Episode5:THE JEALOUS KING
852 Words
Dinner was served in a hall that could fit a hundred people.
The ceilings were so high Aria couldn't see the top. Banners hung down, black and gold, with the dragon sigil stitched in thread that caught the candlelight.
Only two were eating.
Aria and Kael.
The table was long enough to be a runway. Gold plates. Silver cups. Food she couldn’t name. Roasted things on platters. Fruits that glowed faintly. And Kael at the other end, like he was trying to see how far he could get from her. Like the space between them was a weapon.
“You don’t have to eat with me,” Aria said. The silence was worse than the whispers from the court. It echoed.
“I know,” Kael replied, not looking up. He was cutting his meat with precise, slow movements. “I want to.”
Aria nearly choked on her wine.
A servant refilled her cup. Young. Male. Human. He smiled at her when he poured. Really smiled. Like she was a person.
“More wine, my lady?” His voice was soft.
“Thank you,” Aria said. She was so used to being kind to people. It slipped out. It was habit.
The servant’s smile widened. “Anything for you.”
Kael’s cup hit the table. Hard. Wine sloshed over the rim.
The servant froze. The pitcher in his hand shook.
“Leave,” Kael said, voice low. Dangerous.
“Y-Your Majesty?”
“I said leave.”
The servant dropped the pitcher and bolted. The sound of his feet echoed down the hall.
Aria stared. Her heart was beating too fast. “What was that for? He was just—”
“Being familiar,” Kael finished. His gold eyes were dark. Almost black. “He doesn’t get to be familiar with you.”
“It was one smile,” Aria said carefully. “You can’t expect me to—”
“I expect you to remember rule two,” Kael cut her off. “You do not lie. And you do not flirt.”
“I wasn’t flirting!” Aria stood up. The chair scraped loud against the stone. “I was being polite. There’s a difference. Or there used to be.”
Kael stood too. The table between them suddenly felt very small. Too small.
“Not in this castle,” Kael said. “Not with you. You’re mine. For one year. That means every man here knows not to look at you. Not to speak to you. Not to breathe near you.”
Aria crossed her arms. “That’s ridiculous. I’m not property.”
“You signed the contract,” Kael said. He came around the table. Slow. Deliberate. Like a predator. “You are.”
He stopped in front of her. Close enough that she could smell smoke on him. Close enough to see the tension in his jaw.
“Let me make it clear, Aria,” Kael said, and the way he said her name made her shiver. Made the brand on her wrist burn. “If anyone touches you, I kill them. If anyone looks at you too long, I blind them. And if you let them...”
He didn’t finish. He didn’t have to. The threat hung in the air.
Aria lifted her chin. She wouldn’t cower. “And what if I don’t want to be owned?”
Kael’s jaw ticked. “Then you shouldn’t have offered yourself.”
The words hit like a slap.
Aria turned and walked out. Her steps were fast. She didn’t get far.
Kael’s hand caught her wrist. Not hard. But firm. Hot. He turned her to face him.
“Don’t walk away from me,” he said. His voice was rough.
“Don’t treat me like I’m nothing,” Aria shot back. Her chest was rising and falling.
For a moment, they just stared at each other. Angry. Breathing hard. The air between them felt electric.
Then Kael let go. Like touching her burned him.
“Go to your room,” he said. “Before I do something we both regret.”
Aria ran.
Back in her room, she locked the door. Even though she knew it wouldn’t matter. The locks here were for show.
She sat on the floor and hugged her knees. Her wrist burned. The brand was glowing again. Gold light bleeding through her sleeve.
A knock. Soft.
“Go away,” Aria said.
“It’s me,” Kael’s voice came through the door. Tired.
Aria didn’t answer.
“I’m not coming in,” Kael said. “I just... I’m not good at this.”
Silence.
“Don’t let them touch you,” Kael said finally. Softer now. “Please.”
Footsteps. Walking away. Slow.
Aria pressed her forehead to her knees.
He was jealous.
The Dragon King was jealous over her.
And that was more dangerous than anything else in this castle. More dangerous than the chains. More dangerous than Selene.
That night, the chains didn’t rattle.
But Aria didn’t sleep anyway. She stared at the door until dawn.
[END OF CHAPTER 5]
- Writer
