"What the hell? Did you lose a bet with common sense? What possessed you to barge in like that?" Vyan scolded, dropping her hand like it was on fire.
"How was I supposed to know the door would vanish into thin air? Not my fault your ancestors were obsessed with magical pranks," Iyana shot back, rolling her eyes.
"Well, if you didn't know, maybe you shouldn't have— never mind! Arguing with you is like debating with a brick wall."
"Glad you figured that out faster than usual." She gave him a tight, sarcastic smile and sauntered away.
Vyan took a deep breath, counting to ten to keep from exploding, while Iyana started inspecting the room with the curiosity of a cat.
Against his better judgment, Vyan followed her lead. There was something about this place—a tug at his heartstrings, a wave of nostalgia washing over him.
The air was thick and musky, yet instead of suffocating him, it made him want to be vulnerable and bawl like a baby.
Biting his lip to keep his emotions in check, he ran his fingers over the spines of children's books on a shelf. All his favorites were there—fantasy and adventure.
Surprisingly, the books weren't coated in years of dust, indicating the room had been cleaned regularly, at least once a year.
If that's the case, Benedict must know about its existence, Vyan thought.
His gaze landed on a miniature castle with knight figures and toy soldiers, surrounded by board games, archery sets, and tiny musical instruments.
These items stirred vague, blurry broken memories in his mind.
———
"Shhh. You don't have to cry anymore. She won't find you in here," whispered a teenage boy, his voice soft and comforting as he gently wiped little Vyan's tears with his sleeves.
But Vyan's sobs only grew louder, his fear and sadness pressing down on him like a heavy blanket.
The teenager's frown deepened, concern etched into his features. "Vee, if you keep crying like that, I won't teach you this new magic trick I learned."
"I don't... wanna learn magic. I don't wanna learn swords. I don't wanna learn anything," Vyan's voice trembled, each word a raw wound laid bare.
The boy, his face obscured by shadows, knelt down and pulled Vyan into a tight embrace, his arms encircling him with a protective warmth.
"I am sorry, Vee. I am so, so sorry that I can't do anything for you. But I promise that—"
———
"Wow, that was such a good show!" Little Vyan clapped enthusiastically, his excitement bubbling over and lighting up his face.
"See, I told you I would show you the best puppet show in the world," the teenage boy flaunted, his grin stretching from ear to ear.
"I never doubted you," Vyan praised, eyes sparkling with admiration.
"What a lie, Vee. You were clearly suspicious," the boy teased, laughter dancing in his voice.
Vyan gasped, his expression turning serious. "You are the one lying, Ash! I never doubted you!"
"Haha, I know. But maybe you should doubt me sometimes."
"Nope." Vyan shook his head adamantly, his small hands crossed over his chest. "You are the only person I will ever trust blindly."
"... not even Mother and Father?"
———
Vyan stretched up on his tiptoes, reaching for a book perched tantalizingly high on the shelf. His small stature turned the simple task into a Herculean effort, and he began bouncing up and down like an eager frog.
Each jump, though earnest, was futile.
Just as he was about to give up, strong arms lifted him effortlessly onto broad shoulders.
He blinked in surprise, then looked down to see his older brother, Aster, grinning up at him.
"So, what book were you trying to get, my baby brother?" Aster's voice was warm and teasing.
"That one!" Vyan pointed to a book that was still annoyingly high even for Aster's height. "Ugh, why did you interfere? I was so close!"
"Huh. Were you now?"
"I was!" Vyan insisted, his cheeks puffing out in a stubborn pout.
"Okay, okay, I believe you," Aster laughed lightly, the sound like a soft melody in the quiet room.
Now sitting securely on Aster's shoulders, Vyan reached out and easily plucked the book from the shelf.
His face lit up with a triumphant grin as he held the book close to his chest. Looking down at Aster, his eyes shimmered with a mixture of joy and gratitude.
"Thanks, Brother! Please always be there for me like this!"
Aster reached up, gently ruffling Vyan's hair. "Of course, Vee. Promise."
———
"Vee?" Iyana uttered, the corner of her mouth twitching.
