Ah, fuck. I can’t take this! It’s so cringe!
Verena nearly burst out laughing at herself, but before she could, she heard a soft giggle, Evelyn was laughing too.
And just like that, she lted.
"What? Didn’t you say I was your knight?" Verena teased, tilting her head dramatically.
Evelyn flinched, her cheeks blooming pink. "Yes, but... it’s just quite silly..."
"Well, the silly knight wants to check where your wound is right now," Verena said, wiggling her fingers in mock anticipation.
Evelyn’s blush deepened, but after a mont of hesitation, she shifted, biting her lip before carefully pulling back the fabric of her sleeve.
What was ant to be a playful mont imdiately soured as Verena’s breath hitched.
Blood.
Dark red streaked Evelyn’s pale skin, sared and dried along her shoulder and upper arm, trailing in uneven, harsh lines like so awful brushstroke.
The deep gash ran dangerously close to her collarbone.
"He went way too far," Verena blurted, eyes wide.
Evelyn shivered slightly under her gaze. The air between them changed. This wasn’t so small scrape.
Raphael had actually hurt her.
Panic surged in Verena as she hastily grabbed the d kit, fumbling with the latch before yanking it open. "Okay—uh—stay still, yeah? I’ll fix this—"
Evelyn nodded, but as Verena leaned in, dabbing a cloth along the wound, she couldn’t ignore how much skin was on display.
The delicate slope of Evelyn’s shoulder, the soft curve of her collarbone, the way her breath hitched ever so slightly at the cold touch.
It was dangerous.
Verena sighed internally This girl trusts easily and too much...
"This might sting," she warned, though her own hands were shaking worse than Evelyn’s.
She carefully applied the disinfectant, and Evelyn let out a sharp, breathy gasp, gripping Verena’s wrist on impulse.
Verena stiffened.
Their eyes t.
A beat of silence.
"Uh—" Verena cleared her throat, forcing a chuckle. "Guess I really do look like a knight now, huh?"
Evelyn let out a nervous laugh, though her grip on Verena’s wrist lingered a second too long.
"Yeah..." she murmured. "My knight."
What the hell is this atmosphere?!
Evelyn watched her with a quiet, unreadable expression, her fingers lightly tracing the sheets beneath her.
Verena focused on tying the bandage neatly, determined not to ss up, but then Evelyn spoke, her voice soft and hesitant.
"Hey... Can I ask you sothing?"
Verena looked down, quirking a brow. "What is it?"
"I just... rembered sothing you said before."
"Which part?"
"You told that if I truly loved you, I should get to know you first," Evelyn murmured, her gaze gentle but intent. "So... I want to know more about you."
Verena was silent.
For a mont, she just stared, completely taken off guard. She hadn’t expected Evelyn to actually take that to heart.
Sothing warm curled in her chest.
"You serious?" Verena asked, a slow, teasing smile forming.
Evelyn nodded, earnest. "Of course. It wouldn’t be fair if you knew everything about while I knew so little about you."
Verena swallowed. Damn it, that was... cute.
She leaned back, pretending to stretch. "Alright, alright. Go ahead. Ask away."
Evelyn perked up slightly. "What’s your favorite food?"
"Hah! Easy. Spiced roast duck. But only the kind from that vendor near the Academy gates. Anything else is just an insult."
Evelyn giggled, as if she could already picture Verena passionately defending her food choices. "Okay, what about... your favorite color?"
Verena humd. "Mmm... probably navy blue. Like the sky right before dawn."
"That’s very poetic of you," Evelyn teased.
"I am a woman of many talents," Verena said smugly, earning another giggle.
Evelyn thought for a mont, then her expression softened. "What about your childhood? What were you like?"
Verena blinked. That one... wasn’t as easy.
She scratched the back of her neck, letting out a breath. "Hmm... Wild, I guess. Always getting into trouble. Climbing things I shouldn’t. Running off to places I wasn’t supposed to. People said I was reckless."
"Were you?" Evelyn tilted her head.
"Maybe a little," Verena admitted with a grin. "But I was also just... curious. I wanted to see everything. Learn everything. Even if it got scolded a lot."
Evelyn listened intently, her eyes warm with understanding. "That makes sense. You’re still like that now."
"Guess so things never change."
There was a pause. Evelyn hesitated before her next question, her fingers absentmindedly playing with a strand of her hair.
"...And what do you dream about now?"
No one had ever really asked her that before. Not like this. Not with such sincerity.
She leaned back, looking at the ceiling as if the answer was written there. "...I guess I dream about freedom."
"Freedom?"
"Yeah," Verena murmured. "The kind where I don’t have to follow so stupid fate. Where I get to choose what I want, without soone telling who I should be."
She turned back to Evelyn, expecting a polite response, but instead, she found Evelyn staring at her with sothing deep. Sothing Verena couldn’t quite place.
"Then... I hope you find it," Evelyn whispered.
Verena’s throat tightened.
For so reason, that simple sentence hit harder than she expected.
"...Yeah," she said softly. " too."
Evelyn smiled, reaching out just barely, fingertips brushing against Verena’s hand.
It was small, subtle, but sothing about it made Verena’s heart lt. Not romantically, but it felt like it had been awhile since this type of scenerio had happened.
For the first ti in a long while, sothing wasn’t trying to shape her into sothing else.
It’s tiring.
But Verena could tell Evelyn was guarded. Hesitant. The girl had just gotten out of a breakup—her heart was still a tangled ss of emotions. This wasn’t the ti for anything serious.
Not that it mattered right now.
"You know," Verena murmured, resting her chin on her palm, "you were kind of like a knight yourself today."
"?"
"I an, you threw yourself into danger like an idiot—very knightly behavior. You might as well start wearing armor."
That earned a laugh. A small, soft one, but real.
"You’re impossible..."
[System Notification: Affection Update!]
[Target: Evelyn Ashbourne]
[ 4 Affection Points Earned!]
[Affection Points: 45]
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