Liana stood in front of the mirror, steam still lingering in the air.
She stared at her own reflection, then slowly lifted the corners of her lips.
Not too high.
Not too low.
Just enough.
A smile.
Polite. Empty. Perfectly controlled.
She held it for a few seconds... then dropped it.
Then tried again.
And again.
Behind her, Gloria, now wrapped in a towel, chuckled softly.
"Liana... are you still practicing that?"
Liana didn’t look away from the mirror.
"Hmm? Yes."
She kept smiling.
Then blinked.
"You should do it too."
Gloria raised an eyebrow. "Why would I?"
Liana finally looked away from the mirror and glanced at her.
"I saw young master’s face when he saw smile like this."
Her eyes softened.
"At least... maybe he’ll learn sothing on his own."
"Liana."
"Hmm?"
Gloria’s voice was soft, hesitant.
"Don’t you think... if we keep avoiding the young master like this... it’ll just make him stray more?"
Liana didn’t answer right away.
She turned slightly, facing the open window where the breeze drifted in with the scent of the capital night air.
Then, with a quiet breath—
"Let him be."
Her voice was steady. Almost cold.
"If he decides to forget us... then it’s up to him."
Gloria looked at her carefully.
"...Are you sure?"
Liana didn’t reply.
She didn’t nod. She didn’t shake her head.
She just stood there, motionless.
But Gloria saw it.
A single glimr in her eyes—not a tear falling, but one quietly gathering.
Unspoken. Unwiped.
The kind of tear that cos from trying too hard to stay composed.
"...Liana."
Still, no answer.
Just the wind brushing past them.
"I... I hate him."
The words escaped softly—fragile, trembling.
Liana’s shoulders trembled slightly, her back still turned to Gloria.
The towel around her fra clutched a little tighter.
"He keeps flirting with other girls."
Her voice shook, barely more than a whisper.
"When he already has so many..."
A breath caught in her throat.
"He’s not even an adult yet..."
She laughed quietly—but it wasn’t joy.
It was bitter. Wounded.
"But he’s already beco a womanizer."
Silence.
The kind that stretches and holds every unsaid feeling.
"It’s like he doesn’t even care."
Her voice cracked for just a second.
"Not for ..."
Her hands slowly curled at her sides.
"Not for you..."
Gloria stood quietly behind her, heart heavy, eyes soft.
She didn’t speak right away.
Because she knew.
This wasn’t Liana hating him.
It was Liana hurting because she loved him too much.
"Is it because we’re older than him?"
Liana’s voice was barely audible now.
"Is it because... he sees us every day?"
She bit her lower lip, eyes still fixed on the floor.
"Is it because... being with just us... isn’t enough for him?"
Her fingers gripped the edge of the wooden dresser.
"Is it because he doesn’t care?"
"Or is it because... he’s grown strong now... and doesn’t need us anymore?"
Silence again.
Just the faint hum of night insects outside, and the soft drip of water from the bathroom floor.
"Maybe..."
Her throat tightened.
"Maybe we were only important to him... when he was still weak. Still unsure."
She blinked slowly, trying to hold back the weight building behind her eyes.
"Maybe he was just leaning on us until he could stand on his own."
A faint breath.
"Now that he can... maybe he’s walking forward, and we’re not even in his sight anymore."
She leaned forward slightly, arms wrapping around herself.
"...Maybe we’re just part of his starting point."
Inside Gloria’s mind.
What Liana said... was true.
She didn’t argue.
Because deep down, she knew it too.
Liana had been with him since the beginning.
From the day he was born...
From the mont he first opened those curious, troubleso eyes—Liana had been there.
Longer than I have.
It was Liana who held him as a baby.
Liana who told him bedti stories.
Who brushed his hair. Cleaned his ss. Stood firm when others backed away.
From age five to eleven, when even the most patient maids had quietly rotated out...
Too cheeky. Too mischievous. Too clever for his own good.
Only Liana remained.
She stayed.
Through tantrums. Tricks. That sly grin he wore whenever he caused trouble.
She didn’t just serve him.
She cared for him.
And in ti, without realizing it—
She began to love him.
Just like I did.
But unlike ... her feelings didn’t grow in silence.
Mine... started later.
Quietly. Slowly. From a place I didn’t even think still existed.
This heart...
This icy, locked-away heart that never lted.
Not for high elves.
Not for beastkin suitors.
Not for proud dwarves or charming human nobles.
Never once.
Until him.
The boy who would soon turn fourteen.
The one man who made her feel warmth again.
Liana turned suddenly.
Without warning, she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Gloria, holding her tightly as the steam from the earlier bath clung faintly to their skin.
Her voice cracked.
"Why...!?"
Her fingers clenched into Gloria’s back.
"Why can’t he see what’s important... and what’s not?"
Gloria said nothing. She just held her.
"Why doesn’t he see us? Just us...?"
Liana’s words trembled.
"Isn’t it enough?"
"I already accepted it..."
Her breath grew unsteady.
"That he’d have four more candidates. I tolerated it. Smiled. Stood by."
"Is that not enough?"
Her voice dropped lower, a whisper that ached.
"Or is it... because we’re no longer important to him?"
"Did he grow bored of us?"
She pulled back just slightly, her eyes glistening.
"Of our presence? Our beauty?"
"Are we just... background now?"
Her voice faded into silence, eyes searching Gloria’s face not for answers—but just for soone to understand.
"Liana..." Gloria whispered.
Her voice broke.
Her arms tightened around Liana.
They both began to tremble.
Not from fear.
Not from cold.
But from the unbearable weight pressing on their chests.
Slowly—
Tears welled.
Then spilled.
Soft sobs escaped between shuddered breaths.
No words.
No justifications.
Just the pain of loving soone too deeply...
...and not knowing if that love would be returned.
They held each other, quietly crying in the dim room of a foreign inn.
Because they didn’t know what else to do.
Because the one they loved—
The one they gave everything to—
Might never truly see them.
And for the first ti...
They didn’t know what future awaited them.
( End Of Chapter )
User Comments
0 comments from readers