ʟᴀᴅʏ ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ ʟʏᴄᴀɴs : ᴋᴀʀʟ ʜᴇɪꜱᴇɴʙᴇʀɢ

ᴅᴏɴᴇ ᴘʀᴇᴛᴇɴᴅɪɴɢ

"What...the hell?" Sophia seethed through her teeth as a slight throbbing pain from the impact resonated in the back of her head.

Karl held out his hands and spoke calmly, "We need to talk."

Talk? Talking was what got her into this mess in the first place. An unamused chuckle brushed past her lips and she shook her head, "There's nothing to talk about, because there's nothing wrong."

His calm approach that he hoped to take with the woman didn't last very long and he raised his voice at her, "Then why have you been avoiding me?"

"I haven't been avoiding you," she lied quickly, and he knew she was.

He took a firm step forward, "Bullshit." He removed is sunglasses out of frustration and pointed a finger at her, "You went to Dimitrescu's Castle. Since when have you ever purposefully chosen to be there instead of your own home? Huh, Sophia?"

The white-haired girl let out a low groan and her head fell backwards before she charged at him, closing the space between them, "What does it matter to you?!"

He swiftly took ahold of the sides of her face and looked her dead in the eyes, "Because I care about YOU, Sophia!" A breath got caught in her throat and slowly all the anger melted off her face, feeling a sense of surprise as she heard him say those words. Immediately telling herself that they weren't true.

Karl felt resistance as she tried to pull away from him to escape his grasp, so he tightened his grip, but not enough to hurt her. Just enough to keep her there, "They don't care about you...but I do."

"It's not true, it's not true," she repeated to herself, tears gathering in her lower lash line. But she saw the look in his eye and that told her otherwise, "I need to get out of here." She mustered up all her strength and yanked free from him, taking a few steps backward, "I didn't ask you to care!"

"Neither did I!" He shouted back at her, "But here we are," he held out his arms as if presenting himself. "And I am done pretending. I don't have the strength anymore."

Her heart broke listening to the defeat in his voice, and a tiny voice in her head and a feeling in her gut told her to tell him the truth, "Karl, I--" She fumbled her words as stray tears travelled down her cheek, but not the whole truth, "I'm scared." She finally allowed herself to break down, tears now streaming down her face. She dropped her gaze to the snowy ground to hide her face from the man, which was pointless.

It was Heisenberg's turn to feel heartbroken. Never so desperately did he wish to hold her in his arms. Pull her as close into his chest as he could and never let her go. He strode forward and cautiously outstretched his hand to hers, "I'm not going to let anything happen to you, Sophia." He promised as their fingers met and intertwined with each other. Her gaze was still focused on the ground, so he hooked his finger under her chin and lifted them to his.

"It's not me I'm worried about," she told him honestly, dipping her head back down for him to only bring his other hand up behind her neck and raise it back up. She met eyes that said, "What do you mean?" and she didn't want to answer, but her mouth had other plans, "I can't lose you." She shocked herself, snapping her jaw shut and her eyes widening at her own words.

The corner of his mouth quirked up the second she said it and she wasn't sure if it was because of what she said or because of her own reaction. She liked to think it was a mix of both, it somehow made her not feel as ridiculous.

"You're not gonna lose me, Sophia Finch." His gaze that was heavily fixed on her red eyes the whole time flicked down to her lips and he slowly pressed forward. She mimicked him, and felt her heart hammer in her chest as they got closer, "If years of you playing hard to get didn't get rid of me..." he paused just before they touched, she could feel his hot breath against her face and she held her breath in anticipation, "nothing will."

It started as a simple peck, Karl being the one to initiate it. Sophia pulled away as the tingling sensation shocked her at first. She looked up at him wondering if he felt it too and she got her answer from the crooked grin he wore. She was reluctant to go back for more, but she couldn't deny that fact that she really, really, wanted to.

"Screw it." His chapped lips molded roughly with hers. "Screw this village." His hand dug underneath all her hair behind her neck. "Screw the other lords." She unlinked her hand from his and placed them on either of his face. "Screw the ceremony." His arm snake around her waist and pulled her flush against him. "And to hell with Miranda."

Karl disconnected their lips and trailed fluttering kisses down her jawline and to her neck. She felt the passion and promise behind each one. He wasn't going anywhere.

He rested his head in the crook of her neck as they both caught their breath, then she did something she'd never thought she would do. Her eyelids fell shut and there was a flash before she was there looking through his eyes. She felt the fast pace of his heart and the warmth that spread within his chest. She felt the undeniable need he had to keep to keep her safe, protected. Like he would jump in front of a bullet for her if he ever had to, without second thought. She felt something she never imagined he would feel.

Love.

He loved her with every fiber in his body. Maybe that should have scared her, but it didn't, because it made her feel something she never thought she would ever feel again.

Hope.