𝐋𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐁𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐑 || Sinbad

FOUR

CHAPTER 4 | INTO THE FIRE
━༻❁༺━

FEW things surprised Lucy. Her father always commented on her "unimpressed" face, laughing at how calm she managed to remain at the sight of spiders, blood and rolling thunderstorms. Things that sent her sister running madly never threw Lucy off her groove.

            She wasn't surprised that he got into a bar fight, she hadn't seen him drunk yet but could see it wasn't pretty— those kind of sights never were.

            Lucy scoffed, dubious. "A bar fight?! You must be kidding..." She shut her eyes, pinching the bridge of her nose.

            "I drank a lot." Sin shrugged, giving her an obvious look.

            "I don't believe you. Which bar fight would end with you lying half dead in the middle of a forest?!" She gasped at the end, realising how loud she got. Lucy bit her lip, offering a mumbling apology which Sin accepted with a smile.

            "You'll be surprised at the likelihood. There are a good number of people who want me dead." He folded his arms, resting his head against the wall.

            "Still....." She trailed off, her eyes fixing on the strip of bandage that stuck out from beneath his robe. Her gut weighed down, like as if it was attached to an anchor. Something was wrong. Was it what he said? Or could she be reacting to the aftermath of the shock she felt earlier?

            Sin spread his arms wide. "Plus, I was unarmed. I couldn't exactly fight them off properly."

            She sighed, dropping her shoulders to release the tension in her back. Maybe he was telling the truth. Or half of it. Who knows. She might as well entertain the thought. "Okay. Let's say you did get into a bar fight. Do you remember anything?"

            His lips curled into a smirk. He liked how skeptical Lucy was; she wouldn't believe anything unless it had an explanation behind it. His healer appreciated facts and figures over fantasy and he couldn't help but find it adorable. Lucy wasn't usually demanding, she waited for someone to feel at ease before they told her anything. He'd been counting on that. Sinbad didn't expect her to be so straightforward or assertive; he had been pretty startled when she told him that he was the one she had a problem with.

            A part of him did trust her but he eyed her with the same suspicion as he did with every person around him. It was exhausting but Sinbad would rather hear a person's secrets and use it as a weapon than be on the receiving side of a knife to the back. Being king, he simply couldn't afford it. It would mean putting the lives of his people at stake.

            She fidgeted with her sleeves, waiting for an answer. He scooted closer, thinking of how to frame the sentence before saying it. "Somewhat. I must have taunted the opposition." It was not very far from the truth.

            Lucy relaxed, stretching her legs. "Now that, I can believe."

            Sinbad blinked, forcing himself to look away from her legs. He needed to get out of here before his lust became harder to control. He guessed she wasn't into passionate nights unless it was with someone she trusted wholeheartedly. He admired that about her but damn it, he couldn't pretend that she wasn't fascinating for long. And judging from the way she sometimes stole glances at him, he was either attractive or intriguing to her too. If she said yes, not even Armageddon would be able to stop him.

            "I... was embarrassed to tell it out loud among the girls." Sin laughed nervously, giving her a sheepish smile. Lucy tried to return his smile, nodding to show him she understood.