[VOLUME 12: THE ORIGIN][ERA: THE PRIMEVAL AGE][LOCATION: ELARA'S APOTHECARY / THE LOWER VALLEY]
Elara could not sleep.
Her small bedroom, usually a sanctuary of dried lavender and quiet moonlight, felt suffocatingly warm. The giant stuffed bear Aldren had won for her took up half the mattress, its glassy button eyes seemingly mocking her flushed cheeks. On her wooden nightstand, the exquisite jade lotus hairpin Li had given her gleamed softly in the dark.
Every time she closed her eyes, she was back in that narrow alleyway at the Night Market. She could feel the solid, scorching heat of Aldren's chest against her back, and smell the crisp, rain-washed scent of Li caging her in from the front. The phantom sensation of their intense, reverent gazes made her Eternal Core flutter wildly against her ribs, sending sparks of unfamiliar, intoxicating heat down to her fingertips.
