Chapter 12

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"(Y/N)." My teary eyes widened at the voice behind me, but I did not turn. I heard the rustling of paper, Aragorn must have had started reading them. I, effortlessly but slowly, stood up and turned to be met by his solemn face.

The light from Lórien was white, shimmering and pure but with the whisper of cold chill. Though the breeze with the rain was soft, it picked up strands of my (H/C) hair that are tossed about in an elegantly random dance of threads. An inhale of breath reverberated through Aragorn's weary bones, making a soft noise as he closes the elegant door behind him. I watched the way his face moved as he once again returned his eyes on my form, his concerned expression making me close my eyes.

Aragorn reached out a slender hand, long and soft. I tried to calm myself as it covered one of a sturdier make, tanned, weathered and scarred by toil and travel. I watched it with anxious eyes, waiting for it to pull away, but it did not. After a few moments, the fingers did the opposite. Curling themselves around my own digits, my heart skipped as I felt the warmth of Aragorn's hand bond with my own.

I... I haven't felt this in a long time...

Aragorn lifted his hand upwards, only giving me a moment to register before Aragorn finally looked up into my face, and was astonished by whatever he saw. Raising his free hand, he touched my cheek gently, as if he was made of glass. "You are blushing, mime héri." He said quietly, making my eyes wide in shock at the realization. I was so mesmerized by the smooth hands of the heir that I didn't feel it. Aragorn suddenly drew his hand away quickly, curling his fingers back and wearing an expression of mortification.

"Forgive me." He exclaimed. "I have no right to touch you in such a way." I stared at him in surprise, my face feeling cold without his touch. Aragorn looked positively horrified for a moment and then his face fell into something very miserable. "I meant no harm." Aragorn pleaded. He seemed so was terribly angry at himself and horrified by his own actions. "Estel..." I said finally, the word barely a whisper. Aragorn looked into my eyes, the ranger's own wide and vulnerable. 

I took the hand that had fallen from my cheek and returned it to where it had been, much to Aragorn's astonishment. "Estel, I'm anything but angry." I said, somehow managing to regain some of my composure. The ranger looked from his own hand to my (E/C) eyes. "I needed it. I needed to feel warm. Thank you." I smiled gently.

"What... What are you saying?" The Dúnadan asked hesitantly. Aragorn squeezed my hand, I could feel his heart pounding with deafening booms in his chest. "I am freeing my heart." Although I myself was trembling, I could feel Aragorn's own shakiness beneath my fingertips. "I didn't have the courage to do it in so many years, I have kept so many things for myself." I said, moving Aragorn's hand from my cheek and pressing it flush against his chest, right over his heart. Aragorn inhaled sharply.

 Aragorn inhaled sharply

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"It's okay, Estel. You haven't done anything wrong, you never did." I whispered, rubbing Aragorn's fingers with my own. In return, Aragorn took the hand I clasped and placed it against his own chest, permitting me to know how his heart leaped about. I stopped breathing as Aragorn leaned forward, his breath right beside my ear.

𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐁𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐀𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧 | 𝐋𝐎𝐓𝐑Where stories live. Discover now