Chapter 207: Can I Sleep Next to You!

Xavier watched her self-satisfied nod, his heart feeling lighter than it had in days. It was a fleeting, precious slice of sanity before the storm.

He wished this moment could last for much longer and found himself reaching his hand out across the table, wanting to reach for her hand...

​"April?"

​A soft, hesitant voice suddenly called out from the top of the floating staircase, breaking the quiet warmth of the dining hall.

Xavier immediately retreated his hand at the intrusion.

​April shifted her gaze upward to see Emily standing near the banister, rubbing her sleepy brown eyes while clutching a decorative pillow against her chest.

​"Are you back?" Emily asked softly.

​April’s expression softened ever so slightly. "Emily, shouldn’t you be asleep?"

​"I was..." Emily murmured, slowly making her way down the carpeted stairs, looking fragile yet grounded. "But then I heard the car... And I heard talking... I can’t sleep too deeply yet."

​April let out a small, silent sigh. The trauma of twenty-six years of abuse couldn’t be erased in a single afternoon; Emily’s body was still conditioned to wake up at the slightest noise, expecting danger.

​April turned back to Xavier. "I’ll retire for the night first. Now that you’ve seen me, you feel relieved, right?"

​Xavier looked down at her, a subtle, genuine smile touching his lips—a rare sight on his usually stoic face.

​"Yes," Xavier murmured quietly, his dark eyes warm. "It’s more than enough. Goodnight, April."

"Goodnight, Xavier," she waved once and got up heading up the stairs. She reached where her twin stood, her brown eyes softening just a fraction. "Come on. Let’s go back up."

​Instead of heading to the luxurious guest suite assigned to her, Emily quietly followed April up to her bedroom.

The room was spacious and warm, filled with soft ambient lighting. In the corner, Rufus had claimed a massive plush dog bed, his grey tail giving two lazy wags as he noticed them entering, before he settled his chin back onto his paws.

High up on the cat tower near the balcony doors, Lily curled into a pristine white ball, purring softly.

​April began changing into her nightdress, while Emily sat near the edge of the large bed, clutching her pillow tightly against her chest.

​"You know..." Emily murmured, her gaze fixed on the soft rug beneath her feet. "I used to have scars."

​April paused, glancing over her shoulder as she smoothed down her sleeves.

​"But this evening, when I took a bath... I couldn’t see any of them," Emily whispered, her voice carrying a fragile sense of wonder.

​"I used to have scars too," April said cleanly, turning around. "They were ugly. Right across the upper part of my back—jagged lines from belts, whips, everything. But you can’t see them anymore either, right?"

​Emily looked up and nodded slowly.

​"That’s because of the miracle water I gave you," April explained, walking over to the bed. "It’s a shame... If I had met our mother earlier before she died, I could have saved her. But I don’t regret it though. I feel like everything works out in the order of fate."

​"Fate?" Emily repeated softly, her brown eyes searching her sister’s face. "So you think it’s fate that we met like this?"

​"Yes, I believe so," April replied quietly.

​Her mind flickered back to the cryptically flashing crimson system update—All pieces have been put in place. Just what type of ’pieces’ was the system referring to? Was Emily one of them?

​April pulled back the heavy duvet and slipped under the covers. Without hesitation, Emily crawled across the mattress. "Can I sleep next to you?"

​"Yeah, sure," April murmured.

​Emily sank into the soft sheets right beside her twin, burying her face lightly against April’s shoulder.

April stiffened for a second—it was her first time sleeping next to someone in a bed without the constant terror of an impending zombie breach. In the apocalypse, she held Lena to sleep because the younger girl wouldn’t stop trembling and sniffling.

She’s not Lena. April whispered in her mind before resting her hand over Emily’s back, patting her gently.

​Surrounded by warmth, safety, and an abundance of food, the sheer absurdity of their new reality washed over them.

​"This feels so strange... so different," Emily muttered, her voice muffled against April’s shoulder.

​"It feels like that for me too," April admitted quietly. "It’s a first."

​After a brief pause, April asked flatly, "Did you never sleep in the same bed with Johan?"

​"We did..." Emily swallowed hard, her frame tensing slightly. "But I don’t want to think back to those memories."

​She didn’t elaborate, and April didn’t ask her to. Emily’s past with Johan was a dark nightmare of three long years locked in that family house—enduring his abuse, his sudden demands, and his absolute neglect while she tried desperately to care for her dying mother.

​"You don’t need to speak about it. I won’t force you," April cut her off gently.

​The bedroom fell into a heavy, quiet stillness for several minutes, punctuated only by the rhythmic breathing of the sleeping animals.

​"Emily," April spoke up, her dark eyes staring at the ceiling. "When the world ends... do you really plan to keep living?"

​"I don’t really know what I’m living for yet," Emily admitted softly. "I just want to see what you accomplish."

​April turned her head, surprised. "Me?"

​"Yes," Emily whispered, looking up into her sister’s identical face. "You have so much power, and you have men who are capable of getting anything for you. I’m envious, honestly. People protect you... I wanted someone to protect me like that too."

​Emily paused, shaking her head quickly. "But this envy isn’t something I would ever act on. I don’t want to take anything from you. I’m not greedy. But it doesn’t mean I can’t admire you. I want to see how you live, April. Even as this world ends, I want to see how you survive it. Can I... can I be by your side?"