"Nicholas… you are NOT a monster," Sophie said softly. "Please don't say that about yourself. What happened to you is NOT your fault. And even if you cannot cure your lycanthropy, to you are still Nicholas. You are not a monster. You are still my friend. You are a good man."
"Really?" A tear slipped down Nicholas' cheek. "Is that really true, Sophie? Is it really not my fault that I beca like this? It's difficult for my mother to even look at because I beca a monster. Is it really not my fault?"
There was a sense of disbelief in Nicholas' voice and Sophie couldn't imagine how such circumstances led this cheerful young man to actually believe that he was a monster.
Tears stung her eyes and she clutched his face harder.
"Nicholas, believe when I say that you're not a monster. Never doubt it when I say that you're an incredible person." Sophie nodded hard and gave him a smile. "Please don't look at yourself this way, it hurts to know that you actually believe in that lie."
Tears glimred in Nicholas' face before he pulled her into a tight hug. "I… I don't know what to say, but thank you. Thank you so much, Sophie. I wouldn't know what I'd do without you."
Sophie rubbed the man's back gently.
"Don't say that, I'm sure that you'll be an incredible person on your own. Once you get cured and return to your family, I'm sure that you'll be happy and do great things. But even if you don't get cured, it doesn't change who you are."
She bit her lip and tried to think of an analogy to tell Nicholas. When she found one, she pressed Nicholas's shoulder. "What do you think if I got bitten by the wolf cub and it leaves a really bad scar on my arm?"
Nicholas furrowed his brows. "No, we won't let it happen."
"No, but I an… what if? What if I got bitten by the wolf and it leaves a scar? Am I no longer the Sophie you know? Would that change into a monster?"
Nicholas bit his lip and shook his head. "No, it's different. The wolf today is not a werewolf, you won't turn into a monster as I do."
"No, but what's the difference? Both are not our faults and both situations don't change who we are as a person." Sophie looked at Nicholas deeply. "I am still Sophia Hansley, and you are still Nicholas Ferdinand."
Nicholas wanted to tell her that actually Ferdinand was not his last na. However, he decided not to say it now. He couldn't let Sophie get into shock when she was injured like this.
If he told her his family na, she would know that he was a mber of the royal family. Better keep that surprise for another ti.
Nicholas finally smiled. "Yes, you are right, Sophie. Thank you so much for saying those words. I have been hating myself for so long, I don't even rember what it feels like to hear good things about myself."
"You are welco, Nick," Sophie smiled brightly at him and suddenly landed a kiss on his lips. "You are a good man and I like you. This should be enough proof that you are not a monster to ."
Nick's eyes bulged. Sophie's kiss was like the seal that he needed to confirm that she really didn't see him as a monster.
A beautiful girl like her wouldn't kiss a monster, would she?
Nicholas felt so touched by Sophie's words that he was left speechless. He wanted to cry but he instead looked away to hide his feelings. The man took a deep breath and then turned to Sophie with a slight smile.
"Thank you," he said with a hoarse voice. "Now, let's get your wound treated."
Sophie could tell that Nicholas was feeling emotional and didn't want to make him feel awkward. So, she pretended to focus on her wound too.
"Yeah... it's still bleeding…" she said softly.
Nicholas carefully and gently dressed Sophie's wound before he wrapped it with a nice bandage and sighed in relief. "There., I don't think it'll scar because of the salve. I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if it did."
"Knock that out, Nick." Sophie frowned at him and looked at her bandaged hand. "Even if it did scar, it wouldn't be your fault because I was the one who tried to touch the wolf cub."
"I should have done a better job at protecting you."
"Well, it's not your responsibility to always take care of ," Sophie reminded him.
"You wouldn't have co to the forest if it weren't because of ," Nicholas pointed out as he stood up. "So in a way, it really is my responsibility to make sure that you stay safe while you are actually there with ."
"You're so hard to argue with," Sophie rolled her eyes.
Nicholas managed a smile. "Well, if you stayed here at your hut instead of coming with , then you would be able to focus on working and making your dream co true."
Sophie pursed her lips at him. "You did promise to help with the loan with from the Rotschild bank, so by helping you find the wolfsbane, I'm inevitably also helping myself."
Nicholas chuckled. "And you tell that I'm the one who's difficult to argue with? Your answer and reasoning are impeccable as always."
"... So, are you going back to the forest?" Sophie looked at him doubtfully. "You could stay here for a bit and I can make dinner for us. It's more comfortable to sleep here than the woods."
Nicholas shook his head. "I can't waste any ti, my father has given a deadline—er, well, a ti period until how long I can stay outside until I return back to my place."
"Ahh, I see." Sophie nodded slowly and felt a bit disappointed knowing that their days together here would also eventually co to an end. "Please have a safe trip then, Nicholas. I'll see you out the door."
Nicholas knew that he'd be able to move faster to search for wolfsbane without Sophie. So, reluctantly the man agreed. "Thank you, Sophie."
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