"Oh! I am so sorry." Aselia replied.

"It’s totally alright. You dont have to apologize for anything." His grip on the glass had tightened and she could feel it was not alright. He still suffered.

"You still miss her. Don’t you?" Said Aselia very softly.

"She will always be a part of me. I will always miss her. She chose her career over me, as she wanted freedom and got tired of all the eternal love we promised each other. When you live this long you tend to get tired at a point." Rivan stared at the fireplace, his eyes glistening as the fire reflected in them. His firm jaw was clenched and Aselia almost felt pity for him. That’s why she didn’t want love.

"I see, another reason not to fall in love. It’s the heartbreak after that haunts me to even think about."

"But it’s worth it, Aselia. Even a second of the time you spend with the one you love is worth more than an eternity you will spend alone. Believe me, just don’t break his heart like that. Give him a chance. He will give you the world in return." Rivan shifted his gaze to her and his eyes pleaded.

Aselia sighed at his words before speaking: "That’s the thing Rivan, I don’t need the world. And believe me when I say this. He will be better off without me, my presence will cause him more harm than good. I can’t let him face the world alone so he could just keep me safe."

"Then remember the more time you will spend with him, the harder it will become for both of you to let go. Take it from someone who is still not over his ex and probably never will." Rivan replied with a tinge of sadness creeping up on his perfect face. He didn’t want Xiran to go down this road that had no future. He made a mental note that he had to talk to Xiran about letting her go.

"I know," Aselia said to him, her heart slightly jumped and then it was steady again. Rivan had noticed she was good at masking her emotions and feelings. He couldn’t really figure her out, he felt there was more to her than she let on. Unlike Xiran he used a more practical approach to observe her.

"I should probably go and get some sleep, can you inform me if you get in contact with him?" With those words, Aselia got up and decided to head upstairs. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

"I surely will. Good night Aselia." Rivan responded.

"Good night," she went upstairs and tried to sleep.

The next day, she woke up early. Melori brought her breakfast but somehow she wasn’t hungry and couldn’t eat more than a few bites.

"Do we have a gym here?" Aselia inquired.

"Yes, you wanna work out?"

"I need a distraction. Can you take me?" Aselia wanted to divert her mind for she was sick of sitting idly and thinking of him.

"Sure, let me know when you wanna go."

"Let me change into something comfortable and we will head over there." Melori nodded in return as Aselia rummaged through the cupboard to find something comfortable.

She found steel blue leggings and a matching muscle tee. Putting it on they made their way to the gym on the ground floor. It was furnished with all the latest gym equipment.

Aselia spent about two hours in the gym until she was dead tired. It helped her focus and keep her mind off Xiran. Although she really wanted to punch something her hands were in no condition to do that.

After the gym, she went to take shower and get changed. After that, she decided to head downstairs with her book to sit by the pool and read. Melori accompanied her. Aselia inquired about Rivan and Melori told her that he had left for his office.

The day passed slowly for Aselia, every second felt like torture, knowing she had no clue where he was or what he was doing.

Melori brought her lunch but Aselia had knots tied in her stomach. And this was the third meal she was skipping. The last meal she ate was with him and he was the one who had fed her. Anxiety filled her and she couldn’t eat. She had always loved food and it was very unlike her to not be able to eat. She didn’t understand why this was happening to her. Every time she thought about him, she felt a new knot in her stomach.

Melori noticed that she wasn’t eating and said: "Is the food not to your liking? You worked out for two hours, you got to be hungry?"

"Oh! No, no. It’s not about food, it’s good. I am not hungry though." Melori didn’t push her further and quietly removed the food, while Aselia sat by the pool and tried to read.

In the evening, she went to her room and took a nap. By the time she woke up, it was already night. She freshened up and heard a knock on her door.

"Come in," she said and Melori entered.

"Sir Rivan is asking about you. He wants you to join him for dinner." Melori informed her.

"Alright, I will be there shortly." Melori nodded at her words and left.

Soon after, Aselia followed her. As she walked down the stairs, the savoury smell of grilled meat filled her nostrils. She inhaled deeply and made her way to the open kitchen. A young boy with his back to Aselia was cooking meat on a grilled pan while Rivan stood with him, with his arms crossed across his chest. His back against the counter, he was looking at the boy’s cooking.

"Hello! Aselia. How are you feeling?" Rivan greeted her with a smile as he glanced toward her.

"Hey! I am ok." She replied and the young boy faced her as well with a smile.

"Hi!" He greeted her in his soft voice. It was Rumail.

"Hi! Good to see you again." Aselia smiled back at him.

"I thought I would cook you some more meat. You enjoyed it last time."

"I did, thank you," Aselia replied to him, politely.

"Let’s settle down until Rumail finishes his cooking." Rivan pointed to the glass dining table with six black and silver chairs. Cutlery and crockery had already been set on the table.

They both sat down. Rivan took the front seat while Aselia settled down on the one left to him.

"How was your day, Aselia?" Rivan asked once they were settled.

"It was ok. How was yours?"

"Busy, but I got a lot of work done so fruitful as well." He added with a smile. He didn’t tell her that he spent most of the day worrying about Xiran and then about her when Melori informed him that she wasn’t eating. So he had called Rumail to come over and cook his magic.

"That’s good."

Meanwhile, Melori and Rumail brought about all the dishes he had cooked. There was steak with roasted potatoes and white sauce, stir-fried rice grilled meat and salad.

Aselia’s mouth began to water and looking at her expressions, Rivan knew his plan has worked. Once Rumail had settled down, Rivan said: "Let’s eat." He picked up the tray of rice and offered it to Aselia.

The food was delicious and Aselia couldn’t help but compliment Rumail again and again.

"I have learned a lot from Señor Xiran, his cooking is exceptional," Rumail explained.

"Yes, he has cooked several times for me. Whatever he makes is delicious." Aselia spoke between mouthfuls, while she remembered how he had cooked for her. A tinge of sadness clutched at her heart.

"Xiran has always loved cooking and Rumail had a passion for it too. So Xiran taught him and he ended up working for him." Rivan told Aselia while he cut up his steak.

"I love cooking and it makes me happy when people enjoy it." There was a twinkle in Rumail’s eyes as he said those words especially seeing Aselia was enjoying the food.

They discussed different topics throughout the meal to maintain the flow of conversation and to keep Aselia’s mood light.

They even told her about some funny incidents from when they were kids.

"Once when Xiran and I were around 8. We decided to steal walnuts from the nearby orchard, located near our homes. It belonged to another vampire and he was very strict about anyone entering it. Xiran had climbed the tree and was picking up walnuts and throwing them down, while I stood below the tree picking them up. The owner suddenly appeared and grabbed me. Xiran began to throw walnuts at him and one of them hit him directly in the eye. He instantly let me go and clutched his eye. Shouting ’you rascals have blinded me.’ We ran from there as fast as we could and never looked back. We had plenty of walnuts at home but trying to steal them from him was always fun. Although he was strict he never complained to our parents and we never stopped teasing him." Rivan narrated a story from their childhood.

Aselia couldn’t help but smile learning that Xiran was naughty. He still liked teasing people, especially her, and immensely enjoyed it.

"So, he has always been a tease. I thought it was only with me." Aselia chuckled and both boys began to laugh.

"Nah! He loves teasing everyone. Once he added soapy water to the drink of a rude customer who was giving me hard time. And he made him drink it all. The customer was on the verge of tears by the end." Rumail narrated another one of his incidents. And Aselia couldn’t help but beam. One thing was for sure, he always took care of the people he loved.

On another entirely different continent, Xiran opened his eyes...