When Adaline looked away, Shane spoke.
“Don't worry. I haven't done anything yet, have I? I can’t promise that I’ll never do something you don’t like... but...”
“What kind of vague wording...”
“I will not touch you without your consent. Until you want it, nothing will happen.”
“This will never happen!”
“But you said before that you can expect everything from people?”
“Everything is different here!”
"Okay, okay, let's just go to bed."
“Go sleep in your room. This house doesn't have one bedroom."
"My bedroom is here."
"...Then I'll leave."
But his arms wrapped around her waist were like stone shackles. It was impossible to free myself. Adaline began to spank Shane's arm, but of course he didn't even move. She struggled, kicked, but only became more entangled in him, her legs intertwined with his.
“I said: I’m leaving!”
“No use, Adaline. Wherever you go, I will still follow you."
"..."
“So just stay. This room is the most comfortable, right?”
“This house is full of bedrooms. Even if they are not removed, I don’t care. I can sleep anywhere. At least on the floor, just put a blanket on it. I thought my back would hurt, but there wasn’t even anything under the layer of straw. And anyway, I don’t even need a blanket...”
When she hid abroad, she had to live in shelters for months.
[The hideout that Lucian arranged was too risky. Adaline trusted his abilities, but there was always that tiny possibility. If Lucian is caught, the cover will open immediately.]
[She ended up going much further than she had intended. Neither Lucian, nor even Lloyd, no one knew where she would end up.]
[I remember Lloyd's expression when he saw a ticket to a different city than we agreed on...]
[Although the wound from the blow to the stomach was not fatal, it was still serious. Crossing the border with such an injury is madness.]
[Couldn’t it have just been healed and stayed in Lucian’s house?]
[It's not that I don't trust him. I...well, I trust, but...]
[It means you don’t trust.]
[...I believe he can handle it. I believe. But people are multi-layered. You never know what's going on in their heads.]
[That is, you don't trust anyone.]
[I trust you, Lloyd.]
[You know how to speak. But all this time they kept the secret from me.]
[I wanted to relieve you of unnecessary burden. You've already taken on a lot. I felt awkward.]
[If you're so embarrassed, don't hang on to me. You are taller than me, by the way.]
[Getting across the border while wounded was hell. I hardly ate, I didn’t sleep. She seemed to be dying.]
[But freedom from nightmares was worth it.]
[Lloyd was suffering. Strongly.]
[Jewelry and decorations could not be quickly exchanged for money, there was too much attention. I had to buy a house with the remaining cash. Modest, poor, almost empty.]
[No furniture, no normal conditions. They slept on the bare floor, covered with blankets. She was wounded then, but now she is healthy. What to talk about.]
But Shane didn't move an inch.
“Why did you even have to sleep without a blanket?”
"..."
“Okay, I'm not asking. Otherwise I’ll start getting angry again.”
“Why should I be angry?”
“How can you not be angry if you suffered?”
"..."
She didn't expect such a reaction. After all, he was the one who was causing her the most emotional pain right now.
“And where was your super-assistant at that time?”
“Lloyd was sleeping next to him. Also without a blanket..."
“Ah, nearby.”
“We had no choice. There was one room."
Shane chuckled. Even without looking at him, Adaline felt a crooked smile. He seemed pleased. He hugged her tighter and laid his head on top of her head.
“Then I have no choice, Adaline.”
"What?! I know how many rooms there are in this house!”
"I can't sleep without you."
His quiet voice made her go numb for a moment.
[How I would like to answer: I would lie, but stop...]
“When you're not around, I feel anxious. I need your smell, your warmth. Otherwise I don't sleep."
She understood this feeling all too well.
[Knew what it was like to try to sleep when there is an anxious emptiness inside.]
“Calm down, Adaline. No matter what you say, I will never let you go. Never. Nowhere."
“You will never leave me...ever.”
"Let's just sleep..."
[Terrible words. An insanely obsessive confession, and at the same time... touching.]
Adaline looked at Shane's face, who had already closed his eyes. Her expression was confused, her thoughts were confused. A hurricane raged inside. She felt her face burning.