Paedyn Gray Powerless Quotes

I may be a monster, but if you cut me, I'll bleed. And if you break my heart, Pae, you'll break me. So, if even a sliver of your soul longs for mine, I'll spend the rest of my life trying to deserve it.

Do you always fall into the arms of handsome strangers or is this a new thing for you?" "No, only the cocky ones.

Tell me you hate me, and I'll still count every heartbeat, every freckle, every shiver of your body, if only you say it with a smile.

You don't need a blade. I would bleed if only you asked.

She is the torture I may not survive. Eagerly, she is my undoing. Her gaze lifts, meeting eyes that are not my own. Eyes of the man who gets to have her-if she allows it. She was supposed to be my forever. Now I'll watch her become someone else's. Because the beast doesn't get the beauty.

Maybe you really are a poet," I whisper. He smiles softly. "Only a fool for you." "Pretend?" My voice is small, soft like the breeze blowing through my short hair. "Never." "None of it?" I ask quietly. "Darling"-he smiles- "I have never had to pretend to want you.

No, I'm sick of running. And I won't spend the rest of my life doing it unless it's you I'm running back to." "Then I'll spend the rest of my life tracking you down," he says quietly. "Glimpsing you in shadows. Fighting you in the streets. Dancing with you in my dreams. Because living without you is only bearable when I know you are out there still living too.

Mark my words, Prince. I will be your undoing." "Oh Darling, I look forward to it.

You asked me what my favorite color was once. I'd never even pondered the answer to that question before you. And yet, I realized in that moment that it was blue." He bends to brush a kiss to my temple, a murmur against my skin. "It is your eyes.

A forget-me-not, since you always seem to be forgetting who I am.

You don't regret it?" She shakes her head, her smile sad, "No." "Good," I murmur. "Because I've always had a thing for short hair." "Oh, really?" She laughs as I sway us in a circle. "It's true. Among other things, of course." I shrug a shoulder. "Short hair. Ocean-blue eyes. Twenty-eight freckles. And"- I pause, examining her with a tilt of my head-"how tall are you?" She blinks in confusion. "Umm, about five and a half feet?" "Five and a half feet," I continue evenly. "The terrifying ability to kick a man's ass. Stunning smile. Ridiculously stubborn. Hair like molten silver. Quick to threaten me with a dagger." I smile down at her. "Should I go on?

Everything beautiful, everything bold, everything breathtaking- that is what I feel in her gaze. That, and terrified. Terrified of what she is doing to me. She is a vision, a nightmare, a dream. A grim reaper clad in black, come to steal my soul and my heart. I've never seen something so beautiful, so bold, so blatantly wrong for me. She is a devil. She is a deity. She is a man's downfall in human form. She is my downfall. Then her eyes drift to Kitt. The connection snaps. And I'm left feeling empty besides the jealousy growing inside me. Why did I ever think I could have ever, ever think she would have me? Because beasts don't get the beauty.

I wanted to kill you," I whisper, forcing his eyes to open. "I wanted to be your undoing. But even then, I knew I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I had." He inches toward me, head shaking and eyes roaming as though overwhelmed by what he is seeing. "Oh, but you are my undoing. My deliverance. my downfall disguised as a deity." Another slow step. "You are my ruin.

So in the wise words of Adena, this is simply a good way to say goodbye until....whatever the hell." "Until whatever the hell." Paedyn repeats with a nod.

Walking on a sharp blade and hoping I don't get cut. Playing with fire and hoping I don't get burned. Swimming in a dangerous current and hoping I don't drown.

My pretty Pae, what have you done to me?

I wanted her to be formidable. Recklessly bold. Powerful despite ability." I stare at him, taking in each word. "I am none of those things," I whisper. He drops my hand to brush gentle fingers beneath my chin, raising my face up towards his. "You are much more than those things." "You overestimate me." "No. I just see you.

She's bewildering as much as she is beguiling. That pretty mouth of hers says one thing, but those ocean eyes say another. She pulls a knife from my back only to say she'll bury another one there. She's confusing, captivating, and we're completely wrong for each other in all the right ways. She's a flame, and I'm going to get burned. An ocean and I'm going to drown.

It's strange," he says quietly, his eyes scanning the crowded garden. "I haven't known her for long, and yet, I find myself wanting to know her for longer.

Every touch, every dance, every kiss disguised as a distraction was anything but. Because before I loved her, I longed for her. She was a want I wasn't worthy of. And I'm afraid I'll never get the chance to deserve her. Because now that I have her, I'm giving her away.

