Drakkon

Chapter Twenty

I woke up unexpectedly from a dreamless slumber, my eyes adjusting to the brightly lit room. Blinking back at the sun's rays, I glanced around the room and realized that I must've fallen asleep in Meilin's office. Looking down at my lap, I blushed a deep hue of red as I saw that Meilin was snuggled against my stomach, still fast asleep.

My back and shoulders were stiff from sleeping in an uncomfortable position, but the discomfort was worth it since Meilin had gotten a good night of rest.

Brushing back a few strands of his hair, I tilted my head back until I was staring up at the ceiling, my thoughts whirring back to last night. I had seen a part of Meilin that I had never seen before, and although I hoped to never see a pained expression on his face again—even if it was for the briefest second—I wanted him to open up to me.

"Meilin," I murmured, tasting the name on my lips. I had never called him that when he was awake, and I was positive I wasn't going to be calling him that any time soon. I wasn't close enough to him or confident enough to call him by his given name.

He was still sleeping, but he stirred slightly, nudging his face against my stomach, which cast color across my face.

After a long moment, he moved around and mumbled something before his eyes fluttered open. He squinted in the light and rubbed at his eyes, propping his elbows back to sit upright. In his attempt at getting up, his hand pressed against my thighs and I gasped sharply, my chest rising at where he had inadvertently touched. Though it was still my thigh, it was much too close to my womanhood.

He flinched back at the noise and whipped his head to stare at me, his eyes wide with confusion. He blinked back and removed his hand."Sorry about that," he mumbled.

I only nodded, averting my gaze.

"I slept through the night," he said in awe as he stared at the window and how the sunlight was casting a glow around the whole room.

"You should make an effort to sleep every night," I said to him, feeling as though I was chastising my younger siblings. Although I was trying to reprimand him for his lack of care for his health, my cheeks were still flushed.

He stretched his arms out before bringing a hand to the back of my head and pulling me close until our foreheads bumped. He smiled uncharacteristically and said, "I'll keep that in mind. Thank you."

Pulling away from me, he came to his feet and ambled to his desk, where he lifted a few documents before letting them drop back on the desk. He scratched at his ear and plopped down on the seat, sweeping his gaze all over the documents and scrolls lain about him.

"You should go get dressed," he said after a moment. "I think I'll do the same after a moment."

I nodded, tucking a strand of loose hair behind my ear before turning away from him and leaving the room.

My heart was racing to a wild tune.

***

Nikator was nudging Atreus's shoulder and was waving his hands around, talking to him rapidly in their native tongue, Fadian. He looked excited as he spoke, his vibrant blue eyes gleaming with emotion. I stared at his wavy crimson hair, admiring the color since I had never seen a hair color like that. Thinking about hair color, I glanced over at commander Bohai, who was watching the two of them with a raised brow.

"Commander Bohai," I suddenly asked him. "Are you perhaps a little foreign?"

"Huh?"