Leo rushed to my side, his face filled with concern as he knelt beside me. Before I could even think, his hands were on me, one arm around my shoulders while the other gently rubbed my back in slow, deliberate circles. It felt… familiar, like something I had experienced before. My chest tightened, but as his fingers traced comforting paths along my spine, a small part of the tension began to ease.
I hadn’t realized I was crying until tears splashed onto my knees. The weight of everything crashed down on me at once, and my breath hitched.
“I can’t believe it,” I whispered, my voice barely audible as I tried to process the shock. “Zoya Ibrahim... she was my friend. I know she was transferred to the desert branch, but I never thought it would end like this.”
Leo didn’t flinch, his hand continuing to soothe me in just the right way, the rhythm calming the wild thoughts spinning in my head. But then, he did something else—he moved closer, resting his palm lightly against my chest, just above my heart, applying gentle pressure. His touch was firm yet comforting, like he knew exactly what to do to bring me back from the edge.
It hit me like a wave. This… this is exactly what my night terrors specialist told me. How does he know?
No one should know about this—about the way my doctor had described techniques to calm me when the nightmares took over, the exact placement of pressure, the way to ease me back into myself. I never told anyone.
My mind raced, trying to make sense of it. Leo couldn’t know. He shouldn’t. Yet, here he was, following every step as if he had memorized the prescription from my doctor.
He gently guided me to lean against him, his hand moving up to cradle the back of my head. “Breathe,” he whispered, his voice low and steady. “Focus on my voice. You’re safe.”
He knew.
“How do you know?” I croaked, my voice breaking as I leaned into him, trembling. The echo of Zoya’s last words still reverberated in my mind, but Leo’s presence, his steady hands, made it all seem more distant.
Leo didn’t answer right away. Instead, he pulled me closer, his forehead resting lightly against mine, grounding me with the warmth of his touch. His silence was almost more comforting than words could be. It felt like he understood everything without needing to explain. “I just do,” he finally murmured, his voice soft but certain. “I know you.”
My breath hitched again, and for a moment, I let myself sink into his embrace. His hand slid back down to rub slow, gentle circles on my back again, as if reminding me he wasn’t going anywhere. His movements were so methodical, so practiced, and I realized with a start—he wasn’t just comforting me; he was healing me.
More tears slipped from my eyes. “She didn’t deserve that,” I whispered, my voice cracking under the weight of the grief. “Zoya… I should have been there for her.”
Leo shook his head gently, his arms tightening around me. “Don’t,” he whispered firmly. “Don’t blame yourself. You couldn’t have known.”
His hand moved to my wrist, squeezing it lightly, another gesture that my doctor had recommended to pull me out of moments like this. How does he know every single thing?
I blinked through my tears, still trying to process the way Leo seemed to have read my every need, and the sheer impossibility of it. He leaned in closer, his breath warm against my ear. “You’re not alone in this,” he murmured. “I’m here. I’ll always be here.”
I couldn’t speak, the emotions too raw, too overwhelming. But as Leo wrapped me tighter in his arms, his presence solid and unwavering, I let myself believe, just for a moment, that maybe… maybe he really did know me in a way no one else ever could.
YOU ARE READING
Aegis Core
General Fiction"Beyond the veil of morality, where desire knows no bounds, Xena and Leo find themselves ensnared in a deadly game of seduction and betrayal. As the stakes rise, the Aegis Core comes together with shadows and the world burns around them, they must c...
