7 chapter 7

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vii.

I LOVE YOU

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It had been three days since Harith had brought Harley back at the academy. Right now, he was staring at the mage, who was lying unconscious on the bed.

Harley's hand was connected to a drip, and his body was now wrapped in clean bandages. He had looked slightly better from when he found him, but that still didn't mean he didn't look terrible. It was the reason why he hadn't woke up yet ever since he got here.

When Harith had first arrived at the infirmary with Harley in his arms, he remembered how horrified Rafaela looked when she saw the mage. The support didn't waste any time to press the emergency button, and that sent an announcement; requesting for all the supports currently in the academy to head over to the infirmary immediately. Harith remembered the very apologetic look Rafaela had on her face. He even remembered her words;

"Harith, I'm not going to lie. The chances of him living is close to none. However, we will try our best to save him."

Harith had waited hours outside of the infirmary after that. The only thing he could think of was Harley during that time. He didn't even think about his friends, his enemies—but only Harley. Rafaela's words constantly echoed in his mind, and, the more he thought of it, the more he felt like breaking down.

That is, until Rafaela approached him with a small smile.

"He's stable now."

Harith focused onto his hearing, and the only sound he caught was Harley's breathing. His eyes drifted to Harley's hand, and he suddenly felt the need to hold it. Carefully, he placed his hand over Harley's, and his eyes widened when he felt Harley's fingers twitch, before his hands were intertwined with the mage's.

Slowly, Harley's eyes flew open, and Harith observed as Harley stared at the ceiling for a while. The mage then turned his head to the side, and Harith could feel his eyes welling up with tears when Harley gave him a faint smile. "Hey..."

"Harley." Harith squeezed his hand, and he moved his face closer towards the mage. "Thank god. I was so worried about you."

The smile on Harley's face turned apologetic, and the mage let out a small sigh. "I'm sorry. Things didn't work out like how I planned. I thought I had the situation under control, but... it looks like I couldn't handle it."

Harith suddenly pulled his face away, and his face turned deadpan when he looked at the mage in front of him. "Why didn't you just retreat then? I told you many times that you should just retreat whenever you feel like you're in danger. Why didn't you do that?"

"I thought..." Harley averted his gaze, and he was hesitant when he continued, "I just didn't want people to think I couldn't handle my own solo mission. I mean, I'm supposed to just observe–"

"What?!" Harley flinched when Harith raised his voice, and he watched as Harley started to look remorseful. Before he could stop himself, he was already yelling, "You knew you were in danger, yet you decided to stay because you didn't want people to think you weren't capable? What's wrong with you?!"

"Harith, I–"

"Do you have any idea how worried I was for those weeks you had disappeared? Do you have any idea how heartbreaking it is to find you in the state you were in? You couldn't remember anything, anyone. You even treated me like I was your master!"

"I'm sorry," Harith said, his voice wavering. He placed a hand over his forehead. "I... I just..."

He was surprised when Harley lifted his hand to touch his face, and only now he realised that his cheeks were damped. Harley's voice was quiet when he said, "Please don't cry, Harith. It doesn't suit for a strong person like you."

Harith let out a shaky breath, before he lowered his head. "How could I not? I almost lost you, Harley. I can't lose you. You're the only person I have left."

"I'm sorry," Harley said, and Harith felt him stroke his hair. "I'm so, so sorry for making you worried. I promise I'll be more careful next time."

Harith folded his arms across the mattress before laying his chin above his forearms. He closed his eyes when Harley continued to stroke his hair, and he let out a soft hum when Harley's hand moved to caress his ear. He had missed Harley's touches so much. He felt guilty that he had yelled earlier, but he couldn't help himself. He cared for Harley so much, so it made him furious to know that Harley would risk himself for some foolish reason.

All of a sudden, he felt Harley's fingers stop, and he immediately flicked his gaze to look at the mage. He let out a sigh of relief when Harley was still breathing. For a second, he thought the worst happened, but it looked like he was just asleep.

Harley woke up with a start when Harith moved his hand from his head, and only then he realised that he had dozed off. "Oh, sorry. Let me just–"

"No, you should rest," Harith said, stopping Harley from reaching out to him again. He could tell that the mage was struggling to keep his eyes open, and that was already a sign that he was still weak. It had only been three days after all. "I'm not going anywhere. I'll just wait for you here."

Harley smiled at him before he closed his eyes. It didn't take long for him to fall asleep, and Harith could tell when his breathing became even.

