Let's be honest… Aether never planned to go after Thalia Crimsonclaw.
She was practically his sister-in-law!
Sure, he had told Aria that Thalia was his target, but that was only because he knew Thalia could stop Aria if she ever went berserk. It was a strategy, a backup plan, nothing more.
Even that kiss he'd shared with Thalia—it wasn't meant to spark anything deeper. It was either out of a fleeting moment of joy or just a cheeky tease in response to how she'd teased him before.
That was it. Nothing more, nothing less!!
Believe him!!
Yet,
Gulp.
Aether swallowed hard, feeling a bead of sweat trickle down his neck as he caught Thalia staring at him like he was her next meal.
'What the hell did I do wrong?' he panicked inwardly. 'There were no signs, no clues… Come on, how do you jump from 500 affection points to 5000 just like that? What the actual fuck, bro?' He wondered.... He genuinely wondered!!
