Chapter 131: Take care of you

Noah’s POV

I stopped hiccupping roughly an hour ago, but the shudders remain.

My arm is numb from being used as a pillow, but I can’t fall asleep or even think properly.

My room is pleasantly warm, and the night breeze is softly wafting in, but in my head it’s cold and empty.

I haven’t bothered myself with leaving the room or trying to escape. I know Elias will come back to me.

I know he’s going to return to me, so I’ve been praying and praying to the moon Goddess for him. I’ve been asking...no, begging her to not let Elias kill Conan.

My memory of him might be muddied, his action might have been painfully black too, but it doesn’t change who he is to me.

I hear the sound of my bedroom door being open and I don’t move; it’s probably Lucas coming to see how I’m doing. The friendly alpha hasn’t spoken a word to me, but his silent presence is a kind of comfort for me.

It makes me wonder how he really feels about coming back here...the place he was born and ruined.

The person at the door comes into the room and I hear the rustling noise of fabrics. I still don’t bother myself with looking or turning around, I guess Lucas can do whatever he wants. I don’t have any more energy left in me.

The person climbs into the bed and I stiffen immediately, ready to turn around and fight.

"Don’t move" Elias’s voice says and I instantly soften.

"Elias" I say his name breathlessly like it’s just as vital as oxygen to me. My eyes fill up with fresh tears as the alpha plasters his body to mine.

His heat warms up the cold in my head, his hand rests on my waist, and the tip of his nose presses into my nape.

"I didn’t kill him" he says quietly and the tears slip free. They slide down my nose bridge and end up in the pillows.

"Thank you" I say. My throat is closing in on itself and I’m so grateful.

Thank you, Moon Goddess. Thank you. My heart can beat properly, and my head can function normally now.

"I killed someone else" Elias says and I hear the restrained pain in his voice. I turn around to look at him, and I’m greeted with the sight of blood on his face. He looks handsome and terrifying.

"Who was it?" I ask, looking from one of his dark eyes to the other.

"The psychiatrist. I killed her for me and you. She was one of the medical practitioners who hurt us both in different timeline and different locations...I killed her" he says and I bury my fingers in his brown hair.

I have no clue what he’s talking about, but he seems overwhelmed by it. He didn’t look like this when he killed Freya...what’s really going on?

"Do you want to talk more about it?" I ask him and he doesn’t answer, he just keeps his eyes on mine.

What can I do to help?

"M-music helps when I feel overwhelmed" I say and his eyes soften slightly. Goddess, I’m really dumb, aren’t I?

My husband just murdered someone and I’m here thinking of music.

"I’d like to listen to your music, Angel" he says and I nod. I get out of the bed and pick up my trusty cassette player.

The device is old and clanky, but it still works. I select a tape with T.V girl songs and put it in. Cigarettes Out The Window starts to play, and I return to lie next to him.

Elias puts his hand on my waist and pulls me close to himself. The smell of blood mixing with his pheromones isn’t unpleasant, but it’s unsettling. I would rather smell just him.

"Do you want to shower first?" I ask.

"Tired" he murmurs, his eyes drooping and he’s showing me a part of him I’ve never seen. I don’t know why, but seeing him this way makes me want to cry.

I bury my fingers in his hair again, gently massaging his scalp, and he opens his eyes to look at me.

"I’ll take care of you, Noah" he promised and I swallow the log of wood lodged in my throat.

"If they ever take you from me, it means the entire Deus family have been murdered...and it’s impossible" he says and my fingers stop moving in his hair.

"I don’t think you should say crazy things like this" I say and he shuts his eyes again.

"Go to sleep, tomorrow is another day" he orders in a soft voice and pulls me even closer.

For the first time since we’ve been sharing a bed, we’re not just laying side by side like frozen strangers, instead, we’re sleeping in each other’s arm like husbands.

When it’s morning, I wake up first, surprised to find that Elias is still sleeping with his arms around me. Even in his sleep, he looks like he’s ready to off someone.

With a sigh, I slip free from his grip and sneak into the bathroom to brush my teeth, relieve my bladder, and freshen up for the day.

Once I’m done, I return to the room again to check in on my husband; he’s still sleeping with blood on his face.

I make my way out of the room and head downstairs.

We’ve both been having the most stressful life, it would be a bit fair to take care of him in the same way he has been taking care of me...right?

I end up in the kitchen, and I find my fake mom standing by the counter with a mug of warm water. Her cold eyes scan me from head to toe. I can see the clear disgust in her expression, but I don’t run.

I ignore my mom and start to make my husband a nice breakfast.

Back when I used to diet, whenever I got hungry after eating the measly meal, I would watch a lot of cooking videos and fall asleep with the imaginary taste of a scrumptious meal on my tongue.

I carefully prepare breakfast, and father’s wife stands there wordlessly.

"Noah?" Elias’s panicked voice calls after thirty minutes, and I turn around just in time to see him walking into the kitchen with his gun held up.

"What’s going on?" I ask with concern, eyes wide as the alpha puts the gun down and let out a breath.

"Fuck, never leave the room without telling me" he hisses at me.

And he’s back. The jerk I have a huge crush on is back again.

"You were asleep" I point out, filling his plate with my skillfully made scrambled eggs.

"I don’t give a fuck if I was dead, Noah. Don’t leave without telling me" he snaps and I hold my hands up in a mock ’I give up’ pose.

In the same way I’m ignoring my father’s wife, Elias acts like she isn’t in the room with us.

"What are you doing?" he asks, peeking into the plate and I lift it to show him my masterpiece.

"I made you breakfast" I say proudly and he places his gun on the counter, taking the high stool in the kitchen.

"Check it out" I say, passing the meal to him and he takes a bite without hesitating.

Two things happen; there’s the sound of eggshell breaking between his molars, and there’s a cold glare from the alpha.

"Are you okay?" I ask and he puts the fork down. "What do you think?" he asks.