Eliana gazed at the boy and smiled softly. In some way, she envied him for the youthful exuberance that came with that age. The gracefulness of his speech and the lust and love that she found in his eyes. She saw innocence there too, if she looked too closely. She had not found innocence in Adrian the first time she met him. Adrian had been too assimilated into the world when she met him. He had gone in too deep, been scarred too deep with wounds he refused to heal from, and when she began to try to love him, nurture him, and help him heal, he bluntly refused her help. Eliana saw nine of those in Rhys. Maybe he was too good to even allow the world to affect him like that. To gentlemanly. She smiled; she liked how she could dream of being young again when she looked into his eyes. Pretend she was running through the halls of this very mansion when she was still a child, carefree, and not bothered about the world. Rhys was the best man for Sophie. Although the two like to deny tha

All the things we did not think of My feet were dry against the smooth sand, and it stuck between my toes. I wiggled them out and returned to the forest road. Aunt was sleeping inside, and darkness had fully enveloped the forest. It has been four hours since I saw Uncle in the forest, and since then, nothing has happened. I had sneaked out again—past my aunt’s ‘nit-tight’ security—and now I was at the mouth of the forest, staring at the blackness that covered it. Bypassing my aunt’s security had been quite easy. I knew my aunt well and thought she was sad now; she still followed the routine she had created and slept before the clock ticked eleven. I had waited patiently, and once I saw that sleep had finally succeeded in drawing her into its embrace and her head had stopped its occasional nodding, I stood up and ran into her room. I collected blankets and pillows and made her as comfortable as possible. If she was comfortable, she would not wake up, and if she did not wake up,

Sophie just spoke. It was one word, but it was everything to him and to her. Her voice had been low, tired, patchy, and the last thing he expected. It was one word more than what he expected—more than what anyone expected. Eliana looked at Sophie as she slept soundly on the bed, and then up at Rhys. Her forehead creased. “Did you say she woke up just now?” she asked again, just to be sure. Youths these days liked to play ‘pranks’ although Rhys did not appear to her to be someone who liked to have a good laugh at the detriment of others. Still, what he said was just ridiculous. “And she spoke?” As she said it out loud now, it sounded even more ridiculous. Sophie could not speak. She has not said anything for the past twelve years. “Yes.” Rhys answered. “But...“ he trailed off. He looked unsure as his eyes strayed back to her face. Eliana was sure he was mistaken. “But what? Rhys?” She pressed. He shook his head. “She is asleep now. She said ‘help’ and her head just rolled ba

Rhys retired to his room, but he did not sleep. He couldn’t. All the years he had been with Sophie—from friends to employee and boss, to colleagues, to partners, and to whatever the situation it was that they were now—this was the first time they argued. He sighed deeply and kept his ears open to listen for anything that told him she had returned to her room. He hoped she would. She could not go wandering into the forest again at this hour. Although that place brought a sudden calmness to his soul and body, it also eked him out sometimes. This room, this house, and this mansion felt like prison, but he felt safer in the confines of prison. He pulled out the book—Sophie's—from his pocket. He would listen for her while he read. At most, reading would keep the sleep away while he waited, and he would learn something new. Probably. He flipped the pages of the book until he was at the last page, where he stopped and began reading: The doctors have finally broken the news to us. I mig

The long-awaited Ne’tib finally arrived. Sophie glanced at her reflection in the mirror and dabbed on the makeup she had applied to her face. She looked from this side to that side and then sighed. “You look beautiful.” Rhys said it from behind her. “A lot of men would dot on you today. And a lot of girls would wish they were you.” Sophie rolled her eyes. “I’m serious. But even if all the other girls became you, I would only choose you.“ He stepped closer and wrapped his arm around her. Sophie threw her head back and sighed again. They had evolved, she and Rhys, in the past five days after their fight. It seemed as though they were closer. More peace. She fished around in her bag, brought out a wet wipe, and began wiping the makeup off. Rhys stared at her in astonishment. “I seriously don’t understand your women. You spent so much time and so many hours on that face, and you will just wipe it all off without even showing it off? Then why did you put it on?” Sophie grunted.