LOGINRue’s POVPercy tried to sit up after Dr. Virel left, but his hand moved toward the bandage near his side. He thought I did not notice, but I noticed everything now.“You know,” I said, sitting beside him, “for someone who acts so cold, you blush too easily when your doctor sides with me.” Percy looked at me. “I did not blush.”“You did,” I said. “Your ears became red.” His face tightened, but he looked more embarrassed than angry. “Rue, do not make fun of me.”“I am not making fun of you,” I said. “I am reminding you that you are still handsome even when you look awkward.”Percy looked away. His fingers moved close to the scars on his arm. I reached for his hand before he could hide them.“Do not look at them like that,” I said. He became quiet. “They are not pleasant to look at.”“They are part of you,” I said. “Some came from old injuries. Some came from the blood pact backlash. Some came because you suffered too much alone. I hate that you were hurt, but I do not hate your scars.”
I nodded slowly. “Then I will show you.” Percy looked at me with doubt. “Words are easy.”“Then don’t believe only my words,” I said. “Watch what I do.”He did not answer, but he did not push me away. I helped him lie back down and fixed the blanket over him. When his body relaxed again, I sat beside him and held his hand.The rest of the night passed quietly. Sometimes Percy opened his eyes and looked at me, as if checking whether I was still there. Each time, I looked back and squeezed his hand.“I’m here,” I said once. He closed his eyes again, but this time, his hand stayed loose in mine.When morning came, Percy woke before me, but he did not move away. I opened my eyes and found him looking at me carefully. “You slept sitting up,” he said.“I said I would stay,” I answered. “You finally slept. That was enough.”He looked away, but I saw his ears turn slightly red. It was a small reaction, but it made me feel a little less sad.A knock came at the door soon after. Dr. Virel enter
Rue’s POVPercy slept with his hand around mine, but his sleep was not peaceful. Several times, his brows tightened, and his fingers gripped mine harder. Each time, I called his name softly.“It’s all right,” I whispered. “I’m here.”He did not fully wake, but his breathing slowed again. I had promised him I would stay, so I stayed.Near dawn, the blanket slipped down from his shoulder. That was when I saw the scars on his skin. Some were thin and pale. Some were deeper and darker. A few were still healing, and the bandages near his side were stained with blood.Percy opened his eyes before I could pull the blanket back. He saw where I was looking, and his face changed.“Don’t look,” he said, trying to sit up. I held his shoulder gently. “Percy, let me see.”“No,” he said. His voice was still rough from sleep. “There is nothing to see.”“There is,” I said. “You have been hiding your pain from me for too long. I want to know what you went through.”His jaw tightened. “Knowing will not
Then I opened my hand and let her take the extra pill away. She placed it back into the bottle and left only the correct dose in my palm. “Take only that,” she said.I swallowed the medicine with water and placed the glass down. “Happy?”“No,” she said. “But less afraid.” I should have told her to return to the couch. Instead, I watched her stand beside me, small and stubborn, with worry clear on her face. “I still may not sleep,” I said.“Then I’ll stay awake with you.” She led me toward the bed as if I were the patient and she were the physician. I should have stopped her, but I followed. When I sat down, she sat beside me with a careful distance between us.“You don’t have to fix everything tonight,” she said. “You don’t have to trust me all at once. Just let me stay.” I looked at her. “And tomorrow?”“I’ll still stay,” she said. “I am not promising that we will never argue or that I will never be afraid. I am promising that I will not leave when things become hard.”Her words made
Percy’s POVRue did not leave after I told her to. She stood behind me for a long moment, and I could hear her breathing. I kept my back to her because I knew one look at her face would make it harder to refuse her.“I heard you,” she said quietly. “But I’m not leaving tonight.” My hand tightened beside me. “Rue, do not test my patience.”“I’m not testing you,” she said. “I came all this way because I’m worried about you.”I turned around slowly. “Do not call this worry.”“Then what should I call it?” she asked. “You love me. You want me here. But you keep using cruel words because you think they will protect you.”Her words made me angry because they were too close to the truth. “You do not know what I want.”“I know what you are doing,” she said. “And I know I hurt you when I could not answer you before. I will not pretend I did not.”I was surprised by how directly she spoke to me. She did not defend herself. She did not blame me. She only stood there with red eyes and refused to g
I looked at her sharply. “Because that was safer.”“For whom?” she asked. “Not for you. Not for me.” I had no answer.Rue came closer until only a few steps remained between us. “Percy, listen to me. I am not here because I am grateful. I am not here because I owe you. I am not here because I feel guilty about the donation.”She looked straight at me. “I am here because I love you. The blood pact may have connected us when we were young, but my choice now is mine. I choose you because I want you, not because I have to repay anything.”For one moment, I almost reached for her. My hand moved, then stopped. I remembered the lounge. I remembered asking if she trusted me and hearing no answer.I stepped back. Rue saw it, and her eyes filled with hurt. “Percy.”“No,” I said. Her lips parted. “No?”“No,” I repeated. “I will not reconcile with you.” She went still.I forced myself to keep speaking. “You heard about the pact, the donation, and my condition. You are afraid. That does not mean w
Aiden’s POVThe restaurant’s dim lights shone gold in a fancy way. The candlelights on our table flickering at the slightest gust of wind. Haven smiled as she delicately sipped from her wine glass. Clearly, she was enjoying the evening dinner. Myself on the other hand, I was already tired. I very
Rue‘s POVI blinked my eyes open when the bell rang at Iris’s school and the playground outside came alive with children’s chatter. I had been busy since 4 am in the morning, and in my waiting for Iris, I had fallen asleep in my car.I saw Iris in the company of other girls exiting the elementary s
Rue’s POVPreviously, we had taken a quick snack but it only fueled us for an hour. Bella insisted on a heavier lunch and for once that day, I supported her decision. After lunch, and some ice cream under Iris persistent requests, I was ready to call it a day and go home.But of course, Bella had o
Haven’s POVWhen Aiden finally sat up and the color returned to his cheeks, I felt like I was witnessing a miracle for the first time. He rubbed his chest as if feeling for the pressure that had been there, the huge weight that had kept him from breathing easy. “It’s… lighter, my chest is much lig







