endless path, infinite cosmos

chapter 149

Eina stared at the ring Vahn had presented her with a mixture of emotions that were hard to describe. She felt both happy, sad, concerned and excited, all at the same time. Each emotion seemed to compete for first place in her heart as she stared in abject shock at the ring in Vahn's hand. Though she asked him to marry her, she never expected him to already have a ring prepared. Now, the reality of the situation hit her like a ton of bricks as she hesitantly reached out her hand.

Vahn saw her apprehension and a bit of guilt started spreading in his mind. It wasn't until Eina looked at him in the eyes, and they both stared at each other for several seconds, that his guilt faded away. Perhaps because she had seen his care and concern but, after holding gazes with Vahn for that period of time, Eina suddenly smiled and held up her hand for Vahn. Though he was a bit confused, Sis whispered in his mind that he was supposed to put the ring on for her.

Vahn took Eina's delicate hand into his own as he slowly placed the ring on her finger with his excitement continuing to rise. He was a bit surprised that it was a perfect fit, and even Eina couldn't help but ask, "How did you know my ring size?" After Vahn had placed the ring on her finger, she continued to stare at it with a somewhat dazed expression as she asked the question. Vahn's thoughts spun rapidly in his mind before he gave the best excuse he could think of, "Maybe it was just fate. I didn't know if the ring would fit until I put it on your finger."

Eina looked at Vahn after he finished speaking and seemed to contemplate his words for a bit before a gentle smile spread on her face. She squinted her emerald green eyes as she placed her free hand on her cheek and said, "You're quite the smooth talker at times, aren't you Vahn?" Then, almost as if she had a sudden realization, she looked at Vahn and asked in a subtly teasing tone, "So, what should I call you now? Vahn, Husband, Darling, or is there something else?"

Her question had shocked Vahn, and each form of address hit his mind like a hammer blow. Vahn considered her words for a few moments, and it wasn't until she started laughing at his dazed state that he finally responded, "I think Vahn is fine...but Darling is okay if we're alone..." As Vahn spoke the words, he couldn't help but blush while Eina looked at him with a bit of a sparkle in her eye and a wide smile. They were already in close proximity to each other, so Eina leaned forward a bit and whispered into Vahn's ear, "Darling~" She put a lot of emphasis on the word and dragged it for more than a second.

Vahn realized that she was teasing him, and he couldn't help but imagine all the times he tried to tease her. It seemed as though they both liked to try to get a rise out of the other, or maybe it was just her trying to act the role of his fiancee. Regardless, though Vahn enjoyed the current Eina, he wanted to experience her getting flustered a bit as well. Seeing how quickly she recovered after accepting the ring, he wanted to do a bit more so, while she was whispering in his ear, Vahn licked Eina's pointy ear with his tongue.

Eina jumped like she had been electrocuted as she held her hand to cover her ear while looking at Vahn was an 'angry' and surprised look. Realizing what he had done, the blush that had only recently receded on her face spread up her cheeks and to her ears. She could feel both of her ears turn hot, especially her left ear which Vahn had just licked. It took her several minutes to calm herself as she kept getting a bit annoyed every time she looked over and saw Vahn smiling. Remembering that he said he liked to tease her, Eina couldn't help but feel there would be a lot of trouble for her heart in the future.

After everything had settled down, Eina started guiding the date a bit more and acting very attentive toward Vahn. The two enjoyed their picnic like a real couple, which made sense considering they were now engaged. Vahn felt very happy at the current situation, but he couldn't help but feel mildly bothered by how her affection had only increased to 93 before stopping. Even though he teased her a bit and tried to make her happy, the number seemed to be cemented in place for the time being.