to her voice his hold around her tighten, he had blocked her from most of the winds, so she no longer felt cold. But she didn’t want Lucian to stay in the winds for too long either, she wordlessly pulls him into her bedroom and shuts the door behind her.

Aileene hadn’t looked at Lucian fully until he was inside her room, her eyes had adjusted to the darkness by now and she could see his appearance in the moonlight. Lucian was dressed in a black outfit with a hood to hide his face, but his hood had fallen down when he had rushed to hold her. His eyes were still the same violet that she fell so deeply in love with, but now there was a coldness to them that startled her. A moment of silence fill the room they were in and she could feel the tension that was forgotten return to her body.

Lucian had come all this way for her, he must want answers. But she didn’t know what she would tell him, she didn’t have the courage to lie to him anymore. She didn’t have the courage to meet his eyes and so her head was lowered as she stared at her bare feet. Her hands fidgeted behind her back, she didn’t know when she had grown so weak, but there was only one person she couldn’t defend against.

“Aileene, don’t run.” At the sound of Lucian’s voice, her eyes raise to meet his again, she was caught off guard by how sad and distraught Lucian had sounded. His voice was so weak and gentle, as he approacheded her she had no words to comfort him. She was the one that caused him this distress, after all, her voice was stuck in her throat and she could only meekly stare at Lucian. When he was close enough to her, he reached out to gently caress her cheek. His touch was so light and so tender but it cause her to she grow so restless.

She hadn’t known when the tears had started sliding down her cheek, but she could feel Lucian wipe away her tears. Slowly and deliberately. She raised her hand to hold the one he used to wipe her tears, she placed her cheek against the palm of his hand and meet his eyes with her own. There were no words that needed to be said, as he lowereded his head to her. Their lips met and she returns his kiss almost as desperately. Her back was pushed against the door behind her and his hand was at her waist.

Everything that needed to be said was said with his kiss, how he had missed her, how he had doubted her, how he had hopelessly searched for her. When they parted, Aileene was breathless and she still couldn’t speak. She didn’t know how to respond, she couldn’t help but wonder when was the last time she had been so tongue-tied.

“Lucian—” Aileene started, but was interrupted by a shout outside of her balcony alongside the clashes of swords reverberating throughout the garden.

Chapter end