You're not just a mission to me. You're not just another enemy for me to find. You're something even more terrifying." Her voice is little more than a whisper. "And what is that?" "A need." We stare at each other, both surprised by the words that pushed their way past my lips. Sunlight is streaming through her hair, making her glow like something far too heavenly for me. "I thought you had found your courage," she says softly. I smile slightly. "Maybe I'm fine with being a fool. So long as it's for you.

And what was your title again? The Silver Saviour?" "Fitting. I know how much you like silvers.

The setting sun drips with golden rays across her face, blue eyes burning bright against the vibrant red of each poppy. It's hard to believe that something so beautiful would willing stare at the likes of me. I feel undeserving of her gaze, of the way her eyes roam over my face. I shake my head, still staring down at her. "Don't look at me like that." "Like what?" she asks softly. "Like I'm worthy of being seen.

I'd be a fool to not fear something so fierce." I swallow. "And are you not? A fool, that is." He stands then, holding my gaze until he's the one looking down on me. "Not anymore.

At least you kept your promise. You stayed alive long enough to stab me in the back." He laughs bitterly, remembering the attack after the first ball when I tended to his wound. "And now I promise to return the favor." His voice strains with emotion. "Run, Paedyn. Because when I catch you, I will not miss. I will not falter. I will not make the mistake of feeling for you.

Pretend," I whisper against his lips. I am recklessness incarnate. Until the very end. My mouth meets his. He tastes like longing. Like regret and relief. Like nothing matters but this moment. It's fervent, like a sinner's prayer. And maybe that is what this kiss is. Repentance.

Do you always fall into the arms of handsome strangers, or is this a new thing for you?

Death can claim me when it finds a less pathetic way to end my existence.

Forget-me-nots because you always seem to be forgetting who I am." "You're the king of Ilya." "And who am I to you?" "My fool." "Don't forget 'cocky bastard'" "You wouldn't let me, even if I tried." "And you are forever my undoing, Paedyn Gray. Marry me, Pae. I'm already on one knee, but I'll get down on both and beg for you, if you like.

And let's pray they don't." I stuff the reins in his hands, suddenly too curious to steer. "I didn't peg you as the type to pray, Prince." I feel his shoulders shrug against my back. "I didn't used to believe in a God." "And now?" There is a long pause followed by a softening of his voice. "I found proof of a paradise." I glance over my shoulder to find his eyes already on me. "And what was that?" His gaze glides over my face and down the length of my braid. "You'll know when you see it.

Because I love you, Paedyn Gray. And I will happily spend the rest of my life trying to deserve you.” “I love you,” she says, suddenly stern. “And I will spend the rest of my life shouting it until even Astrum hears, because it is Death who should fear me if he ever tries to take you away.

You’re Paedyn Gray. Silver Savior, silver-tongued, and quick to shove her silver dagger into people.

But his tone is familiar, feeling like dancing in a dark room and thumb wars under willow trees. The way the words rolled off of his tongue felt like a light flick to the tip of my nose, like calloused fingers braiding silver hair. It felt like Kai. Like the man behind the masks who looked at me like I was extraordinary. I blink at the crumbling rocks crowding the path, willing my mind to wander toward anything but the words that have me wishing things were different. But I am Ordinary. I am the embodiment of the weakness he has been taught to hate. Ordinary.

They only want you in The Purging Trials to watch you die, mundane." "Oh, most definitely. But at least they will be watching me at all.

Are poets not just fools with fancy words?

I will not fail. The king's smile is bloody. I will not falter. Hysterical, mocking laughter follows. I will not feel remorse. "Weak. Just like your father-" The sword I drive through his chest shuts him the hell up.

Will you forever be the prize I am aimlessly trying to win" "Is that all I am to you? A trophy?" "Oh, darling, a trophy implies that I won it, earned it, deserve it." He leans in farther, a certain reverence in his gaze. "But if I get to have you, it will be because you let me.

I like a challenge. But she made it abundantly clean on what she wishes us to be: competition. Enemies. And more importantly, why isn't that what I want as well?

My eyes lift to his, and whatever it is he sees within them has the Enforcer looking at me as though I've already become his queen. And some possessive part of myself aches to command him to never look away.

Are you completely unaware of how devastating you are?" Kai chuckles darkly. "You don't need a blade. I would bleed if you only asked." "Then I wouldn't ask," I retort sternly. "No, you wouldn't." He steps out into the hall, tossing his next damning sentence over a shoulder. "As my queen, you would command it

Call us even. Call me crazy. I don’t care. Just… Just call me yours.

