Eiden almost leaned in just a little closer, just enough to close the space between them but he stopped himself. A thin thread of self-restraint pulled him back, reminding him that if he crossed that line now, he might not be able to turn back.
Lyra, anwhile, felt her heart flutter in a confusing tangle of warmth and embarrassnt. She had been convinced Eiden wouldn’t even touch her chocolate. After all, Linda had already given him one first, and most people would assu the "first" gift mattered more. She had quietly prepared herself for the disappointnt of seeing hers untouched, maybe even forgotten.
But to her surprise no, shock he had eaten hers too. Her fingers fidgeted against her skirt as she glanced at him, searching for sothing in his expression. "Do you... like chocolate?" she asked, her tone careful, almost testing.
Eiden looked at her for a mont before answering, his gaze steady but not cold. "I don’t hate it," he said at last. "I don’t love it either. But... I do like to eat it from ti to ti." His voice carried a quiet sincerity, and Lyra felt it more than she heard it.
He could have given her a light, teasing answer like he usually did. But he didn’t. Because deep down, Eiden already knew Lyra had fallen for him. And that knowledge, instead of filling him with triumph, left him feeling strangely heavy. He wanted to be honest with her, at least in these small monts.
Too many tis before, he had hidden behind convenient half-truths and easy lies when speaking to her. It had been necessary... or so he told himself. But now, looking at the way her eyes softened at his words, the guilt that had been quietly sitting in the corner of his mind pressed harder against his chest.
And for a brief mont, as their eyes t, he wondered if being honest with her truly honest was going to make it harder to walk away when the ti ca. Eiden gave a small, almost invisible shake of his head, as though trying to toss away the faint weight of guilt that had begun to cling to him. It wouldn’t help to dwell on it now. Instead, he t Lyra’s eyes with a faint smile.
"I really did like the chocolate," he said, tone casual yet lined with sincerity. "It wasn’t overly sweet the balance was just right. I liked it a lot. And it was... well, pretty big too, so I had my fill. Couldn’t eat anything else afterward."
The corners of his mouth curved a little more, the expression warm but carefully crafted. Behind that, he activated Face Master, his skill subtly shifting the muscles of his face to project honesty, gratitude, and a sense of openness that could lt doubt before it even ford. It wasn’t a lie, not exactly but it was polished truth, shaped for maximum effect.
Lyra’s gaze lingered on him, and as his words sank in, her expression changed. The delight in her eyes grew visible, almost tangible, as though soone had turned up the brightness inside, her thoughts twisted and tangled. Wait... does that an... he ate mine first?
Her mind flickered back to earlier Linda had been the first to give him chocolate. It was only natural to assu he’d start with hers. But if he couldn’t eat anything after hers, that ant...
No, no, I can’t jump to conclusions. Linda’s my friend. I shouldn’t think about it like that.
Yet even as she tried to scold herself, the thought returned with a stubborn persistence. He still ate mine instead of hers... Her fingers brushed against the edge of her bag as if to ground herself, but the warmth in her chest was impossible to hide. Despite her best effort to maintain composure, her lips curved upward, her smile quietly radiant.
Eiden noticed, but what puzzled him was the degree of her happiness. Sure, he’d complinted her chocolate, even ntioned its perfect sweetness, but this? This seed... excessive. Is she really this weak to complints? he wondered, stealing a sideways glance at her. It wasn’t a criticism if anything, he found it strangely endearing but he couldn’t quite pinpoint why she was so deeply pleased.
They continued walking, their steps naturally slowing until it was obvious Lyra was deliberately dragging the pace. Her shoulders shifted ever so slightly forward, as if she were stretching the mont, refusing to let it slip away too soon.
Eiden caught on quickly. And rather than point it out, he matched her pace without a word. He found it... cute. Adorable, even. That soone would go to such lengths just to spend a little more ti walking beside him stirred a small, almost unfamiliar warmth in his chest. He was used to calculated interactions, veiled motives, hidden goals. But this this felt refreshingly simple.
The conversation drifted easily. Eiden tossed out light jokes, and Lyra’s quiet laughter or soft smiles followed. She wasn’t the type to force a laugh, and the fact that her reactions seed genuine only made him keep the banter going.
Eventually, he brought up the prank he had pulled earlier the one where he’d pretended to hold sothing threatening behind her back. "I still can’t believe you fell for that," he teased. Lyra puffed her cheeks slightly, an expression halfway between a pout and embarrassnt. "I really thought you had a gun or sothing behind . I was sure you were going to rob ."
Eiden laughed, the sound unguarded. "If I were a real robber, I wouldn’t waste my ti on that tiny bag of yours." He let a pause hang just long enough for her to blink in surprise. Then, his tone dipped into sothing more mischievous. "I’d rather... have my way with you instead. I an, who wouldn’t? You’re ridiculously cute when your cheeks puff up like that." The words landed like a pebble in still water small, but the ripples spread fast.
Lyra froze for half a second, her mind scrambling to process. A rush of heat crept up her neck, flooding her cheeks. Her hand instinctively reached out, giving his arm a light but pointed nudge as she broke eye contact and quickened her steps.
Eiden let her pull ahead, a small grin tugging at the corner of his mouth. He’d struck exactly the reaction he expected. Lyra, anwhile, found her thoughts spiraling. The teasing suggestion half joke, half sothing else had slipped under her guard.
If it were him... I wouldn’t mind...
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