Queen of Mean

CHAPTER 31

TORI WANTED to caress Cory but stopped midway. She's scared to see that he suffered this fate instead of her. "If you want to touch me, better do it now."

Her lips parted when the chains around his neck rattled as he lifted his head to meet her teary eyes. Not caring about her endless doubts, Tori crossed the distance between. Her dainty hands gently clasped his swollen face as she was careful with his wounds. "Why did you do it, Cory? Why? No matter how I think about it. Doing this will not benefit you." Tori whispered those words that she wanted to ask him since she learned about his actions, but she could not meet his eyes with shame and fear. A shame since she could not let go of her question, the one question that connected her to the belief that trust was built through exchange value of needs. And fear that he would see the crumbling resolve she once had.

Tori may act strong-willed in front of her vassals like she always did, but deep down, she felt lost now more than ever.

"Benefits. Hmm. Can I call it a benefit if I am contented whenever I see your genuine smile? The one with dimples out, not the closed-eyes sweet smile or the toothy grin."

His golden eyes were smiling even when Tori saw how he winced as he talked. The tremble in her voice was evident when Tori replied to his half-witted reply to her question, a failed attempt to make her swoon.

"You're a lunatic, I tell you." Tori traced the outline of his wounds from the side of his lips to his forehead. She felt him leaned his face to her touch. "Answer me honestly, please."

Cory saw the need in her eyes, the need to be guided. Leaning his forehead to hers, he spoke. "Even if the world becomes your enemy, I will remain steadfast as your protector. Maybe, you did not experience being protected because the goddess knows that once we meet, I will protect you with my whole being. I am not doing this because I want you to love me or I want you to change. I am not doing this because I want something from you. No."

Smiling, Cory continued as he kissed her tears away. "I am doing this because I want to. Because I want to see you smile genuinely, without worrying about that happiness being taken away from you. Always remember this, Victoria. Be who you want to be, but at the end of the day, you have your vassals to lean on. And you have me to show your vulnerable sides. You are only human, Victoria. It is okay to cry in front of me. You will forever remain the feisty noble lady who swept me off my feet the first time we met. So break and let me put you back on."

No amount of lip-biting could stop Tori's sobs as she finally let loose. Hugging his wounded body carefully, she sobbed like she never did. She cried for the life of Talia who was betrayed by her mother. She cried for the original Victoria who only wished to be loved back. And she cried for Tori who was led into ruins by her beliefs only to be saved by the one person who crushed her walls. She finally shattered, but Cory was there for her to catch every piece of her.

He let her cried. Tori did not know how long she spilled her guts out. But after soaking his shin from her tears, she finally quieted down. Sniffling like a five-year-old child, Tori looked up into his smiling face. "How is it? Are you calm now, Victoria?"

Wiping the remnants of her vulnerability, Tori smiled wickedly at Cory. "You bet I am, Prince Corean." Distancing a foot away from him, Tori stared at his eyes. Raw determination washed into her like vengeance. "I will stop at nothing just to free you." Grasping his cheeks, Tori leaned to Cory, closing her eyes midway. His powerful kiss welcomed hers. No agenda. No barriers. Just two bare hearts met for the first time, one with longing and one with a fearful yet determined heart.