71. Where His Soul Ran To.

Adrian – POV

I appeared in the woods without meaning to.

One moment, I was filled with anger, with noise, with pressure crushing my chest from all sides. The next, the world shifted around me, and my feet touched the cold earth of the forest floor.

I staggered forward.

Then the pain hit.

It came suddenly, violently, like a blade driven straight into my chest.

I gasped and fell to my knees, my hands clutching my shirt as if I could tear the pain out of myself.

“No… no… not again,” I muttered.

My heart pounded wildly, too fast, too hard. Every breath burned. My chest felt tight, as if something invisible was squeezing it from the inside.

I bent forward, my forehead almost touching the ground, my body shaking.

This pain.

I knew this pain.

I had felt it before.

Before everything changed.

Before the ritual.

Before Lucy.

Before the council.

Before I lost control of my own life.

Before I mated with Rose.

The pain that was caused because I had to mate.

The realization made my chest tighten even more.

My fingers dug into the soil as the pain worsened, waves of it crashing through me again and again. My vision blurred, and I had to close my eyes.

“What do you want from me?” I whispered hoarsely.

The pain answered by tightening its grip.

Then, without warning, an image pushed itself into my mind.

Her face.

Rose.

Her eyes.

The way she looked at me, open and unaware of the world I belonged to. The way she never demanded anything from me. The way she didn’t look at me like a title or a solution.

“Rose…” I breathed.

Saying her name made my chest ache in a different way.

The pain didn’t stop, but it shifted, twisting into something deeper, heavier. I struggled to stand, my legs shaking under my weight.

I didn’t know what I was doing.

I didn’t think.

I didn’t plan.

Something inside me took over.

The world around me blurred.

And suddenly—

I wasn’t in the forest anymore.

Adrian – POV

I stood in front of a door.

Her house??... Her scent... All over the place.

I froze.

My heart slammed violently against my ribs.

“What…?” I whispered.

I stared at the door, my mind struggling to understand how I had gotten there.

I hadn’t decided to come.

I hadn’t wanted to.

And yet, there I was.

My chest still burned faintly, but the pain had lessened. The closer I stood to the house, the lighter it became, as if whatever had been tearing at me was calming down.

I hesitated.

Every instinct told me to leave.

Every instinct also told me to go inside.

I stepped forward.

The door opened easily... Why didn't she lock her door?.

The house was quiet, wrapped in silence. The air felt warm, calm, nothing like the chaos inside my head.

It smelled like her.

Soft.

Familiar.

Not overwhelming.

Not sharp.

Just… comforting.

I followed the scent slowly, moving through the house without making a sound, until I reached her room.

She was asleep.

Curled on the bed, her hair spread across the pillow, her breathing slow and steady.

Alive.

Safe.

My chest tightened painfully at the sight.

I stood there for a long moment, just watching her.

I hadn’t meant to come here.

I hadn’t meant to see her.

But now that I had, I couldn’t make myself leave.

I sat down slowly on the edge of the bed, careful not to wake her.

The pain in my chest faded even more.

I didn’t touch her.

Not at first.

I just sat there, breathing in the calm that surrounded her, feeling something inside me settle for the first time in days.

Minutes passed.

Maybe longer.

Then my body moved on its own.

I lay down beside her.

Slowly.

Carefully.

As if she might disappear if I moved too fast.

I wrapped my arm around her, pulling her gently against me.

She shifted in her sleep.

My breath caught.

Then she moved closer.

Her body pressed against mine, her head resting naturally against my chest.

Her hand curled into my shirt.

She didn’t wake.

But she responded.

Like she knew.

Like she recognized something she couldn’t name.

The pain vanished completely.

I closed my eyes.

For the first time in a long while, my body relaxed.

No anger.

No fear.

No confusion.

Just quiet.

Just warmth.

Just her.

Sleep took me without resistance.

Adrian – POV

I don’t know how long I stayed there.

I don’t know when I woke up.

I only know that when I did, the world felt too quiet again.

The bed was warm.

But she was still asleep.

I looked at her one last time.

Then I kissed her deep on her lips, her chest and her forehead.

My chest tightened.

I knew I shouldn’t be there.

I knew this changed nothing.

I gently pulled my arm away, careful not to wake her.

She stirred slightly but didn’t open her eyes.

I stood up, every movement heavy, reluctant.

Before leaving the room, I looked back at her.

Then I was gone.

Rose – POV

I woke slowly.

Too slowly.

The room felt… different.

Warm.

Like someone had just left.

I frowned and sat up, my heart beating faster for reasons I couldn’t explain.

I looked around the room.

I was alone.

But the bed beside me was still warm.

My breath caught.

I pressed my hand against the mattress.

Warm.

“That’s not possible,” I whispered.

My chest felt tight, my thoughts spinning.

I hugged myself, suddenly unsure.

I remembered a feeling.

Arms around me.

A presence.

Strong.

Protective.

Real.

I shook my head.

“No… I must have imagined it.”

But the feeling wouldn’t go away.

The warmth.

The safety.

The sense that someone had been there.

I stood up slowly, my legs unsteady.

“What’s wrong with me?” I whispered.

The room felt heavier now.

Quiet in a way that scared me.

I didn’t see him.

I didn’t hear him.

But deep down, I knew.

I hadn’t been alone.

And that realization terrified me.