— ❅ —

"Harith!"

Harith turned around when he heard someone calling for his name, and his eyes widened slightly when it was Claude. Now that the marksman was in his view, he wondered whether they had captured their enemies or not. He had been so occupied with Harley, he didn't bother at all to ask the result of their mission.

"Man, it's good to see you," Claude said, exhaling deeply. Dexter was at his leg, nodding his head. "I've been wanting to tell you what happened. We have both, good news and bad news."

Harith's face grew solemn, and he could feel his hands clenching into fists. "What is it?"

"The good news is, we captured ninety-nine percent of them," Claude said. But the unsatisfied look he had could only mean one thing. "The bad news is... we didn't get the leader, which is the one who had been hurting Harley."

Harith took in a deep breath, before letting out a huge sigh. Inwardly, he was furious that the man escaped once again, but, right now, he just wanted to see Harley. He wanted to be by the mage's side as he heals, and only after that is when he'll start hunting down the man responsible.

"It's okay, Claude," Harith said, giving the marksman a small smile. "You tried your best. Thanks for capturing them. I'll deal with the last guy myself soon."

Claude shuddered when he looked at his face, and Harith wondered what got the marksman to look like he had seen a ghost. Claude then shook his head and cleared his throat. "W-Well, as long as you don't end up tearing the guy into tiny pieces, I guess it should be fine."

Harith's smile widened just a little more.

Of course he would tear that man's body into shreds.

"Anyway," Harith said, spinning on his heel. "I'm going to head back home for a while to grab Harley's clothes. You don't want to pay him a visit?"

"Oh, is he awake now?" Claude asked, and Harith nodded. "We'd wanted to visit him, but the Headmaster is asking us to deal with the enemies one by one. He wants to know where their leader ran off to. Though, questioning is such a slow process, you're lucky you don't have to do it."

Harith let out a small chuckle. "Well, alright then. I'll see you later, and good luck getting information out of all of them."

— ❅ —

Harith couldn't help but smile in content as he watched Harley chew his food. Since Harley was still weak, Harith had offered to feed him, and he was happy when Harley just let him do it. Usually, Harley hates whenever Harith takes care of him—it happens when he falls sick—but since he allowed him to take care of him, it was obvious that Harley didn't have the strength to do it himself.

As Harley accepted another spoonful of mushroom soup, Harith found himself staring at the mage's face. It hurt him to see Harley having a bruise on his forehead and a few small cuts on his face. But, hopefully, all of those will go away soon.

There was a knock on the door, and Angela entered the room with a wide grin. She was carrying a tray, and on top of it were some bandages and medicine.

"Hello, you two!" Angela greeted, placing the tray onto the overbed table. She motioned closer to inspect Harley, and Harith watched as the mage started to fidget under her stare. "Hmm... it seems we have to change your bandages since it had been three days. Do you want me to help you bathe?"

Harley's face instantly flushed a crimson, and he quickly shook his head. "It's fine, Angela. I have Harith with me."

Angela clapped her hands and grinned. "All right then! But let me know if you change your mind. I can give your back a nice scrub!"

"Uh... okay." A bead of sweat rolled down Harley's forehead. "Thanks anyway, Angela."

With a nod, the mechanical robot left the room, and Harith motioned to lock the door.

Harith turned around, only to find Harley swinging his legs off the bed. He couldn't help but feel concern when he found Harley letting out a shaky breath. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I just–" Harley made an attempt to stand up, and Harith rushed to his side the moment the mage was on his feet. It was a good thing he was supporting Harley, because he could feel Harley leaning heavily against him. The Mage Genius looked up, only to give him a small smile. "Thanks."

Harith helped Harley walk over to the bathroom, and he was patient when the mage was taking it slow. He could tell that Harley was very tired, and it proved to him when the mage insisted on sitting over the toilet to take off his clothes.

Usually, Harley would be so modest. Other than the times when they were doing that, he would always ask Harith to turn around whenever he was going naked. This time, however, Harley didn't even bother to kick him out of the bathroom, so that allowed Harith to help him out of his clothing and bandages.

Harith's eyes widened when Harley was completely bare in front of him. Harley's usual smooth and soft skin were now covered in bruises, cuts and some scars. It wasn't helping that the mage's back had lines all over it. It was as if they had whipped him or something.

"I know," Harley said, breaking the silence. His head was lowered, and his voice was quiet when he said, "It's disgusting to look at, isn't it? It'll take a while before it'll disappear—unless those scars become permanent. So I understand if you don't want to sleep with me for a while."

