𝐒𝐏𝐔𝐑𝐈𝐎𝐔𝐒 - ★彡[ᴀʟʜᴀɪᴛʜᴀᴍ]彡★

𝟐𝟑 - 𝐎𝐔𝐓 𝐎𝐅 𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐃

slowburn ended up winning the majority, so no snusnu yet :) it is coming though i promise

The droplet of water fell down my cheek and onto my collarbone as Alhaitham leaned forward, gently grabbing me and hoisting me into the air. After that, he placed me gently on  the bed and placed the covers over me.

    "You need to rest," he ordered me in a commanding tone, "you clearly aren't in the right state of mind."

    I blinked up at him, my rush of boldness evaporating from my body as I realized my blunder. "Ah. Right. Sorry."

    "Very good," he nodded. "All things will come in time, there's no point in rushing things purely out of adrenaline."

    "I understand."

    I nuzzled deeper under the covers, hiding my face as embarrassment began to hit me. I allowed myself to drift off to sleep after muttering a quick 'good night.'

    Dreams were the spawn of the subconscious mind. Your insecurities, desires, and even trivial thoughts get transformed into a temporary reality before you. I was cursed to dream almost every night, never being able to properly rest and sleep besides literally passing out.

    Many dreams I had were hypothetical situations that I wished were reality. In the dream, I was somewhat aware of the fact I was dreaming, yet refused to acknowledge it. Today, I had a bad dream.

    It was a dream of my mother.

    She held me in her arms, cradling me gently, yet the moment I smiled or showed any affection in return, she let go of me. It was torturous, and my yearning for parental care never ceased.

    My father was dead. He was gone.

    I didn't want to acknowledge that he would be gone forever. Because once I did that, it meant that I would never be able to recover our relationship. My mother would never be able to move on—and yet, he was gone.

    The world moves on, it stops for no one. So even if I feel like my world has frozen before me, time will continue to press forwards. Over and over again, I dreamt of my mom throwing me out of her arms and yelling.

    "You're just like your father."

    Over and over.

    I felt like I was going insane.

    Alhaitham stared down at the sleeping girl, an unknown feeling once again rising in his chest. Her eyes were squeezed shut, her hands clenching the blanket.

    Can she not rest, even in her sleep?

    Such a life must be miserable for a normal person like her. He found himself subconsciously reaching out to place the tip of his finger on her hair. Although Alhaitham had never been the type to feel much pity, something similar to that was filling his mind.

    How strange, to be more driven by the emotional rather than logical mind.

    He knew that this was unfamiliar territory, and part of him was reluctant to admit that he had begun to relish another person's company, to the point he would rather be with them than work. To label this feeling as anything wouldn't be proper...

    At just the miniscule touch of his finger, her body seemed to relax just a little.

    This is for her sake, so we can perform effectively at the dinner tomorrow.

    He placed his palm gently on her head, gently stroking her hair.

    That's right.

    It's for work.

    Yet while watching her smile lightly in her sleep, Alhaitham found his gaze softened.

    "Rest well," he murmured gently before forcibly removing himself from touching her, afraid that he would end up getting addicted to the sensation.

    No matter what my urges may be, I must suppress them as much as possible. He lay down on the couch and draped a spare blanket over his shoulders. Because I must remember that she is with me because of the job, and anything else could just be her acting.

    Convincing himself of as much, he closed his eyes.

    Yet the peace of his ignorance would not last much longer.