Warlock Ch 377. Do You Love Her?
She smiled, not a weak one this ti, but a small, genuine one. "See? Not that hard."
Damian rolled his eyes. "You say that like I've been ntally trained for years to treat you like a commoner."
Selena gave him a flat look, tearing a small piece of mana-bread from the warm loaf. "Damian, we've known each other for what? A few weeks? You didn't train for this."
He opened his mouth like he was about to argue—then stopped, sighed, and conceded with a small nod. "Alright. Fair. But I have been trying to be careful."
"Oh really?" she asked, tone teasing now, but with a sharp glint in her eyes. "Because I've never once heard you say 'your majesty' to Victoria. And she's an actual queen."
Damian blinked, then smirked. "That's different."
"How?"
"Because I'm not scared of Victoria."
Selena raised both brows. "I'm terrifying now?"
"No," Damian said, then hesitated, eyes drifting downward for a mont. "But I am worried."
Her playful expression softened. "About what?"
Damian leaned forward slightly, his voice lower now. "That your father won't accept it. That you'll end up giving this up just to keep your kingdom's peace."
She frowned. "You think I'm that weak?"
"No," he said quickly. "I think your position is hard. You're a princess. Fae royalty. And I'm a warlock."
"You're an S-ranked warlock," she countered, voice sharper.
Damian shrugged, looking off to the side. "Yeah, a new one. With no formal faction, no deep alliances, no political backing. And… already with Evelyn."
He didn't say Victoria. He didn't need to.
"And most people think Victoria's the one who owns ," he added.
Her mouth opened, closed. She tapped her fingers on her glass for a mont before whispering, "Do you love her?"
He was quiet.
Then, finally, "Yes. I do."
Selena didn't flinch. Didn't cry. But her lips pressed together tightly. "And Evelyn?"
Damian nodded. "Her too."
Silence settled between them again—this one more fragile than before.
Selena inhaled shakily, then said, "So… what do I beco? If I stay? Just another one in the shadows?"
Damian leaned forward again. "No. You'd be you. And I'd never hide that."
"But people will talk."
"They already do," he said with a shrug. "About everything. About my power. My past. My title. My sins. One more rumor isn't going to change anything."
Selena gave a sad smile. "You're better at this than you think."
He raised an eyebrow. "At what?"
"Making soone feel like they matter."
That shut him up.
Damian didn't say anything. He just held her hand like he was afraid the mont would vanish if he moved too quickly. His thumb brushed against hers once—barely a movent, but enough to make Selena's breath hitch. The silence that settled after that wasn't uncomfortable. It was full of everything they hadn't said yet, thick with things they might never be able to explain.
Selena didn't pull away. She didn't want to.
She just looked down at their hands, then slowly up to his face again. "So," she murmured, voice still a little uneven, "are you going to sit here all day pretending you're not also starving?"
Damian blinked like he'd forgotten food was even on the table. "Right. Lunch."
She snorted. "Smooth."
He let go, but only to finally grab his fork. "You know," he said while scooping so of the roasted nightroot vegetables onto his plate, "for a mont there I thought you were going to make this harder."
"I could still change my mind."
He glanced up at her, amused. "Try ."
Selena smiled, genuinely this ti, then took a bite of the mana-bread. "You win. The food's too good."
They ate in silence for a bit, stealing glances between bites. The kind of quiet that felt warm, like the storm in her chest had settled into a breeze.
Then Damian asked softly, "What will you do if your father says no?"
Selena's fork paused halfway to her mouth. She set it down. "I'll… I don't know. I should say I'll listen to him, go back, be the good daughter. But…"
"But?"
"I don't think I can," she admitted. "I don't want to."
Damian nodded. "Then you're already braver than most people I've t."
"That's depressing," she said.
"It's true."
She shook her head, fingers idly running along the rim of her water glass. "It's just strange, you know? Wanting sothing for yourself after so long of only doing what's expected."
Damian tilted his head. "I get it."
"You do?"
He hesitated, then gave her a wry smile. "I got tired of being helpless too."
"You don't seem very helpless now."
"That's because I made myself into sothing they couldn't control," he said, voice quiet but intense. "But I lost things doing that. People. Parts of myself."
Selena watched him closely. "And now?"
"Now…" he looked at her again. "Now I'm trying to build sothing that can last. Not just power. Not just a legacy. Sothing real."
Her cheeks ward. "You an this?"
He didn't flinch. "Yeah. This. You. Them."
Selena looked away, suddenly overwheld. Her heart beat like it wanted to climb out of her chest. "You're getting better at this whole emotional vulnerability thing."
"I've had practice lately," he muttered.
"With Evelyn?"
Damian didn't answer imdiately. Then "And with you."
That made her smile again, small and stunned. "You know this doesn't make any of it easier, right?"
"I don't expect it to be easy," he said. "Just worth it."
She shook her head, eyes glassy again. "Damian…"
He leaned forward, voice softer now. "Selena."
"I—" she stopped, letting out a long, shaky breath. "I'm just scared."
"So am I."
She looked up at him in surprise. "Really?"
"Yeah." He smiled crookedly. "You think I've done this before? I've fought demons, survived assassination attempts, been hunted by entire factions… but navigating feelings? Princess, that's the real nightmare."
She laughed, the sound breaking through the tears threatening her throat. "You're an idiot."
"Yeah," he said. "But I'm your idiot."
She covered her face with one hand. "That was so cheesy."
"I regret nothing."
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