Lilac

Chapter Twenty-Five

"Where are we going?" Lilac asked Ethan.

It was supposed to be summer, but the winds occasionally sweeping past them made Lilac feel relieved that she was wearing Ethan's black scarf around her neck.

Her neck that still burned in remembrance and sensations that made the blood rush to her cheeks.

"Let's just walk around for a bit," Ethan said.

Lilac wanted to ask why, but held back. She stole a glance at him, seeing him assess the roads they were walking at. The top of her head only reached somewhere near his chest, and the differences in their built and physique made Lilac feel small yet oddly protected.

Ethan just made her feel that way a lot, and in a way, it scared her. It scared her that Ethan could make her feel at ease and safe without doing anything. The degree of impact he had on her illicited fear from deep within her, yet it also exhilarated her, and Lilac found this mixture of emotions even scarier.

For a while they walked in comfortable silence, with Lilac stealing glances at Ethan from time to time. She swore she could feel him looking at her here and there too, but whenever she tried to discreetly catch him in the act, he would turn out to be merely focusing on the road.

Was she imagining things now?

"Ethan," Lilac called him shyly. "Can I ask you something?"

Ethan cocked his head to look at her briefly and said, "Go ahead."

Lilac paused for a minute before she spoke again.

"What's your relationship with Valeen?" Lilac asked.

She focused on his reaction, trying to gauge how he felt.

Ethan's eyes didn't meet hers as he answered, "It's complicated."

"Prodigies are good at analyzing things," Lilac offered.

She expected Ethan to smile at her words, but he didn't. That was how she knew he wasn't fine talking about this, even if his hands didn't tighten, even if his jaw didn't clench, even if his spine didn't turn rigid.

It seemed as if Lilac wasn't the only one who was good at hiding her emotions.

"It's not a pretty story," Ethan said noncommittally.

Lilac paused for a while, thinking. It was clear Ethan didn't want to share, but he wasn't saying it exactly. Lilac had never been the type to pry about personal things despite her inquisitive nature, and that was made more concrete by the vows she used to abide to.

But at this rate, she had a feeling that Ethan would never tell her anything, not in a few weeks, or months, or years, if she didn't atleast try asking.

"Not all stories are supposed to be pretty," she replied quietly.

They were speaking in vague codes, and Lilac knew that Ethan was aware of this.

Ethan sighed. "If I answer your question, I will have to explain everything, and a part of that everything will either make you run away from me out of fear or hate me. Is that what you want?" he asked quietly, looking at her eyes.

He wasn't challenging her. The dangerous glint... the beguiling edge wasn't there. Surprise registered to Lilac as she realized that he was giving her a choice.

But Lilac was a Prodigy before she had ever been anything. Emotions always came second after truths. Lilac looked at Ethan's terse eyes. But why? Why was she hesitating now?