Word Count: 1510

The night's sweet wind dances wistfully through my curtains, my balcony doors wide open.

I suspect Marek will follow through with his promise he made the other day, to come and tell me how the date went once it was over. I'm not sure why he offered to do so; maybe he didn't want me to feel jealous, or left out. Maybe he didn't want me to think it was serious.

Too bad. Now I realise how serious he really is about Vaia.

It shouldn't bother me as much as it is doing so right now, as I sit awkwardly upon my bed, rubbing my sweating palms upon each other. I'm not sure if I feel this way because he kissed me, and I felt something in that moment that I hadn't before. Or maybe this has been happening for quite some time, and the idea of Vaia having his affections truly bothers me.

There's no knock on my door, as Marek slips in, closing it behind him. He looks dishevelled, with mussed hair falling at his ears and temples, his clothing unkempt with a few buttons of his shirt undone, showing the taut planes of the top of his chest. My stomach turns uncomfortably.

"How was your date?" I ask breathily, appearing to lounge back on my bed nonchalantly.

Marek pauses by the door, gaze tracing the outline of my body for a long, drawn-out moment. The faintest hint a frown graces his forehead before he shakes his head and it vanishes. Is he feeling guilty? Is he going to lie to me, or hide it from me? It's none of my business, in truth.

"Fine," he replies, his voice deathly soft.

"Vaia as shallow as we assumed?" I ask casually. Marek pulls his jacket off, draping it upon the dresser as he sits down on my ottoman. I look away, not wanting to concentrate on the way his skin shows from his rolled up sleeves, on the faint line of muscle under the fabric.

"Something like that," he replies.

I shift uncomfortably, the air around us scented sweet from stems of lavenders in a crystal vase by the window. He's being cold toward me, sharing so little with me when he promised he would share every word she said to him when he returned. I doubt he wants to speak to me about them kissing.

"Are you close with her? You haven't told me much about how you two get along," I ask, unable to help myself.

Marek shrugs, resting his elbows on his knees as he focuses on me. He looks frightfully stoic under the dim lighting, shadows sweeping to frame the sharp contours of his face, the balmy breeze ruffling his hair gently.

"I 've hardly spoken to her," he tells me quietly, angling his head. His stare is relentless, but I refuse to look away. Should I be angry that he is lying to me, or should I expect nothing less? He doesn't owe me anything, doesn't need to share his experience with me. Perhaps he is embarrassed that he feels for Vaia, since her and I don't get along.

"Oh..."

His eyes darken. "Surprised?"

For a long moment, I don't know how to reply. I'm not sure why he is being so defensive, so unable to share anything with me. Instead of replying, he gets to his feet, wandering over to the balcony where the curtains flutter and shift in the breeze.

"No...I guess I didn't get that impression," I say with a shrug. Maybe I shouldn't have said that. I have no reason to believe that there is anything going on between him and Vaia.

Silently, he presses the balcony doors closed, dousing the room in deathly silence.

"I knew it was you," he murmurs quietly.

Please no.

"Knew what was me?" I ask, my voice breathy and soft. I already know what he is insinuating, but the idea of it being true has my entire world spiralling into a dark hole I can't escape from.

Marek presses his back against the glass, looking at me with eyes that burn with icy fire. "On the date tonight. I knew it was you."

Everything stills as my body turns numb. A myriad of thoughts flood my mind, all forcing my heart rate to an unreasonable level. He must think I'm insane for pretending to be Vaia and kissing him. When did he realise it was me? He must have seen me run away and realised what had happened. He must have been disgusted...

"I was trying to tell you it was me," I say, and instantly regret it. I could have tried harder, could have pushed him off sooner. I was mortified at the idea of having enjoyed it, I didn't want to admit to him right away that it was me.

His expression is impassive, but his eyes are glacial. "You lied to me."

"I was trying to tell you it was me," I explain. "You kissed me. If you knew it was me, why did you kiss me?"

Marek pauses, the silence seeping dangerously into my conscious mind, forming responses that don't fall past his lips. Rearing off where he leaned against the glass door, he dips his head, hair falling to his eyes. I don't miss the muscle in his jaw feather, the shadowy pass in his eyes that mutes that stinging blue.

"I did kiss you. And I would do it again, and again, and again," he repeats slowly, each word dripping from his mouth with quiet firmness.

I mentally reel, while my body remains numb and unresponsive.

I can't help but stutter. "I-"

"If I don't have a chance to do it here, without Taius breathing down my neck, then I had to make the most of what I could," he tells me with a dismissive shrug, as if I should have known all along. This couldn't be anymore of a shock.

"Marek..." I breathe, but the rest of my sentence fails to form.

He steps closer, the light above us leaving the silvery blue hint of his marking luminous, reminding me of how we are truly worlds apart. For a moment I fear he's going to kiss me again. I fear he will kiss me, and I will feel the way I did tonight.

"Is it really so unbelievable that I'm attracted to you? That I want you?" He asks, eyes wide and questioning. I'm frozen, all words numb in my mind, not making any sense. I'm failing to process this, to understand what every encounter between us recently means.

"I don't know what to say," is all I can muster.

"You kissed me back Akara. And not because of the role you thought you had to play."

I have no words.

He doesn't wait for a response, leaving my room with such a swiftness that I couldn't call him to a stop, even if I wanted to. I watch the door glide closed, the click having my thoughts finally slot into place.

Marek kissed me. I'm engaged to a King.

Numbly, I walk to the bathroom, barely flicking the light on as I shed my clothing helplessly. Marek kissed me, he desires me...Do I desire him? My life has been nothing but a whirlwind lately, that it feels like my emotions are heightened. The way I feel for Marek must be heightened...

As I wait for the bath to fill, I scatter a few sweetly scented salts in, before I examine myself in the mirror.

My makeup is gone, having been frantically removed earlier in a desperate attempt to appear normal before Marek appeared at my room. My hair is a mess, curls having since slipped from their braids, twirling wildly around my cheekbones and forehead.

Quickly tugging them apart, I notice the slightest red mark on my neck. Cursing, I run my fingertips over it, my senses tingling as I recall the way Marek's lips, his tongue and teeth felt in that spot. It's a dangerous memory, one I must slip away and never think about again.

This mark will deepen no doubt. How will Tai react? I'll have to hide it from him best I can, especially since everything has been mild between us recently, instead of tense.

Whirling around, I turn the water cold. This is what I need, to not think about Marek.

To not think about the way his hands felt gliding over me, the gentle tugs of my body against him...

I'm done for.

❤️••❤️

If you guys want to read ahead, you can read more of KING'S POSSESSION on Radish! It's chapters ahead of Wattpad (:

🎈••🎈

I'm officially rewriting Alpha Jasper's story now on Radiah! It will be following the same storyline with the same characters, but with revised scenes and some new ones!

I love Jasper's story so much that I wanted to go back and rewrite it. I hope you guys will enjoy it, you can find it now on Radish (:

Instagram: Sophie_Midika

~Midika 💜🐼