Chapter 14 The Secret of Hoarding

Chapter 14 The Secret of Hoarding

Kane's POV

Large swaths of deep gray and cold silver fill my entire room. The room was dark, except for the pale moonlight on the floor.


I slide down the door and sit on the floor, my heart racing with excitement.

I keep thinking of Evelyn with her hair and clothes a mess. She sounded sweet when she said goodnight to me.


I've never thought of myself as a good person.

But since meeting her, I want to be a good person in her eyes. Everything that happened today made me want to protect her. That childish behavior in class—what was it really about?

I'm scared to face my true feelings. I used to be more honest with myself.

Giving her the Flamecore Jewel bracelet allows me to keep track of her location at all times

I gave her that brooch because I want her to constantly remember who's protecting her, and think of me whenever she sees it.

I could tell she didn't want to accept my gifts. To her, they seemed too expensive. But as long as I show a hurt expression and hope she'll accept them, she gives in. She has no guard up against me, trusts and relies on me, and even... she wants to protect me...

Seeing her this way makes me feel like she is mine.

I can't stop these thoughts; they are spreading fast, which both scares and excites me.

I shower, get into bed, and notice an old wooden box on the nightstand.


The box is made of some unknown black hardwood, with no patterns on its surface, cold and biting to the touch. It's one of the few things my parents left behind. They used to use it to store priceless gems and magical artifacts.

Now, it's become my "treasure chest."

I gently open the box. Inside aren't the treasures my parents loved, but the precious things I cherish.

Those small, scattered items that others might not care about lie quietly in the box.

I pick up a misty blue hair tie. It fell from her hair, and I found it when I was picking something up off the ground. When I saw she didn't seem to want to look for it, I secretly hid it in my pocket and brought it back.

The hair tie smells like her orange shampoo.

After putting down the hair tie, I pick up the candy next to it.

That was the first time she offered me candy. Though I don't like sweets, it was from her, so I couldn't bear to eat it. I brought it back and placed it here. The candy wrapper is shiny, reflecting light that illuminates me just like she does.

Also inside were a sticky note with a sun she drew and a new pack of tissues she gave me for my sweat.

These things are piled together without any order—what others might see as trash to throw away.

But to me, they're important.

I touch the hair tie and look at the sticky note. She drew a sun with eyes and sunglasses on it.

Her drawing skills are a bit stiff, but I find it warm.

My parents cared more about collecting cold treasures than they cared about me. They even forgot why they started collecting them in the first place. I can't understand why they let me grow up alone, and I think they just used me as an excuse for their greed and coldness.

But looking at the things in the wooden box, I suddenly realize I'm doing the same thing as them.

I am keeping everything that reminds me of Evelyn. It feels like a strange, unhealthy obsession.

I close the wooden box and hold it instead of placing it on the nightstand. This makes me feel somewhat happy.

I still don't know what kind of shapeshifter she is. That old fool Ambrose said things that made her nervous.
Though I don't care, I can tell she cares a lot about what she is.

Whatever she ends up being, as long as she's Evelyn, as long as she still stands by my side, trusts me, relies on me, wants to protect me, considers me a friend, smiles at me, chatters endlessly with me, accepts my gifts...

That's enough. More than enough.

I walk to the window, looking at the moon outside. Maybe right now she's looking at the same moon as me, or maybe she's already asleep. Will she wear that silver bird brooch tomorrow?

"Evelyn, don't be afraid."

I talk to the moon as if making her a promise and claiming her as mine.

All the bad comments about her, the malicious looks—though she doesn't care, I've remembered them all.

I'll burn away all harm that approaches her. I'll cut off every threat reaching toward her.

If the world is mean to her, I will make a safe place just for the two of us. In that place, there is no hate or hurt, only us.

Of course, I know this idea is crazy and dangerous. She might be scared, unwilling, reject me, run away from me. But I do have this thought, very strongly.

Sometimes I can't control my thoughts, but in front of her, I try hard to hide them.

Since she says she is my friend and trusts me, I want to become her whole world, and I want her to be mine too. She should only be my friend, mine alone.

"Evelyn..."

I call her name softly. In front of her, I often can't freely express my dark thoughts.

I am indeed weaving a net, waiting for her to willingly walk in, and then stay with me forever.

I admit, I'm not a good person.

But she should have known that from the first moment she saw me, right?

Since she wasn't scared and didn't run away, that proves she can accept it, right?

The fireplace in the room burns with eternal cold fire—light without warmth, of course. I turn back to the bed, placing my hand on the wooden box on the nightstand.

I lie in bed, close my eyes, thinking of how she looked sitting on the sofa watching a movie with me tonight. She drank the soup I brought her, took small bites of bread, and even shared food with me.

We didn't finish the movie. If I hadn't thought she was too tired today, I would have wanted to stay with her longer. But fortunately, she accepted my gifts.

I imagine what clothes she'll wear tomorrow to match that brooch. "Goodnight, Evelyn."