The bond was getting worse
There was no denying it anymore.
What had started as a faint, irritating pain had now become something far more aggressive-sharp pulses that came without warning, tightening around their wrists like invisible chains.
Demanding closeness.
Demanding control.
Lyra hated it.
She stood near the far end of the chamber, arms crossed tightly, her back turned toward Kael as if even looking at him would make things worse.
"Stay away from me."
Her voice was cold.
Final.
Kael, standing near the door, didn't move.
"Moving away makes it worse," he said flatly.
"I don't care."
The response came instantly.
Sharp.
Unyielding.
Kael's jaw tightened.
"You should," he replied. "Because I'm not dealing with unnecessary complications just because you're being stubbom."
Lyra turned sharply, her eyes blazing.
"Stubborn?" she repeated. "You think this is about stubbornness?"
She took a step forward.
Anger radiating from her.
"I refuse to stand close to someone I can barely tolerate," she said. "If this bond thinks it can force me into that, it's wrong."
Kael's gaze darkened.
"It's not about what you want," he said. "It's about control."
Lyra let out a bitter laugh.
"Control?" she echoed. "That's rich, coming from you."
Her eyes locked onto his.
Cold.
Accusing.
"You think I don't see it?" she continued. "The way you talk, the way you act as if everything belongs to you."
A pause.
Then-
Her voice dropped.
Sharper.
↓
"But I don't."
Silence
Heavy.
Kael didn't respond immediately.
Didn't argue.
But something in his expression changed.
Subtly.
Dangerously.
"Then don't," he said at last.
His tone-
Flat.
Empty
Devoid of anything.
Lyra frowned slightly.
But before she could respond-
Another wave of pain hit.
This time-
Stronger.
Lyra inhaled sharply, her hand gripping her wrist.
But she stayed standing.
Still.
Resisting.
Across the room-
Kael didn't move.
↓
Not at first.
But the moment the pain reached him-
His body reacted differently,
His shoulders tensed.
His breathing faltered.
Just slightly.
Lyra noticed.
Of course she did.
But she didn't step closer.
Didn't move.
Because she had already decided-
She wouldn't give in.
"This is getting worse," Kael muttered under his
breath.
Lyra didn't respond.
Instead-
She turned away again.
Creating distance.
More distance.
The mark flared violently.
Kael sucked in a sharp breath.
His hand pressed against his wrist instinctively.
"...Lyra."
Her name came out lower than before.
Not a command.
A warning.
Lyra didn't turn.
"I told you," she said coldly, "stay away from me."
Another pulse.
Stronger.
Kael staggered slightly.
His vision blurred for a second.
Something wasn't right.
This wasn't just the bond.
His chest tightened.
The curse.
It was reacting.
Feeding off it.
Amplifying it.
"Move closer," he said, his voice sharper now.
Lyra clenched her jaw.
"No."
The word was quiet.
But absolute.
Kael's patience snapped.
"You don't get to decide that right now," he said,
taking a step forward.
Lyra turned instantly.
"Don't come near me!"
The force in her voice-
The rejection-
It hit harder than the pain.
Kael stopped.
Not because he couldn't move.
But because-
He chose not to.
A long silence followed.
Then-
Slowly-
Kael straightened.
The tension in his body didn't disappear.
But his expression did.
Cold.
Detached.
Shut down.
"Fine"
The word was quiet.
Too quiet.
↓
Lyra's brows furrowed slightly.
But she didn't say anything.
Didn't take it back.
Didn't step forward.
Kael looked at her one last time.
His golden eyes-
Empty.
"You made your choice."
Then-
He turned away.
Walking toward the door.
Each step steady.
Controlled.
As if nothing was wrong.
As if the pain wasn't tearing through him.
The door opened.
Then closed.
And just like that-
He was gone.
Silence filled the room.
Lyra stood there, unmoving.
Her chest rising and falling slowly.
The pain in her wrist eased slightly.
But not completely.
Her fingers tightened.
"...Good."
The word felt hollow.
Hours passed.
Too quietly.
Too slowly.
Something felt... off.
Lyra sat by the window again, her thoughts
restless.
The bond hadn't settled.
It hadn't disappeared.
If anything-
It felt...
Unstable.
Her brows furrowed.
"...Why isn't it calming down?"
A sudden unease crept into her chest.
Then-
A distant sound echoed through the corridor.
Voices.
Hurried.
Panicked.
Lyra stood immediately.
Her instincts sharpened.
Something was wrong.
Very wrong.
She stepped out of the room-
Just as a servant rushed past her.
"What happened?" Lyra asked sharply.
The servant stopped, startled.
"T-The Alpha heir-"
Lyra's heart skipped.
"What about him?"
"He collapsed."
Silence.
The words didn't register at first.
"...What?"
"He fainted in the west corridor," the servant said
Lyra didn't wait.
She moved.
Fast.
Without thinking.
The corridor was crowded when she arrived.
Guards.
Servants.
Whispers.
All surrounding one figure-
Kael.
Lying on the ground.
Unmoving.
Lyra stopped.
For a second-
Just a second-
Everything went quiet.
He looked... wrong.
Too still.
Too pale.
His usual controlled presence-
Gone.
The mark on his wrist glowed faintly.
Flickering.
Unstable.
Lyra's gaze dropped to her own wrist.
The same glow.
The same reaction.
"...This is because of the bond," she whispered.
Or worse-
Because of her.
Her chest tightened.
Unfamiliar.
Unwanted.
The royal healer pushed through the crowd, kneeling beside Kael quickly.
"His condition is unstable," he said urgently. "The curse is reacting violently-"
Lyra's breath hitched slightly.
The curse.
Not just the bond.
This was deeper.
Worse.
"Move him," the healer ordered. "Now."
The guards immediately obeyed.
Lifting Kael carefully.
Lyra didn't move.
Didn't speak.
She just stood there.
Watching.
Her fingers slowly curling into her palm.
"...This wasn't supposed to happen."
But it did.
And for the first time-
The distance she forced...