You Promise

It took Ludwig a couple of minutes to bring the two back to the table. Agatha was pretty shocked when she saw that Liam had indeed punched Leonel without hesitation. Even Aiden beside her widened his eyes. Meanwhile, Hiyasmin and Alexa roared as if they were just watching a casual game, betting.

Agatha was somewhat glad that, despite being young, Leonel was agile and skilled at fighting and defense, so he wasn't hurt by Liam's attack. She knew, though, that once Liam used his real power, the result might be different.

"Can we just eat peacefully?" Liam said once he returned to his seat beside Agatha.

"Lest you forget," Ludwig said, on the verge of frustration, "it was you who attacked Leonel first…"

Liam tried to take deep breaths to calm himself, but Alexa and Hiyasmin didn't stop. "Why the hell are you embarrassing me like this in front of Aggie?" he fumed. "You weren't like this before with Ludwig!" He gritted his teeth while Alexa just snorted.

"Well, who didn't tell us he has already found his Fate?" asked Alexa. "Is it Ludwig? No, right?"

"And," added Hiyasmin, "Ludwig isn't that lazy, unlike you." She laughed. "At least, he wasn't before. I don't know about now, though."

The three of them argued more, and it seemed Hiyasmin really wanted to provoke Liam because she kept talking about how lazy he used to be, even mentioning him not washing his clothes for a week, which Liam immediately denied.

The dinner was not what Agatha had in mind, especially knowing they were royals. But surprisingly, Agatha was more delighted by what happened. She didn't feel left out or nervous despite eating with royalty because of how they acted. They were still tangible after all.

"What's your name?" It was Louisiana, staring at her. "Is it really just Agatha?"

Agatha blinked a few times before realizing she was being spoken to. "A-Agatha, but Aggie for short," she said.

Louisiana wanted to know more but didn't want to reveal her surname. She immediately lowered her gaze and pretended she wasn't done eating.

"Well, Aggie, it's nice meeting you." There was genuine delight in her voice. "And welcome to the family, I guess."

Agatha silently grimaced. She wasn't sure she would be in this family for long. They might be friendly now, but once they knew who she really was and what she had done, they might personally exile and execute her. Moreover, Liam would be ruined because of her. She couldn't let that happen.

Ludwig smiled beside Louise and reached for her hand. Hiyasmin pretended to gag while Alexa silently observed, eating quickly.

Agatha almost rolled her eyes when she saw the four full plates of food Alexa finished before she began feasting on the fruits.

"How old are you, Agatha?" It was Louise again, intrigued. Beside her, Ludwig stared at Agatha blankly.

Agatha contemplated whether it was a good idea to tell them her real age, but since they all seemed to be staring at her, and who knew if one of them could identify lies, she chose to speak her heart.

"Twenty-four," she simply answered.

There was a deafening pause. Then, "Do you live here at Primotheus Capital?" Princess Hiyasmin asked.

Agatha immediately stuffed more food into her mouth to avoid more questions. They didn't need to know everything about her, especially since she didn't intend to stay.

"Were you born here, or did your family just move?"

"What kind of Fae are you? Fire, Land, Water, or Wind?"

"By the way, where are your parents?"

"What are their occupations?"

"Do you have any brothers or sisters?"

"Where in Primotheus do you live exactly?"

"What about Aiden? Who is he to you? Is he your brother? Cousin? Nephew? Or son?"

Questions bombarded her, and Agatha no longer knew whom to address first or what to say.

Liam seemed to sense her discomfort and immediately changed the subject.

"How's the Water Fae Kingdom, Hiyasmin?" he asked.

Hiyasmin eagerly started talking about contacts, logistics, and intelligence. Even Ludwig joined the conversation, and Agatha couldn't really follow the statecraft discussions. She was just glad the spotlight was no longer on her. She ate quickly, hoping to leave as soon as possible.

"Is it okay if I leave first?" she asked no one in particular. She looked at Aiden. "It seems my boy is already asleep. It's already quite late, you know…"

Agatha knew it was disrespectful to leave the dinner table before everyone had finished eating, but she was desperate to get out of their sight.

Everyone was alright with it since Aiden was clearly already asleep, lying against her.

Thereafter, they bade they farewell. Agatha was tucking Aiden into bed when she remembered something. "Aiden," she called softly. "Where did you end up after the teleportation spell?"

Aiden yawned and opened one sleepy eye to look at her while rubbing the other with a finger. "Here in my room, Aggie. Brother Leonel soon came and said you'd return quick after you and brother Liam bought things. So I just waited and played with brother Leonel…"

Agatha was curious. "And what did you do all day?" She combed Aiden's hair with her fingers to help him sleep.

