SILENT WAR

Andrei didn't say a word to confirm or deny Belle's statement. His eyes had turned red, and he was about to cry from frustration already. He didn't want Belle and Eli to separate because of his careless words. 

"Eli is keeping the birds because you gave them to him, not because of his feelings for his first love. Stop thinking about it." 

"Is that true?" Neon asked because he was worried about his sister's relationship with Eli, too. 

"It's true," Ceres confirmed. "I asked Eli about his pets before and he told me how much he loves them because his nephew gave those birds to him." 

Andrei burst into tears and hugged Belle without saying a single thing. His sob was more than enough to tell her how afraid he was and how much relief he felt after Belle said those words. If she said something else, he would surely blame himself over and over again.