The temperature in the clearing dropped drastically, suddenly stifling for some reason, as if an angel had actually passed through this time, letting its energy announce its presence, showing its power by wrapping itself around their necks like a cold snake biding its time.
Still, the ColdGuard brothers glared at Mal's friends, who were also standing on the other side of the altar, so that they could come face to face. Colin and Terce looked away almost immediately, not even knowing why they did that.
They, too, couldn't help but stare at the Coldguard brothers as the three of them concentrated on staring at Malayika as if he were some kind of eyesore who was losing his footing.
All they wanted to do was fly to their friend's aid, but they couldn't, and besides, his mother was with him, so they had nothing to fear.
Oh, if only they knew what was going on in Cerady's head!
The two groups of boys were like alphas trying to establish their territory, but with three pairs of olive green eyes that turned as icy as Antarctica itself once set upon them. Terce and Colin had no choice but to turn their heads away and curse these ColdGuard misfits between clenched teeth.
To think that the three ice rags were the same warm, loving guys who were laughing and hugging their sister like she was the very jewel of the realm just a few minutes ago. These ColdGuards must not be alone in their minds, they change moods far too quickly for their liking.
They don't know how to describe these misfit bastards or how to approach them. They have an aura that can suffocate and choke someone to death, and they don't like that at all.
They feel like they're dealing with some kind of dangerous ancient entity, so they have to be careful. No matter how unhappy they are, they don't express it.
The Coldguard aren't just wealthy; they must possess something else that makes them so formidable and inaccessible. Otherwise, a mere glance from them couldn't so easily make someone rethink their life.
Terce gritted his teeth, his mind racing with plans, while Colin subtly rolled his shoulders to dispel the stiffness that had momentarily overwhelmed them.
He felt stiff and rigid, as if he were the one about to marry the devil himself. What was this pressure?
While they fought their little alpha battle, pushing the boundaries of their territory and seeing if they could encroach on their neighbors, Malayika accepted that he would lie face down on the ground like an unimportant discarded sack, receiving the humiliation he deserved in front of all those people who would love to give their opinion while mocking him. Worse, he'd have to face the punishment that would follow such an act of dishonor later.
He knew his mother would not fail to tell him what a miscalculation she had made in giving birth to him.
The tears he had fought with all his being seemed to want to break out of their restraint, snoring so aggressively behind his pupils that his tear glands couldn't take it anymore, and they had to come out.
He had no control over himself, let alone his emotions. His limbs had become as heavy as lead thrown into water, his body no longer belonged to him, he was a stranger in his own body.
Malayika was sinking without even being able to move a limb to try to stay afloat, and the worst of it was that he couldn't find anything to hold on to.
But just when he thought that nothing and no one would come to his rescue, that all they wanted was to see him humiliated in public, that he'd lose all his pampered prince arrogance once and for all, and that he'd have to face his mother's wrath when this whole charade was over despite his lack of control over the situation, two firm, safe arms caught him and put him on his feet.
Feeling as light as a feather floating on the wind, he felt his lungs release from the pressure that had constricted them and his feet touch the hard, waterless ground, breathing almost noisily as if he'd just emerged from the water.
His eyes were blurred by the tears that threatened to roll down his handsome face, his long lashes wet, his eyes reddened, his lips trembling, but no sobs escaped them. He shouldn't cry, it's not worthy of a man, let alone a Locke.
Seeing him like this, he seemed even more fragile than the ColdGuard brothers had imagined. Pekon felt a strange urge to hold him in his arms and rock him until he cried his eyes out.
Pekon feels that this child needs protection, a sympathetic ear, and an attentive shoulder. But if he gets carried away and holds him in his arms in front of everyone, he knows what people will say and he knows what Malayika might feel.
Oh, he knows his children well and Malayika is still a child himself.
He glanced discreetly at his daughter, who was standing not far away, her head turned slightly to the other side as if to give Malayika room to breathe. Pékon smiled, proud of his daughter for her humility and the education he had given her. He really did a good job, and he knew his mother would be proud of him if she were here.
He raised his children the way she had taught him, without the twisted, pompous, inconvenient rules of his father, that tyrant who thought only of his pretty face and nothing else.
He turned away from his daughter, locked his dark olive green eyes with Malayika's tear-fogged ones, and smiled gently."You'll make it," he whispered softly, an angelic smile on his lips.
To Malayika, he was just a deformed but kind and compassionate mist, but it didn't matter at the moment; he was grateful for his kindness.His voice brought Malayika a little closer to reality.
If Pekon can treat his children with love, respect, and the like, it's not his future son-in-law he will smother with hostility. All children are children, rich or poor, fast or slow learners. It doesn't matter to him; children stay where they belong, and his children are no better than the others.
He reserves his hostility for people who deserve it, not a child who has surely been subjected to the same pressures and stresses as his daughter, if not worse. His daughter has seen dark days, yet she has survived. She's a fighter. But that doesn't mean he expects the same from Malayika.
He understands that both men and women are made of flesh and bone, with a fragile organ that beats wildly under pressure , excitement, fear and the like which can stop beating at any moment for the same reason. So why should one person be allowed to be weak and the other to stay strong no matter what?
Each person is shaped differently, with unique strengths and tools to face their challenges. They only need to understand who they are to face their trials effectively.
People need time to develop their character, which he instills in his children. He won't coddle them into submission and then expect them to be resilient out of the blue.
"You can cry later if you still want and need to, but right now you need to pull yourself together, my boy," he says, speaking softly to Malayika as he sees his eyes come out of their vacant state.
There's no magic wand or spell that can instantly make things the way you want them to be.What's key is a methodical, consistent approach, a patient spirit, and, most importantly, a mirroring of the values you're instilling in your children. It's not about telling them one thing and doing another. That kind of contradiction only confuses and undermines their education.
