[Add's Point of View]

...

"Thank you, Glave. Thank you... for everything you've done. I-I, um, really appreciate it!" Ara bowed.

It felt quite odd for her to be calling me 'Glave', but I had to deal with it.

"You're very welcome." I replied.

Before I knew it, tears from my visible eye were trickling down my mask, running down my cheek area. Even though I was nothing but a mere stranger to her now, she still cared. I missed the old memories we shared dearly, since I have forgotten almost all of them by now.

"G-Glave? A-Are you... c-crying?! I'm s-so sorry! Did I say anything wrong...? D-Did I hurt your feelings? W-Wah, I'm so, so, sooo sorry!" Ara looked quite concerned about me.

She simply lacked the information of what I've been going through. To reset the timeline a fourth time... in hopes of saving her again. This was an alternative, but the fact that I cannot get too close to her brought excessive irritation. I was in tears because... no, I'm not quite sure myself. Tch. I'm pathetic. Pathetic, pathetic, pathetic! This didn't count towards that stupid rule Luto implemented, right? She was the one that came to me, not vice-versa. It's a loophole.

"N-No." I stammered. "I am fine, and you didn't do anything wrong either, Ara. Please do not worry."

"B-But, Glave..."

"Please do not worry." I repeated myself. The temptation to embrace her was overwhelming, but I had to restrain myself. It would only weird her out.

"O-Okay... Um, but I'm going to apologize j-just in case." What a sweetheart she was.

"You are forgiven. But, you didn't do anything wrong, as I mentioned before." I wiped the tears from my eyes.

"Hey, Ciel, what are they doing?" I could hear Lu ask from a distance.

"Let them have their moment, Lu." Ciel replied.

Fortunately, the rest of the Elgang was either resting, or playing a small, foolish game of tag. Or another activity that shifted their attention away from Ara and I. It would've been awkward and unpleasant if the rest were to witness this.

"Um, can I ask you a question, Glave?" Ara looked up at me with her bright orange eyes. They were splendid. Beautiful.

"Yes?" I looked back at her.

"Is there a reason... why you wear that mask?" The topic switch was quite odd, but it was understandable.

I let out a sigh. I removed the false face when I had first gotten my physical appearance switched out of pure curiousity. Behind this mask was... nothing special. I could see why it came with the concealment. I had two eyes, a nose, and a mouth, just like all other humans. However, that was it. I had no real 'face'. No real 'skin'. It was just empty. I had facial features that seemed like they were just floating in mid air. It could have potentially become quite frightening for some to see. Luckily, this was a special mask that covered nearly my entire head.

"You wouldn't want to see what lies behind this concealment, Ara."

"Oh... okay! Well, thanks again for everything!" she beamed.

Ara. The love of my life; the person I'll cherish and treasure forever, even if it is forbidden. As long as I had some memories in my mind, it was fine.

...

—-[CHAPTER 19 - ARA : END]—-