the sleeping area, his gaze became intense and focused.
“Evren...” Her name flowed like molasses from his lips—dark and thick. “If my secret is revealed someday, they will come for the people closest to me.”
“But that means everyone you work with is in danger. Your brothers. The other humans...”
“No.” A sigh left his frame as he rested back on the sleeping area, his gaze focused on the roof above. “You misunderstand. I haven’t been clear.” Even without him focusing on her, she could see the pain in his gaze. He was thinking of times past—times of long ago. His father, mother, and brother. He was thinking about his family.
“They won’t come for my brothers. They will come for the person closest to me. The person I care about the most.”
Evren blinked.
“Kyro...”
As she said his name, Kyro turned his head to focus his gaze on hers once more.
“That person is you, Evren.”
It felt like her heart just grew ten sizes and belly-flopped on its fat ass.
“And that is why I can never come close to you. Why I shouldn’t come close to you. I would rather not have you at all than to have you and lose you.”
Kyro watched as she stared at him, her mouth going slack.
Underneath his hand, her fingers trembled a little.
Had he said too much?
He had a tendency of going overboard when it came to Evren, doing things he never usually did. And this might be just another instance to add to the list.
Why in Polvrak’s name had he just admitted the one thing he had fought not to admit to himself.
Steeling himself for her response, he waited. But instead of asking him if he had gone insane, she only smiled, one so soft, he almost missed it.
In those blue eyes of hers was a swirl of emotions that made him afraid—afraid because he saw something in there that he dared not even imagine for himself.
“Evren?”
What was he thinking letting out the thoughts of his life-organ so easily? She didn’t even know him...the real him. She didn’t even know what he looked like. And then there was the fear that if he did reveal himself to her, she wouldn’t like what she saw.
She smiled again, catching him off guard this time, before she stood suddenly. “I’ll go get some more wet cotton—I mean wet...whatever that material is.” She motioned to the oofla on his head before heading to the washing area. His hand fell to his side, missing the presence of hers underneath it.
This was it.
She was going to follow his advice and move as far away from him as possible before it was too late.
It was his advice, so why did it make him ache so deep within? Why did the thought of her leaving make him feel pain worse than the physical wound in his side?
If she left...he would miss everything.
He would miss her smiles...her lame jokes...the way her eyes twinkled when she accomplished something...the way her heart warmed his just by being in her presence alone.
He was going to miss all of that.
But there was no other choice.
As the sense of loss descended upon him, he accepted it.
It wasn’t the first time he would feel such loss. He’d been feeling it ever since the reality of his future had been set upon him as a young Vorti.
Loss was embedded in his life.
There was no way to escape it apart from destroying the Tasqals and rewriting how his people were perceived across the galaxy.
A monumental task.
She was in the washing area for far longer than usual and he understood why.
He’d give her all the time and space that she needed.
It shouldn’t be hard for him to move on once she was gone. He’d already been trying to keep his distance. This was just another level to that.
Kyro forced the thoughts to run through his mind, repeating them over and over again.
She had no ties to him. No feelings for him that held any gravity. No reason to falter in her decision.
Kyro took a deep breath, grimacing slightly as the new skin that was forming stretched over the wound. As his body settled back down, Evren walked into the room, her footsteps halting.
She caught his attention and not in the usual way. This time, there was something different about her, a strange look covering her smooth features as she walked back over to him.
Confused, he tracked her as she walked around to the other side of the sleeping area. As she climbed atop the bedding, crawling over