Sebastian's pupils dilated for a fraction, presumably surprised that Shalei wouldn't ask anything about his cool bionic arms. Rude, she huffed. Who did he think she was? She passed with flying colors in her etiquette and manner lessons, okay? Sebastian's relief was apparent with a sigh that drained the tension on his body away. He gave a quick nod before hesitating. "Please allow this humble one to… fetch a shirt in my room."
Oh no, Shalei couldn't have it. Her head had barely quietened down with the soothing presence of another. If Sebastian were to leave her for a few minutes, Shalei couldn't guarantee what she would have done. Maybe broke one window or two.
"Sure." She gestured forward. "Lead the way." She almost laughed at the obvious question marks that filled Sebastian's eyes. This man, although he looked imposing and aloof, was surprisingly easy to read in some cases. She narrowed her eyes when Sebastian's feet were still nailed in place and teased. "Or are you going to leave me alone again?"
Her sentence had clearly reminded them back to the time when Sebastian was carrying her to her room. "Shouldn't have left you alone." He had said. The lines of Sebastian's jaws hardened and his fists loosely clenched. Shalei's eyes darted, without her realizing, to the smooth flex of those long, thick fingers before she promptly looked away — anywhere. "No, this humble one won't. Not again."
She chuckled in an attempt to fill the silence so that her heartbeat wouldn't sound so loud and clear. "You will make me shy. I am not some three years old child, you know."
A frown marred his gorgeous forehead and Shalei found herself wishing that she was close enough to smooth it away. "It's dangerous."
She blinked. "...What is?"
"Everything." Clearly lacking any intention to respond any further, Sebastian turned away and nodded. "Please follow me."
"Um," Shalei walked forward, still with the candlestick in her hand that failed to shine on the path in front of Sebastian. "You don't need the candle…?"
A pause. "This humble one has excellent eyesight in the dark."
How excellent was it that he was able to see in such an unfathomable darkness? Did his eyes shoot out laser beams or what? Shalei amused herself with the imagination. It was so easy to fall into steps behind Sebastian, to use his steady footsteps as an anchor. The rhythmic tune had started to grow familiar to her.
As they walked, Shalei's mind drifted to the sound she heard before Sebastian's footsteps appeared. What was that? The question gnawed on the back of her mind and Shalei felt like she could find the answer if she mulled over it longer. It wasn't unfamiliar but it wasn't something she heard often either that she could give the answer in a beat.
"We are here." Sebastian's low voice brought her out of reverie and she lifted her head to see that they had arrived in front of the door she passed by earlier with Meagan. Sebastian was staring at her, searching. "Your Excellency." It was a statement but the unspoken question hung between them like a heavy cloak.
Shalei cleared her throat. "Do you mind if I come in? If you do, then I—"
Sebastian wordlessly pushed the door open. His room was equally dark, not even a hint of light could be seen. Shalei let out a sigh and thanked her decision to tag along with him. She would really go insane if she was left alone in the darkness for a minute longer. "Thank you," she murmured and stepped inside.
Sebastian grunted and moved around to light the candle up, one by one. The room gradually brightened and Shalei could finally see the interior of the room. It was smaller than her own, to her surprise. It was minimalistic and quite bare. There was only a single unmade bed and a cabinet.
The only sign of life came from the table in the corner of the room that was messy with numerous small mechanisms, books, and… weapons. Guns, daggers, more swords and grenades. Holy, there were grenades there!
When Shalei managed to tear her eyes away from the weapons, Sebastian was already dressed, his bionic arms covered fully by the long sleeved shirt. However, he had given up wearing the black leather gloves, letting the silver metal fingers out in the open. Shalei assumed that her guesses were right, everyone else should have known about his… physical condition so the only person whom he wanted to hide it from must be her. She hoped that someday Sebastian would be comfortable enough to wear whatever he wanted.
(And nope, she wasn't disappointed that she was finally deprived of the sight of superb eight packs. Definitely not.)
Shalei couldn't help but point out with an air of fake nonchalance. "I see you have a lot of weapons here…"
Sebastian followed her line of sight and frowned. "Not enough."
Not enough? Shalei's eyes snapped to him. Not enough for what?! Yet somehow Shalei couldn't find the courage to ask. She wasn't prepared to hear the answer. "Oh, that's too bad..."
She walked to the bed before sitting down, stunned as she felt the rougher material under her palm. Certainly it wasn't too bad to the point of discomfort but compared to the silken sheets in her room, this was a far cry. Sebastian continued to move candles all over the room so it was equally bright. It was funny how the same scenery made her feel so different with his presence here. Shalei found herself relaxing.
"Seth, may I ask you a few questions?" She tentatively probed.
Sebastian immediately put down the last candle and leaned against the table, giving her his full attention. "Your Excellency may ask whatever questions she has."
Wow, that's such a privilege to have for a hostage. But Shalei could hear the underlying meaning in it. She could ask but it didn't mean that Sebastian would answer. Sneaky, sweet talker bastard. "Where is everyone?" She gestured outside. "I heard from Meagan that there are twenty of you around but so far, I have only seen you and Meagan."
"This humble one will bring them to you when the opportunity arises." Sebastian nodded readily, to her surprise. "A lot of them are… currently unavailable."
"Unavailable." Shalei repeated slowly, asking. "Because of what?"
"Patrolling. Clearing the ground. Guarding the area." He pursed his lips, seemingly annoyed. "There have been a little too many disturbances around here. If we are not cautious enough, it will cost us lives."
Oh Lord. Shalei shuddered. What was this? There was more than one organization? Were they enemies who couldn't meet eye to eye and engaged in a gunfight everytime they crossed paths like the two rival mafia gangs in the movies? Fuck, what had she gotten herself into?! Apprehension must have shown on her face because when she blinked, Sebastian had moved from the table to her side and promptly went down on one knee.
Shalei's breath was caught in her throat and all the messy thoughts in her head flew out of the window when those deep blue eyes stared at her. "Your Excellency." Sebastian gingerly reached out and upon receiving no rejection from Shalei, he finally grabbed her hand and oh, his hand was cold. The typical metallic cold which was a contrast to how warm a human's skin was. Yet somehow, a rush of heat traveled all over Shalei's body from where they were touching. The way Sebastian held her hand was so reverent, so careful and gentle that it made her heart ache. "With me here, you have nothing to fear. Until the end of my life, I will serve you and only you."
"Until the end of your life…?" She chuckled breathlessly. How did Sebastian manage to sound so sincere in every word he said? Shalei wanted to cry, she hadn't known that such earnesty from a stranger could touch a place so deep inside her.
Don't make a promise you can't keep, Shalei wanted to say. Don't give me hope. Don't say such sweet things to me only to leave in the end.
But in the end, she could only downplay it into a light-hearted question. "Don't you think it's a bit too much?"
Sebastian's eyes hardened and there it was again, his stubborn streak. "No." He held her hands tighter.
"No?" She couldn't resist teasing. "No what?"
"It's not too much. Never too much." He said firmly, his blue eyes were the only color Shalei could see. "I will prove it to you."