A Love From A Different World

Chapter 18

Aelin was shaking. Half sitting half standing over Rhysand she looked at him with wide eyes, dagger still at his throat.

"Rhys?" She said again this time softly.

The High Lord was looking at her with a perplexing expression. Slowly, Aelin removed the blade but continued to hold on to it, fearing that the sudden relief of waking up was a trick, an illusion. She got off of him and sat back against the massive pillows which decorated the disheveled bed. Aelin's heart hammered against her rib cage, it was so loud she wondered if everyone in the house heard it too. Aelin pulled her legs up to her chest, arms circling them tightly. She pulled the hem of her nightgown down before looking up and meeting her host's eyes.

"Why are you here?" Thankfully her voice no longer quivered. Gods knew what she must look like right then, sweat covering every inch of her body, her hair sticky to her forehead.

Rhysand still looked surprised, having not moved since Aelin had gotten off of him. It took all of her strength to do so; all of her limbs had gone completely numb. He straightened up, that peculiar look still adorned his face.

"I heard you screaming," The softness of his voice, the pity-Aelin wasn't sure she could handle that.

"It was just a nightmare." Aelin's face hardened immediately, as did her voice. "You can leave now." Unbeknownst to her, she was still clenching the dagger in her hands, holding onto it so tightly had she been in her Fae form she would have dented it.

Rhysand's brows furrowed. "Celaena-" His outstretched hand was swayed away by Aelin.

"I'm fine." Aein turned away from him, her face hidden by the shadows. "Just go..."

He did not want to, Mother knew he didn't but he also understood that she wanted to be alone. Taking the hint, Rhysand wordlessly got up and left. Every step he took away from her was more excruticating than the last. Every single part of his body, of his soul screamed at him to return to Celaena's side. To take her into his arms and comfort her, to give her warmth and security-but Rhys understood why she would want to be alone. He understood the need to be alone after waking from a nightmare, understood that the shaking and the fear still lingered hours after. Still, the primal need to protect Celaena was so strong that it suffocated him. Rhysand wasn't sure he would ever be able to forget the utter terror in her eyes when she finally woke up, the way her mouth opened for another scream. He felt that his heart had been ripped to shreds when he saw her shaking, when she could barely look up at him. Celaena had looked so empty, so broken when she asked him to leave, her body yelling at her to do the opposite. Rhysand knew the look, the helplessness that she had been feeling when she was imprisoned in her dream. He had experienced it for five decades after all.

Rhysand wanted to know what made Celeana so afraid, what evoked such fear from her. He needed to know, needed to find the source and destroy it until only dust was left. Rhys felt like he was the one destroyed, seeing her so...so desolted left him destroyed. It appeared as if the most powerful High Lord in history had finally found his weakness.

He left her room and vaguely remembered Cassian approaching him from his room, no doubt asking about what happened. Without another thought, Rhysand brushed passed him. He heard him call out to him but didn't acknowledge his brother at all.

As he walked away in the dark and empty hallway, Rhysand wondered if anyone else heard the shattering of his heart.