“Now, please answer the question: why bring up this matter?” I repeated.

She played with her hands for a brief moment then took a deep breath before continuing, “I brought my friend here. She’s waiting downstairs at the stables.”

“What?!” my hands gripped onto the armrest as I leaned forward, removing my legs from their previous position.

“You said I can introduce you after your trip--”

“That doesn’t mean that you can just decide on your own,” I started walking towards her, scolding her as if she was a child. She’s completely acting like one right now. “What made you think that you can simply make such a decision without asking me first?” my hands on my waist as I stood in front of her.

“I didn’t get the chance to ask you because I was immediately sent to the Mortal Realm to find some kind of herb--”

“Mortal Realm?” I interrupted. “Are you telling me that you brought a mortal being here?!”

“I told you she was from--”

“I know where she’s from!” I shouted, my hands in the air out of frustration. “All I’m asking is why would you bring someone from the mortal realm here?!”

“Because you said I can introduce you to her!” she replied, her voice in a panic, fear painted across her entire face.

Unbelievable.

My mouth hung from my face in utter contempt. Not for a second will, I believe that Mallory is this idiotic to even think that what she did is close to acceptable. I would have thrown her to the dungeons immediately if I wasn’t involved in what she did. I can’t hurt her because it’s not something I stand for. But she continued to push me to my absolute limit since we started whatever this is that we started.

“Mallory,” I scratched my forehead as I struggled to find the proper way to say what I needed to say. “I’m not sure what kind of food you’ve eaten today… but were you even using half of your brain when you made this decision?”

She stood there, unmoving. She just stared at me, looking at me with confusion.

“You disobeyed the rules that I set for this relationship,” I continued, trying to be as calm as possible, “Now, you disobeyed the rules of this realm, which is punishable by death.”

“I am well-aware that bringing a mortal to our realm is an unforgivable crime--”

“Then why would you do it?!” I screamed up to the top of my lungs. “You know what’s right and what’s wrong. Why are you making everything worse?”

“Because I’m trying to show you how much I love you, Robert!” she replied, desperation evident in her voice.

I stared at her, not knowing what to say.

She continued, her composure is slowly failing her, “Can’t you see? I’m willing to break all the rules just so I could show you how much you mean to me.”

I scoffed in disbelief, turning around as I’ve had enough of this conversation. We’ve been going around in circles regarding this matter. It has become tiring and annoying to repeat what I told her numerous times.

“Robert,” she called as she rushed over to me. She stood in front of me, blocking my path, “You always say that the rules of this kingdom will never permit us to be together. Well, this is my way of showing you that I’m willing to die for you just to be with you. No woman can do that for you but for me.”

“Mallory, stop! Enough with these delusions!” I answered, raising my voice as I gripped her arms tightly, giving her a bit of a shake. “No matter what you do, whether I’m a prince of a lowly peasant, I will never be yours,” I emphasized. “How many times do I have to tell you that? How long must we dance around this matter?”

Her eyes widened as they began to water. She stood frozen, stunned. “Why are you like this?” she spoke after staying silent for a while. Her voice began to crack. She shook my hands off as she continued, “Every time I do something to prove my love for you, you would always say you will never be mine, that we’ll never be together. Why are you this heartless?”

“It’s not called being heartless, Mallory. It’s called being honest, realistic,” I said after a groan. “From the very beginning of this pretentious relationship, I warned you about being too attached and wishing for too much. I told you, I agreed to this just so you can tell yourself that somehow, we had something more other than being friends. But you should never expect that my true feelings for you will change.”

“Robert,” she gently called, holding onto my hand. “My love for you is stronger than the storms your father can do. Isn’t it powerful enough to change your mind? To change your heart?”

To hear the desperation in Mallory’s voice, to see that she’s putting all of these efforts into something that will never lead to anything is heart-breaking for me. I didn’t want to do this to her because I know how much pain she’ll be having. But she did ask for this, she has her share of fault in this situation.

I let out a sigh as I looked away from her. I can’t bear to see her in tears, especially because of me. “Let’s go and meet your friend,” I changed the topic, slowly pulling my hand away from her grip. “Making your guest wait is rude and improper.” I began walking to the door but I was quickly pulled back. This time, she’s holding onto my arm.

“You haven’t answered my question yet,” she said as I slowly turned back to look at her. “Isn’t my love powerful enough to make you love me?” she repeated with desperation this time.

The silence was again present within the room… but it wasn’t because of peace. It was silent because of pain and denial. It was loud enough to be heard across all kingdoms.

I sighed as I swallowed a big gulp, slowly removing her hand from my arm. “Mallory,” I began, not having the strength to face her. Seeing her in tears isn’t something my heart and my conscience can bear. “I will never love you in the way you love me. But you will always have a place in my heart… as my sister.”

She took a few steps back as she heard my response. She said nothing, did nothing but wept behind me. The very thought of tears streaming down her face is heart-breaking. I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath in as guilt started to wash all over me.

I’m fully aware that we wouldn’t be in this situation if I didn’t agree to what she wanted. She wouldn’t be begging for the entirety of my affections. She wouldn’t be crying because of heartbreak if I stood my ground. The day I allowed this arrangement between the two of us… was the ultimate push for us to be acting this way towards each other.

I cleared my throat, looking down on my hands as I rubbed them together, a failed attempt to compose myself and to get some strength to turn the conversation into a different one. “Come,” I said, breaking the agonizing silence. “We mustn’t keep your friend waiting.”

I began walking towards the door when Mallory suddenly remarked, “Why bother?”

I turned around, baffled. “What do you mean?”

She slid her arm across her nose, wiping it dry as she continued to sniff. “What’s the point of introducing you if you keep on reminding me that our relationship isn’t real?”

I groaned. Now, she’s saying there’s no need for this? I’m not the one who told her to make this decision in the first place.

I walked back to her, my hands behind my back. “Mallory, you brought your friend here for a reason. For sure, she still has other things to do but she chose to accompany you today,” I explained, trying to reason with her. “Also, I did agree to this and I’m not going to leave you alone in this.”

She continued to keep her head down, sometimes looking away as she avoided my gaze. Observing her face and actions, I could tell that she wasn’t convinced. I fear for Mallory and her friend. She mentioned she left her friend to wait at the stables. If one of the servants discovered her, Mallory will be punished and her friend will lose her life.

Mortals aren’t allowed to know the existence of immortals, more so step foot in our realm. Those who did lose their eyes or the worst care for that is death. Only the ones who survived that punishment requested for their memories to be washed away. And not many immortals have that power. Thankfully, Gonzalo has that ability and took care of the situation in the mortal realm.