Without a word, Alex stepped closer to Luna, his hands reaching out to grasp her arms. His touch was firm but gentle, his strong hands enveloping her as he pulled her out from under the desk with ease, like she weighed nothing at all. In a single fluid motion, he lifted her and sat her on top of the desk, the movement so effortless that she could almost believe she was a child in his hands.His eyes, usually sharp and commanding, were dull with exhaustion. They flickered over her, taking in the small scratches on her hands, the smudges of dirt on her skin. He stared at them for a long moment, his jaw tightening as if he wanted to say something, but the words never came.Instead, he sighed, and before Luna could react, he grabbed a nearby chair, pulling it close. He sat down heavily, the weight of his worry and anger settling over him like a thick fog. His eyes lingered on her hands once more, but then, to her surprise, he leaned forward, resting his head on her lap.The gesture caught her off guard. His forehead pressed against her thighs, his breath warm against her skin, sending an unexpected shiver up her spine. Luna froze, her heart racing in her chest. She could feel his tense shoulders gradually begin to soften, as if the moment he surrendered to her touch, the weight of the world lifted just a little.For a long time, neither of them moved. The silence stretched between them, filled only with the soft sound of his breath, steady and warm. She could feel it brush against her skin, her legs tingling from the heat of his proximity. Luna stared down at him, her mind whirling with confusion, with emotions she didn't know how to name.Slowly, almost without thinking, she raised a trembling hand. Her fingers brushed against his hair, and she hesitated for just a second before she let her hand settle there, running gently through the strands. His hair was soft, thick beneath her fingers, and as she continued, she felt him relax even further, a soft sigh escaping his lips.Her heart pounded harder as she kept her touch light, tender, tracing her fingers over his scalp, through his hair, as if by doing so she could somehow ease the exhaustion that weighed him down. She had never seen him like this—so raw, so vulnerable. And something inside her stirred, something unfamiliar and aching.The tension between them was palpable, the intimacy of the moment suffocating in its intensity. The air between them buzzed with an unspoken understanding, something far deeper than words could express.Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Alex's voice broke the silence. It was quiet, almost hoarse, as though speaking took more effort than it should. "Why is it... that the first thing you always do... is run?" His words were heavy with exhaustion, his breath brushing against her thighs as he spoke.The vulnerability in his tone, the raw exhaustion in his voice, tugged at something deep inside Luna. She kept her fingers moving through his hair, the rhythmic motion soothing both of them, her own heart conflicted with the overwhelming closeness of the moment.She didn't answer right away. Instead, she let her hand move slowly, her touch gentle as if trying to ease the weight of the burdens he carried. But his question lingered in the air, pulling at her in a way she couldn't ignore. Her heart ached, not just from exhaustion but from the weight of everything she had been holding inside for so long. She looked around the pack guard retreating to their positions from the windows and then when she finally spoke, her voice was quiet, tinged with a sense of hopelessness she could no longer mask. "How could you think of nowhere else but here?" she whispered, her eyes searching his for answers she already knew . Alex lifted his head, his brow furrowed, confused. "Because this is all I can think of, " he said, his voice tired, but the certainty in it unwavering. His gaze lingered on her, vulnerable and raw.Luna's lips curled in a bittersweet smile, one that didn't reach her eyes. "That's great for you," she said, her voice flat but loaded with emotion. "You can stay here. Keep protecting your people. But just let me leave , I can't stay here and seek refugee from them."Her words hit him like a blow, and he raised his head, startled. His tired eyes, clouded with worry moments ago, now flickered with disbelief and pain. "What do I mean to you?" he asked, his voice thick with emotion. "Any chance you get, you just wanna run away. Leave me all alone. Don't you?"Luna's heart twisted painfully at the hurt in his words, the deep wound she could see in his eyes. She looked away, unable to meet his gaze for a moment, gathering the strength to answer. After a long, torturous silence, she whispered, "I can't, Alex. I can't stay here. Your people—they hate me. Can't you see