Harith was surprised by Harley's statement, and he forced the mage to look at him. He could feel Harley's eyes widening the moment he pressed his lips against the mage's.

When Harith pulled away, he found Harley with his face red and at a loss for words. His voice was low when he said, "Harley, I don't want to hear any of those coming out from your mouth ever again." He pointed towards the injuries on the mage's body and continued, "All this? It's proof that you were strong enough to live through all of that, and I'm so lucky to have someone as strong as you."

"But–"

Harith placed an index finger over the Mage Genius' mouth, and he was glad that it was enough to silence him. "Not another word. You're still beautiful, and that's final. When you've fully-healed, I'll prove to you that I still love you the same way."

Harley averted his gaze, and Harith watched as the mage hid his face when he bowed his head. Now, Harith felt like panicking. Did he say something he wasn't supposed to? Was Harley more upset with him? But, when he crouched down to have a better glance at Harley's face, he was surprised to find tears streaming down the mage's cheeks.

"Thank you, Harith."

— ❅ —

A few days had passed, and Rafaela finally gave Harley the permission to return home. Even though he hadn't fully healed yet, but at least he looked better than when he first arrived. He no longer had bandages wrapping every limb, and the scars he had were slowly starting to disappear. He still hated that his skin was full of them, but it was good to know that most of them weren't permanent.

"So, what do you want for lunch?" Harith asked, heading towards the door. "I'm just going to buy some food at the cafeteria. I know you must be starving."

Harley was about to deny that he was hungry, but his stomach decided to growl right there and then. He couldn't help but place a hand over his abdomen before looking at Harith. "I can cook for us if you want."

"No," Harith said, shaking his head. "Cooking takes too much time, and you're still healing. You should rest first while I buy you some food."

He had to admit, he does feel a little tired. But he didn't want to trouble Harith by sending him to the cafeteria at the academy building. However, since Harith insisted on buying them food, he guessed that he should just give him his order. "You can buy me anything. I don't mind."

"Are you sure? You don't want anything specific?"

Harley shook his head. "Not at the moment."

"All right then," Harith said, stepping out of the door. "Just give me fifteen minutes, okay? Take a quick nap or something while I'm gone."

Harley couldn't help but chuckle as he waved at Harith. He closed the door, and he sat on the couch to watch some TV. He spent a few minutes searching for some interesting shows, only to find none. He sighed and decided to just place the remote aside. He felt tired, but he wasn't sleepy. Maybe he should use some of his energy for something good. Standing up, he headed over to the kitchen, and he couldn't help but shake his head when he found the dirty dishes in the sink.

While washing the dishes, Harley remembered how Harith treated him when he had lost his memories. Just as he thought that he doesn't deserve any kindness, Harith had given him his all. The leonin had taught him that there was still good in this world, and it was hard for him to accept it during that time, especially after what his master had done to him.

"So ugly."

Harley paused midway while washing the dishes, and he shook his head to ignore his master's words. The man had been cruel to him, and he never wanted to see him again.

"Look at all those bruises. They're hideous!"

There was a loud clank, and Harley realised that he had accidentally placed the plate a little too roughly onto the rack.

"These scars will definitely be permanent."

All of a sudden, his vision start to blur, and he quickly wiped his face with his hand. No, he was not going to cry. That man was gone, so he should just forget about him. He had no idea where he was right now, but at least he wasn't with him anymore.

"Disgusting."

He couldn't take it anymore.

He wiped his hands with a cloth and decided that he should just go to sleep. Maybe if he falls into slumber, he wouldn't have to hear the man's voice. But, when he turned around, he froze, and his eyes widened in horror when he spotted the last person he wanted to see.

"Oh hello, little pet."

Before Harley could even open his mouth, the man had shoved him to a wall. Harley cried out in pain when his body hit it, and he collapsed to the floor right after. He tried to get up—he needed to get away from him—but the man sent him back to the ground when he slammed his foot over his back.

"Do you have any idea how much trouble you put my organisation into?" the man said, and Harley could feel the pain he had felt all over again. The man used his foot to tilt his body, and Harley screamed when he launched his foot directly at his abdomen. "No more chances for you, you troublesome brat. I'm going to kill you. Right here, right now. It doesn't matter if I get killed right after. The important part is that I enjoy the last remaining time of your life."

