Chapter14
604 Words
The mansion felt unusually quiet that night.
Too quiet.
Without Luca around, the already cold mansion somehow felt even emptier than before.
Elena sat alone in the living room while staring absentmindedly at the rain outside.
The clock on the wall continued ticking slowly.
Midnight.
Still no sign of Ryder.
Elena lowered her eyes toward the untouched cup of tea in her hands.
For some reason…
She couldn’t sleep.
Maybe because the mansion felt too big when she was alone.
Or maybe—
She had gotten used to Ryder’s presence more than she realized.
The sudden sound of the front door opening immediately pulled her from her thoughts.
Elena quickly looked up.
Ryder finally returned.
But the moment he stepped into the living room—
Elena frowned instantly.
He looked exhausted.
His black shirt was slightly wet from the rain while a small cut was visible on his knuckles.
Ryder loosened his sleeves before stopping when he noticed Elena still awake.
“You’re still up?”
Elena immediately stood up from the couch.
“What happened to your hand?”
Ryder glanced briefly at the cut before looking away again.
“Nothing.”
Elena narrowed her eyes slightly.
That was obviously not “nothing.”
Without another word, she walked toward him.
“Sit down.”
Ryder blinked once.
“…What?”
“I said, sit down.”
For a moment, Ryder simply stared at her.
No one usually ordered him around like that.
Yet strangely—
He listened.
Quietly, Ryder sat down on the couch while Elena disappeared briefly before returning with a small first aid kit.
The atmosphere between them became strangely calm again.
Elena carefully took his hand into hers before cleaning the cut gently.
Ryder stayed unusually quiet while watching her.
“You should be more careful,” Elena muttered softly.
“It’s just a scratch.”
“That’s still an injury.”
Ryder almost smirked slightly at her stubborn tone.
Almost.
The mansion fell silent again except for the sound of rain outside.
Then softly—
“You look tired,” Elena said quietly.
Ryder leaned back against the couch slightly.
“I am.”
Simple.
Honest.
For some reason, Elena’s chest tightened slightly after hearing that.
Maybe because this was the first time Ryder actually looked human instead of untouchable.
After a few seconds of silence, Elena finally spoke again.
“Why are you helping me this much?”
Ryder’s eyes slowly lifted toward her.
The question lingered heavily between them.
Honestly—
Even he didn’t fully understand the answer himself.
At first, helping Elena was supposed to be temporary.
Simple.
Ryder looked down briefly at Elena’s fingers wrapped carefully around his injured hand.
Warm.
Gentle.
Dangerously comforting.
“…I don’t know,” he admitted quietly.
Elena froze slightly at his answer.
Because somehow—
That honest answer felt more dangerous than any lie.
After finishing the bandage, Elena slowly pulled her hand away.
“Done,” she whispered softly.
Ryder nodded once.
Neither of them noticed how close they had become sitting there in the quiet living room.
Outside, the rain continued falling softly against the windows.
And some time later—
Elena eventually fell asleep beside him on the couch.
Her head resting slightly against the cushions while the blanket slowly slipped from her shoulder.
Ryder stared at her silently for a long moment.
Then carefully—
He pulled the blanket back over her again.
His dark eyes softened slightly as he watched her peaceful sleeping face.
And for the first time in a very long while—
Ryder smiled.
Just a little.
To be continued.
- Writer
