Tears

_18_ (Lavalee Flamelinne's Point of View)

I woke up in the middle of the night when I heard Mnemosyne's roar.

I sat up and Mnemosyne ran to my bedside so I tapped her head lightly and caressed her fur.

"What is it, girl?" I asked and she ran to the door so I opened it and followed Mnemosyne out of my room

We went downstairs and I saw Jace entering the door. He seemed surprised to see me awake.

"Hey," my forehead knotted when I saw he has a bandage on his shoulder.

"What happened to you?" I asked him

"This is nothing," he shoved it off so I walked near him and pinched it earning a glare and groan from him

"Nothing, huh?" I said sarcastically

Mnemosyne sat on the side of the sofa while looking at Jace so I tapped her head.

"Go back to our room, Mnemosyne." She whimpered at my order but when I tapped it again twice, she ran back upstairs.

"Your wound should get treated," I said but he shook his head and that confused me

Don't tell me he'd let his ego get the best of him?

"Don't mind it," He said so I pulled him to the couch and took the first aid from the kitchen

"Don't bother about it," he said and I rolled my eyes at him

"Let me see it," I said and removed the bandage

"Who the fuck did this?" I asked him and he shook his head

"Press this on your bruises," I told him and gave him a cloth with ice inside

"Don't bother." He said but I took out alcohol and sanitized my hand before holding a cotton ball and started cleaning his wound

I prepared a basin of warm water and I'm using it to clean his wound.

"Where did you get this?" I asked while cleaning

"I told you – I need to know to do the right treatment." I cut him off and glared at him

"Just a small fight during an investigation." He said and I raised my brow at him

"Small fight, huh? Two wounds probably from bullets and several bruises, you're a bad liar." I said and rolled my eyes at him

"Two wounds – your left shoulder and the right side of your stomach are also bleeding." I cut what he was asking and pointed at the wounds I'm referring to

He looked at his bleeding wound and groaned in pain when he suddenly moved.

"Take your shirt off," I ordered him and he looked at me like I'm crazy

Oh please, I'm so used to treating people, even a guy's build and abs won't bother me anymore. I'm professional in treating wounds.

"What? – Or do you want that to get infected?" I cut him off again and he did, he removed his shirt so I managed to clean his wounds.

I placed a disinfectant liquid on a clean cotton ball and pressed it lightly on his wound.

I needed to blow on it lightly to remove the stinging sensation, I know the feeling of the sting, it's irritating and painful.

"You know how to treat wounds, huh?" he asked me

"I have to for my siblings," I replied keeping my focus on treating his wounds.

"Why?" he asked again

"That's none of your business," I told him giving him a hint that I don't want to talk about it.

"Who treated this earlier? It's not done correctly, no offense meant." I asked him

"A colleague," He replied and I started putting the gauze and cloth bandage on his wounds.

"There, it should get cleaned and the bandages and gauze should be replaced twice every day and you shouldn't move too much to avoid making it bleed again," I said and cleaned up

I brought the first aid back to the kitchen and placed all the cotton balls and gauze with blood in an aluminum bowl full of alcohol.

I brought it outside and placed it on the table and took out a lighter, I lit one cotton and because of the alcohol, all the gauzes and pieces of cotton began burning.

Watching the dancing flames, memories began right before my eyes as if the flame retells and shows me the story I hated the most.

The story that wouldn't have existed if I chose to stay in the first place.

I shouldn't have gone on that camping trip. I should've stayed with Eomma and Freia back then. I had doubts and I wasn't feeling good but because of my desire for adventure, I ignored it.

5 years ago, if I chose to stay, Eomma would still be here, Freia wouldn't be traumatized, Samantha and Ray wouldn't even exist in the first place, and Freia would've been healed.

Icey wouldn't have to mature for Freia's sake, Ni-sama wouldn't have to carry the burden of having the family empires under him, and he wouldn't be pressured to ace up fast.

We would still be a complete family with our younger brother who was just introduced to us, Fuego, Freia's secret twin.

"Why are you crying?" I felt a soft cloth pressed on my cheek.