Harley could feel the tears running down his face, and he curled his body when the man continue to send his foot right at his stomach. His body hurt, and he just wished the pain would stop. Hadn't he had enough? How much more pain does he need to feel for the man to be satisfied?

"Since I don't have much time left, I guess I have to kill you now," the man said, looking around. When he saw something in the kitchen, a sadistic smile grew on his face, and he started dragging him towards the kitchen by grabbing his hair. "It's a good thing we have knives in the kitchen."

Harley tried his best to get out of the man's grasp, but he couldn't find the strength in him anymore. His voice was weak when he said, "No... Please, don't..."

Harley would've used his magic, but he just couldn't. From what he had experienced, his master didn't even need to use magic on him to hurt him. All he needed was his physical strength, and he could hurt him in so many ways. Harley had seen—had endured—what the man had done to him, and it terrified him to fight back.

"Look at you, you're shaking like a leaf," the man said, reaching out to grab one of the knives. The man inspected it for a while before turning around. "Now, let me just carve that unsightly skin of yours."

Harley wanted to get away from the man, but, no matter how hard he tried, it felt like there was no use running away. He had been rescued by Harith, only to be captured again. He had been brought back to the academy for the second time, only for the man to find him again. All of a sudden, Harley could feel his body becoming numb, and he realised that he had accepted it. No matter where he goes, it seemed that this was his fate.

What was the point of struggling so much, only to get the same outcome in the end?

The man chuckled before crouching down to look at him eye-level. Harley didn't even flinch when the man used his free hand to wipe the tear stains on his cheeks. "So it seems you have given up, huh? It's about time you realise that there's no way out of this."

I'm sorry, Harith.

"You brought down my organisation, so I'll just bring you down with me."

I'm sorry, Lesley.

"Now, where shall we start? Maybe your face?"

I can't fight him.

"Yes! Let's start with your face–"

Harley noticed how the man seemed to stop talking, so he looked up to see why the man hadn't done what he intended yet. There was a thud, and his eyes widened when he realised that Harith was standing in front of him, with his back against him. It was hard to see the man with Harith blocking his view, but maybe it was best if he didn't get to see him, because, all of a sudden, there was a pool of blood on the floor.

"Oops," Harith said, his tone mocking, and, for some weird reason, it made Harley shudder. The leonin chuckled humourlessly, before he continued, "How about we start with your head first?"

Harley blinked a few times before peering from behind Harith. Harith couldn't have possibly chopped off the man's head, right–?

Harith spun around and crouched down to look at him. There was a worried look on his face, and it made Harley slightly relieved when Harith doesn't appear as menacing as he thought he was. The leonin brushed his hair and inspected his face. His voice was soft when he asked, "Hey, you all right?"

Harley's vision start to blur again, and the only thing he could manage was a small shake of his head.

There was a sympathetic look on Harith's face, and Harley did his best to hold back the tears when the leonin pulled him into an embrace. He was just so tired from all of this. He had been hunted down for days, captured for weeks, saved by Harith, and only to be captured again. His body faced too much abuse—to the point where he wondered why he wasn't dead yet—and it would probably take him months for him to fully recover from every wound they had inflicted on him. He barely had any sleep back at that place, and there were only a few times when they would actually give him something to eat. Most of the men there loves taunting him, and, now that he remembered all of it, he hated to see those faces sneering at him.

"I'm sorry," Harith said, breaking the silence. He tightened his embrace, and Harley could feel him gently rubbing his back. "I'm so sorry I couldn't protect you again. I'm really not fit to be your spouse."

Harley sucked in a deep breath before shaking his head. He hated how his voice was wavering when he said, "No, don't say that." Shakily, he lifted his arm to wipe his face. "It's just me, alright? I'm just so weak."

"No, you're not," Harith said, his voice firm. He pulled away and forced him to look at him in the eyes. "You're the strongest person I know, Harley. Even after all you've been through, you're still here—alive. Other mages would've died by now if they took the amount of damage you did."

Harith didn't know.

He was the reason why he kept wanting to live.

"Now, come on, let's get you cleaned up," Harith said, lifting him up in his arms. Harley wanted to see what he had done to his master, but the leonin had walked away from the man. Harley was startled when he heard Harith say, "It's best if you don't look at him. Such filth isn't worthy for your eyes."

Harley let out a sigh and laid his head against Harith's chest.

Thank goodness this was all over.

