Silence falls over the clearing.
Just Lunaya... and Kael.
Kael's eyes are still golden.
Not completely wolf.
Not completely human.
Somewhere in between.
Because of her.
He breathes heavily, as if still struggling to regain control.
"Lunaya... he whispers, his voice hoarse.
You shouldn't stay so close to me when I'm like this."
She takes a step forward.
Deliberately.
"I want to be close to you.
Even when you're like this."
He closes his eyes.
His breathing stops.
"You're going to kill me," he repeats, almost desperately.
She gently places her hand against his cheek.
He flinches.
As if the simple touch burns.
"Kael... look at me."
He obeys.
His golden eyes plunge into hers.
Softer than they should be.
Wilder, too.
She whispers to him:
"You're not dangerous to me."
He shakes his head.
"Not dangerous? Lunaya...
I just lost control.
I could..."
He can't finish.
He's too afraid of that word.
She smiles softly.
"Bite me?"
Kael turns CRIMSON.
So much so that even his ears catch fire.
"L-Luna.
Don't say it like that...
You know very well."
"I don't know anything, she says, moving closer.
Then tell me."
Kael takes a step back.
Then two.
Until his back hits a tree trunk.
Trapped.
"Lunaya...
You're playing with fire."
"You're the fire.
Not me."
He stifles a growl.
Stop saying things like that, please."
She leans in a little.
Not too much.
Just enough to steal his breath away.
"Why?"
He clenches his fists.
"Because...
when you talk to me like that...
Lunaya disappears."
She frowns.
"I... disappear?"
He nods, his gaze burning.
"Yes.
And I only see..."
He hesitates.
Blushes again.
"...my heart."
His whisper hits harder than a dragon's roar.
She feels a bittersweet warmth wash over her chest.
"Your... heart?"
He lowers his eyes.
"Yes.
You."
Silence.
Deep.
Vibrant.
Then he adds, even more quietly:
"I've been calling you that since the first night."
She blinks.
"You call me... what?"
He inhales slowly.
As if confessing something sacred.
"Heart."
The world stops.
Lunaya feels her throat tighten.
Her breath catches.
Kael raises his head.
His golden eyes shine with a gentleness he shows no one else.
"I've called you that in my head.
Because you...
you awakened something in me that,
I didn't even know I could keep alive."
He rubs his neck awkwardly.
"I wanted to tell you when I was ready.
But I think...
you forced my hand."
She approaches him, very slowly.
He doesn't back away.
This time.
She rests her forehead against his.
Say it again."
Kael holds his breath.
"Heart."
She closes her eyes.
Her heart skips a beat.
"Again."
He breathes against her skin, trembling.
"Heart..."
His fingers slide down to her waist.
Without really touching her.
Just close enough for her to feel it.
Like a promise.
"You are my heart, Lunaya.
Even if I don't have the right...
even if this isn't the right time...
I can't deny it."
She smiles, her eyes shining.
"Then I have a nickname for you too."
He freezes.
"W-what?"
She whispers in his ear:
"Wolf."
Kael shivers from head to toe.
His breath catches.
"Lunaya...
if you keep this up...
I won't be able to hold back."
She caresses his cheek with her fingertips.
"Then don't hold back."
He lets out a long, shaky breath.
His forehead gently rests against hers.
"Heart..."
He whispers it again.
Like a prayer.
Like a secret.
Like a bond.
A nickname that belongs only to the two of them.