Zaynah ✓

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~ Z a y n a h ~

I stared at him as he slept peacefully.

As he slept peacefully after ruining me.

All the built-up rage and pain made me want to strangle him right then and there, but I knew that I had to hold back. I had come too far to make a silly mistake like that.

He stirred in his sleep, and within a few moments, he woke up from his sweet slumber.

He glanced at me and smiled, "Good morning."

I reciprocated his gesture, "Good morning, Desmond. Did you sleep well?"

He rubbed his eyes and stifled a yawn, "I did. What about you?"

How could I take a good sleep after all the things you make me go through?

"I slept well," I removed my drenched hair strand from my face, "I'm hungry. Let's have breakfast."

"You bathed already?" He sat up on the bed and I nodded, "Also, from now on you don't have to wait for me if you're really hungry, ok?"

"Okay," I shrugged, "Still, it's better to eat with you."

His eyes lit up, and he leaned forward, "Really? Do you like me that much?"

I nodded vigorously, "I do," I took his hand in mine, "and what about you?"

He laughed, "I thought it was obvious."

"What?"

"That I'm madly in love with you," he looked at me fondly.

I caressed his hand, "So, how much do you love me?"

He thought for a moment and answered, "I love you so much that I'd sacrifice my life for you if I must."

I couldn't help but laugh at that, "Ok, ok, let's stop this now."

He didn't need to die. Instead, he just needed to let me go, which he could never do.

I was about to stand straight, but he pulled me back towards him.

"What is it, Desmond?" I tried to hide my fear of this closeness.

He ran his fingers through my wet hair, "Your hair grew so much after all this while."

I internally sighed.

Did he want to chop it off again?

"So, should I shorten its length?" I asked carefully.

He chuckled, "It's good either way. You can do as you wish."

I was speechless for a second.

"Oh, ok." That was all I could manage to say.

He placed his hand on my cheek, "A lot of things have been troubling me lately," he sighed, "and I'm afraid that I'll lose you."

I gulped, "What are you trying to say?"

"I've been thinking about your safety. Is this palace really secure enough for you? Even though our security has increased recently, still, I'm still not completely sure about how effective it will be."

"So?"

"So, I want you to be safer. Yesterday, I discussed this with Laevinn, and he suggested that I should provide you with something to defend yourself. He was right. In the end, we have to protect ourselves."

"Oh." If Laevinn did that, then he surely had a plan.

"Today, I'll be really busy with some important things related to the recent turmoil but tomorrow I promise to take you to the executive weapon storage sector so that you can take a weapon of your choice. How does that sound?"

Slowly, the fog in my mind disappeared, and I started to realize Laevinn's ultimate plan.

"Sure, Desmond. Let's do it tomorrow."

He smiled and held my face between his hands, "I'd rather die than lose you, so no matter what, please save yourself."

"I will."

I definitely will.

He gave me another smile before he leaned in and kissed me.

His one last kiss.