Epiphany

⇞ closer ⇞

I can't believe but I dozed off to sleep after a few minutes of stressing. Maybe I was too tired to think anything else. 

But in the middle of the night, nightmares began and they were not mine.

I was seeing through his dreams now that I was this close to him.

And I didn't know how he lived through those nightmares. They were excruciatingly painful. He hasn't forgotten the gory details over time. He was walking through the courtyard, his feet making a hauntingly loud noise in the puddle of blood. The sky rumbled over him causing the little change in the scenario from before. The blood flowed with the rain and he walked like a cruel monarch among the countless dead bodies.

A blood-curling scream shot through the sky but he didn't stop. He kept walking tears streaming down his eyes, looking totally hopeless and miserable. And then everything replayed his parents' death, his sister's death, Dalia's death but this time as he walked he stood in the center of the throne room, everything cold and silent and felt like death.

That is when I realized something, the hand on his sword, his stance, his defeated eyes as it dimmed from the glowing fire to the burned coal. He wanted to kill himself just then.

And that amount of pain shot through me making me gasp. I woke up realizing that I had cried through the whole thing.

The first thing I noticed when I woke up, a strong hand was curved around my waist. I could feel warm breath on the back of my neck. My whole body flushed with heat. I have never been in this kind of proximity with the King.

I tried to move before he wakes up and I felt even more embarrassed than I already was.

"A few more minutes." He mumbled and my heart was caught in my throat.

He was awake and he snuggled even closer pulling me closer to himself and I felt him burying his head in the nook of my neck.

I couldn't breathe or think or do anything except trying to keep my rapid heartbeat in check.

I just gulped and kept lying there feeling multiple emotions crashing through me.

"I haven't slept like this in a long time." He murmured, his lips brushing my skin and making goosebumps rise all over me.

Something curled inside my stomach causing sweet pain all over my body.

"You saw the nightmare didn't you, took the pain in my place?" He asked.

"Uhuh." That was all I could manage in response.

"Why do you smell so good?"

What was he talking about? My brain was getting all hazy.

I could feel all he was feeling, the warmth, the slight tone of happiness, the endearment and lust.

"Umm... I can feel what you are feeling just added with my own." I managed to pull out the words.

His nose skimmed down the nape of neck and the delicious curl in my stomach hit harder.

"And what is that?" He asked in a husky tone.

Lord, help me.

His arms untangled from my body and he turned me to face him, our faces few inches apart so much so that I can see the warm fire in his eyes.

Not glowing like it was before the tragedy fell but still there.

My eyes flickered to his lips and my mind went in the havoc of thoughts I shouldn't have.

So I immediately looked up in his eyes which made me realize that they were settled on my lips as well. I licked them in nervousness as my throat dried for some reason.