Chapter 9 Handsome Eli!
"Okay," she said after a while.
Eli turned around— and stopped.
The shirt looked ridiculous on her, but somehow perfect. She looked both innocent and mischievous, her hair loose around her shoulders, her expression proud as if she'd just accomplished something grand.
He raised an eyebrow. "You look like a child who stole her father's clothes."
Lyriel crossed her arms, the sleeves covered her hands completely. "It's comfortable," she said with mock dignity. "Maybe I'll keep it."
Eli sighed, shaking his head as he turned back to the fire, lost in his own little world. Lyriel gazed at him for some time, noticing his calmness. It was awkward just standing there with nothing to do.
She pulled out a chair, moved it closer, and sat beside him, mirroring his serious expression and gazing into the fire just like he did. She grew bored after some time and moved uncomfortably on the chair, but that didn't catch Eli's attention—or so she thought. Eli's next words surprised her.
"What did the little boy say to you?"
Lyriel choked on her own spittle and coughed. She tapped her chest and stared at him. "Th-the little boy? Which boy?"
"The thief!" Eli replied. He turned his gaze from the fire and locked eyes with her wide ones. There was something about his gaze that made her blood run dry—so intense and scary. "What did he tell you?"
Lyriel's gaze faltered, and she patted her chest one more time, clearing her throat. The thief had actually said many things to her. Was Eli referring to the part where the little boy spoke into her mind through telepathy and warned her about the man she was living with? Or was it the part where he told her he was… hungry? Yes, he told her he was hungry!
"He told me he was hungry," Lyriel finally spoke. She stared into the fire with sad, dreamy eyes, like she was about to cry. There was no way she would tell him a child had spoken into her mind through telepathy. She couldn't risk her fae identity being revealed. Besides, the boy hadn't said good things about him.
"Did he say anything else to you?"
"No!" she replied hastily, and soon a tear dropped from her right eye. She wiped it off dramatically and continued staring into the fire. She sighed heavily. "That child… I wish I could adopt him as my son. He is so… young and fragile. Too young to go through such pain, suffering, and starvation. Yet everyone sees him as a thief and can't even help him… he is so—"
"If you talk this much before bed, I'm sleeping outside," Eli interrupted, suddenly uninterested in the conversation. He stood up and proceeded to walk outside.
Lyriel stood up immediately. "Then I'll follow you," she teased, her voice light and playful.
Eli turned his head sharply, giving her a long, tired look—the kind that could silence a thunderstorm. His brows drew together, the faint smirk on his lips gone.
"Don't even think about it," he said flatly, his tone low, edged with the kind of irritation that wasn't entirely real but carried weight nonetheless.
Lyriel blinked, her smile faltering. The relief that had been dancing in her eyes dimmed, replaced by a flicker of guilt and uncertainty. She tugged at the shirt, suddenly looking smaller—softer like a child caught doing something wrong.
"I… I was only joking," she said quietly, her voice barely above a whisper.
Eli gave no response. He left the cottage and closed the door behind him.
The next morning,
The scent of fresh bread mingled with the sweet tang of berries, and Lyriel, walking alone through the square, felt a strange flutter in her chest.
She still couldn't stop thinking about the dance last night at the market square. Eli's handsome face. The warmth of his hand at her waist as they danced. The way he'd pulled her in…so perfect!
"Maybe humans dance just for fun." she muttered under her breath, frowning at the morning sky. Eli had left suddenly last night but hadn't returned, even though it was passed dawn. Perhaps taking a stroll around the village was indeed a good idea.
Lost in her own little world, she nearly bumped into a woman balancing a basket of apples on her hip.
"Oh! I'm sorry," Lyriel said quickly..
"Don't worry, sweetheart," the woman said with a laugh, "just watch where you're going— daydreaming like that, you'll walk straight into the well next!"
Lyriel smiled sheepishly, her cheeks burning.
"Thinking about someone?" came another voice, teasing and mischievous.
Lyriel turned to see the same spirited girl who had twirled beside her at the village dance. Her dark curls were pinned messily on her head with a basket of fruits balanced perfectly on her head.
"Miren!" Lyriel exclaimed, brightening.
"Mira!" She corrected.
"Yes, Mira! It's nice to see you again."
"Oh, I'd say it's wonderful to see you again," Mira grinned, looping her arm through Lyriel's. "Especially when you look like someone who's fallen headfirst into a love potion."
"I... what? No, I..." Lyriel stammered.
Mira raised an eyebrow, grinning wider. "Don't you try to deny it. I saw you last night, dancing with that handsome young man. Every girl in the village likes him"
Lyriel blinked rapidly, trying to hide the smile that tugged at her lips. "We were just dancing."
"Uh-huh. And I'm just a priestess," Mira teased. "Come with me. I'll show you my fruit stall." She nudged Lyriel playfully, and Lyriel nodded.
They walked pass stalls where vendors shouted prices and waved ribbons of silk and bread loaves. Lyriel's eyes lingered on a blue dress with silver embroidery, far simpler than the gowns of the fairy court, but somehow more beautiful for its plainness.
Mira caught her glance and grinned. "That would make Eli's jaw drop."
Lyriel flushed. "Why would his jaw drop?"
"Because he's obviously in love with you," Mira said, rolling her eyes. "Don't tell me you haven't noticed." She reached her fruit stall, lined up with the other vendors, and set her basket down.
Lyriel blinked. "Noticed what?"
"Don't play innocent," Mira said, eyes glinting. "You live with the most handsome man in the village, and don't tell me nothing's going on."
Lyriel looked away, her smile faltering. "There isn't."
Mira let out an exaggerated gasp, as though she had said something truly terrible and unnatural. "There isn't?!"
Lyriel shook her head. "He's kind. But he's not in love with me."
For a moment, Mira just stared. Then she laughed, loud enough to make a fruit vendor glance up. "Oh, you sweet, naive creature. Do you have any idea who you're talking about?"
Lyriel frowned. "Eli?"
"Yes, Eli!" Mira waved her hands dramatically. "The same Eli who won't even look at a woman twice. The one who built his own cottage in the forest just to avoid people, and now he's sharing it with you?"
Mira's eyes widened the moment she noticed Lyriel's clothing.
"You...you're even wearing Eli's shirt and shorts?" she blurted, her voice laced with disbelief.