it? How could I stay here knowing that?"The raw vulnerability in her voice struck him, and for a moment, Alex just sat there, still and silent. His chest rose and fell heavily as he absorbed her words. His face hardened with guilt, and after what seemed like an eternity, he whispered, "I'm sorry."Luna frowned slightly, confused. "Why are you apologizing?"He dropped his gaze, his shoulders slumping as if the weight of his guilt finally broke him. "Charlie was right... If I had stood for you that night, told everyone the truth... you wouldn't have been wronged like this. "Luna blinked at him, her chest tightening with a swirl of emotions—anger, regret, sadness, and something deeper, something more tender. She chuckled softly, the sound bitter in the quiet room. Alex's brow furrowed at her reaction, clearly puzzled."You dummy," she said, shaking her head softly, her eyes clouded with an emotion that seemed too deep to name. "You still didn't realised , that night... in that room... everyone knew the truth. Every single one of them knew it wasn't me. They just chose to look away."Alex stared at her, his body going rigid, disbelief flooding his features. "How is that possible?" he growled, anger flashing in his eyes. His fists clenched, the veins in his neck straining as rage began to build.But before his anger could fully take over, Luna reached out, placing a hand gently on his neck. Her touch sent a shiver down his spine, goosebumps spreading across his skin. The simple gesture calmed him, even as the fury roared beneath the surface."Same way you did, Alex," she whispered, her voice soft but firm, her gaze locked on his. "You were angry. So were they. It didn't matter to them whether it was me or someone else. As you once said yourself, the gods had wronged you all. We sat on our thrones, high and mighty, watching our own people suffer, bleed, and die. And where were we? Sitting there, oblivious, uncaring. So yes, we wronged you all. "Her words sliced through him like a knife, her quiet truth digging deep into his soul. Alex's eyes dropped, guilt and shame clouding his expression. He couldn't meet her gaze anymore, couldn't face the weight of his own past words. His own accusations were coming back to haunt him, twisting inside his chest like a vice. He had been so blinded by his own pain, his own anger, that he hadn't seen hers. He hadn't known the depths of her suffering.Luna could see the turmoil in his face, the way his guilt gnawed at him. A soft, sad smile touched her lips. "Don't blame yourself, Alex," she murmured, her voice filled with a strange kind of tenderness. "I knew what was going to happen even before I entered that room, before the wedding. And I still chose to go through with it. So you don't have to carry that burden."Alex lifted his head slowly, his eyes unreadable. He stared at her for a long, drawn-out moment, a mix of confusion and disbelief swirling in his gaze. "Why?Why would you do that? Why would you willingly walk into that knowing what would happen? " he asked quietly, his voice barely more than a whisper. "Why would you choose to be human in first place ?"Luna didn't answer right away. His last question had caught her off guard, the raw vulnerability in it striking her deeper than she expected. She looked away, her heart pounding in her chest. She was hiding something—he could feel it. And deep down, a part of him already knew the answer. But it was a truth he wasn't ready to accept.His gaze sharpened, watching her as she shifted, trying to mask her emotions. Finally, she stood up from the desk, brushing off the moment with an air of nonchalance that didn't fool him for a second. "Why is this wing empty?" she asked, changing the subject, her voice light as she walked around the room, her fingers brushing over the dusty surfaces.Alex stayed silent, his eyes still on her, waiting. He knew what she was doing—avoiding the question. And it hurt more than he cared to admit. When he realized she wasn't going to answer, he forced a chuckle, ruffling his hair with a strained smile. "It's empty so you can hide when you run away."Luna let out a soft chuckle, shaking her head, though her eyes softened at his attempt to make light of the situation. "So you're planning for my next escape already?" she teased, but there was a layer of tension beneath her words, a weight they both felt but weren't ready to address.Alex's smile faded, and he leaned back in the chair, his eyes searching hers. "It's all I can do to keep you here," he said softly, his voice barely audible.The silence between them stretched, filled with everything they couldn't say, with emotions they couldn't put into words. And in that moment, they both knew they were standing on the edge of something too deep, too powerful, and too fragile to fully understand.