Warmth | Meruem

4 - Hug

THIRD POV

"Pitou." Meruem roughly spoke with a frown.

"Yes, Your Majesty?" Pitou kneels in response.

"Why has my punching bag not come yet?" The King grips his fist. Though he found a genius player in Gungi that he couldn't beat, he was more curious and even irritated as to why his chess player hadn't come at all during the past three days.

"Your Majesty, she has locked herself in her room." Pouf spoke up. "We all tried to persuade her to come out but she didn't want to and even screamed at us."

Obviously, that was a lie. Part of it at least. Pouf wanted to use this as an opportunity to get rid of Mehana. He sensed that the female was even more dangerous than Komugi and she had to be eliminated before his King falls any deeper.

Pitou and Youpi can only go along with his words and stay silent. Pitou, however, had the urge to speak out and reveal the truth, but they were shut down by Pouf's glare.

Meruem didn't care about the conflict between his guards and instead, walked towards Mehana's room. He wanted an explanation. He wanted to know why she didn't come. He also decided that if her answer wasn't satisfactory, he will kill her right there and then.

"Open the door." The King orders, his aura surrounding him in a purple hue. He couldn't hide his anger. "Punching bag!" He finally shouted.

Silence followed and he kicked down the door himself. The royal guards kneeled behind him and waited as Mereum stepped inside the room. What he saw next made him feel odd and mad at the same time.

"...Why are you crying?" His voice softens when he saw the tears flowing down her cheeks. Her eyes were dull as she laid on the bed, seeming to lose all her will. "What happened?"

"Kite..." She whispered and grips her blanket.

"What is that?" The King asks and crouched down in front of her. Wrong question to ask. Had he replaced 'what' with 'who', then he wouldn't have gotten slapped.

"..." Meruem was stunned when Mehana suddenly raised her hand and gave him a hard slap across the cheek.

"Kite is not an object...he is a human!" Mehana chokes through words and began crying again. Youpi and Shaiapouf stepped forward, outraged.

"Your Majesty!" They both shouted in fury at the same time. "She must be punished at once!"

"SILENCE!" Meruem yells, his aura spilling uncontrollably from him. Mehana trembles under the pressure while the guards froze in place at the sudden display of power and authority.

This is the true power of our King! Yes...and now he will cast that human away and-

Shaiapouf's thoughts and smirk faded when Meruem said one word.

"Out." He demanded with fuming eyes.

"Your Majesty-"

"Do not make me repeat myself."

"...Yes, as you command, Your Majesty." Pitou steps in and drags both Pouf and Youpi out the room. After the door was shut, Meruem finally retracted his aura and faced the human girl again.

"Why were you crying?" He asks with a sad expression. Mehana could not understand why the King of ants was looking at her in such a bitter way. There was no reason for him to be sad, so why did he feel this ache in his chest when he sees this girl in pain?

"...Pitou killed my friend." Mehana replied, her eyes beginning to water again. "H-His name...hic...is Kite. They turned his body into a toy that can only fight automatically."

Meruem can only stare at the bed. If he looks even once at Mehana, his chest will begin to sting again.

"Why do you guys kill humans!? Is it fun? Or are we really just food? Why must you hurt the people I care about!? I HATE YOU! ALL OF YOU!" Mehana cried hysterically and smacked Meruem's chest repeatedly. He didn't try to stop her. He only sat there, listening.

"What...do I do?" He huskily spoke. His eyes glinted as he stares at Mehana again. "What do I do to make you stop crying?" He asks in naivety.

"...Hug." Mehana sniffles. Meruem's simple and direct question bought her back to reality. What was she even doing all these days? Mourning. All she did was mourn and cry helplessly for her friend's death. She was being stupid and childish.

"Hug...?" Meruem looks at her in confusion.

"This...is a hug." Mehana wraps her arms around the King, who, with wide eyes, wrapped his own arms around her after a while. It was warm, safe, and comfortable.

Both of them stayed like that until Mehana's breaths became stable and she no longer had hiccups. Meruem slowly places her on the bed after realizing that she was asleep. He sat on the edge of the bed, staring at the girl who bought upon strange feelings within him.

"What did you do to me?" He whispers and touches her cheek. "I am acting weird...because of you." Meruem stands up and balls up his hands into fists.

It was the first time the King felt so out of place in this world. It was also the first time he felt so helpless. Helpless that he couldn't do anything to stop Mehana from crying. Out of place because of these peculiar feelings that erupted in his chest.

However, he did not realize how great of a risk these emotions were for a ruler.