Leah wanders for a while to observe the place. Gosh, look at her. Her dimple smile is everything. She didn't deserve what her father did to her. Only if I had been present there when she used to get abused by her father, I would have chopped his fingers for laying his hands on my girl........

Wait......what did I say?!

She turns her attention towards me. "Can I ask you for something?" She asks as she takes a few steps toward me. "What is it?" I ask. "Can you teach me how to dance?"  She asks. I pause for a while. Dance with her? Why not.

I nod yes. She grins wider and comes closer. "Okay, so now do what I command" I tell her. She shakes her head excitingly. I lift her right hand in the air; our fingers intertwine. "Now put your other hand on my shoulder" I command her. She takes a deep breath and places her other hand on my shoulder. I wrap my hand around her waist and pull her closer.

We dance.

I take a step forward, and she takes an effort backward. Then she takes a step forward, and I take a step backward.

I then spin her around and pull her back towards me. She grins. "You dance well" I tell her. "You too" She responds. I smile and lift her in the air, spinning around. She giggles. I put her down back.

The best moment of my life. That's dancing with her. I wish I could dance with her forever—the never-ending dance.

We sit on the grass next to each other. "Thanks for the dance" She says as she stares at me. Keep staring at me like that. I love it.

I smile at her, and she stares at the stars. I glance at my watch, and It's 11 pm. I still have 1 hour to enjoy this fantastic night with her. I gaze at her again. She glances at me, baffled.

"What?" She asks. "Didn't your mother ever try to stop your dad from abusing you?" I ask her the only question that have been hovering in my head. Her facial expression changes quickly. From happy to sorrow.

Why do I feel like I just ruined the whole fun?

"No, because he used to lock me in the basement and keep the keys with him always" She says, looking down at the grass.

"You know what? I'm still afraid" She glances at me. "Afraid of what?" I mutter. "That what if my father found out where we are? He'll kill me" She says as she lowers her voice. "Please, if he even dared to touch you, I'll rip out his internal organs and feed them to dogs" I tell her furiously.

Oops.

She stared at me, and her eyes widened. "Look, uhh; you don't deserve this shit, okay?" I shrug. "And so don't you" She says, again touching my injured lips with her thumb. Oh yeah, I had forgotten about that punch.

Nevermind.

We both stare at each other for a while. I stare at her lips, slowly leaning in.

Our lips were just a few inches away from each other.

"Ares!"

Someone yells my name. I get distracted, and so does she. I look back. It's Zion. I didn't like the timing of his arrival.

Anyway.

I stand up, and so does Leah, while he approaches us. "What in the world are you doing here?" He asks, and then his eyes land on Leah. "Hi, pretty face" He grins at her in a friendly way. "Hi" She utters and looks away. He then turns his full attention toward me.

"Why didn't you return to the ball?"He asks. "Well, I—And what has happened to your lips?"He asks a minor concern. "Uhh....I'll explain that later" I tell him. He narrows his eyebrows. "Tell me" He demands.

"Well, you guys carry on; I should go now" Leah says and leaves. I keep watching her until she disappears from my sight. "Now tell me what happened" Zion stares at me disdainfully. "Nothing much, my father punched me" I complain; his jaw drops.

"What?" He wails shockingly. "Don't overreact; you know it's normal between us" I roll my eyes. "Oh god" He sighs, running his fingers through his hair.

_______________________________

The ball is finally over. But I wonder if my father has announced the marriage or not. Perhaps Zion knows. He's in my room, reclining on the chair, exhausted. I stare at him in the mirror while taking off my tie and suit jacket. "Did my father announce my marriage?" I ask him, my eyebrows frowning. "Surprisingly, no" He informs me as he spins himself on the chair.

That's improbable.

"Reason?" I raise my eyebrows while I turn back to face him. He stares at me and shakes his head no. "Now, can I ask you something?" He asks; his way of talking is analogous to an investigator. "What?" I ask back. "What were you doing with that girl in the garden?" He raises his brows.

I pause for a while. I sit at the edge of my bed. "Uh...We both were having some chit-chat" I tell him, but he doesn't look satisfied with my answer. "Just having chit-chat?" He asks more suspiciously. "What did you expect?"I glare at him. "Something more than chit chat" He says, resting his chin on the palm of his hand.

"What do you mean?" I ask. "Don't act like you don't know Ares, it's been 16 years since we became friends, and I know you very well" He rolls his eyes. "What's your point, Zion?" I ask frustratingly, lying back on my bed. "You both almost kissed when I arrived" He stubbornly folded his arms up to his chest.

I push myself up and straighten my back. "Have you fallen in love with her, Ares? Tell me. Do you like her" He asks, softening his tone.

Honestly, I don't know the answer. Maybe yes. I don't respond as I stare at the floor. "Her suffering is quite similar to mine" I glance at him. "Well, maybe that's why I'm being empathetic towards her" I add to my sentence. Zion is still looking flummoxed.

"Her father used to abuse her too" I try to make him understand. "So, should I take that as a yes?" He asks, with a nonplus look on his face. "Ares, you're confusing" He scoffs. "You wanna know the answer? Yes, I'm in love with her, so what?" I look away disgustingly.

I'm in love with her and am not even sorry.

"Okay, fine! Do whatever you want to do!" He says and stands up from the chair. I watch him approach the door and trek out of the room, shutting the door behind me.

There was nothing to get upset about. I don't know why he reacted like that.

Anyway, I change my clothes and climb on my bed. I hope my father won't make any scene tomorrow because I disappeared at the ball.

Like seriously, he was the main reason I didn't return to the ball.

I drag the bedsheet up to my chest and shut my eyes.

_________________________________

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