[Author’s Note: Since we’ve nearly reached 1500 PS, I’m making a special exception this time to treat you all with a bonus chapter! 🎉 Thank you so much for your amazing support!]
“Remove your clothes”
Aether blinked, caught completely off guard when he heard those words. His eyes widened, and then, almost shyly, he raised his hand to his body and asked with a hesitant, slurred stutter, “N-Now…? Y-You mean… right now?”
Aqualina frowned deeply, her face quickly flushing into a bright, fiery red.
“Y-You!!” she snapped, clenching her fist as her whole expression twisted in frustration. She knew exactly what he was thinking, and it infuriated her!!
Gritting her teeth, she snapped louder, “Bastard!! I meant go and take a bath! Because you smell disgusting!” Her voice rose sharply as she waved a hand in front of her nose, frowning with an exaggerated look of annoyance.
Aether’s shoulders slumped, and his expression turned hurt, almost like a puppy being scolded. “Smell… disgusting?” he echoed, sniffing his body clumsily, swaying a little on his feet. He honestly didn’t notice anything off, but… still. He knew who Aqualina was. “My Aqua… she always likes to be… hyge… hygini… hygienic…” he mumbled, his words slurring as he muttered softly, almost to himself, remembering how meticulous she was about cleanliness—even just for a kiss.
“Yeah…” Aqualina nodded with proud confidence, placing her hands on her hips like a general declaring victory.
Hygiene was always the top priority!!
“Even though you sucked my dirty cock,” Aether muttered suddenly, almost absentmindedly, his tone flat, voice a little slurry but without a shred of hesitation.
Aqualina’s entire face turned crimson in an instant. Her jaw dropped, eyes widened, and for a second she looked as if she might actually explode. “YOU!!!” she shrieked in disbelief, clenching her fists again so tightly her knuckles went white.
She almost—almost—punched his drunken, clueless face right there.
But no!
She was a lady.
A calm, composed woman.
She took a deep breath, buried her fury just beneath the surface, and said in a cold, blunt tone, “Remove your clothes. And take a damn bath.”
“Weeee—” Aether started with a dopey grin, wobbling slightly on his feet.
“Do it! NOW!” Aqualina barked so sharply that Aether flinched. He didn’t have many choices at that point.
With a pout forming on his lips, he started removing his clothes while slowly turning his gaze to her. He looked so offended and betrayed, like she’d just broken his heart by not joining him.
Aqualina, of course, didn’t return the look—she kept her gaze fixed on the wall, arms crossed, silently waiting for him to finish.
Aether sulked, cheeks puffed out slightly. He was just about to tug down his underwear when—
“No need,” Aqualina said quickly, stepping in and snatching the rest of his clothes from his hands. “You can take that off in the bathtub,” she added in a tone that didn’t allow argument. Before Aether could say a word—or wobble further—she pushed him into the bathroom with surprising strength.
“Take a long, nice bath… Use warm water if you want,” she added from behind, sounding more tired than annoyed now. She held his filthy clothes at arm’s length, as if they were some kind of cursed artifact, before stepping into the hallway and calling for the maid stationed outside.
“Clean this mess up,” she instructed the maid with a sigh, “and brew some herbal tea while you’re at it. Something strong.”
She pressed her fingers against her forehead, feeling a dull throb of exhaustion coming on. This wasn’t how she imagined the night going.
She couldn’t believe Aether had gotten this drunk and was now just stumbling around, half-naked, and acting like a mischievous fool. As she turned her head toward the bathroom, she heard it:
“La~La~LLaaa~”
His voice, carefree and off-key, echoed from behind the door, full of childish glee.
Aqualina’s lips twitched. Was he… singing? Happily? While she suffered out here?
He was supposed to apologize, hold her, kiss her, calm her down. Instead, he was soaking in her tub and acting like he didn’t have a care in the world!
“Forget it,” she muttered under her breath with an annoyed tone. Once he sobered up, she would have words with him.
Just then—
“La~La—“
…
The song stopped.
Aqualina paused, brows furrowing slightly. That was… sudden.
Maybe he just stopped singing?
She frowned slightly, waiting for the next ridiculous verse. But nothing came.
No sound.
But then something itched at her gut. Something didn’t feel right. Her frown deepened. She took a step closer to the bathroom. “Aether?” she called, a slight edge in her voice.
“…”
No answer.
“Aether? Are you alright?” she asked again, her voice suddenly thinner. Her heart picked up pace. Her face paled slightly.
Still nothing.
No splash. No hum. No drunken muttering.
Her heart skipped a beat as she reached for the door, flung it open without another thought, and—
“OH MY GOD!!” she screamed, her voice filled with pure panic.
Aether was sinking—half-submerged in the bathtub, his body limp, bubbles rising slowly from his mouth. He looked completely unconscious, like he was drifting deeper under the water with every second.
Without thinking, Aqualina rushed forward, adrenaline surging through her. She grabbed him by the arms and pulled his heavy, soaked body out of the water with all the strength she could muster.
Sssslappppp!!!
Water splashed everywhere as she pulled him free, soaking herself in the process. She turned him slightly, supporting his chest, and smacked his back, her voice panicked. “Aether! Wake up! Breathe!” She hit him again, harder, almost crying now.
“Cough! Cough…”
Finally, Aether coughed, choking out water as his body jerked and twitched in her arms.
