LOVE IN THE SHADOWS OF TIME l LINGORM

CHAPTER 14

It had been weeks—nearly two months—since LingLing last saw Orm.

Time passed like a slow-moving river, unrelenting and merciless.

LingLing’s heart ached in a way she couldn’t explain, as though part of her had been hollowed out and left behind at the lake where they last spoke.

The silence that followed their separation was deafening, a void that swallowed her thoughts and replaced them with an ache she couldn’t escape.

She buried herself in her training, letting the rhythm of discipline become her only solace.

From dawn till dusk, she pushed herself harder than ever.

Every punch, every strike, every block became sharper, fueled by emotions she couldn’t name.

Her movements were mechanical, precise, but the focus she forced upon herself couldn’t fill the emptiness inside her.

The palace halls and courtyards, once vibrant with intrigue, had become an echo chamber of longing.

LingLing found herself wandering through them aimlessly whenever her duties allowed, searching for something—or someone.

She hadn’t seen Orm since the lake encounter.

Not in the courtyards, not at the barracks, and not even in the quiet corners of the marketplace where the two of them had once laughed together.

There was nothing—no trace of the woman who had left such an indelible mark on her heart.

LingLing told herself that once her training was complete, she would earn the right to leave the palace on her terms.

She would seek Orm, wherever she was, and lay bare the feelings that had been consuming her.

She would apologize for the pride and anger that had driven her away.

But that future felt so distant, so uncertain, like chasing a star that was always just out of reach.

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Meanwhile, Orm had returned to the palace, stepping back into her life of duty and expectations.

But she, too, was haunted.

Her love for LingLing had never wavered, but her fear of rejection, of the truth dividing them further, kept her from closing the chasm between them.

Orm watched LingLing train from a distance, always careful to stay out of sight.

LingLing’s focused determination was admirable, but it broke Orm’s heart to know she had caused the hurt hidden beneath it.

The burden of silence became unbearable.

Orm spent sleepless nights pacing her chambers, her mind tormented by the memory of LingLing’s face—the anger, the hurt, the longing.

She could no longer stay away. No matter the risk, no matter the outcome, she had to see her again.

One evening, as LingLing made her way back to her chambers after an especially grueling session, she was stopped by a palace attendant who handed her a folded piece of parchment.

Her pulse quickened the moment she saw the handwriting.

"Meet me by the fountain. Midnight. I need to speak with you."

It was Orm. LingLing’s heart raced.

She had been waiting for something—anything—that would lead her back to Orm.