ยซ her fear unmistakable within her gaze , in her visage that tensed with too many ill emotions.
โ i saw it . . i thought it was a nightmare , i didnโt . .โ
mouth gaped open , she stared for several long moments before she blinked her gaze back onto him.
margins spread at the teasing comment โ his playfulness easing a slight kernel of her worry ; although she hadnโt the chance to allow it enough time to settle.
before she could respond ; azriel was stripping away his combat gear. leathers and armour fell from his body ยป
ยซ she hadnโt see who those claws had sliced through , hadnโt been able to register the shadow shape but now . . now it made sense โ a warning ignored.
a frightful , shaken breath shuddered past her lips as she reached gingerly to hover her finger tips over the wound. ยป
ยซ that calmed her heart. his voice startled her , gaze snapping onto the male with slight shock ; it was rare to find anyone with an unfamiliar face in this particular place.
โ elain . .โ
her voice was soft , yet unsure.
โ and you are ?โ
โ โ โ โ โ โ
โ โ โ โ โ โ oblivious to the gaze that lingered upon her , attention consumed by the plus pink roses that had blossomed from buds of petals into a beautiful flower โ she cupped the natural beauty with gentle hands and leaned inward , inhaling the floral scent ยป
โ โ โ โ โ
immense happiness spread through her core , a rush of pleasurable emotions seeping into her bones as he held her tighter , kissed her with a depth she would crave until the day she died โ it was hard to think there was once someone else she adored , her idea of ยป
โI see all of you, and I adore you.โ
He used the very same words she had given him before pressing a kiss to her forehead.
โYou're so patient with me...โ His thumb brushed gently across her cheek. โI don't deserve you.โ
ยซ truth.
โ you forget , i was broken before . . confused , overlooked as a grieving bride . . even if my grief was real , you listened , you were kind and patient with me too . you were my friend first , then my saviour and now . .โ
elain paused . a pause that let ยป
ยซ mustโve been more needed and so she forced herself to reach a hand out , grazing her finger tips over soft petals and let the sensation settle of raging heart of concern.
โ the lemon tree has also sprung to life ,โ she breathed. โ small , but already sprouting bulbs of ยป
ยซ the blanket of concern heavy upon her ; elain wanted to question him , send him off to a healer for assessment or ask why he came straight here instead of caring for himself first but she couldnโt , wouldnโt utter those words because whatever drew him here first , ยป
ยซ his words tore a whimper that she had tried to stifle from her lungs ; her gaze indeed fell away from his then , searching his leathers , exposed flesh , anywhere for wounds that may be causing pain โ and even if his comment threatened a smile , it did not pierce through ยป
ยซ to the man she could share her light with and help carry his darkness.
it felt poetic โ but her heart ached with the slither of distance between them , a thread that would remain noosed around her neck for sake of others . .
elain released a shaky breath , as if ยป
โ โ โ โ โ
indeed he was a contrast to the surroundings she had created โ to her own self , but she had been forcibly tethered to what most might assume her picture perfect half and elain had despised it ; him. she desired nothing more than to instead tether herself ยป
fixed on her face, and after a moment, the faintest smile touched his lips.
"The cherry tree ripened."
His voice softened with wonder as he glanced toward the tree.
As though, despite everything, the sight of fruit hanging from its branches was still enough to amaze him.
ยซ unaware she had been holding that breath.
โ are you hurt ?โ
she wanted to assess , ensure the blood was not his โ see the lack of wounds on him to prove he was indeed unharmed but she couldnโt draw her eyes away from his , couldnโt stop pouring her adoration into his.
โ โ โ โ โ
soft petals graze the tips of her fingers , floral scent swirls within her as she inhales a deep breath and merely exists within the surrounding earthiness โ there was something profoundly healing here , an atmosphere of life that could seep into the thickest of ยป
A restorative potion.
A breath of spring after an endless winter.
Without even realizing it, Azriel sank down onto the grass beside Elain and drew in a long, deep breath.
ยซ unable to tear her gaze away from the male โ from the aftermath of battle splayed across him , her features settled with concern. gentle and genuine as she approached , stopping inches before him , head tilted back to stare upon his face.
โ youโre back .โ
she breathed , ยป