Captured by the Yandere Space Pirates-Chapter 28 -

The stillness of Mia's sparse room pressed against Syn like a held breath, the air thick with unspoken truths as he sat beside her on the narrow bed. Their shoulders brushed faintly, a hesitant proximity that mirrored the silence stretching between them. His head hung low, a faint blush creeping up his cheeks, a flicker of warmth he couldn't suppress despite the storm of betrayal still churning in his chest. Mia mirrored him, her white hair spilling forward like a curtain, hiding cheeks flushed a deep, burning red that betrayed her nerves more than her trembling hands ever could.

Outside, the door muffled a flurry of whispers, a chaotic trio huddled close. "Hear anything yet?" Aster's voice broke through, eager and sharp, her breath fogging against the cold metal as she pressed her ear tighter.

"Shh—quiet," Pako hissed, waving her off with an impatient flick of her hand, her own ear glued to the panel. "Let me listen."

"I think they're kissing," Vera whispered, her tone a conspiratorial murmur, her purple hair brushing the door as she leaned in, a smirk tugging at her lips.

"What?" Aster's head snapped up, her eyes blazing as she yanked Pako back by the shoulder, shoving her aside to claim the spot. She pressed her ear flat, decoding the silence with a furrowed brow. "No—it's too quiet. Nothing's happening."

"They're having quiet sex?" Pako ventured, her voice a mix of curiosity and absurdity, her dark eyes glinting as she tilted her head, unfazed by the foolishness of her own suggestion.

New novel 𝓬hapters are published on ƒreewebɳovel.com.

Vera rolled her eyes, a faint scoff escaping her, while Aster shot Pako a withering look, refusing to dignify it with a response. "Are they even in there?" Aster asked, her tone edging into doubt as she tapped the door lightly, her fingers drumming an impatient rhythm.

"It's a sealed room," Vera snapped, frustration creeping into her voice as she stepped back, her arms crossing tightly. "Where else would they go—out into space?" Her sarcasm bit sharp, her patience thinning as she glared at the door, her physical weakness among the trio leaving her to wait, a restless spectator to their jostling.

Inside, the silence held firm, a fragile thread stretched taut between Syn and Mia. He shifted, the bed creaking faintly under him, his hands restless in his lap as memories—buried, half-forgotten—clawed their way up. Finally, he broke the quiet, his voice low and tentative, testing the waters. "So... you're Mia?"

"Y... yes," she stammered, her reply a fragile whisper, her head dipping lower as if the weight of his gaze pressed her down. Mia—his crush, a flicker of longing he'd harbored through hazy teenage years, her face a quiet beacon in the Kingdom's shadowed corners. He'd never known her name, only stolen glances at her delicate features—those subtle shifts of expression, her usual blankness hiding a charm that drew him like gravity. The girls had seen it, teased him relentlessly, but he'd buried it deep, convinced himself it was a fleeting fancy he'd outgrown. Yet here, beside her, that old pull stirred, a blush he couldn't hide betraying the lie he'd told himself.

"What are you doing here?" he asked, his voice softening, a gentle probe laced with confusion. This wasn't her place—Mia, Aster's half-sister, an illegitimate whisper of royal blood, daughter of the King and a maid. She should've been in the palace, a trainee maid bowing to the crown, not here, tangled in a pirate's den.

"U... m... u... m..." Mia mumbled, her voice a scattered thread, her fingers twisting in her lap as she struggled to find words, her story a knot she couldn't unravel. Her head sank lower, her white hair a shield against his question.

"Is it really just for the money?" Syn guessed, his tone steadying as he leaned closer, his eyes narrowing. "Selling my pictures—but if that's it, why stay here?" The logic frayed at the edges; profit didn't explain her presence among the chaos of Vera's crew.

Mia's blush deepened, her head dipping further as she spoke, her voice barely audible. "No."

"No what?" he pressed, his patience thinning, though he kept his tone gentle, coaxing her past her walls.

"I... I wasn't selling them for money," she said, her words trembling, a confession pried loose under his quiet insistence.

"Then why?" Syn asked, his voice dropping lower, softening further as he watched her, the room's stillness amplifying the weight of her answer.

"Um... m..." Her voice wavered, panic threading through it as she clutched her hands tighter. "If I hadn't... they'd have pushed me to take your pictures, your videos—every second of you." Her eyes flickered, darting to the floor, her breath hitching as she forced the words out.

Syn frowned, processing her admission, the pieces clicking into a jagged shape. It made sense—Vera, Pako, Aster, their relentless hunger for him would've turned her into a ceaseless spy if she hadn't set limits, bartered his moments for scraps of peace. "So... did they force you into this?" he asked, his voice a careful thread, gentle as he leaned closer, his shoulder brushing hers in a quiet offer of reassurance.

Mia shook her head, her white hair swaying like silk, a faint ripple in the stillness. "No," she whispered, her denial a fragile breath that hung between them.

"Then... why?" Syn asked again, his tone tender now, a plea wrapped in confusion as he watched her, the blush on his cheeks fading into a deeper curiosity, shadowed by the guilt her presence stirred.

"It's... it's..." Her voice cracked, panic spiking as she stumbled over her words, her hands trembling in her lap. "I don't know." She paused, her breath shuddering, then lifted her gaze, her face aflame with a crimson flush that made her eyes glisten. "You... you started it," she said, her voice rising, a fragile accusation laced with desperation.

"What?" Syn blinked, surprise jolting through him, his hands rising slightly as if to ward off her words. "What did I do?"

"You... you kept looking at me," she said, her eyes locking onto his, wide and wavering, brimming with unshed tears. "Peeping, staring—and then you stopped." Her blush burned brighter, her voice trembling as she faced him fully, her delicate features a mirror to the girl he'd once watched from afar.

"Is... is that even a reason?" Syn stammered, his own blush flaring anew as he stared back, her cute, flustered face a punch to his chest that scattered his thoughts. Her beauty hit him—those wide eyes, that shy tilt of her lips—unchanged from the days he'd stolen glances, a magnet he couldn't resist even now.

"I... I mean... that's how it started," she said, her voice faltering as her gaze dropped again, then darted back up, pleading. "One day... I saw you. Then again, and again—it didn't stop. I couldn't stop. It was wrong, but... it felt good." She paused, her breath hitching, her hands clenching tighter. "It's all because of you."

Syn's mind reeled, her words a tangled snarl he couldn't unravel. He didn't fully grasp it—her logic twisted, looping back to him in ways that defied sense—but guilt swelled anyway, a heavy tide crashing over him. Her flushed face, teetering on tears, was a mirror to his own buried longing, and he couldn't look away.

"I... I'm sorry," he murmured, his voice cracking, an apology spilling out unbidden as his hand hovered near hers, unsure whether to comfort or retreat. Her beauty struck him anew—those delicate features, that quiet charm—masking a secret he'd never suspected. How had she shadowed him so seamlessly, her shy grace a cloak for years of unseen pursuit?

Outside, Aster's voice rose again, muffled but insistent. "Anything now?" she pressed, her ear back against the door, her fingers tapping an impatient beat.

"Nothing," Pako muttered, shoving her aside to reclaim her spot, her breath fogging the metal as she listened harder. "Still too quiet."

Vera sighed, stepping back with a frustrated huff, her arms crossed as she watched them bicker, her patience fraying.