The silence lingered longer than either of them expected.
It wasn't the uncomfortable kind—the kind that begged to be filled—but something heavier, fragile, like a moment balanced on the edge of breaking.
Lia sat still, her fingers lightly clasped together in her lap. Her gaze rested somewhere ahead, unfocused, as though she were searching for the right words in the quiet space between her thoughts.
Akira remained where he was, his posture relaxed but his mind anything but. He could feel the shift in the air—something unspoken pressing against his chest, waiting.
Then, finally—
"I just wanted you to know…"
Her voice was soft, but it carried.
Akira's attention snapped fully to her.
Lia turned slightly, her eyes meeting his.
There was no hesitation in them now—only a quiet resolve that hadn't been there before.
"Even if you see yourself… or anyone sees you as a curse…" she continued, her voice steady despite the vulnerability beneath it, "to me… you're a blessing."
Akira froze.
The words didn't just reach him—they struck something deeper, something buried so far within him that he didn't know how to respond.
Lia's lips curved into a faint smile, gentle but sincere.
"You may say you're not good," she added, her gaze softening, "but you're good for me. Because of you… I've started trying to live."
The cave seemed to grow quieter.
Even the faint sounds from outside—the rustling leaves, distant calls of unseen creatures—felt muted, as though the world itself had paused to listen.
Akira's chest tightened.
A strange, unfamiliar warmth spread through him, clashing violently with the cold truth he had lived with for years.
You're a blessing.
No one had ever said that to him.
Not his pack.
Not his enemies.
Not even himself.
His heartbeat quickened, uneven, betraying him in ways he didn't understand.
For a brief moment, he allowed himself to look at her—not as a responsibility, not as a risk… but simply as Lia.
And something about that felt dangerous.
Too dangerous.
He stood abruptly.
"I'm… hungry," he muttered, his voice slightly rough as he avoided her gaze. "Stay here."
The excuse came too quickly, too easily—but he didn't wait to see if she noticed.
Before she could respond, he turned and stepped out of the cave.
The forest greeted him with cool air and quiet movement.
Akira exhaled sharply, dragging a hand through his hair as he walked further in, as though distance alone could steady him.
But it didn't.
Her words followed him.
Echoed in his mind.
You're a blessing.
He scoffed softly under his breath, though there was no real amusement in it.
"A blessing…" he murmured.
The idea felt foreign. Almost laughable.
And yet—
It didn't feel like a lie when she said it.
That was what unsettled him the most.
He moved through the trees with practiced ease, his senses automatically alert, picking up the subtle signs of life around him—the rustle of small animals, the shift of branches overhead, the distant scent of water carried by the wind.
Eventually, he found what he was looking for.
Wild fruit hung from a low branch, ripened and untouched.
He reached for them, his movements mechanical, his mind elsewhere.
He thought of his pack.
Of the full moon.
Of the nights where he lost himself completely.
The destruction.
The fear in their eyes.
The way they kept their distance… even when they tried not to.
Then he thought of Lia.
How she had looked at him—not with fear, not with hesitation.
But with something else.
Something he didn't deserve.
His grip tightened slightly around the fruit.
"…You don't know what I am," he muttered quietly.
Or maybe—
She did.
And chose to see something else anyway.
That thought unsettled him more than anything.
After a moment, he exhaled again, steadying himself, and turned back toward the cave.
When he returned, Lia was exactly where he had left her.
Calm.
Waiting.
She looked up as he entered, her expression softening slightly at the sight of him.
Neither of them spoke as he handed her the fruit.
They sat side by side, eating quietly.
But the silence between them had changed.
It was no longer fragile.
It was… shared.
Outside, the forest carried on with its quiet symphony—leaves shifting, distant creatures calling, the occasional snap of a twig somewhere far off.
Lia found herself listening to it all.
For once, the world didn't feel like something she needed to fear.
Akira's presence—steady, grounding—made the unfamiliar feel… safe.
She didn't realize how much that meant until now.
After a while, she spoke again.
"How is your pack?" she asked gently.
Akira didn't respond immediately.
His gaze remained forward, his expression unreadable.
