Chapter 187 | The Promise

Chapter 187: 187 | The Promise

"How about this instead," he said. "There’s a festival this weekend. Two days from now. Tessa mentioned it. The entire neighborhood is participating. It’s a picnic, held at Roland Stone Garden, which is close by."

He looked at her.

"How about all three of you attend the festival with me? What do you think?"

Mira blinked.

"A festival," she repeated.

Dexter nodded.

Mira’s brow furrowed slightly. A festival meant crowds. Noise, and lots of people.

She didn’t know if she was ready for that.

Dexter saw the hesitation on her face and smiled gently. "It’s fine if you don’t want to go."

Mira shook her head slowly. "No. At some point I would have to go out. One way or another. It might as well be during the festival."

She paused as her eyes drifted to space.

"Since everyone is attending, no one would be focused on us. It wouldn’t be bad to see the neighbors either."

Dexter smiled. "Okay. I’ll tell Selene and Lyra."

He wheeled her to the living room and positioned her by the window. She was still staring at her right hand.

He turned toward the couch.

Lyra was there, but something was different.

She was not holding the Primordial Beast Egg.

Dexter raised an eyebrow. In the weeks since he had brought the egg home, Lyra had practically fused with it.

She carried it everywhere. On the couch. In the kitchen. To the bathroom. She cultivated with it, slept with it.

Seeing her without it was slightly odd.

’Maybe they are taking turns?’

Dexter smiled to Lyra and spoke.

"Lyra. Would you like to attend a festival in two days? It’s a neighborhood gathering. A picnic. Not far from here. The entire neighborhood will be there."

Lyra’s eyes remained closed for a moment. Then they opened.

She blinked.

Then her voice appeared in his mind.

"Will there be food?"

Dexter chuckled.

"Yes. There will be food."

Lyra’s face lit up like a sunrise.

"Yes. I would love to go."

Dexter shook his head with a quiet smile.

He walked to the backyard.

Selene was on the swing, eyes closed, cultivating.

The Primordial Beast Egg rested in her lap.

The swing moved gently in the breeze, giving her the appearance of a ghost drifting in the wind. A pale, silver-haired spirit suspended between earth and sky.

He walked directly beside her and waited.

He knew better than to speak. Selene’s Echolocation talent detected his presence through the vibrations of his footsteps and the displacement of air around his body. She knew he was there. She would acknowledge him when she was ready.

Five seconds passed.

Selene’s eyes opened.

She looked at him. And smiled.

Dexter smiled back.

And then, without warning, the memory of last night hit him.

Her head on his chest. Her arm around his torso. Her leg draped across his knee. The warmth of her body pressed against his side.

The quiet, content sound she had made in her sleep.

Heat rose within him.

Not Abyssal Flame heat. Not mana circulation heat. The other kind. The kind that had nearly destroyed his composure that morning in the bathroom and was now threatening to do it again in the backyard.

He inhaled deeply through his nose, held it and immediately exhaled slowly through his mouth.

’Calm down, Calm down, Calm down. She is a person, not an object. She might be your wife but they might not see you as their husband. Moreover, you are still a very busy man with responsibilities but here you are thinking about crazy things... what the hell did I take?’

The rising heat subsided but not by much. However, it was manageable.

He spoke.

"Selene. Would you like to go out for a festival in two days? It’s a picnic, not far from here. The entire neighborhood will be participating."

Selene blinked her pale, sightless eyes.

Then she slowly nodded.

Dexter was stunned. He had expected resistance and hesitation.

Of the three women, Selene had been the most withdrawn and then most guarded. The most reluctant to engage with the world beyond the walls of the bungalow.

But she had said yes.

Without argument or hesitation not did she even think much about it.

She had simply nodded.

Then she smiled.

"Good luck," she said.

Dexter blinked and he understood. She was wishing him well for his errands. The bakery delivery, the housing agent and the squad meeting.

"Thank you," he said. "And bye."

"Bye."

He turned and walked back inside.

---

He reached the front door and opened it. Before stepping out, he turned back toward the living room.

"Bye, everyone. I’m leaving."

Lyra’s voice echoed in his mind. "Bye."

Mira didn’t respond verbally. She was still staring at her right hand, flexing her fingers with the absorbed concentration of a scientist studying a new species.

Dexter leaned back inside.

"Mira. Don’t open the door for anyone."

A laugh rang out from the living room.

An actual laugh from Mira sounded out.

He was quite stunned by this as it sounded genuine as though she found his joke funny.

Dexter paused, then he realized why she was laughing.

For three weeks, he had been telling Mira not to open the door for anyone. It had been a running gag between them, born from the fact that Mira was paralyzed from the neck down and physically incapable of opening any door.

It was a playful tease. A small, joke to annoy Mira whenever he was leaving the house.

And it had always worked. But now, she could actually move her right arm!

Which meant that she could open a door!

The joke that had been harmless for three weeks had suddenly become real, and the irony of it had struck Mira with enough force to make her chuckle unexpectedly.

Dexter shook his head at his own expense.

"Right," he muttered. "Note to self. Update the jokes."

He stepped outside, closed the door behind him, and walked to the SUV parked in front of the house.