The car pulled up at the rustic inn. Fang announced there was only "one room" left. A heavy silence filled the car before Lu Ming finally spoke.
(Ari Internally: One room? A classic cliché, but reality isn't as rosy as the stories. Look at Lu Ming's face.. he looks like he'd rather sleep in the snow than share a room with me. Stay professional, Ari!)
They went up in silence. The room was cramped, and the wooden bed sat in the middle like an unavoidable obstacle. Lu Ming sat on a wooden chair by the window, far from the bed, buttoning his coat tightly despite the warmth.
"Mr. Lu Ming.. the wounds on your back will get infected if we don't treat them now. The bed is wide; you can sit there so I can see the injury," Ari said, trying to break the ice.
Lu Ming looked at her sharply. "No need," he said coldly. "The beast within repairs wounds quickly, but it also makes my senses hypersensitive. Your proximity right now.. isn't a good idea."
(Ari Internally: Hypersensitive? Does he mean he might lose control? Or does he just hate having me near? Damn your coldness! I'm trying to save your gorgeous back and you treat me like a plague. Fine, watch me be stubborn!)
Ari grabbed the first aid kit. "I'm here to do my job. Being your 'maid ' means keeping you safe, whether you like it or not. Sit down."
For a second, their eyes met—a spark of defiance. Lu Ming sighed and sat on the edge of the bed, giving her his back. Ari began cleaning the wounds very slowly, careful not to touch his skin more than necessary.
(Ari Internally: My God, his back is trembling under my light touch.. is he in pain? Or is he struggling to restrain himself? The scent of the forest here is suffocating.. I want to ask him so much, but the silence between us feels like a wall of fragile glass. One wrong move.. and it all shatters.)
"Ari.." Lu Ming said in a low voice without turning. "Why do you insist on staying by someone who can't even promise to remain human by morning?"
Ari's hand paused for a moment, then she continued. "Because I'm not looking for promises.. I'm looking for the truth. And the truth is, you've never hurt me, despite having every power to do so."
Silence returned—not a comfortable one, but one charged with unspoken questions.