"So…he confessed but you didn't say anything…" Lilian hums, processing what her friend is telling her "Do you like him?"
"L-Lilian…" Primrose blushes at her friend's question, unsure how to respond.
"I have to say, his timing is a bit off, considering how you and Nathaniel, well…"
The brunette decides not to say anything that will bring up the bad memory. Primrose only nods in response. Nathaniel has not contacted her or even sent her an apology text, she is too stubborn to be the first one to reach out and it has been three days since their heated argument.
"I can see why Nathaniel is frustrated at what happened. You even went on a vacation with Caleb, that must have been a tough one for your brother to swallow." Lilian takes a sip of her coffee "Still, it was a low move, calling you a gullible fool."
Primrose agrees, feeling her anger rise up at the horrible insult. She is not a mere child who doesn't know what she is doing. Yes, she is still navigating through her feelings for Caleb, but she chooses to give that man a chance, and Nathaniel has no right to tell her that her choice is wrong.
"But back to the topic, do you like him?"
"I…" her face grows redder at her friend's pressing question "I do…"
Her answer makes Lilian freeze in her spot for a few seconds, now she is unsure how to respond. Primrose's answer is too honest for her liking and she rarely says things like this, especially when it comes to her personal problems. The brunette is happy that her friend is willing to share her feelings like that, but for a moment, she doesn't know what else to say.
After knowing what happened between Primrose and Caleb in the past, how he broke her heart and abandoned her, leaves a foul taste in Lilian's mind. She knows that she is the one who pushes her and Caleb together, but now, she doesn't know if that is a good idea or not. If Primrose had told her sooner, maybe she would never do that.
But it is too late for her remorse and the vampire lord is willing to make amend of his past mistakes. On top of that, he treats Primrose as if she is the queen residing in his heart and Lilian has no complaints when she can clearly see how happy her friend is with him.
"Well, it's good that you are honest with your feelings."
"I am?" the raven head puzzles at her friend's remark.
"You are, or maybe you just lose all your brain cells when Caleb comes into the picture." Lilian checks her watch "But a confession is a confession, make sure you give him a clear answer of how you feel. It would be a very bad thing to leave someone hanging like that."
"You think so?"
"I know so. I have been there, it's not a good feeling to wait for someone to respond to your confession, and I learned it the hard way." Lilian exhales, thinking about her awkward memory "Even if Caleb knows how you feel about him, which I'm sure he does, you should give him an answer."
The revelation catches her by surprise as she looks at her friend, wondering if it is true that her feelings for Caleb are that obvious. Her brunette friend laughs at her question, again confirming that Primrose is more transparent than she originally thought. However, the next question catches her off guard as the raven head stares at her, presenting a genuine question.
"What about you, Lilian? When will your heart thaw for love?"
A playful smile plays on her lips as Lilian plays with the straw in her fingers. The smile, however, never reaches her eyes as she leans against the window, gazing at the scene nonchalantly.
"Love…is something unattainable for someone like me…"
Primrose looks at her friend with a complex expression, but instead of pressing on, she drops the topic. She understands that love is a delicate topic for Lilian…
They talk more about their social life with Primrose mentioning her trip with Caleb, ignoring all the supernatural aspects of things. Lilian knows nothing about that and the raven head believes that everything should stay that way, having a human friend who is completely oblivious about the supernatural world has a perk of its own. Particularly when it comes to her advice as it stays grounded in Lilian's human experience rather than a mortal in a world full of magical beings.
The conversation soon dives into the world of politics and power as Lilian recalls a rumor that has been spreading around in the San Myshuno Hospital, where she and Caleb work.
"Have you heard anything about Don Lothario?"
"Why are we talking about him?" Primrose raises a brow, why would she want to know anything about that man?
"Just asking, thought you might be interested, considering your several dates with him."
"But we weren't dating…"
"That's the good thing. I'm very glad that you and that bastard of a human being were not serious with each other." Lilian smiles like a proud parent "But there is a rumor that he is engaged…"
This piece of information piques her interest as Primrose leans in, attentively listening to Lilian's story.
"Who is the unlucky girl?"
"Don't know, but I heard that she is someone with a strong business background."
"So marriage for power exchange…"
The raven head sighs, feeling how similar her situation is to this. While she doesn't gawk at Caleb's fortune, she knows other vampires do. To attach oneself to the dashing Lord Vatore is everyone's dream, especially when they are eyeing the title Lady of House Vatore. Thinking about it makes her stomach hurt, she is glad that for now, Caleb and she are staying away from Forgotten Hollow. Despite the beauty that resides within the eerie town, the prejudice is too strong for her liking.
"Well, whoever that girl is, I wish the best for her."
"I told you already, I will not accept this marriage!"
Ember knits her brows annoyingly as her parents are now coming to her university to confront her about the matter. Lily and Victor look at each other and motion her to come with them, she is skeptical at first but pushes aside her rising anxiety and comes along with them.
They enter a private meeting room within the university, where Ember is greeted by a young girl, a few faculty members, and the dean of the Engineering Department. She looks at them, unnerved at the setting. What is going on…?
"Please speak up…" Lily looks at them with a knowing smile "Tell her what happened."
"Ms. Feng, you are close to Nathaniel Emberlynn, yes?" the dean is the first one to speak up "Apparently, there is a charge against him for sexually assaulting this young lady here and we would like your cooperation for the investigation."
"Sexual a-?! Nathaniel would never do that!" Ember immediately speaks up for him, this is a serious allegation "There must be some mistakes."
"No there is not! He did do that!" the girl speaks up with teary eyes.
