"Rose?" he called out softly, knocking again. Still, no response.
Growing more concerned, he reached into his pocket for the spare key she’d given him. Unlocking the door, he opened it cautiously, taking a step inside. The mont he did, he felt a sudden force, and before he could fully comprehend what was happening, he was yanked forward and landed on the nearby sofa.
Montarily dazed, he looked up to find Es standing above him, her expression an intense mixture of relief, desperation, and sothing else he couldn’t quite place. She didn’t wait or offer an explanation; instead, she moved toward him, her hands gripping his shoulders tightly as she leaned down, pressing her lips to his in a fierce, almost wild kiss.
Ray barely had a second to register what was happening before Es’s hands gripped his shoulders, and she was on him with a force he’d never felt from her before. Her lips crashed against his, her fingers digging into his skin as though she was holding on for dear life. Her kiss was wild, almost bruising, nothing like the gentle, tender gestures he’d co to know from her. This was different—raw, unrestrained, laced with an intensity that bordered on desperation.
Ray’s mind spun, trying to keep up with the torrent of emotion she was pouring into him. It felt as if she were trying to silence sothing inside herself, to drown out a storm that had been building for far too long. Her hands road restlessly, clutching him, pulling him closer, like she couldn’t get close enough, like even the smallest distance between them was too much to bear.
He responded instinctively, his hands finding her waist to steady her, grounding them both as her frantic energy washed over him. But he could feel her tremble, sense the turmoil under her fierce embrace, and he wanted nothing more than to understand what had driven her to this breaking point. Her lips were relentless, consuming his breath, her presence overpowering every rational thought.
When she finally pulled back, her breaths ca heavy and ragged, her gaze unfocused as if she were struggling to bring herself back to the present. Her hands were still clutching his shoulders, holding on like he was the only thing tethering her to reality. Ray raised a hand to her cheek, softly brushing his thumb against her skin, his eyes searching hers, but she looked away, the fire in her eyes dimming as a flicker of vulnerability crossed her face.
Ray’s breathing was ragged, his chest rising and falling as he tried to steady himself, but Es didn’t release him entirely. Her gaze softened, her eyes brimming with unmistakable affection as she looked at him—truly saw him. In that quiet mont, Ray felt himself lt under her warm, loving gaze, a shy smile breaking across his lips.
"What are you smiling at?" Es teased softly, her voice a gentle murmur. Before he could answer, she leaned in, pressing her lips to his again, this ti slower, tender, as if savoring every second. Her kisses were still intense, a quiet hunger simring beneath her gentle touch, and it was as if she were pouring every unsaid word, every feeling, into him. Each kiss left him breathless, as if she were drawing sothing deep from within him, a part of him he didn’t even know he was giving.
As her hand slipped lower, a rush of warmth flooded his face, his cheeks tinged with red. He could feel her heartbeat, rapid and steady against him, their breaths mingling as they drew closer, the world outside fading away. Ray’s arms wrapped around her, his head resting on her shoulder, lost in her presence, her scent, her warmth. In the quiet of the room, his soft gasps and murmurs filled the air, his grip tightening on her as if she were the only anchor in a sea of feeling he could barely control.
But then—there it was. That faint lavender scent, almost ghostly, drifting subtly through the room. It was so faint that Ray didn’t notice, lost as he was in the mont, but Es froze, her senses acutely tuned to it. Her eyes widened slightly as the scent stirred sothing deep, mories she’d buried surfacing, cutting through her like a blade. Her heart began to pound, and in an instant, Ray’s face in front of her began to waver, fading, blurring into another face, another pair of eyes—the ones she had loved, the ones she had lost.
"Cain..." The na slipped from her lips in a whisper, heavy with sorrow, as she clutched Ray tightly, her fingers pressing into him as though he might disappear if she let go. Her body trembled, and a profound sadness filled her eyes, her heart aching as the past and present collided, the lines between them blurring painfully.
The na fell from Es’s lips like a weight, one that seed to crush the air from the room. Ray’s entire body froze, his heart pounding as though it, too, had been struck. His eyes, wide with disbelief and sothing rawer, more vulnerable, fixed on Es. She was clinging to him, her hold tight, her face buried against him as tears slipped silently down her cheeks.
A heaviness pressed into Ray’s chest, a feeling that clawed its way up, unraveling him with a pain he didn’t know he could feel. His hands moved to her shoulders, shaking her with a force he couldn’t contain, his voice breaking, "Es!" He could feel his energy slipping away, drained by the weight of that single na—a na he had never wanted to hear in her presence, much less directed at him.
"Es, wake up!" His voice was edged with desperation, but she didn’t respond, lost sowhere he couldn’t reach. And in a final surge of frustration, he pushed her back, his hands trembling as he released her. She stumbled, her body giving way as she fell to the floor, hands clutching her head as if trying to contain sothing inside that was shattering.
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