Everybody started to exit the hall.
"Wait, Zaroon" he stopped to look at me. I walked up to him feeling nervous. I didn't owe him an explanation... we weren't anything.

So I chickened out " You were looking for me?" He sighed, his shoulders moving in a giant heave.
"I wanted to give you your birthday present"
"You've already given me my present" I answered confused.
"That was before... never mind" Before what Zaroon? Why didn't he complete his sentences!
"Right" we stood there in awkward silence. I had ruined it. I didn't know what to say or how to get out of this situation.

"You could have told me, you know"
"Huh?"
"About Feroze. I understand why you didn't. I understand why you left, I get it" I stared at him open-mouthed. He gave me a small smile.
"You're not mad?"
"Should I be?" He said lowering his head to look at me. Voices sounded in the hallway and I grabbed his arm to lead him towards the West Wing. I didn't want anyone interrupting this.

"I mean... technically you shouldn't be but I would get it if you were," I said once we were out of sight.
"If it means you'll keeping dragging me to private places, I can pretend to be mad" that got a laugh out of me as small tears pricked at my eyes.

"Hey... hey." He said alarmed and grabbed my shoulders lightly. Until this point I was not quite sure about how I felt about him, now I was sure. Question was, did he feel the same way?

I walked to sit on one of my favorite benches, in front of Rani Noor. He followed and sat next to me.
"You really like this painting huh?"
"Only female ruler of Akbarabad..."
"Didn't she marry a prince?"
"No, she fell in love and married a blacksmith. Her daughter married a prince but that's beside the point" he laughed and I smiled.
"She really was ahead of her time" he muttered under his breath. We stared at the painting in comfortable silence.

"What happened to your mom?" I said in a quite mummer. If we were sharing backstories might as well get all of them out. He paused and then turned around to look at me. "You don't have to answer it but..."

"She was raped" I let out a gasp. "My father nearly went mad with grief. It happened when I was 10. We lived in the northern province. My mother was a companion to your Aunt Mamo. I had never seen or met her, but life was good" that's why he had been curious about Aunt Mamo. Damn it, so he had known of Feroze.

He continued, "Some powerful and influential men from that tribe abused, raped and then brutally murdered Mom" his voice shook but his eyes remained dry. I placed my hands on his as a gesture of comfort. He glanced at it and smiled bitterly. "Long story short, they didn't get convicted and roamed free without any consequences because of who they were. Dad shifted us here and on your Aunt Mamo's recommendation, he ended up working for your parents. She had helped us financially for a while but Dad ended that soon enough"

That explained his annoyance with my privilege. How he felt I could do more. How much he was against the system. And Uncle EJ had known all of this.
"I'm sorry," I said feeling the words to be inadequate. He nodded, accepting the condolence and curling his fingers around mine.
"She would have liked you," He said.
"I would have liked to meet her"
"I would have liked to see that too..." poor Uncle Azhar, poor Zaroon.
"How old are you again?" I asked. His eyes twinkled at the question.
"How old do you think I am?"
"Aahhh now that's a trick question..." he inclined his head towards me in a slightly mocking way and I pushed it away, laughing at his antics. "I'm going to guess you're older than me?"
"Fair enough," he said with a laugh. I bumped my shoulder into his.
"Tell me!"
"Guess!" He answered. I shook my head at his playfulness.

"So Feroze huh? Not judging you or anything but did you hit your head?" I rolled my eyes.
"I must have because that would actually make sense" he laughed again.

I sat with my legs crossed on the bench now. "It happened because he was there? Also, I was a lot younger and stupid. It seems to be so long ago now and so inconsequential" as I said those words I realized that they were true. I did not care. It had happened and it was over. That was it. End of story.

"Must not have been true love"
"It was just an infatuation"
"How so?"
"Apparently, love never ends, that's why"
"Who said that?"

"One of the wise guys," I said with a short laugh.

"And you're sure about that?" he replied.

"Are you not?" I asked, looking at him.

"I'm beginning to be" he replied giving me a meaningful look. I blushed and looked at my feet. "Which brings me back to this," he said placing a velvet-covered object on his lap.

I disengaged his hand from mine and waited for him to unravel the object. He took the hint and slowly unraveled the cloth. The red cloth fell away to reveal a beautifully engraved dagger. It was gorgeous. It was of dull gold color and was the 18th-century design. The blade was sharp and straight. An emerald stone glittered at the pommel with small rubies forming a circle around the stone.

"This. Oh my God, this is. Wow," I breathed. He balanced the dagger in his hand and offered it to me. I placed my fingers on it gingerly.

"I could teach you how to wield it but it's more of a ceremonial dagger" I held it upright looking at it in wonder.
"This must have..." cost a lot.
"Do you like it?" His eyes were worried and tense. I smiled broadly.
"I love it! Thank you! It's amazing" the tension left his body and he smiled back.
"It's no diadem..."
"Don't be ridiculous" he gave me a cautious look from under his eyelashes. He really did have the most amazing eyelashes. Those brown eyes had flecks of gold that flickered in the afternoon sun. How had I not noticed that before?
"I thought you had hated me... before" the words burst out of my mouth and he reeled back. Way to ruin the mood, Elena.
"I thought you knew?"
"Knew what?"
"That, wait are you serious?" I nodded. "That I liked you" the way he said it, without any hesitation or pause made me smile. He hadn't even bothered to come up with a long and extensive paragraph detailing everything. No flowery words or poetry.

"I didn't. I thought you hated me and couldn't wait to see me go" he shook his head.
"Now who's being ridiculous? I was with someone who I had seen years ago. I was nervous"
"You? The Captain? Nervous?" He chuckled. Izzy had been right, again.
"You can make mighty men quiver with that glare..." now I laughed. He had a sense of humor.

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Cuties... ;)