Aiden, on the verge of dreaming, replied, "Brother Leonel taught me a board game. Then we had a harmless sword fight. After that, he taught me to write and read." A smile was plastered on Aiden's weary face as he recounted his day. "But Aggie, why did we come back here? Did the teleportation spell fail? Were we tricked by Machi? I thought we were heading somewhere else?"

Agatha just smiled at him and fixed his blanket. "We'll stay for a while, Aiden," she assured. "We'll leave next time…"

Aiden yawned as a night breeze came through the open window. "Is it because the King of the Fire Fae is here? Would he hurt us if we decided to leave again?"

Agatha tried to maintain her smile to show Aiden that their situation was fine. "King Ludwig won't hurt us, Aiden. They seem kind-hearted. And I won't let them hurt you, I swear."

Aiden nodded firmly and smiled, though his eyes were barely open and tears began to form at the edges. "Thank you, Aggie… for everything…" Aiden whispered as he finally closed his eyes.

Agatha hummed. "For what exactly?" she asked softly, still not daring to leave his side.

"Thank you," Aiden said, "for not leaving me…"

Agatha was touched by his words and could not help but be in tears. "I will never leave you, Aiden. Never. Remember that. I'd die first before I do that." She kissed his forehead and waited until he finally fell asleep, breathing softly.

Agatha slowly walked out of Aiden's room so as not to wake him. She almost screamed and jumped when she saw Liam leaning against the door frame. It seemed he was patiently waiting for her to come out.

"Can we talk?" Liam asked softly, glancing up at her.

Although confused, Agatha nodded. She followed behind as Liam led the way. She thought they were going to his study room or maybe the living room, so she was confused when they headed toward her own room.

Liam was about to open the door when Agatha stopped him. "Wait… I thought we're going to talk?"

"Yeah, we will."

Agatha couldn't do anything when Liam entered because, first, the Slumber Shack was his, and they were just staying with him. Second, he walked so fast. And third, she hadn't anticipated that he would just enter her room without any permission.

Agatha found Liam sitting on the foot of her bed. "Why are you sitting there?" She furrowed her brows to show she was not happy.

Liam didn't answer.

Agatha slowly walked toward a nearby chair and sat, far away from Liam's imposing presence.

Liam's lips never parted, but his eyes never left her, observing each of her movements, seemingly counting each of her breaths.

The dim light in the room gave Liam a somewhat dangerous air. He looked roguish, especially with his disheveled hair and his shirt's first three buttons open, revealing a good amount of his muscular, sweating chest.

"I'm sorry about earlier…" Liam began in a rough tone, lowering his face as if searching the ground for the right words. "I wasn't informed they were coming." He looked up at her as if scared to face her. "I'm sorry about the things they asked and said. I knew you weren't comfortable being asked such questions. And about what they said…" he looked away and bit his lower lip.

Liam seemed constipated, but after a few seconds, he managed to swallow hard before looking at Agatha once more, deeper this time. "It's not true, okay? I take a bath every day. I also change clothes. I don't know why they said those things. They aren't usually, well… often this crazy. I just…" he paused again, hanging his head down, lost for words.

Agatha didn't know what to say. When he said they would talk, she thought the topic would revolve around her failed escape attempt. The whole day they had been exploring, they hadn't even talked about it, not even a bit.

So, Agatha was even thinking that he was going to scold her. Not apologize or explain the teasing his family made.

"Uhm... that's okay?" Agatha bit her tongue. She should've said something more assuring.

Liam's face just became gloomier. He looked hopeless now, even helpless. "You're turned off," he whispered. "I do take a bath every day, Aggie." He tried to explain again, but she stopped him quickly.

"It isn't like that, Liam..." she wanted to add more but couldn't find the words, so she just shrugged, sighed, and looked away. A moment later, she said, "It's okay if you don't take a bath every day. Before you took me and Aiden in, we didn't do it every day. Water is scarce and expensive, so only at the sea or a distant lake do we get the opportunity. It's not really a big deal. Really…"

Agatha scolded herself, grimacing. She should not have told him that. Maybe Liam would be the one to turn off to her now. But it was too late to take back what she had said, so she acted as if it didn't really matter at all. Like admitting she didn't bathe every day didn't affect her.

Lost in thought, Agatha didn't realize Liam was already approaching her. He was kneeling right in front of her, dangerously close, making it hard for her to breathe. She felt insecure for some unknown reason.

"So, it was okay, then?" Liam asked. "You're not turned off at all? Disappointed?" His eyes softened as he stared up at hers.

Absentmindedly, Agatha nodded.

"Is it okay with you that I was lazy?"