It's as though she is whole again in my arms, reunited with the ghost of her father and held in the arms of her Enforcer. And when she kisses me, long and fierce, I realize how happily I'd live the rest of my life at the end of a blade. So long as she is the one holding it.

The strongest weapon a woman has at her disposal is that she often underestimated

You promised to be my undoing. So, prove it. Prove it. Hate me enough to make me want you. Ruin me.

Pretend?" "Never." "None of it? "Darling, I have never had to pretend to want you.

Focus on the dimples you try to convince yourself you hate, even though I know you look for them every time I smile.

Good. Because I've always had a thing for short hair." "Oh, really?" "It's true. Among other things, of course. Short hair. Ocean-blue eyes. Twenty-eight freckles.

You asked me what my favorite color was once. I'd never even pondered the answer to that question before you. And yet, I realized in that moment that it was blue. It is your eyes.

Oh my pretty Pae, what have you done to me?

There's that anger again, washing over me in waves. Because she was meant to be the death of me, not the life of another. It was her I was meant to adore in this world and crawl to in the one after. But now she's tethered to a king, and I am nothing more than her killer.

We eye each other, and for the first time since setting that crown atop his head, I think we might just understand each other. Because suddenly, I see myself in him again. Paedyn is not a right or a wrong, not something as simple as a yes or a no. She is confusion itself, a feeling unplaced, a color between black and white. Hell, she is my Silver Savior. And hating her is not as simple as it may seem. But for me, it is not loving her that has proven to be difficult.

I will show you my bravery, my benevolence, my brutality. I will survive these Trials and so much more. Still, you will likely hate me." She lifts her chin, expression deceitfully calm. "So bow at my feet with a sneer, if you must. I won't see it with your face to the ground.

I let out a low laugh. "Oh, 'sweet' isn't the word I would use to describe her, Gail. She held a knife to my throat only a few days ago." "He deserved it," Paedyn says simply, shrugging slightly. "Oh, I'm sure he did," Gail replies, grinning at her. "I probably would have done the same." She glances at me, nodding toward Paedyn. "I like this one.

So he's pretty and he has a brain. The ladies must love you.

Remind me to make you smile like that again, when you aren't dying, and I have all the time in the world to memorize it.

What do you want to call me?” “I want to call you mine.

Oh, darling, as long as you still think I’m pretty, I don’t give a damn what I look like.

Because the beast doesn't get the beauty.

I thought I'd known torment until it wrapped around her finger. No, torment is tangible, and it gleams atop her tanned skin. I stare, unblinking, at the symbol my brother slid onto her finger. It is binding. It is infinite. It is my undoing. A laugh threatens to slip past my numb lips. It's not as though she hadn't promised to be my ruin, hadn't already become my demise. She is the single most destructive thing I have ever desired, and yet, it is the diamond on her finger that will destroy me. I watch Paedyn through the gaps of a gawking crowd, just as I will for the rest of my life. I'll be forced to spend my days at her service but never at her side. In her shadow but never truly seen. In love with a girl I'd have bowed to long before she became my queen.

Oh? And what else are you when you’re around me, hmm?” She has me swallowing, has me nervous. “I’m a fool.” The smile she gives me is equally amused and alluring. “Only when you’re around me?” “Only for you.

Will you forever be the prize I am aimlessly trying to win" “Is that all I am to you? A trophy?" “Oh, darling, a trophy implies that I won it, earned it, deserve it. But if i get to have you, it will be because you let me.

Oh, and Kai?" she calls, her voice casual. And then I'm ducking. She spun, throwing the knife so suddenly that I barely had time to dodge it before it sank into the wooden target a few feet behind me. "I don't want your mercy. Next time we fight," I can see her blue eyes smoldering from where I stand, "impress me." A low whistle sounds from the crowd-Kitt, of course. Ignoring him, I shake my head, grinning at her as she turns away from me. Vicious little thing, indeed.

The title on his lips sounds foreign, but I find I like the ring of it. I stand from my seat and stride over to the one with faded brown leather, filled with the memory of a dead king. And then I sit down, slowly. ‘Bring me Paedyn Gray, Enforcer.

I'm panting, heart pounding at the sight of its other half. Kai looks up at me, hands resting behind a head of black waves-I nearly fall to my knees before him. He has always been a prince, always a puppet for power or instrument of Death. But just as constant and formidably fierce, he has always been my home. In search of my comfort, it is him I crawl back to. Peace is the place he resides, and passion is a word I only understand when I look into his eyes. He is the freedom I cannot grasp. We are inevitable. We are tragedy.