— ❅ —

"Seriously, Harith?! You snapped his head–"

Harith clamped a hand over Lolita's mouth, and he watched as the elf struggled to talk with her words muffled. His friends had arrived at his house to deal with the 'intruder', and they were now shocked to see what he had done to the man. Okay, so maybe he went a little too far, but could they blame him that it was his reaction when he found the man with a knife, planning to kill Harley?

Ruby was crouching near the man's body, and she was nodding her head in approval. "A little messy, but it can be improved." She then stood up and swung her scythe over her shoulder. She was grinning when she said, "I'll teach you how to do it cleanly next time."

Lolita gasped. "Ruby!"

"Can we please keep our voices down?" Harith said flatly. As much as he knew that he was causing his friends to make a commotion, he didn't want Harley to wake up. "Harley's asleep right now, and I don't want you guys to disturb his rest."

"Okay, okay," Claude said, waving his hands around as a sign of surrender. Then, he pointed towards the corpse currently in the house. "But, Harith, maybe you shouldn't have killed him. The Headmaster needs him for questioning."

"Well, is it really my fault that I found him in my house, planning to use a knife on Harley?" Harith said, his face becoming sober. He didn't feel guilty, not even the slightest. Especially after he knew what the man had done. "If I was a minute late, who knows what he would have done."

"That's a good reason why you would kill him, but I'm sure the Headmaster would feel disappointed that you—uh, chopped his head off," Kimmy commented.

Harith just stared at the corpse lying at his feet. Now, he wasn't sure what to feel. On one hand, maybe it was concerning to know that he would actually snap a person's head off. But, then again, who knew a human being like him would actually do all the things to Harley?

Remembering how he first found Harley back at that place, it made Harith scoff. He noticed that his friends were looking at him, and his voice was monotone when he said, "That man deserved it."

— ❅ —

"Harith, you don't have to follow me around, you know."

Harith couldn't help but grin as he moved closer towards Harley. He had been annoying the mage since this morning by following him around, but this was for Harley's own good. Even though the Mage Genius had been trying to hide it, but Harith caught Harley acting all jumpy whenever someone touches him, or whenever he was caught off guard. It was obvious that Harley still hadn't gotten over the surprise attack from his master, and Harith was determined to ease his worries wherever he goes.

"Sorry, Harley, but I'm not going to let you go anywhere alone," Harith said, before looking up thoughtfully. "At least, for now."

Harley let out a sigh and grumbled, "I guess I should've just retreated back then, huh?"

Harith frowned at the memory of him allowing Harley to go onto his mission alone. He didn't blame Harley for not retreating, he blamed himself for not following. Knowing what Harley had been through, he regretted every second for not tagging along.

"Well, it doesn't matter now," Harley said all of a sudden. He then leaned closer towards him, and Harith couldn't help but wrap an arm around his waist. Harley gave him a small smile. "To be honest, I don't mind you following me around for a while. It helps me forget about those people."

Harith's lips curled into a grin, and he lifted Harley's hat to nuzzle his hair. He noticed how his action caused the mage's face to turn all red, and he let out a chuckle. "It's good to know that you don't mind me following. And, trust me, I'm not going anywhere until you're really okay."

Harley let out a hum as a sign that he heard, but, other than that, he didn't say anything else.

It was silent for a while, before Harith decided to say, "Harley?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm truly sorry for–"

"I don't want to hear it, Harith. What happened to me was not your fault. Don't ever apologise to me for that."

Harith nodded his head when he noticed the solemn look on Harley's face. Harley may tell him that it wasn't his fault. But, still, Harith felt like it was. Nonetheless, he didn't say that out loud.

After another long silence, Harith decided to break it again. "Harley?"

Harley tilted his head to the side and raised a brow. "What is it, Harith?"

"I love you."

Harley opened his mouth, only to close it again. Harith chuckled when the mage's cheeks turned red again. Time to start teasing him.

With a smirk, Harith moved his face closer to Harley's. "Aren't you going to say 'I love you' to me too?"

For a moment, Harley was at a loss for words. Harith could see him hesitating when he opened and closed his mouth. The Mage Genius glanced around—probably to make sure that no one was looking—before mumbling, "I love you too, Harith."

"Why are you such a shy boy whenever we're in public," Harith said in a sing-song voice. "You're not like that when we're in bed–"

A hat was thrown at his face, and Harith watched as a nerve popped through Harley's temple. Slowly, a menacing grin appeared on the mage's face, and, Harith had to admit, it looked intimidating. "Guess who's sleeping on the couch tonight?"

A bead of sweat rolled down on his forehead.

Maybe he shouldn't have said that.

the end.