Agatha nodded again, though she could barely understand what he was saying as his face came nearer, almost stealing all the air around her.

"And you weren't angry they came over unexpectedly?" Liam asked once more, his breath filling her senses.

Agatha nodded again, not daring to speak. Why would she be mad that his cousins and sister visited him? After all, they were his family. She would want to be visited too if all her loved ones were still alive.

A tear slipped down Agatha's cheek, but she hid it from Liam.

"Is it okay with you that they're crazy?" There was a sense of delight in his voice this time. "I really can't do anything about their craziness, Aggie. No known cure is invented or discovered yet. And you'll have to deal with them since they'll be your family as well. Are you okay with that?"

Before Agatha could understand what Liam was saying, she felt his soft lips caressing hers. It was gentle, teasingly addictive.

Agatha leaned back. "Wait... what are you s-saying?" Before she could finish her question, Liam kissed her deeply.

It was slow at first, but soon became quite aggressive and possessive, claiming all of her. Agatha clung tightly to his elegant arms as the kisses intensified.

She gasped for air but couldn't bring herself to pull away. It was like something was pulling her toward him, and that's when it hit her.

The Fate Bond had been awakened and was now calling her.

Agatha was still drowning in Liam's kisses when they suddenly heard rustling. Liam immediately stopped and moved away from her. They both looked at the door, their eyes widening when they saw two heads, Hiyasmin and Alexa, peering through the ajar door.

In the rush, Agatha had forgotten to close it tightly and lock it.

Agatha felt like she was burning as she pulled away from Liam's warmth.

"What the hell are you two doing here?" Liam shouted, running toward the door. But they had already raced away before he could reach them.

He sighed loudly and massaged his forehead before facing Agatha, who sat motionless.

"I'm sorry for that..." Liam looked really apologetic and somehow embarrassed. "I-I should g-go..." He turned to the door but then walked back toward her.

Liam kissed Agatha's sweaty forehead before she could react.

"Rest, Aggie," he said. "It's been a long day, a very wonderful one..."

Liam was already walking toward the door when Agatha remembered something.

"Wait..." she called swiftly.

When Liam turned back to her, she was already rummaging through her things until she found what she was looking for.

She shyly handed it over to Liam. She wasn't sure if she should give him this, but it was his birthday and she wouldn't use it anyway. More importantly, it was meant for him.

"Happy Birthday..." Agatha managed to say. She felt great now that she saw the surprise on Liam's face.

Liam was stunned, staring at Agatha for some time with his lips parted and eyes sparkling. Then he recovered. He took Agatha's gift, looking at the boomerang she gave him, and touched the carvings.

"It's not much, and you probably already have something similar, but I just wanted to give this to you..." Agatha said.

"Thank you," Liam breathed out. "Thank you, Aggie. Very much."

Agatha was taken aback when he suddenly embraced her. It felt warm and comforting, more than a home could bring. It was like saying she wasn't alone anymore, so she should no longer be worried and lonely. His embrace made her feel secure and loved.

"You should go..." Agatha whispered after a while, still hugging him. Even though she wanted him to go, she needed him to stay.

"Y-yeah, I should," Liam croaked back, holding Agatha close.

She could feel his heartbeat against her, giving her an intense sensation. The loud thud made her feel more alive.

"It's getting late..." Agatha whispered softly, biting her lower lip. But Liam still didn't let her go, so she didn't either.

"Can't I... Can't I just stay?" Agatha laughed briefly at Liam's question, especially when he started swaying them together a bit.

"Liam, I am about to sleep," Agatha said. "As you said, it's been a long day. I had fun."

There was a meditative pause. "I am also going to sleep anyway. I promise I will not touch you or do anything you will not like." He whispered seriously and assured her genuinely.

Agatha halfheartedly hit Liam while still embracing him and slowly swaying to the silent music only they could hear—the drumming of their hearts, the whispers of their breaths.

Agatha felt what he was saying meant something more.

Liam softly chuckled. "I'm serious, Agatha. I want to stay. And I promise, no funny business. I'll just sleep beside you. Let me dream by your side..."

Agatha shook her head but also laughed a bit. He was really determined. Then her smile suddenly faded. She knew she should go while things were still not heating up, but could she endure that? Could she endure leaving Liam alone?

Agatha faced him and stared closely, studying each of his features. She wanted to memorize and carve his face into her mind. She wanted to remember everything about him more than a picture could hold.

"Just sleep, okay? No funny business, you promise?" she asked.

Liam nodded, and she smiled freely.

She would think about it tomorrow. Today, she would allow herself to enjoy her present, which was no other than Liam's presence.

"I promise," said Liam. And indeed, he did.