I didn't notice I was crying. Again.

"I miss Eomma and Appa." I answered and accepted the handkerchief he gave me

"You can go to them." He said but I shook my head

"If I do that, it'll wreck my sisters and brothers more," I said smiling bitterly

"Losing our parents is too much damage to be handled by my siblings, especially by my sister, Freia. If I choose to be selfish and go to Eomma and Appa, who would keep them stable?" I replied and I didn't notice I was crying again

When the fire died, I smiled and turned my back from the aluminum bowl.

"Let's go inside, it's late," I said and went back inside the mansion

I'm about to go to the staircase when Jace pulled me and hugged me.

"You can cry." He said and I began sobbing

I didn't speak, I chose to be weak but I won't put my family in trouble.

I cried and Jace was just there hugging me while I let myself be vulnerable and cried.

"Everything's gonna be fine." He assured

"You're strong." He cooed to me but I sobbed because this remind me so much of Appa.

Appa may be cold and serious, people are scared of him but he's sweet and caring to us, he's sweet and gentle with Eomma, he's strict and supervising but still caring to the three of us while we're growing up and he treated Freia like a princess she is.

He was always there to protect us, burning himself to keep us safe and warm but because of me, he lost his other half, he lost our Eomma.

No matter what people say, I'd still be Lavalee Flamelinne, the adventurous daughter who chose to have fun than protect her family.

The worthless heiress who wasn't able to prove her worth as the Hanazono Empire's heiress, the daughter of Arkin and Lyrae who wasn't even bringing any honor to the family name apart from troubles and mischiefs.

THE NEXT MORNING, I woke up when I felt Mnemosyne licking my cheek.

"Morning, Mnemosyne. How did I get here?" I asked and tapped her head.

I stood up and took a container of sushi from the small fridge and fed Mnemosyne.

"How did I get here, huh, girl?" I asked her and tapped her head

"As if you'll answer, right?" I chuckled and caressed her fur

I stood up and went to the bathroom.

I took a bath and did my beauty essentials before coming downstairs with Mnemosyne on my trail.

"Ohayo," I greeted them and sat at the table with them

"Ohayo, Lav," Chelsea and Jess greeted back while Irene raised her brow at me

"Ikibun, e?" she teased with a raised brow

"A, damare," I said and rolled my eyes

"Kare ga sakuya nani ga okotta no ka o shittara, anata no kahogona kyodai wa dono yonihan'nosuru nodeshou ka." She said making my eyes widened

"Nani? Ittai nani o hanashite iru nodesu ka?" I asked her but she smiled at me teasingly

She didn't see us last night, right?

'Cause if Irene did see us, she would tease us endlessly.

"Bakagete iru?" Irene teased me

"Jinan bam-e il-eonan il?" Jess asked while looking at us alternately

"Geunyeoege mul-eobwa. Geunyeoneun anda. Gyeolgug, geuneun dangsin-eul dangsin-ui bang-eulo delyeogassseubnida?" Irene replied and smiled at me mischievously when she said the last line

"Irene, geumanhae geugeos-eun jaemi eobs-eo." I said and she went silent

"Uh, we can't understand anything." Caspian said while scratching the back of their head.

"It's alright, it's nothing important," Chelsea said and looked at me confusedly

***

Ikibun, e? - Good mood, eh?

A, damare, - Oh, shut up,

Kare ga sakuya nani ga okotta no ka o shittara, anata no kahogona kyodai wa dono yonihan'nosuru nodeshou ka. - I wonder how your overprotective brother will react once he learns what happened last night.

Nani? Ittai nani o hanashite iru nodesu ka? - What? What the heck are you talking about?

Bakagete iru? - Playing dumb?

Jinan bam-e il-eonan il? - What happened last night?

Geunyeoege mul-eobwa. Geunyeoneun anda. Gyeolgug, geuneun dangsin-eul dangsin-ui bang-eulo delyeogassseubnida? - Ask her. She know. After all, he carried you to your room, right?

Irene, geumanhae geugeos-eun jaemi eobs-eo. - Irene, stop it. It's not funny.