I show her my palms, surrendering before the fight has even begun. "You don't really want this and neither do I. Especially because I wouldn't want to mess up that pretty face of yours, darling." She all but rolls her eyes at me. "That's funny because I won't hesitate to mess up your pretty face." I smirk. "I knew you thought I was pretty." At that, she throws another punch at my face that I easily evade. We continue circling each other, slowly. Damp hair clings to my forehead and I comb my fingers through it, pushing it off my sticky skin. "You do know that I have eight powers at my disposal right now and any one of them could drop you." I grin as I say it, watching her eyes narrow. "I don't want to fight your power-I want to fight you. Just you." Her piercing gaze never leaves mine as she says it, even as the other Elites turn their attention toward us, finding this fight far more interesting than their training. "So, you just want me? No powers?" "Yes, I just want you," she breathes, annoyed with me. My mouth twists into a crooked grin. "I knew you wanted me, Gray.

I'm swept from my thoughts when Kai spins me and my eyes dart to his without my permission. Mistake. His midnight hair falls over his forehead in messy, silky waves. Smoky gray eyes meet mine, captivating, chilling. His set jaw loosens, pulling his lips into a cocky grin as he watches me take him in. Dimples. Both of them mocking me. "Like what you see, Gray?" he croons, knowing that will get a rise out of me. I huff, looking away from him to fight the flush that's finding its way to my cheeks. Rough fingers glide from my back to catch my chin, gently guiding my face back to his as he mutters, "By all means, carry on. I'll never deny myself the chance of watching you watch me." "And why is that?" I ask with a nonchalance I don't feel. His smile is wicked. "Because it is far more fun to admire you when the action is mutual.

And there she is. She steps out of her room with her head down, quietly shutting the door before looking up and practically jumping at the sight of me. "Plagues, Kai, don't scare me like that!" I blink. It's the first time she's called me by my name, and I realize then that I could get used to the sound of it rolling off her tongue.

His voice is lower than before when he says, "You're a vision." "She is, isn't she?" My heart skips a beat. The voice coming from over my shoulder is so cold I nearly shiver. Kai brushes my arm as he steps around me, facing the stunned boy still clutching me to him. "I'll be stealing her now," Kai says simply,... He feels too familiar. We fit together perfectly, pieces of a puzzle snapping into place. I shouldn't let myself relax into his touch. Shouldn't let the tension ease from my body when he holds me. But I can do nothing to stop it. Utterly and completely powerless. His palm is flat and firm against my exposed back, calluses brushing my flushed skin. "You looked like you needed saving," Kai says, and I catch a glimpse of his smirk before he spins me. "For once," I sigh, "I'm going to have to agree with you." "I'm sure I could think of other things we agree on." "Oh really? And what would those things be?" "That he was right," Kai says softly. "You are a vision. I'm sure we can both agree on that.

I know how you refuse to thank the Plague. It is understandable, admirable, even, how valiantly you despise the thing that made your survival so difficult. But I do thank the Plague. I whisper my gratitude for it when you are sound asleep in my arms, when your fingers flick the tip of my nose. In the quiet moments, I thank the Plague for you. If it weren't for the dividing of Ordinaries and Elites so many years ago, I would have never found my way to you. My coins are always at risk in your presence, but no saving of my life would have been necessary that day. No Silencers. No Purging Trials. No stolen moments under the willow. When I thank the Plague, it is not for the power it has gifted me, but for the privilege of you. Nothing makes me stronger than the weakness that is you, Paedyn Gray. And if, in the next lifetime, you choose to steal from me again, I would happily give you all my soul if it meant a place besides yours. But until then, I will watch you become another's reason to thank the Plague. You, Pae, are my inevitable. (I love you.)

At least you kept your promise. You stayed alive long enough to stab me in the back." He laughs bitterly, remembering the attack after the first ball when I tended to his wound. "And now I promise to return the favor." His voice strains with emotion. "Run, Paedyn. Because when I catch you, I will not miss. I will not falter. I will not make the mistake of feeling for you.

Do you wish it was you?" He blinks, dark lashes fluttering. "Do you wish you were the future king of Ilya? The heir?" It's not at all the question I thought I would be asking, but here we are. "No," he states simply, holding my gaze. I raise my brows in a silent question. When he doesn't continue, I say, "That's it? 'No'?" "You got your answer, and I got my dance. That was the deal, darling.