"Yes, that's right, my child. Listen to my voice and come back here. You are strong, and you will be strong through the trials that life has in store for you. You will be strong in your own way because everyone has their own way of dealing with what scares them. You just have to find what makes you strong," his voice was firm but there was tenderness in his almost soft tone. It was as if he was talking to his own children.
Malayika felt as if he'd heard those words somewhere before, and a choked sob escaped his throat. He swallowed his pain and hurt, and straightened up.
"That's it, champ, breathe. The world awaits you," Pekon told him as he straightened up and brought order to his outfit. He straightened his tie before the astonished eyes of Malayika, who could now clearly see his relaxed features.
There was nothing hostile, mocking, or hypocritical in Pekon's eyes; what he said to him really came from the heart.
Malayika was captivated by this enigmatic person in front of him. In a few seconds, he had taken care of him better than anyone in his family ever had.
He wasn't talking about maids, nannies, or bodyguards, but his mother and grandfather. They always looked at him with a mix of judgment, indifference, pity, as if he were a bit of a curiosity, and even a little contempt, as if he were some kind of failure to them.
And yet this man, the world calls the King of the Glaciers, stood before him with his tall stature and proud bearing. There was nothing repulsive in his body language as he looked at him.
He stood there like a protective wall, shielding him from the prying eyes of the cameras focused on him, whispering things to him that he didn't believe could come from the mouth of a man like him.
He even asked him to cry later if he still felt like it. What would his mother have said and done under such circumstances?
No, what he's thinking right now is not the question. Mal wanted to slap himself silly for thinking like that just because the man was showing him some human attention.
Does Mr. ColdGuard look down on him?Why would he say such a thing?He can't cry, he's a man and a man doesn't cry, that's what his mother says.
Is it true that he looks like a cheap, fragile bitch like his mother always says?A worthless wimp that no one would care about if he wasn't a Lockes? Is that why Mr. ColdGuard talks to him like that, because he knows that no matter what he does, he's nothing but what he is?
He makes a sudden backward movement to get out of the living space and protection that Pekon has offered him, out of sight of the cameras and the people in the clearing who are already wondering what Pekon could possibly be saying to him by staying so close to him.
Maybe he's threatening the little one, scaring him? And so they begin to speculate like the gossips they are.
However, Malayika's abrupt gesture didn't help the situation one bit. "Ah, that's right, a ColdGuard, cold and indifferent, he couldn't even wait until he was alone to mess with the young Lockes, who does he think he is?" someone in the crowd whispered to his companion, his voice alive with excitement.
"Yeah, I knew it was just a facade when he was laughing and smiling with his daughter. The Xander I know has no caring in him, all he knows is business," and comments of all kinds rose in the clearing, creating an almost deafening buzz.
Not to mention the spectators who watched the whole thing live, just waiting for that little moment.
They see it as a way to cope with their own lives, which they see as pathetic. They compare themselves to the ColdGuards, who have everything: beauty, money, love, the world.
The Cold Guard brothers snorted, showing their contempt, but they did nothing to change the situation. They let others believe and think what they want. It's not their problem.
When Cerady sensed the shift in temperature, as if the spell the ColdGuard had cast on the audience had been broken by seeing the true face of the ColdGuards' patriarch, she hurried to her son, her movements marked by panic and concern.
Sending back the image that she was very afraid of offending Pekon and that she was afraid of them, not out of respect for their position, but because they were monsters who feared nothing and she was afraid for her life—what a woman!
Ah, that good woman! She never misses an opportunity to say that it's Quens she's accusing of being an attention seeker.
She takes her son's arm lovingly, causing Malayika to jump back involuntarily like a cat whose tail has been stepped on. He realized too late what he'd done and opened wide eyes of astonishment marinated in terror, but Pekon saw it, even if no one else did, too busy eating his back to see what they were looking at.
He gave them a look that said he was suspicious, but then he went back to normal. Before doing so, though, he gave Cerady a calculating, heavy look that spoke volumes before looking away.
Cerady couldn't tell from the suspicious look Pekon gave her, but she didn't miss her son's backward gesture. This brat has big wishes in life—a death wish. What was so frightening?
She was too focused on playing the obedient, submissive, frightened woman to see Pekon condemning her. She bowed her head and apologized for Malayika.
"My son tends to lose control of his abilities when he's under too much pressure and emotion, and this wedding is fraught with tension. Young people these days don't know how to handle their emotions well, I'm sorry to have bothered you, Mr. ColdGuard."
She could have said Xander, which is what she usually calls Pekon when they're at charity events or whatever, but she chooses to call him formally to show the audience how scared she was of the ColdGuards and that they're not easy to deal with, despite the fact that they marry off their children today.
Pekon doesn't care; he doesn't even pay attention to her, he just says what he has to say. "Malayika Sneth Lockes, today I come to give you my only beloved daughter. So, man to man, I ask you to watch over her and take care of her, even if you have to forget your own life to protect her."
He believes that it's Mal who needs his daughter's protection, but he draws a line in the sand to warn them that his daughter is his bottom line. She is more precious and important than their lives and everything else on this earth.
So Mr. ColdGuard was laughing at him when he spoke so kindly to him earlier? He feels his heart being squeezed, but he can bear it, he understands, and it's less painful when it's his mother.
Malayika is biting the inside of his mouth, so his life isn't worth much compared to the girl who disrespected him again and again. He had a little idea before, but now he's one hundred percent sure.
As for Cerady, she just grits her teeth. Pékon, that big arrogant rat, has always looked down on her for some reason she doesn't know.