“Pfft—”
Small. Soft.
But real.
She bit her lip, trying to suppress the ridiculous amusement bubbling in her chest, but it was impossible.
“You…” she murmured, her voice light, almost teasing. “You get comfortable way too easily.”
Even now, even like this, he was just… him.
Infuriating.
Impossible.
And yet—
Her other hand moved.
Without thinking, she reached forward, her fingertips brushing against his lips.
Soft.
A different kind of softness.
Aeliana stilled.
The realization hit a second too late—What am I doing?—but she didn’t pull away. Not yet.
She just watched.
Watched the way his lips barely parted, the slow rise and fall of his chest, the way his breath tickled against her fingertips.
And for the first time since meeting him—
She didn’t know what she wanted to do next.
Aeliana swallowed, her breath catching in her throat.
Her fingers were still resting against his lips, the warmth of his breath barely grazing her skin.
Her heart pounded.
What am I doing?
She didn’t pull away.
Rather—
Did she know exactly what she was doing?
The thought crept in, slow, insidious.
Should I get my payback?
After all, hadn’t he done so many unimaginable things to her? Lied to her, used her, thrown cruel words at her just to see her rage?
He made her feel things she didn’t understand.
And she hated that.
So shouldn’t she take something back?
Aeliana’s lips curled slightly.
“Right,” she murmured. Her fingers trailed from his lips to his jaw, barely grazing along his skin. “This is payback.”
He needed to pay her back for all of it.
Every smirk.
Every lie.
Every time he had seen through her, despite how much she wanted to keep him out.
Even if she understood now—
Even if she knew why he had done it—
It still hurt.
She couldn’t just forget.
She wouldn’t.
“Yes.”
That was all the justification she needed.
Her fingers tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear, her breath slightly unsteady. Slowly, carefully, she leaned down, her heart slamming against her ribs with every inch she closed between them.
Her first time doing something like this.
And with him, of all people.
Her lips hovered just above his.
A single inch left.
Then—
Gold met black.
Lucavion’s eyes opened.
Aeliana froze.
Wide.
Awake.
Lucavion stared directly at her, his usual smirk nowhere to be found.
For the first time—
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He looked utterly, completely still.
For a moment, neither of them moved.
Lucavion stared, his mind momentarily blank, black eyes locked onto the stunned amber ones inches away from his face.
“…Huh?”
Aeliana’s breath hitched. A small sound— “Ah…”—slipped past her lips, barely audible but enough to break the stillness between them.
She could feel it now.
The warmth of his breath brushing against her skin. The way his pupils dilated just slightly, the flicker of something unguarded in his expression.
Too close.
Too, too close.
Her mind caught up a second too late. A sharp jolt of realization shot through her, and in an instant, she jerked her head back, breaking the proximity, her breath coming a little unsteady.
Her fingers twitched where they still hovered over him, as if unsure whether to move away entirely or pretend nothing had happened.
Lucavion remained still.
Not smirking. Not laughing. Just looking at her.
The silence stretched unbearably.
Then—
“…..Hmm….”
He exhaled, blinking once. Then twice. His head tilted ever so slightly, as if assessing the situation, and then—
Control.
Like a switch flipping, his expression began to shift.
Lucavion shook his head, as if physically discarding whatever had momentarily unsettled him. The flicker of genuine surprise faded, replaced with something more composed. Something calculated.
A slow inhale.
A beat.
And then—
The smirk returned.
Not all at once, but in pieces. The faintest curl of his lips. The lazy tilt of his head. The familiar glint in his eyes that said, Ah, I see how it is.
The amusement curled at the edges of his lips as he exhaled, slow and deliberate. Aeliana was still too stunned to react, her wide amber eyes locked onto him in mortification.
Then—
“Oya, oya….”
His voice came out smooth, teasing, his smirk deepening as the situation fully settled in.
“I wonder what’s happening here?”
Aeliana stiffened instantly. She could feel the mockery laced in his words, the way he was already turning this around—like she had been the one caught doing something suspicious.
Lucavion, of course, wasn’t done.
His black eyes flickered to the side—and then lower.
Ah.
Her navel.
From where he lay, his line of sight was directly aligned with the exposed skin between her slightly disheveled clothing. His gaze lingered for just a second longer than necessary, something about it slow and assessing—and, infuriatingly, just a little lecherous.
Aeliana felt the exact moment he made the observation.
His lips twitched, and then—
“Getting a lap pillow from a beauty, how lucky I am.”
A sharp, unbearable heat rushed to her face.
‘This guy—’
Her fists clenched.
Lucavion, entirely unbothered, shifted slightly, as if getting comfortable. “But I guess…” His head tilted back against her thighs, his smirk lazy and insufferable. “I earned it.”
Earned it?!
That was it.
Aeliana’s embarrassment snapped into rage.
Without hesitation, she pushed at his head, aiming to shove him off her lap with full force.
But Lucavion, of course, was too damn fast.
The instant she moved, he dodged.
Like a phantom, his body twisted just enough to avoid her shove, his head shifting with that irritating, effortless ease—as if he had been expecting it.
Aeliana’s palm hit empty air.
And then—
He laughed.
A light chuckle, annoyingly amused, black eyes sharp with mischief.
“My, my…” Lucavion’s smirk deepened as he peered up at her, eyes half-lidded with amusement. “Why are you getting angry now?”
His voice was mocking, silky, and filled with obvious enjoyment at her flustered state.
Aeliana’s fingers twitched.
She was going to kill him.
Aeliana’s hand clenched into a fist.
She could still feel it—his breath, warm against her skin, the lingering sensation of her fingertips brushing against his lips. The realization was burning into her, searing, twisting into something unbearable.
And then—
Then this bastard had the audacity to smirk like that.
–Why are you getting angry now?
That voice. That voice.
Mocking. Silky. Filled with insufferable, unbearable amusement.
She snapped.
“Why am I getting angry?!” Her voice rose, sharp with incredulity. “Are you really asking that now?!”
Lucavion’s grin widened. “You were leaning in quite eagerly just a moment ago, weren’t you?”
Aeliana’s entire body locked up.
“You—!”