Chapter 73: Anywhere, But Here.
"A date — you said since I took Gary’s spot, so technically, it’s my day."
"Huh..."
"I’m not wasting it watching you sleep. Unless," he paused, suppressing a laugh, "a date means sharing a bed and making love all night. Then, sure, let’s lock ourselves in until tomorrow. Let’s just stay right here, as long as you’re mine later. Deal?"
"No deal." Her answer came quicker than she could ever think.
Slowly, Lynsandra shook her head at the cunning man before her. After a breath, she placed her hands on the table and pushed herself up.
"I hope it’s worth it, Elias," she said coolly. "You don’t need to keep your hand out like that. I can walk."
"I know you can. But my hand has feelings. It’ll feel abandoned if you don’t take it."
"Are you messing with me?"
"Not yet."
"Yet?"
He winked, wiggling his brows and then his fingers. "It’s a date. Come on."
Her lips pressed into a tight line as she studied him. With a deep exhale, Lynsandra finally slapped her hand into his. His fingers immediately wrapped around hers.
Elias’s grin stretched wide, baring the small canines at the corners of his mouth. Holding her hand firmly, he pulled her out of the library.
"Where are you taking me?" she asked, watching his back as he glanced over his shoulder.
His face was bright, excitement clear in his expression.
"Anywhere," he replied. "Anywhere but here."
*****
Meanwhile, Gareth tried to focus on the book in his hands. But he found himself rereading the same paragraph over and over because none of it made sense. He was far too distracted to immerse himself, even in a smut-heavy book with barely any plot.
"Hah..." he sighed heavily, tilting his head back and closing his eyes. When he opened them again, he stared at the ceiling.
As he did, he couldn’t help but remember Lynsandra in the library.
[That would ruin their fun.]
Her voice echoed in his mind.
Lynsandra had been nodding off when she muttered those words. He could tell himself she was simply sleepy — that was why her voice sounded like that. But no matter how he tried to dismiss it, he couldn’t stop thinking she had sounded... sad.
"That would ruin their fun," he whispered to himself. "How could she make it sound so sad?"
Those words struck deeper than they should have. He related to them more than he wanted to admit. How many times had he stood at a distance, watching people crowd around his twin brother, Gary?
From childhood until the Selection, Gareth had always remained on the sidelines. Meanwhile, Gary stood at the center of everything, as if a spotlight followed him wherever he went. It would be a lie if he said he didn’t feel a twinge of envy. At times, he wished people would seek him out, not because they needed something from him, but simply because they enjoyed his company.
So when Lynsandra said that... it almost felt like his own voice speaking.
"That couldn’t be... she’s the princess?" he muttered. "I’m sure she lived a happy life."
Lynsandra should have no shortage of attention — of people eager to curry favor with her. She should be surrounded by laughter, by fun. And that, for sure, being a princess, she was never left out of anything.
Yet...
It felt like everything he was thinking about was wrong.
"I still wanted to ask her something," he said quietly, only to remember that Elias was still in the library.
Thinking of that, he sighed.
Elias entered the library without a word. Before Gareth realized it, the man was already standing beside the table.
It wasn’t as if Elias had told him to leave. If anything, the guy didn’t even spare him a glance. He simply stood there, staring at Lynsandra in complete silence. His lips curled slightly as he stretched his neck, studying her sleeping face.
It looked more like someone admiring her.
Yet somehow, Elias’s mere presence intimidated him. Or perhaps it was the thought that Gareth himself didn’t have the courage to act silly around the Luna — even if she was asleep.
Then again, Elias was different from him.
"He’s... really different from everyone. I don’t know if I should be scared of him, or not," he murmured, hesitation flickering in his eyes. "The Luna won’t be angry that I left, right?"
She didn’t ask me to stay... or did she?
A sense of panic crept into his chest, tightening there. He tried to reason with himself, but the more he thought about it, the less sense it made.
"I’ll just..."
Before he could finish the thought, Gareth had already swung his legs off the bed. Swallowing his doubts, he mustered the courage to check on Lynsandra once more — even if Elias was there. He would just make sure he wouldn’t get in trouble for leaving her alone with Elias. Not that he thought the man would do anything inappropriate while she was asleep.
But as he approached the library, he slowed to a halt.
There, he saw them.
Lynsandra and Elias. Hand in hand, with Elias leading her in the opposite direction from where Gareth was.
"Lu..." he trailed off, staring at them as if they were about to elope. "...na?"
Gareth blinked, watching her hair sway with each step she took. His gaze remained fixed on her back, as if rooted there. Then, when she tilted her head slightly—as though looking away from Elias—he caught the faint curl at the corners of her lips and the way her eyes softened, even if only for a fleeting moment.
Lynsandra had no trouble smiling, though her presence often carried a distant air. Even when she was surrounded by people—or sitting right across from Gareth—she still felt far away.
But the smile Gareth had just seen wasn’t like the ones he was used to. If anything, it made him realize that this might have been the first time he had seen her smile genuinely. And that the smiles he’d seen before... had never truly been real.
Quietly, Gareth moved his gaze to the man leading her, and felt this slight ache in his chest.
"They... look perfect."