She recalls what happened to her a few nights ago, how Nathaniel approached her and did horrible things to her. She was frightened but managed to escape with her dignity still intact. She even shows her wounds, the handprints on both of her wrists, indicating a rather violent encounter.
Ember still refuses to believe that her boyfriend would do such a horrible thing. She knows Nathaniel very well, she is his best friend and lover, and she has been with him since forever. The younger Emberlynn is not someone who is willing to throw away his future for this kind of horrible violence.
"But it is true! Are you calling me a liar? I have been through everything and yet, you choose to believe a man rather than me?" she cries "How could you? He almost…almost…"
A faculty member rushes in, hoping to calm her down. Ember looks at them, then turns to her parents, eyes widening at their satisfying faces. So this is their scheme after all…
"What proof do you have?"
The faculties look at each other and then seek the dean's approval. When they receive a nod from him, one of them places a student ID card secured in a ziplock bag and puts it on the table. The moment she sees the card, her heart drops.
This is not true…
"This is a lie, you guys are lying!" her knuckles turn white as her face becomes paler.
"Ms. Ember, I know you have a close relationship with Mr. Emberlynn, but this is a crime and we do not condone this disgusting behavior at our university." the dean taps on his student ID card "Whether we have your cooperation or not, we will investigate Mr. Emberlynn and in the meantime, he will be suspended from the university as well as any club activities he has."
Her emerald eyes are wide open at the decision. She can not let this happen, Nathaniel is representing the coding team in the Coding Contest between the local universities in town. The competition is his only way to get exposure to tech companies and prove his skills, he can not miss it…
"We will make sure to talk our daughter out of this, please don't worry…" Victor smirks at his daughter's pale face, knowing that he has checkmated her,
As they get out of the room, leaving Ember and her parents behind, she looks at them with grudge grudge-filled gaze. Her whole body is visibly shaking, angry at how useless she is for not being able to protect Nathaniel. Her parents show no sign of remorse, staring down at her in a mocking way. She can no longer defy them now…
"I hate you, I hate both of you!"
"Hate us all you want, my dear. It is your little boyfriend who will receive the shorter end of the stick if you don't help him." Lily laughs sarcastically "Oh well, I guess he would just enjoy his time in jail then."
"No, he can't, you can't!"
Ember sinks onto the floor, her legs give up on her. This is too much for her to bear, where is Emerald? Where is her brother? She needs him now…
"Only you can save him, Ember. His life and future now belong to you!"
Her parents walk out of the room, laughing eerily at how weak and pathetic their daughter is. Ember has to follow their order, that is the only way she can do to save her little lover. And with her marriage arrangement secured, Victor and Lily can't wait to see what bright future awaits for Feng's empire.
Ember returns to the apartment, tired and dreaded. The allegation and Nathaniel's future, just thinking about it makes her eyes well up again. Her boyfriend steps out of the bathroom, feeling refreshed after a good bath, and spots her at the entrance. He walks up to her with a bright smile on his face.
"Hey, how's class?"
She looks at him, just his beaming expression weighs her heart down as she realizes that there is nothing she can do except to call an end to this relationship. She has to protect him and his future, Ember can not turn Nathaniel into one of her parent's disposal pawns. She loves him so much to see his future crumble in the hands of those horrible people.
"Nathaniel, we need to talk," she speaks up, her voice trembling slightly, her heart is slowly dying at each word that comes out of her lips.
The blond looks at his girlfriend and immediately holds onto her hand, her dreaded look and tear-stained face, what happened to her?
"Ember, what's wrong? Did something happen to you?"
The air between them is tense and heavy with unspoken emotions. She shakes her head, biting her lips to maintain her calmness. But the next few words prove too difficult for her to let out, but she must do it, she must protect him.
"Nathaniel, we can't be together anymore. We should break up."
Her words send lightning through his ears as he stares at her, blue eyes widening, unable to comprehend what she just said.
"W-what are you talking about? Did I make you mad? Did I hurt you?" Nathaniel's grip on her becomes tighter "Ember, talk to me!"
"I mean what I said. We should break up. This is not gonna work for both of us." her voice is barely a whisper as she slumps down on the floor "Let me go Nathaniel, I must leave…"
Nathaniel's expression shifted from confusion to heartbreak. What is going on? Just a few days ago he was still making her favorite dish and now, she wants to end things with him?
"Not gonna work? We have been through everything together Ember. What do you mean by not gonna work?" he looks at her, tears welling in the corner of his striking blue eyes "I'm not letting you go, I love you so much. Ember, please tell me what's wrong. What did I do?"
She shuts her eyes tightly, unable to look at the pain on his face. Those teary blue eyes, they are too painful for her to look at. Her heart is shattered into pieces, but she must push through.
"I can't, Nathaniel." Ember bites off a sob, wrying her arms out of his hold "Farewell, Nathaniel…"
With that, she runs out of the apartment, too afraid to look back. If she slows down, Ember doesn't know if she will be able to continue this act any longer. As she runs down the emergency stairs, she slumps down, unable to hold back the tears that are streaming down her face. She loves him, so much that she must hurt him, all in the name of protecting Nathaniel…
Nathaniel is shaken to his core, unsure what he must do anymore. He stares blankly at the opened door, their opened door. Ember leaves him, she breaks up with him, she wants nothing to do with him…
The shocking revelation manifests into anger as he sweeps off the dining table, clutters falling onto the floor with loud yet cold clanking sounds. His hands ball into fists, knuckles turn as the nails dig deep into his skin, bleeding him. But Nathaniel doesn't care, the pain in his heart is much more severe than this little scratch on his hands. He needs to release this ugly feeling inside him, the frustration and heartbreak that is slowly eating his gut. And like a ticking bomb in its last few seconds…
He screams…