Novel Square
Chapter-87. May I?
[Raven]
Xanthea's eyelids fluttered to Ezra as he stood before her, her breaths shallow, and when he leaned closer to her, she wasn't breathing altogether.
Ezra held her gaze, his eyes dropping to her parted lips behind the veil as he took in her features like a drug. With a swift gulp, he looked away briefly, overwhelmed by the intensity of her electric proximity. With a deliberate lick of his lips, Ezra stepped closer to her, closing his eyes to breathe her in.
His fingers twitched with a dying urge to reach out to her, yet he restrained himself, careful not to breach the boundaries Xanthea had set.
"May I?" He whispered, his voice carrying a gentle resonance as he feverishly stretched out his hand toward her.
Xanthea looked into his eyes and then at his hand in confusion. Ezra blinked once with a faint smile and their eyes moved in a sync as though communication in a language only they understood.Content held by NôvelDrama.Org.
Xanthea took a cautious breath and gracefully placed her hand into his palm.
As Ezra gently tightened his grip around hers, he tenderly caressed her skin. Holding her gaze, he slowly lifted her hand. With a bow, he pressed the back of her hand against his forehead before planting a kiss on it, causing her to stiffen with a subtle shiver.
Her expression was blurred behind the veil, but the way her eyes lit up with surprise... I knew she was expecting anything but this. "Alpha?"
Her soft whisper trembled on her lips, and for some inexplicable reason, I had to shut my eyes to relish the sheer sublimity of her voice. "Please... trust me," Ezra said coaxingly.
Xanthea tensed her brows as she took in the hall, the elders seated on the balcony. Her breaths quickened, her chest rising and falling rapidly. But she blinked away her fears and gave an adamant nod.
"Thank you." Holding her hand tight, Ezra ushered her onto the dais with him.
Xanthea tried to keep her posture as relaxed as possible, but I could sense the tension and the struggle with her emotions as she stood clueless before the council.
Ezra let go of her hand as she faced Isagi, who addressed her.
"Lady Xanthea Plath Xipher, welcome to the council. I hope you know why we summoned you-"
"Pardon me, honorable speaker," Ezra interrupted Isagi. "But she doesn't know why she's here."
A wave of confused murmurs ran across the jury and the elders.
"Alpha Ezra?" Isagi spoke through the mic.
Ignoring everything and everyone, Ezra looked at Isagi.
"That is why I need some time with her before the meeting officially begins. I request the council to allow me these few minutes-"
"Of course, alpha. If you need privacy-" Isagi began.
"No. It's fine. This is exactly where I want this to happen." Ezra snapped his fingers, and the lights dimmed around the hall, spreading a shroud of darkness on everyone else. He took a deep breath and faced Xanthea.
"I know I ask a lot from you today," he licked his lips, lowering his head. "And the only thing I can offer you is my sincere truth. Truth of you and I and what it means." He held her hands and looked into her eyes again.
"I know it's terrifying to place your fate in the hands of a man whose own fate is so uncertain. So, I ask you not to entrust your fate to me, but to keep mine in your care..." Xanthea's grip tightened on his palms, her eyes trying to decipher the depth of his words and the emotions he tried to hide behind them.
"What I'm about to ask you might be frightening, dangerous even, but I promise to never let go of your hands if you say yes and to hold you tighter if you say no." His voice cracked with a slight quiver. Ezra impatiently stepped closer to her.
"If you find my question too difficult to answer, silence will be enough. I'll read your eyes, but if I fail, just whisper and I'll read your lips. There are people inside me, Xanthea; their screams loud but unheard. And you silence the noise so gently, I feel defeated..."
Tears welled up in Xanthea's eyes as though she could somehow feel the pain behind Ezra's words.
What is this stupid doing being so vulnerable before her in front of the entire council?
What is he thinking-
The air around the hall ceased into a crushing gravity and I sat petrified in my seat as Ezra got on his one knee before her.
"Alpha?" Xanthea took in a sharp, broken gasp, involuntarily stepping back, shock clear through her veil.
Ezra's gaze softened as he smiled at her and then lowered his head as though in deep thoughts.
Hesitating initially, he reached his hands towards his collars and pulled out the ring pendant he had been wearing.
Xanthea's hands flew to her mouth, her composure disoriented, her eyes filled with disbelief. She shook her head as though she couldn't believe her eyes, as if she was dreaming.
Her breaths hitched as she peered at the ring over Ezra's chest. Her restless eyes darted to his, searching for an explanation as she gulped hard.
When Ezra took off the pendant and freed the ring from the chain, she gazed at him with an anxious confusion.
"I was not afraid of losing anything... until... I found this ring. And while I have known you for such a short time... I-I feel as though I am already... running out of it."
Her breaths raced faster than her heartbeats as he held the ring between his fingers and lifted it toward her. Maintaining eye contact with her, Ezra's eyes softened with warmth and nervous uncertainty. "So today... it's to your heart that I speak. Xanthea... will you be my Luna?"
Xanthea's trembling fingers curled into tight fists as she stared at Ezra, her expressions a mix of astonishment and incredulity.
Everyone in the hall stopped breathing at that moment, all eyes on the two of them, awaiting Xanthea's reply.
The wood of my seat's armrest cracked from the pressure of my claws, sinking into them as I glared at Xanthea who shut her eyes and took a deep breath, processing the situation more calmly than I had expected.
I knew she would have panicked, but she didn't. All because Ezra created a safe space for her to process everything without being overwhelmed. He hid us and the council away in the darkness so we wouldn't influence her judgment. Very smart!
I scoffed, gritting my teeth.
I don't know what took over me at that moment.
Wrath?
Irritation?
Annoyance?
Whatever it was, it felt like my body was set on fire from within, making me desperate for her to... reject him.
But when Xanthea opened her eyes and gazed at Ezra again - when she calmly unfurled her fragile fingers and offered them to him with a serene smile and an affirmative nod - something dark and primal ignited within me. Ezra's smile slowly brightened, his eyes relaxing as he gently took her hand in his. With a tender motion, he slid the ring onto her finger. Time seemed to stretch between them as they contemplated one another, sharing a smile that flushed her cheeks red.
Ezra rose to his feet, his movements unhurried, as if savoring every detail of her smile. He reached for Xanthea, pulling her into his embrace. As his arms enveloped her, he let out a deep, trembling sigh of relief. The tension melted between them into something surreal.
"Thank you," he said, and she hugged him back tighter.
Both of them looked as though they were on the brink of falling apart, but they held each other together.
The blinding lights lit up the council again. Still holding hands, they turned to face Isagi and the jury.
One by one, Isagi explained all the duties of a Luna candidate to Xanthea, the perks that came with it, the cons, the dangers and everything else.
But all I could think about was - Xanthea.
The only one I could see was - Xanthea.
Don't know why, but the only one I wanted at that moment was - Xanthea.
And the only one I couldn't have was - Xanthea.
My body trembled with the effort of holding back everything I felt as Xanthea finally signed the magical Luna candidate contract with Ezra, using a golden quill that drew blood as ink from its bearer. All I ever wanted was to steal her from Asher.
What Ezra did with her shouldn't have affected me the way it did.
But for some fucked up reason, I want her to look at me, not him, and it was then a feeling buried deep inside me for ages resurfaced.
The infuriating feeling of losing, and this time not from Asher, but Ezra.