"Yes, Ash?" Vyan responded automatically, spinning around.
Iyana's eyebrow shot up, looking at him with surprise. "Huh?"
"Huh?" Vyan echoed, looking just as bewildered. "Why did you call my name just now?"
"Oh, that…" She glanced at the paper in her hand. "That's the name written here." She held up the drawing, signed by 'Vee' in the corner.
"Oh."
Vyan's face fell. For a moment, he thought it was Aster calling him. More like, he hoped it was.
His train of sad thoughts was interrupted by Iyana's snide remark.
"I had no idea you had such a cutesy nickname, Your Grace," she teased, a wicked grin spreading across her face, "and let's not overlook your adorably horrendous drawing skills."
He scowled and snatched the paper from her hand. She burst into laughter.
"Stop snooping around, will you?" he barked.
She pursed her lips thoughtfully, then shook her head. "Nope, these masterpieces are way too entertaining. I will respectfully continue snooping."
She next pulled out a sketchbook, brimming with Vyan's less-than-stellar artwork, and laughed so hard she nearly doubled over.
"Hey, stop rifling through those," he growled, his annoyance mounting.
"Nope, not a chance," she gasped between giggles. "How could you be this bad at drawing? What is this supposed to be? A cat? A bear? Maybe a bird that had a rough night?"
Vyan clenched his teeth and lunged for the book, but she deftly dodged out of his reach, her laughter echoing around the room.
She stopped at the nearest corner of the room, her back barely brushing against the bookshelf behind her.
"You can't take this from me until I have finished it," she declared.
"Are you even a little bit concerned about how we are going to get out of here?" Vyan asked, his voice dripping with exasperation.
"Nope!" she replied, her tone infuriatingly cheerful. "I mean, what's the worst that could happen? You and I die here together. Honestly, that doesn't sound so bad, does it?"
"Doesn't sound bad? Are you kidding me? It sounds like my worst nightmare."
"Too bad for you, then—" She cut herself off as she felt the shelf behind her wobble ominously.
Glancing up, she saw books and a few random artifacts teetering precariously at the top.
In that instant, she had two choices: let the big shelf topple over entirely and destroy all the precious junk Vyan kept looking at fondly, or stabilize the shelf and take the hit from the falling items.
On instinct, she chose the latter.
Dropping the drawing book, she spun around and braced herself against the shelf, ready to play the world's worst game of dodgeball with heavy books and trinkets.
She squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for the inevitable pain.
But it never came. Instead, she heard the soft thuds of things hitting the floor.
"Oww," came Vyan's voice next. "That hurt."
Her eyes flew open, widening as she realized Vyan was standing right behind her, shielding her from the fallout. His strong arms rested just above hers, holding the shelf in place.
The distance between his chest and her back was mere centimeters, and she became acutely aware of his proximity. One step back, and they would be touching.
Great, just what she needed—a heart-pounding, awkward moment in the middle of a crisis.
Just then, to add to her misery, her breath hitched as he brought his lips close to her ear and whispered, "I think the shelf is stabilized now. You can let go."
Her brain completely disregarded his words, fixating instead on the warmth of his breath and the sudden acceleration of her heartbeat.
"Huh?" she mumbled, sounding dumber than she would ever care to admit.
"Let go of the shelf," he repeated softly, his voice a low rumble in her ear.
"Oh. Okay." In her flustered state, she turned around, desperate to leave, and promptly collided with his solid chest.
The fresh, earthy scent of sandalwood and cedar enveloped her, washing over her like a calming wave.
For a moment, she almost wanted to stay there, basking in his soothing aroma. Until reality hit her like the books hit Vyan.
"Hey, I told you to let go of the shelf, not let go and hang on to me," Vyan remarked, his tone tinged with amusement.
"I wasn't—" She knew it was futile to explain. "Whatever." She finally extricated herself from the awkward situation, taking deep breaths as soon as she was a safe distance away.
What the hell is wrong with me? Why was I being so dumb? And...
She stole a glance at Vyan, who was now rubbing his head with a pouty, pained expression.
"Why did you save me?"