>>Amber (2 Years Into Their Marriage) I wandered into the library with a book in hand, my fingers absently flipping through the pages as I searched for a quiet corner to sit and read. The soft glow of enchanted lanterns cast warm light over the towering shelves, and the scent of old paper and ink filled the air. It was peaceful here, a perfect escape from the bustle of the tower. But as I looked around, my peace was quickly interrupted by a simple problem: there wasn’t a single chair in sight. The library was empty, probably because it was break time and all the mages were getting lunch. I looked around and found something But there was a problem. Hael was sitting in the only available chair, comfortably sprawled out with a book of his own. He looked completely at ease, one leg crossed over the other, his silver hair brushing his shoulders as he lazily flipped a page. His eyes lifted from his book when he noticed me standing there, scanning the room for a seat. ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ꜰʀᴏᴍ NoveI★Fire.net "There’s no place to sit," I muttered, glancing around again just to make sure I hadn’t missed some hidden chair in the shadows.4 Where the hell did all the chairs go? I’m sure I saw many of them last time I was here. Hael raised an eyebrow, then made a sweeping gesture with both hands, pointing directly at his lap. "What do you mean?" He asked, a playful grin spreading across his face. "There’s a seat right here, come sit." I blinked, glancing at him, then back at his lap, before shooting him an incredulous look. "Hael... that’s your lap." He didn’t miss a beat, still pointing insistently at his lap as if it were the most obvious solution in the world. "My point still stands. It’s an empty seat." I could feel my face warming, but I rolled my eyes to cover the sudden flutter in my chest. "I’m not sitting there." Hael leaned back in the chair, his grin widening. "Why not? It’s comfortable, and it’s free." I narrowed my eyes at him, trying to ignore the way his teasing always managed to get under my skin in the best possible way. "Because it’s ridiculous," I shot back, though I was fighting the urge to smile, "And all seats are free to sit on." He uncrossed his legs and patted his lap again, a challenging glint in his eyes. "I disagree. This one is only free for you," I sighed, glancing around one last time for another option, but of course, there wasn’t one. The library was quiet, and Hael looked so smug sitting there that I almost wanted to walk away just to prove a point. But there was something about the way he kept looking at me, that playful spark in his eyes, that made me hesitate. "Fine," I muttered, more to myself than to him. I walked over and sat gingerly on the edge of his lap, trying to maintain some dignity. The moment I settled down, Hael wrapped one arm around my waist, pulling me closer until I was comfortably seated against him. "There," He said, his voice full of satisfaction. "Perfect fit." I couldn’t help but let out a small laugh, shaking my head at how pleased he looked with himself. "You’re impossible." "And yet," he murmured, his voice softening as his hand brushed gently across my back, "you’re sitting here anyway." I leaned back slightly, resting my book against his chest as I glanced up at him. "Only because you didn’t give me much of a choice." Hael chuckled, his breath warm against my hair as he leaned down to press a soft kiss to the top of my head. "I’ll take that as a victory." I chuckled. I guess this is fine, we’re alone here, it’s not like he would do something in front of everyone. I never knew I could be so wrong. I could never have imagined he would do something so embarrassing in front of so many people, his own employees at that!! I stood in Lab 3, inspecting one of the manastones the mages had just finished creating. It was sitting innocuously on the stone counter, glowing faintly green with stored magic. Curious, I picked it up, admiring the craftsmanship, but the moment my fingers brushed its edge, I felt a sharp sting. "Ow," I winced, immediately dropping the stone back onto the counter. A small cut appeared on my index finger, and blood began to trickle down, staining my skin. The sound of my pained reaction echoed louder than I expected but I didn’t think it would mean anything Suddenly, everyone in the lab froze. I looked up, and every mage in the room seemed to have gone stiff, their eyes wide with fear. They weren’t just concerned—they were panicking. "Oh, I’m alright!" I reassured them, waving my hand awkwardly to show that it was just a small cut. But they still weren’t moving, their expressions growing more tense by the second, as if they were holding their collective breath. It was only then that I realized why. I heard footsteps behind me and turned just in time to see Hael striding toward me, his face set in a focused expression. "You’re hurt," He said, his voice calm, but it carried a weight that made the room feel even quieter. Ah. So that’s why they’re all terrified. They weren’t afraid of the cut—they were scared of him. I tried to diffuse the situation. "It’s fine, Hael. Really, it’s just a scratch." I held up my hand to show him it wasn’t serious. But Hael wasn’t listening. Without a word, he took my hand gently in his, turning it so he could inspect the cut. His fingers were warm against my skin, and I fully expected him to use his magic to heal it right then and there. But what he did next was so