Thorns & Roses (Legolas Love Story)

34. Nadir

[Author's Note: If you see this, it means I have put link to music that helps me into mood as I write this chapter or one of the scenes in it. Feel free to listen to them as you read on. Let me know what you think! Happy Reading]

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Too late

My time has come

Sends shivers down my spine, body's aching all the time

Goodbye everybody, I've got to go

Gotta leave you all behind and face the truth

Mama, I don't want to die

I sometimes wish I'd never been born at all - (Freddy Mercury)

***

The tips of my fingers touched the soft skin of Legolas'. The warmth in his fingers and his eyes seemed to be seeping into my heart. I took the flower from his hand, letting our skin lingered on each other's before pulling away.

"A rose?" I asked, my voice airy despite the pounding of my head that seemed to be a constant companion for me these days.

"Aye," he replied with hope in his tone, "Tis' reminds me of you," he said, admiration evident in his voice.

I paused for a while as I admired the beautiful red rose he gave me. It was a gorgeous flower, and I was wondering where in Gondor Legolas had picked the flower.

"A thorny rose? I hope it's not because I'm a painful person to be around," I chirped teasingly at him, touching a thorn on the stem of the bright colored flower. The deceptively sharp thorn actually pierced the tip of my finger, drawing the blood as red as the flower itself.

"Nay. It's because you're just as beautiful. I was trying to be romantic," Legolas protested with a slight frown, then his brilliant blue eyes shifted to my fingers, and in an instant, he was holding my hand in his.

The elf prince studied my pricked finger, then his beautiful eyes met mine to shoot me a disapproving look. I couldn't stop myself from smiling a little at the way his protective instinct showed.

"Didn't you see the thorn? You shouldn't have touched it, Sara," he reprimanded me softly. Upon seeing my smile, he narrowed his eyes at me, a mischievous look glinted in his eyes. "What?" he demanded with a playful hint in his voice, "Does this mean you are not mad at me anymore? I'm forgiven?"

My brows furrowed together as I sift through my pounding head about the meaning of his latter question. Despite the playful nature of the question, I still could see the seriousness in his eyes-the hopeful look behind his cool blue orbs.

"Forgiven?"

"Aye. I upset you yesterday. I had time to think about it and come to realize that I have been pestering you into telling me things that you are not willing to share with me. I realize now that I was being hard on you. Perhaps... not being bonded to you in a way that I know it should be frustrates me, and I put that burden on you," The immaculate, handsome elf put his hand on his heart and bowed his head slightly, "Goheno nin, meleth nin (I'm sorry, my love)."

Again, guilt stirred in my chest upon seeing his head bowed slightly to me in his elvish custom as a sign of deep remorse. I hurt him yesterday, but he was the one feeling like the bad guy. The scenario was far too familiar to me. This was the kind of that toxic relationship just like what my mother and my father shared before. My mother was cruel, whereas my father had always been the one giving out his love freely, always assuming the best of people while letting himself take the blame, assuming the worst of himself.