"Alex! I saw Alex!" Harper screamed as she tried to break away, but Lucas' grip on her wrist was too firm.
"Harper, what are you doing?"
"Lucas, we have to get back! It's Alex. I saw him! He was there, I swear!"
Lucas came to a complete stop and snapped at her. "You need to stop this right now, Harper!" I'm not sure what's going on, but this is our only chance to get out of this hellhole!"
"You're not listening to me."
"No, you listen to me. Alex is dead. You're clearly deluding yourself. What you've been through has been traumatic. Okay? You are not yourself. The torture you went through..." He shook his head, his face contorted with emotion. "Listen, you've got to trust me. We have to get moving!"
She attempted to pull away once more, but the grip on her wrist just became tighter. "You're not listening to me! I saw Alex and Francine together! If we go back, you'll see that I'm not crazy, if that's what you really mean!"
"All well, then where? Where is he?!"
"We just passed them. Let's go ba－"
"Dammit, Harper! Didn't you just hear what I said? Alex is dead! I'm sorry, but he is. I know you're still holding on, but Harper, please, pull yourself together. It would make things a lot simpler for you if you could just accept the fact that he is no longer alive."
"But I just saw him! I swear to you, it's him. And if we just go back so I can show you-"
"Stop it, Harper. Stop! This isn't healthy! What are you doing? I understand that it takes time to move on, but you must accept that he is gone. He's dead. I don't know how many times I have to tell you that, but let's get going!"
Harper pursed her lips tightly together. She took a step forward, and when she was close enough, she punched Lucas square in the face. As he staggered backward, Lucas suddenly released his grip on her wrist.
"What the hell, Harper? Why'd you do that?" he asked, holding his jaw.
"Why? Because you're not listening to me! I know what I saw, and it was Alex! I've been trying to tell you. He was talking with Francine." Harper was enraged, but suddenly her demeanor changed, as if she had just realized something. "Wait, you did see him as well, didn't you? Is it why you yanked me in the opposite direction?"
"Please, Harper, come on."
"Or did you know he wasn't actually dead?"
Lucas' expression changed from shock to confusion and finally to realization. "I didn't know. I swear to you that I had no idea."
"Then why did you-" Harper took a deep breath and shook her head. "You know what? It truly doesn't make a difference anymore. So forget about it. Let's just go back to them."
"Harper, please. We have no way of knowing if that was really him. Okay? The blade sank into his chest, and I fucking felt it. When he died, I was there in the arena with him. I saw him take his last breath right in front of my eyes."
"What do you mean, we can't be certain it was him? So, who was it? Huh?"
"It could be anything. This place is nothing like ours. What we saw could have been a trick to keep us from leaving. This place has fucking wizards. Magic actually exists here. So what we just saw could be anything but Alex."
"A trick? What are you talking about? You're not making any sense right now, Lucas."
"Please, Harper, don't do this. I can't go through the unbearable pain of losing you all over again. Please, I'm begging you to come with me right now," he said, tears forming in the corners of his eyes.
"Lucas…"
"I-I saw him before you did," he finally admitted. "I tried to tell you, but...but it was like ripping the band-aid off a wound, and I felt like I was burning alive again."
"But, he's your brother..."
"I know, and I am sorry, Harper. I'm sorry if I'm being selfish right now. I'm sorry for feeling this way, but I can't help it. I can't help how I feel."
Harper's rage gradually melted at the sight of him being like this, so helpless and vulnerable. She hung on to every word he said. Her brewing resentment was immediately replaced by feelings of guilt.
"Lucas, I know I've said this countless times before, but I know you're in pain because of me, and I'm sorry," she said as gently as she could.
"Then why Harper?" he asked, his eyes flowing with tears. "I love you so much. Why him? I know I made a mistake, but I've been trying hard to make it right; to make you see that I am the one for you. What you have for Alex right now could only be temporary. I am your mate, not him," he said tenderly, his palms on her cheeks.
Harper was at a loss for words as she looked into his eyes for a brief moment. His gorgeous eyes used to be the highlight of her days, and she used to adore them. It was his smile that she remembered daydreaming about, and she fantasized about running off into the sunset with him.
When did everything start to change?
The answer came as soon as the question did. An image of Alex filled her. His charming, boyish smile; his laugh, and his eyes, which were Nordic blue when he was happy and amber when he was feeling intense emotions. His childish nature, which she found adorable and amusing the more and longer they were together.
And as she looked at Lucas' handsome yet sad face, she knew it was time to tell him she was no longer just confused, but that she had genuinely fallen out of love with him and that he would have to let her go. She could only hope that he would finally understand and let her go.
Slowly, she pushed Lucas' hands away as she prepared to break his heart once more. A tear ran down her cheek. This would be difficult for him to hear, but he needed to know.
"I love you, Lucas, and that will never change. My god, I even left Alex to come here to get you while he was fighting Aleister and Mira. I didn't care. I put everything on the line to find you and bring you back home. But you see, I slowly realized something: I had actually let my life revolve around you since the day I met you. I went to intern at the same company where you worked, hoping to see you every day. I pushed myself and worked my ass off to get the permanent position as your assistant. And no matter how much I dreaded going to work every day and how much I detested Alex, I stayed for you."
"And then it dawned on me that I had actually forced myself to live a stressful life only to be near you. I'd always wanted to impress you and make you proud of me. And I think I was already on the verge of losing my sanity when I eventually decided to leave and take control of my life. But, even then, I still wanted to make you happy, so I agreed to look after Alex for you." She snorted and briefly let out a small smile. "Alex, the person who had caused me unimaginable stress. Imagine that. But I still did it for you. Everything I'd done before in my life had been all for you, Lucas."
"Harper…I-I..."