unexpected, so bizarre, it completely blew my mind. Hael leaned down and, without hesitation, licked my finger. "!!!" My cheeks flushed red immediately, the warmth from his touch spreading like wildfire. "Hael!" I gasped, my mind racing, but he didn’t stop there. Before I could fully process what had just happened, he slipped my finger into his mouth, his lips soft around the cut. My heart slammed in my chest as I yanked my hand back in complete shock, my face burning bright red. "What are you doing?!" I could barely speak, grabbing my wrist with my other hand, as if trying to protect myself from further humiliation. "Disinfection," He replied, completely serious, not a hint of shame or embarrassment on his face. I stared at him, flabbergasted. "You could have simply healed it with magic! What disinfection!?" I sputtered, still trying to regain my composure. Hael clicked his tongue, as if he had genuinely forgotten. "Must have slipped my mind that I can do that," He said casually. I was at a loss for words. I couldn’t even form a coherent thought. I glanced around the lab, and sure enough, the mages were still frozen in place, but now their eyes were practically bulging out of their sockets, disbelief and shock written all over their faces. Some looked like they were about to pass out. I mean, their cold and unapproachable master just did ’that’!! Heat rushed to my face again as I looked away from the wide-eyed onlookers. "Oh my God..." I muttered under my breath. I couldn’t take it anymore. With as much dignity as I could muster, I speed-walked out of the lab, my heart still racing, my thoughts a jumbled mess. I could hear Hael following behind me after a little while, his footsteps soft, but I didn’t have the energy—or the strength—to even scold him. On God, I am never going to make this kind of mistake again!! Before Hael went after his wife, he looked at all the mages in the lab. He wasn’t even glaring but it sucked the soul out of everyone. With that quite gaze he told them, ’never to leave an unfinished thing, EVER AGAIN’ Though no words were spoken, they all nodded anyway. It was sort of funny to see. >>Amber (Modern World - Present) I reminisced about the lovely times as I sat on my seat in the cafe waiting for my order when I heard the girls behind me again. "Hey, isn’t that him?" The girls behind me started whispering They began to nudge each other. I looked at them and saw them looking at the counter. "It’s Hael!" One of them said and my heart skipped a beat. I shot my head at the counter. There stood a tall guy there, placing an order while the woman at the counter was swooning over him. He was wearing a mask and a hat but since his hair was long, the silver locks were poking out. My heart began to flip like crazy The girls behind me squealed. "We have to go to him!!" "I can’t!! I can’t!!!" Her friend said, "I’ll melt!" "We have to, it’s our one and only chance!!!" One of them pulled the other up and dragged her to the counter. I didn’t have the courage to do the same. It all was too much for me to take Seeing that Hael is alive in another world with me had already messed up my mind. A man I spent my life with was a huge thing in ’that’ world and is a huge star in this world too. But there’s so much worry in my brain that I could only watch from afar as the girls approached him "You’re Hael, right!?" They clung to each other as their eyes tried to peek under his hat. So, what if it is Hael? What then??? The man turned to the girls, he raised his head up, revealing his moon colored eyes The girls squealed as he passed them a smile, "I’ve been caught," He said softly with a professional smile. "Oh! MY God!!" The girls jumped, "Can we get a selfie!!!" "Sure," He nodded and took off his mask. My heart fell to the bottom of my stomach as tears stung my eyes. Looking at him this close made my heart hurt. My breath got caught in my throat. The girls clicked pictures with him. He had to bend down a little to match their heights But watching them made me nauseous. After they took the pictures, the girls presented him with his hand and he took out a pen from his pocket to sign them. He’s used to being a celeb.... He keeps a maker with him at all times. "Your order is ready." The girl at the counter passed him a takeaway order. Hael turned to grab that as he wore his mask again. "Thank you," He grabbed the brown bag and turned to leave when his eyes landed on me. My heart skipped a beat as our eyes met. He paused and stared at me. Without realizing a tear slipped out of my eye. And when he saw that he turned around and walked away. I watched him leave the cafe. Wait no!! It baffled me that he just walked away like that. But, why did he leave just like that?! Did he not recognize me? "Oh! Gosh," one of the fangirls looked at me, "He must think you’re an extreme fan so he left." They came and put their hands on my shoulders "But we understand." The other one said, "His beauty makes us want to cry too." I looked down in shame No. That’s not it. I couldn’t speak and they just patted my back and left. He didn’t recognise me... He doesn’t know it’s me. I turned to look at the mirror that was on the pillar right next to where I was sitting. Hael may look the same but I don’t. Nothing about the current me matches with Corvina. Brown hair, brown eyes, different look and a different style. I looked down in defeat. There’s no way he would recognise me That is.... If he even remembers our past life...