❝ 𝐋𝐔𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐄𝐒𝐂𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐄 ❞ ʲᵃˢᵖᵉʳ ʰᵃˡᵉ ( EN )

☇ 𝟭𝟲

The next evening, after their moment of closeness, Théodora was lying on her bed, phone in hand. She pretended to be absorbed in the screen, feigning an indifference she didn't feel at all. She didn't want Jasper to think she was eagerly waiting for him. That would give him far too much satisfaction, and the idea that he might boast about his effect on her bruised her ego. No, she preferred to give the impression that she was simply engrossed in something else, as if his presence didn't matter.

But her heart, like a drum beating beneath her skin, betrayed every moment of doubt.

He had promised to come back, but she couldn't help doubting. What if he didn't return? The thought haunted her, and despite her best efforts to remain detached, she couldn't ignore the growing anxiety inside her.

With each passing second, an invisible thread pulled tighter in her chest, drawing her breath along with it.

As she scrolled distractedly through her phone, her ears alert despite herself, she suddenly sensed his presence. As if she had summoned him, Jasper appeared at her window, silent and mysterious as always. This time, however, he hesitated briefly before entering, as if he feared what would happen next.

His presence was like a whisper in the darkness, a promise she dared not name.

Théodora kept her eyes fixed on her phone, trying not to reveal the excitement and relief flooding through her. I won't let him see how much I was waiting for him. But deep down, she already felt a bit ridiculous trying to hide how much his presence mattered.

"You're back," Théodora murmured, a smile forming on her lips. "I was beginning to think you were avoiding me."

Jasper looked at her for a moment, his golden eyes glimmering in the dim light of the room. "I couldn't avoid you even if I wanted to," he finally replied, his deep voice resonating in the air, like a distant echo.

His words were veiled caresses, light but powerful enough to shake her inner walls.

Théodora invited him closer. "Then stay," she said softly.

"Do you really want to know my story?" he asked gently, without looking at her.

Théodora froze, eyes wide in surprise, caught off guard. Did he really just say that? she thought. She tried to remain calm, not to show how much those words stirred her, but inside, she was on the verge of exploding. She bit the inside of her cheek to keep from jumping with excitement.

Every heartbeat seemed louder than the last, echoing like an empty thud in a room too large.

"Yes," Théodora replied sincerely. "I want to understand who you were and what led you to become... what you are today."

He stood still for a moment, as if weighing the pros and cons of what he was about to do. Jasper nodded. Then, slowly, he sat on the window ledge, gazing at the night with an intensity she was starting to recognize.

The shadows seemed to dance around him, embracing his form as if he were born to exist between light and darkness.

"I was born in 1843, in Texas. At the time, war was raging, and like many young men, I enlisted in the Confederate army at seventeen. I thought it was my duty, that it was the only way to prove my worth."

Théodora listened intently, absorbing every word. Each sentence seemed to contain fragments of a life far more complicated and painful than she had imagined.

The words seemed to come from afar, like echoes of a dusty past, buried under layers of time and pain.

"And then?" she encouraged softly.