Chapter 10: Arrival of my fiancé (2)
She threw her arms around Naoki and held him tightly, her whole body trembling as loud sobs escaped her lips. She buried her face into his chest, clutching him as though letting go would tear her in half.
"Aether… I'm sorry," she cried. "These past two months while you were in a coma… I finally understood what your love meant."
Her voice wavered, but she didn't stop.
"You're all I want. You make me whole. Your absence left holes in my heart… and I couldn't fill them with anything but tears."
Naoki froze. The warmth of her touch, the sincerity in her words, it felt real. But his mind was in chaos.
'She loves Aether… not me. This engagement, this love, it was meant for someone else. A name I now carry, but a life I never lived.
Naoki's chest tightened. He had planned to end the engagement. It seemed like the right thing to do.
But now… hearing the depth of her feelings, seeing the tears she shed for Aether.
How could he just walk away!
'How am I supposed to face her like this? To accept her love when it was never mine to begin with?'
Before he could speak, a calm voice interrupted !
"Young lady, young master Aether is not fully healed. Please, do not overexcite him."
It was the voice of Lina, Cierra's personal maid. She had served her since childhood, managing everything from her wardrobe to her health, and often acting more like an older sister than a servant. Lina always appeared at the right moment, quietly watching over Cierra like a guardian shadow.
Cierra stepped back, wiping her eyes, and gave a small nod.
"…I understand," she whispered.
Then, Cierra leaned in close, so close that Naoki could feel her breath against his ear. Her voice was soft, like a secret carried on the wind but every word burned with feeling.
"Listen to me, You dummy…"
She paused, her voice trembling as she whispered,
"I need you.
Not in the way a lonely girl dreams of a prince…
But in the way the earth begs for rain after a thousand days of drought.
In the way a dying flame reaches for its last breath of air.
I waited two months, praying you'd open your eyes, begging fate to be kind just once.
Every day felt like a lifetime where I forgot how to breathe.
But now you're here… and I swear, if you leave again, my heart will tear itself apart just to follow you."
Naoki stood frozen, his hand clutching his chest as if trying to hold his shattered heart in place.
'What… is this fierce, burning madness?'
His heart pounded wildly, desperate to break free from its cage.
Then, his voice came out, raw and trembling with pain.
"Cierra, if I had never woken from my coma, or if I had died, laid beneath the cold earth.
If someone were to dig my grave, they would find it stained with my blood.
They would see how the agony of your absence shattered my heart,
And how I buried it deep, drenched in endless pain."
"!!!!"
Cierra stood frozen, her eyes wide, her lips parted as if the words had stolen the air from her lungs.
The entire courtyard fell into stunned silence.
Every noble, servant, and guard who had witnessed the scene was left speechless. They had heard love confessions before—but this? This was something else. This was not mere affection. It was madness. Beautiful, aching madness.
Even the head butler, known for his stoic composure, could only blink in disbelief, his mouth slightly agape.
Lina, Cierra's personal maid, clutched her hands to her chest. Her cheeks were flushed, her heart fluttering.
'This boy… he truly has the heart to stand beside Lady Cierra' she thought, eyes shimmering.
Even little Lyra, who stood at the far side, was utterly mesmerized. It reminded her of the fairy tales her bug sister used to read to her at night, the prince who would bleed the earth dry just to reach his princess. Her eyes sparkled, filled with wonder and hope.
And at the center of it all stood Cierra. trembling, breathless, broken open by words so raw they left her soul exposed. Her cherry-pink lips parted as she tried to breathe, her cheeks a deep shade of red, ears burning, eyes glassy with unshed tears.
She looked at Naoki.
And Naoki… was just as stunned.
He blinked slowly, his hand still pressed over his chest where his heart refused to calm down.
'What… what did I just say?
That wasn't me… was it?'
It felt like the words had risen from someplace far beyond his thoughts.
As if the heart inside this body. the one that once belonged to Aether, had cried out on its own.
His chest tightened. His pulse raced faster and faster.
It felt like his heart might burst, like it was whispering feelings even his mind couldn't catch up to.
Panting heavily, Cierra suddenly turned and ran toward the mansion.
Her long, violet hair streamed behind her like a ribbon caught in the wind.
Her entire body was flushed red, from her cheeks to the tips of her ears.
She didn't look back.
She couldn't.
All she could hear was the pounding of her own heartbeat, louder than footsteps, louder than the world.
Thump… thump… thump…
Her feet moved faster than her thoughts, as if her heart feared it might shatter from feeling too much.
'Love was supposed to be soft… but why did it hurt so beautifully?' Cierra thought to herself, Her chest ached with uncontrollable pain.
She ran not to escape him
But because if she had stayed a second longer,
She would have completely fallen apart.
Meanwhile Naoki stood there, completely frozen.
His face was flushed red all the way to his ears.
His heart was pounding so fast it felt like it might explode.
Thump… thump… thump…
"Ahhhh… this is so embarrassing…" he mumbled under his breath, covering part of his face with his hand.
'Is this what love feels like?'
He glanced toward the mansion where Cierra had disappeared.
His hand rested over his heart, as if trying to calm it.
But it refused to listen.
It just kept beating.
Wildly.
For her.
.
.
.
.
.
.
To be continued....