"How are they coping… with everything?" she added, her voice softer now.
There was a pause.
Then—
"And the werewolf that attacked me…" she continued, her brows knitting slightly. "In the dark forest. What was that?"
Akira heard her.
He did.
But his attention had shifted again.
He found himself looking at her instead.
Really looking.
The way her expression carried concern—not just for herself, but for him. The way her voice softened without effort. The quiet strength beneath her gentleness.
His mind drifted.
Back to the beginning.
An abducted mermaid.
A cursed Alpha.
Two people who should have been enemies… or strangers at best.
And yet here they were.
Sitting side by side.
Sharing food.
Asking about each other's pain.
A faint smile touched his lips before he realized it.
"Akira?"
Her voice cut through his thoughts.
He blinked.
"Are you even listening to me?"
He straightened immediately, clearing his throat as he shifted his position slightly.
"Yes," he said quickly.
But now his expression changed.
The softness faded, replaced by something more grounded.
More real.
"There are two werewolf races in this forest," he began, his voice steady.
Lia's attention sharpened.
"The White Wolves… and the Dark Wolves."
She leaned in slightly, listening.
"We've been enemies since the beginning," he continued. "Nemesis to each other."
"Why?" she asked, genuinely confused.
"Aren't you both wolves?"
Akira nodded once.
"We are," he said. "But we are not the same."
He paused briefly, as if choosing his next words carefully.
"The Dark Wolves… they don't just hunt to survive," he said. "They hunt humans."
Lia stiffened.
"They choose it," he added. "They crave it."
A chill ran down her spine instantly.
Her mind flashed back—
The darkness.
The fear.
The presence that felt wrong.
Her fingers tightened slightly around what remained of the fruit in her hand.
"They're stronger than us," Akira continued, his tone tightening almost imperceptibly.
"Faster. More aggressive."
His gaze hardened slightly.
"And because of them… hunters don't see a difference anymore."
Lia's breath slowed.
"To them," he went on, "a wolf is a wolf. It doesn't matter which kind."
Silence settled briefly between them.
"My forefathers tried to stop it," Akira said after a moment. "They tried to make peace.
Tried to convince them to hunt animals instead."
"And?" Lia asked quietly.
"They refused."
There was no emotion in his voice now.
Just truth.
"They didn't want to change."
A pause.
"Why?" Lia asked again, softer this time.
Akira's jaw tightened slightly.
"Because they don't have to," he said.
"They're strong enough to survive the consequences."
His eyes darkened slightly.
"We aren't."
Lia felt something twist inside her chest.
"So when hunters come…" she murmured.
"They come for all of us," Akira finished.
The weight of his words settled heavily in the air.
Lia exhaled slowly, her gaze lowering.
She began to understand.
Not just the situation—
But him.
Even without his curse… his life had already been filled with responsibility, pressure, and sacrifice.
He carried the consequences of choices he never made.
And still—
He stood.
He led.
He endured.
And I thought I was the only one suffering…
The realization hit her harder than expected.
Her chest tightened, her vision blurring slightly as emotion rose unexpectedly.
She looked at him again.
Really looked.
At the strength he carried.
At the quiet exhaustion behind it.
At the weight he never spoke about.
Her eyes began to glisten.
Akira noticed.
Of course he did.
But instead of reacting with concern, he smiled.
Small.
Reassuring.
As if her pain mattered more than his.
"We're used to it," he said lightly. "Don't let it bother you."
Lia shook her head slightly.
How could it not?
Then his expression shifted.
The smile faded, just a little.
"That's why…" he continued, his voice quieter now, more honest, "I try not to become another burden to them."
The words lingered.
Heavy.
Final.
Lia understood immediately.
He wasn't just talking about the Dark Wolves.
He was talking about himself.
About the curse.
About what he becomes.
And in that moment—
She understood something else too.
In his world…
She wasn't just a guest.
She was a risk.
A complication.
A possible threat.
But strangely—
That didn't push her away.
If anything…
It brought her closer.
Because for the first time—
She wasn't the only one carrying a fate that could destroy everything.
And somehow…
That made the weight a little easier to bear.