Before I can blink, the knife placed beside Paedyn's plate is now raised in front of her chest, its point aimed at her heart. The sight sends a shock of anger through me, but my voice is far cooler than my sudden rage as I say, "Easy, ladies." Borrowing the Tele ability, I push the knife back down onto the table with a clatter while ignoring the glare Blair shoots me. "I'm not normally the one breaking up fights, but let's not try to kill each other before the Trials even start.

It's stiff, the fabric hugging my hips, making it impossible to move freely. "Go on." It's Kai's taunting voice I hear behind me. "Ask for my help, Gray." I roll my eyes at the wall in front of me. "Stubborn, remember?" I hear Kitt's chuckle before I feel hands brushing my legs. Startled, I look down, eyes landing on a bent head of messy black waves. Kai is gripping the bottom seam of my dress, his eyes flicking up to mine. "May I?" His voice is soft, tone amused. I swallow, roll my eyes once again, and nod against my better judgment. And then he's ripping my dress. He tears the fabric easily, creating a slit up the side of my thigh, freeing me from the tight confines of the fabric. His rough fingers briefly brush my skin as he says, "I am more than willing to rip your dresses for you, Gray. To help, of course." Kitt snorts while Kai smirks. "You only need to ask." "Why ask when you're so eager to offer?" Kai's laughter follows me as I finally pull myself up, arms burning with the strain.

I am no Elite. And that is all you see when looking at me-everything I am not. So let me tell you what I am." She takes a deep breath, the scar above her heart rising and falling. "I am power earned, not gifted. I became one of you. Observant enough to pose as a Psychic, strong enough to survive your Trials. Over and over, I have proved myself worthy of your loyalty. "But I have faced far worse things than my own powerlessness." She lifts an arm, running fingers over the scar beneath her collarbone. "I once wore this carving with shame, but now it is proof of my survival. No ability could have withstood what I alone have." A smile touches her lips. "A king left his mark upon my heart, and now, I will leave mine across his kingdom." I've never seen something so beautiful, so bold, so blatantly right for me, for this kingdom, this hope of a united Ilya. And I fear I may forever be in awe of her. Looking at Paedyn Gray, I see a reckless sort of fearlessness, a power that swells from her vibrant soul. "The Plague runs through my blood, same as yours." Paedyn's voice is clear, carrying over the silent throne room. "But it did not bless me with strength, I took it." Stepping to the edge of the dais, she lets her gaze wander over the crowd. "I am Ordinary. Elite. A power of my choosing. And I will be your queen-all that I am and fiercely what I am not.

We make a right down a smaller corridor and head to the very last door on the left. He grips the handle and swings it open, revealing a bedroom beyond, lit only by the moonlight streaming through the window. If I thought my room was magnificent, it pales in comparison to this. It's easily twice the size of my own, making it seem more like a house than a single bedroom. Though it's filled with a four-poster bed, dresser, and a desk-just as mine is-this room seems lived in. The shelf is overflowing, books stacked at odd angles to make them fit. Several of their worn covers tell me they consist of strategy, combat, and...poetry. Interesting. Everything filling this room is nicer than my own, yet used and worn. This is his room-his real room.

I jump off the counter and give Gail a peck on the cheek. "Don't miss me too much." Then, I turn toward Paedyn, who's leaning casually against the counter, a small smile tugging at her lips. I take a slow step toward her. Her head tips up to look me in the eyes as I close the distance between us, so close I can smell the lingering scent of lavender on her skin. I reach around her back, fingers brushing her tank. Her breath hitches and I feel my lips tug upward. When she opens her mouth to tell me off, I pull my hand back slowly, holding an apple in front of her face. "Always feeding you, remember?" She stares at the fruit before snatching it from my hand, huffing in annoyance. And then, she smiles, the dazzling action lighting up her face as she rubs the apple on my shirt, right above my heart. She takes a bite, her eyes locked with mine. "And you said you weren't a gentleman.