Aqualina exhaled deeply, her chest heaving. Relief washed over her like a wave. Her heart was still racing as she held him, trying to keep him upright.
Aether slowly opened his eyes, his expression hazy and unfocused—completely drunk and dazed. He blinked at her, confused, his vision blurry as he tried to understand what was happening.
“Oh…? Aqua?…. When did you come?” he asked, slurring the words with a dazed smile, as if he was seeing her for the very first time.
Aqualina’s lips twitched even more violently. “Those bitches…” she hissed through clenched teeth. She couldn’t believe what those women had done—whatever they gave him, it was strong enough to make him forget his surroundings, lose his senses like this.
Heck, he was still wearing his underwear while bathing!
Seeing him like this—not acting like himself, not even remotely close—it was clear it wasn’t safe to leave him alone right now. So, with a sigh and a click of her tongue…
“Tsk, just sit down… I’ll take care of it,” Aqualina muttered with a slightly annoyed tone. She pushed him gently onto the small bath chair, then folded her loose hair back. Picking up a sponge, she poured soap over it and began scrubbing.
“Ouch…” Aether winced, flinching the moment she touched him. Her hands weren’t gentle at all—she was scrubbing him like she was trying to remove grease from a pan.
“What? Painful? Hold it in,” she said, completely devoid of sympathy. Her tone was sharp, her strokes filled with irritation, not love.
If it wasn’t for Aether’s strong skin, his entire body might’ve been peeled raw by now. That was how much force she was using, scrubbing every inch of him like she was trying to erase the memory of someone else’s touch.
“Bubblesss~” Aether suddenly muttered with a dopey smile, staring in awe at the soap bubbles forming all over his body.
Aqualina’s eyes softened just slightly, her fury flickering for a moment as she saw him acting like a big, helpless child. Her scrubbing slowed a bit as she moved over his back. She murmured quietly, almost to herself, “I can’t believe those bitches got you drunk like this…” She pressed the sponge down, working it harder into his skin.
She couldn’t understand how it had all happened. And worse—
“Toyed with you?” she growled under her breath, those words still stinging in her mind, “Fucking bitches… Toyed with my husband… fuckers… jerks…”
“Ouch… ouch…” Aether winced again, but he didn’t complain. He actually seemed to enjoy it more than it hurt, leaning slightly into her rough care like it was soothing in its own way.
Aqualina finally turned to his face and stared at his expression—it was drunk, distant. His eyes were unfocused, cloudy with alcohol and something else. He looked lost… like he wasn’t even thinking clearly.
Her heart clenched at the sight. This wasn’t him. Not the man she knew. She looked down at the ring on his finger and narrowed her eyes. “This is… I fuckin’… How come I didn’t notice this earlier?” she muttered bitterly. She reached out and pulled the ring—Aether’s hand twitched, slightly resisting.
“Aether,” she said firmly.
And just like that, he relaxed. The ring slid off, revealing his original hair color.
She gritted her teeth. Just seeing it frustrated her even more—knowing he was Victor, knowing he’d been hiding the truth from her all this time.
She snorted and resumed scrubbing his chest and arms, muttering all the while, “Those bitches… those fucking bitches…” Her cheeks burned slightly as her hand reached lower to his stomach. But instead of scrubbing the area she glanced at—something important—she quickly moved to his legs, trying to keep her emotions contained.
“If they toyed with you… you should’ve taught those bitches a damn lesson!” she growled. The word ‘toyed’ echoed inside her head like a taunt.
“How can my man be toyed with by others…? Huh?” she asked no one, her voice rising like that of a frustrated wife trying to lecture her idiot, drunken darling.
She wasn’t expecting an answer—she was just ranting now.
As she washed his feet, she finally moved up to his head and started working the shampoo into his hair, lathering aggressively. Of course, her complaints didn’t stop.
“You’re a man! Why the hell did you let those bitches toy with you, huh?!
You should’ve toyed with their pussy asses instead!
Made them beg!
Made them bow to you…
How the fuck did you let it happen, you dumb fucker?!
MY man, toyed by some sluts?!” she snapped, her lips trembling with pent-up rage as her hands furiously scrubbed his hair. “Those bitches… Those fucking bitches…”
Finally, she poured a bucket of warm water over his head, rinsing him from top to bottom. Soap and bubbles slid off his clean body. Aqualina took a step back and nodded, feeling a small sense of satisfaction.
“Good,” she muttered, scanning his thoroughly scrubbed figure. But then—her eyes paused.
Her face turned red in an instant.
“A-Anyway… Y-You need to take care of that…” she stammered, averting her gaze as she pointed toward the massive bulge straining against his soaked underwear.
Aether tilted his head slowly, eyes half-lidded in his drunken daze. He smirked lazily and slurred softly, “C-Can’t my darling… take care of it? Hic…”
“Nope!” Aqualina instantly rejected, her tone sharp and panicked. There was no way she was going to play with that fire—not now! Besides, he was the one who was supposed to take care of her—not the other way around!
However…
“It’s so painful…” he whimpered, his lips pulling into a pout as he nudged his underwear, groaning at the uncomfortable strain.
Aqualina’s lips twitched violently, her face completely flushed. “Y-You!!”
Still…
“Pretty please… Hic… It’s itchy down there…” he mumbled with pleading eyes, the kind of expression that could melt stone. And Aqualina… she was no stone.
She was Aether’s wife…. even if no marriage… she believed it to her heart!!
And she was already melting.