Night of Waterfalls (Venom Series #2)

Chapter 40

Chapter 40: Emeralds

Tobias was in front of me with a flower in his hands—a lotus. I just looked at it for a moment before I accepted it from him.

I suddenly remembered how his brother Rosh offered me a rose.

"Thank you."

He glanced at the small table. "Were you talking with someone earlier?"

Lumingon din ako sa posisyon ng manghuhula kanina at umiling ako. Nagpatuloy na ako sa paglalakad at sumabay na sa akin si Tobias. Nanatili akong nakatungo habang nakatitig sa bulaklak.

I never experienced courtship when I was in the human world. I didn't even imagine that I'd received a flower from a man, life was really full of surprises in this world.

"Why lotus?"

Lumingon sa akin si Tobias at sumulyap siya sa lotus na ibinigay niya sa akin. "It's the rarest flower in this kingdom."

I blinked. "A lotus? Rare?"

Tumango siya sa akin. "Even Rosh who can wield different flowers in his hand can't summon a lotus."

Yumuko ako at higit na pinagmasdan ang bulaklak na hawak ko. "Kaya ba rose ang ibinigay niya sa akin?"

"He offered you a rose?"

I nodded. Akala ko ay pareho ang magiging reaksyon niya nang sabihin ko sa kanya ang kulay ng mga mata ni Rosh, ngunit hindi naman siya nagbago ng ekspresyon. "Rosh always offer flowers to women."

Hindi na ako nagulat. I already had an impression of him that he always had a way to women.

"Do you want to return to the castle? I can ask a priestess to create a portal for us."

Muli akong umiling. "I changed my mind. We can still look around."

He nodded.

Tobias respected my silence as we continued to walk down the aisle of the cobbled, moss-covered streets, lined with shop stalls selling antique items. May ilan na tinitigilan ko at may ilan din naman na nilalampasan namin.

"Do you want it?" he asked when I was looking for that shop that sells food.

Ano ba iyon? It's like fries in the human world. Iyon nga lang ay malalaki hiwa ng patatas. Tumango ako kay Tobias, nauna na siyang naglakad sa harapan ng tindahan at sumunod lang ako sa kanya.

He bought one and handed it to me. "Ikaw? Hindi ka ba nagugutom?"

"I'll just hold the flower."

I blinked when he took the flower, and he gave me the small box with the potatoes. Nag-aalangan pa akong naglakad at hindi makalingon sa kanya. I started eating the potato as we continued looking around again.

The food was fine— it had a nostalgic taste of the human world. Para talaga akong kumakain ng fries. But I felt bad for enjoying something and not sharing it. I sighed. I looked at him again, Tobias looked surprised. He blinked.

"Why?"

"You have to taste this."

I took a slice of potato from the box and offered it to him. "You're not angry anymore?"

"I might be conflicted, probably annoyed— yes, a little bit jealous. Pero hindi naman ako madamot sa pagkain."

"Jealous . . . I told you, I can show you—" I cut him off.

I pushed the potato closer. He was still staring at me, yet he bent a little and opened his mouth, still holding a lotus in his hands. The lights of the lanterns around us illuminated his frame, creatures were blurred as they passed by, and the noise of the streets suddenly muffled.