The Fatals,” I breathe. “Yes.” He seems to stiffen at the title. “And it seems you have already encountered one.” The Silencer I fought in the alley comes to mind as I say slowly, “Was he…?” “Yes, he was a Resistance member.” Calum holds up a hand, silencing the apology I was about to utter for taking one of their members down. “There is no need to apologize, Paedyn. It was Micah’s own foolishness that got him caught.” “He always was a hothead,” Lenny mutters. “And a dumbass. A reckless dumbass. To think he could take down a prince, the future Enforcer, without consequences…” My eyes dance between the five of them. “Do I get to know exactly why this Micah is a reckless dumbass?” “Because he saw the prince already weakened and his anger got the best of him,” Mira says, her expression void of sympathy. “Long story short, Prince Kai killed someone very close to Micah, consuming the Silencer with rage and a need for revenge. When he saw the prince in that alley, worn out and preoccupied, he took the opportunity to try and take him down.” She pins me with a stare. “But you took him down instead.” “At the time, we didn’t know who you were,” Lenny adds. “We put the pieces together when we saw your name on the banner on Loot and saw you at the interviews.” “I thought you were dead, Paedyn,” Calum says gravely. “And then you suddenly showed up in the Trials, and we had found Adam’s daughter. Well, you found us.” “Who would have thought that Adam Gray’s daughter, the kid of a Resistance leader, would be the one to rob me blind and find that note,” Finn says with a sigh. “The note that led you right to us and right back to your own home.” He looks up at the ceiling and smiles to himself. “When I saw you at the ball, saw you recognize who I was, I knew it wouldn’t be long before you came and found us.

I place a gentle hand on the small of Paedyn's back, prodding her forward. It's a question, a tentative test, an innocent inquiry. Is this okay? I briefly wonder if she's considering breaking my wrist, maybe contemplating placing a dagger to my throat- And then, she relaxes, easing into my touch. An answer to my question without uttering a word. Yes.

Mark my words, prince, I will be your undoing.” I lean in, ignoring the knife against my throat as murmur, “Oh, darling, I look forward to it.” -Paedyn gray

Weak from worry, powerless from panic. No just powerless

I'd never thought about what my favorite color was before. It never seemed important. Not until I looked into a pair of ocean blue eyes and realized that perhaps drowning was a beautiful thing. Not until I looked into a pair of fiery blue eyes and realized that perhaps burning was a painless thing. Not until I looked into a pair of sky blue eyes and realized that perhaps falling was a peaceful thing. I'd never thought about what my favorite color was before because I hadn't seen one that was worthy of the title. Until now, that is. 'Blue," I say, my voice low.

You're Paedyn Gray. Silver Savior, silver-tongued, and quick to shove her silver dagger into people.

I was lonely in a way that I imagine the stars to be, observed by everyone yet too far to truly be seen.

I think I would fall on my sword if it meant you mourned me. And it’s terrifying to think you hold that much power over me.

think I’m drowning. But not into her blue eyes like I happily would. No, I’m sinking into the oor, letting it swallow me whole. I can hardly breathe under the crushing weight of Kitt’s words. My ears ring. My heart pounds. The command echoes in my skull, though I have no idea why he would want this. Why he would want her. Not now. Not after everything. And yet, I still want her after everything. I’m surrounded by the entire court and the only thing I can focus on is not falling to my knees beside her. Marriage. Marriage to someone who isn’t me. Marriage to someone I will spend the rest of my life serving. I’ll lose her forever while being forced to watch. I can’t even look at her. I’m a coward, morphing back into the monster I was when she found me. My vision is blurry, eyes xed on the dais above. This is how I lose her. Not by death but by something just as binding. The command rings in my head. And to think I wasted so much time trying to hate her. To think I won’t have enough time to love her. My heart aches because every beat belongs to her. And I may never get to tell her that. Is this how she will remember me? Escorting her to this fate? Bound by duty alone? I could laugh. I could cry. I could burn this palace to the ground like I did her house, just for a chance to confess my love before the ames consumed me. Because I am bound to her very being. Hers until the day she realizes I don’t deserve to be. The king’s eyes are on me while mine are somewhere far away. Somewhere with her. A place where I am nothing and no one and happy being powerless, so long as she is beside me. My gaze falls from the fantasy, nding its way to her. This is not how I will remember us. Not as enemies or traitors or monsters, but as two people dancing in the dark, swaying beneath the stars. Her feet atop mine, her head on the heart that beats only for her. Just Pae and Kai. I step away from her kneeling form, masking every emotion with a blank stare. I’m leaving her to face him. Her future husband. I melt into the crowd, standing at a safe enough distance to prevent myself from stealing her away. This will be the rest of my life. Forced to love her from a distance. Mourn the loss of her each day. But I will. I will smother every emotion but the one that belongs to her. I will love her until I am incapable of the feeling. She is the torture I may not survive. Eagerly, she is my undoing. Her gaze lifts, meeting eyes that are not my own. Eyes of the man who gets to have her—if she allows it. She was supposed to be my forever. Now I’ll watch her become someone else’s. Because the beast doesn’t get the beauty.