I had been too tired after my return, that I crashed on the couch since I did not want to disturb Anastazia. Waking up, I felt someone near me and I felt safe, it was Zia. She had fallen asleep. So, I lifted her up and laid her gently on the bed. She looked peaceful and her face had no worries lined up. She was beautiful in every way. Her dark hair disheveled, fell on her cheeks and her mouth partly open was curved up in a smile. All I wanted was to protect her, was it too much to ask for to the fates? I was ready to die in her place, but would she ever recover from it, I do not know. Sometimes, I didn't understand who had the worst part of the bargain. Imagining to be a character made choices easier, but living with them not always. Love and death were so alike. I like to think that death is in a way kinder, both are beautiful in a cruel way. But death is swifter, quicker and consumes you without a lifelong pain whereas love was like a thorn pierced in your heart in the guise of a rose and embedded forever till the last. Love was a savage beast, many a time there was a web of loves mixed, love triangle was a joke. It wasn't as simple as that, maybe the heart wanted something which could never be theirs, but in rare case you could find your soulmates and I was lucky enough to find mine only to be taken away from me soon. As I sat there on the edge of the bed thinking, Anastazia stirred and woke up. She looked puzzled but pleased to see me. What we had was precious and way too intimate to be described in mere words. So, I said, "Should we leave for our houses? I do not want your parents to think that I'm stealing you before marriage." She laughed in a musical melody and said, "But, what if I want to be stolen by you? Anyways, let's leave." So, as I dropped her off, I felt a pang of disappointment that I had to spend hours away from her. I said, "Till morning, darling." She said, "Sure, pick me up tomorrow too." I should maybe say goodbyes carefully, since any of them could be our last but it was still too early to be so morose. So, I went back over to my house. We were getting married soon and I wanted it to be the best moment of her life. I had planned out many things today while I was out in the afternoon with Madeline and Sylvain. Everything was too less for her; she was a flame that burnt brightly in the darkness of my life.
