151 Departure

The sound of fabric rubbing against other fabric rose me from my slumber. At first it felt like it was simply a dream, so I groaned and rolled over to my side and continued to sleep. My consciousness was still clouded as I was teetering between being fully awake and asleep. It was the sweet scent that lingered about in the direction that my nose was facing that stirred me from my slumber.

I opened my eyes, blinked a few times as I stared at the empty pillow beside mine. Slowly, I recalled the situation of how Luna had stayed the night and slept on the same bed as me. I rubbed my eyes and turned my body to the other side to face the interior of my room. There, Luna was slipping her arms through the sleeves of her own shirt while with her back turned towards me. Then, she turned around to grab her woolen sweater, and since she did not button up her shirt yet, her chest and stomach wasn't entirely covered as merely the two flaps of her shirt hanging down and covering the sides yet leaving the middle completely exposed. I blushed as my eyes were captivated by the little part of her white bra that was exposed as well as her lean stomach and belly button.

"You're awake?" Luna appeared somewhat surprised as she stared into my embarrassed eyes, but she made no attempt at covering herself up. Rather, she smiled pleasantly as she greeted me. "Good morning."

"G-good morning..." I muttered in response as my eyes followed her as she grabbed her woolen sweater before finally starting to finish buttoning up her shirt. My eyes slowly drifted over to my phone that was standing on the wireless charging stand to check the time that was on display. It was still early at 5:30 A.M.

"It's still pretty early," Luna said in a soft and calming voice as she continued to dress herself in the clothing she had worn yesterday. "So you can go back to sleep if you want."

"It's fine," I rubbed my eyes and yawned as I sat up on my bed while grabbing my warm bed covers tightly close to my chest. "I'm already awake anyways."

"Sorry for waking you," Luna apologized as she grabbed her phone and started swiping through it.

"It's fine," I yawned once again. "Why'd you wake this early?"

"The earlier I leave, the less chance that someone will see me," she responded and smiled in my direction."That way, it won't cause any trouble."

Trouble for her or for me? That question I was unable to bring myself to ask her as I lacked that courage, just like how I now lacked the courage to continue the topic from last night. Come to think of it, I still did not finish answering her question about my future plans.

It looks like I'll have to find another opportunity... I sighed.

She soon finished dressing and after I lingered about for a bit longer in the warmth and coziness of my bed covers, I forced myself up from my bed as well. Since I was wearing sweatpants, it wasn't really that cold for my legs. However, since the t-shirt I wore to bed was fairly thin and the air conditioner wasn't on yet, it was extremely cold as the interior temperature was low in this winter morning. Therefore, I walked over to my cabinet, grabbed a hoodie, and wore it before I turned on the heater using my phone to control the central heating unit. Palisia is located fairly north, well... it is north enough that it snows in the winter.

I walked over to the living room, yawning once again as I turned on the television. I sat down limp on the couch and simply went through the many different channels in search of something interesting. It was kinda hard since it was so early in the morning, but I managed to find a replay of an interview of Emperor Leshius VII and chose to watch that as Luna brushed her teeth.

"What're your thoughts on foreigners in Vilheim talking foully about the empire on the internet while working Vilhemian jobs?" the interviewer asked.

"I mean it is their right to say things like that," Leshius VII sighed. "But I just want to tell them, if they hate this country that much then leave. No one is stopping them other than the fact that their mother country might not have the same opportunity for these outcasts."

"Pretty harsh words," the reporter commented.

"So?" the Emperor shrugged. "Freedom of speech. They can say what they want and I can say what I like. Isn't this what other nations mean by liberty? As long as they don't break the law here or go to overboard with their speech, then I am totally fine with it all. And let me remind every foreigner who might not understand completely the laws in Vilheim. Speech such as threats to overthrow the government, threats to assassinate or murder, and advocating the secession of any parts of Vilheim territory is not protected by the law."

"So you're saying you will tolerate such speech?"

"I will tolerate it," Leshius chuckled, "because I know those foreigners saying such a thing won't dare say any of that before any Vilhemian subjects. Like I've stated, many foreigners coming to seek jobs in Vilheim are often people who cannot compete with others in their own nation. There's a reason why none of them hold top positions as our own Vilhemians are way better candidates for jobs. In fact, policies are being considered to deport foreigners who seek employment in Vilheim if they do not meet certain requirements such as actually being necessary to the nation's development as a whole. I believe when this policy passes, most of the foreigners whining online will be deported as according to a research done by one of our nations top academies, often times these people are incompetent in real life that prompts them to unleash it all online."

"Ruthless as ever, His Great Majesty," the reporter smiled.

"I represent the people," the charismatic Emperor Leshius VII laughed. "Of course I must not act so distant from them."

The interview then ended there as commercials started being played. After watching the replay of this recorded interview, I have to say, Emperor Leshius VII does have a way to garner the support of the people. Although he might sound a bit extreme, his speech captured an aspect of casual everyday conversation done by commoners, and this combined with his experience living as a commoner just makes the Emperor so much more relatable to the average Vilhemian. In addition to that, his argument does reflect the view of the people, at least it does reflect mine.

The sound of Luna walking into the living room prompted me to turn my head over in her direction. Her hair was combed and she appeared even more awake than her already energetic self from before as she smiled vividly. Even though she had not applied any makeup, her face and skin complexion was simply so perfect that it appeared as if she had already done so. In addition, it would appear that even when she does apply makeup for her day-to-day life, it is often only an extremely thin layer. This realization then led me to wonder what would she look like if someone really took an attempt to highlight her beauty with these supplements. I know for sure that she'll look even prettier, but I'm not sure by how much though since it will be pretty difficult to surpass her natural looks.

"Are you not going to stay for breakfast?" I asked. "There's coffee being made in the coffee machine right now..."

Luna shook her head and declined the alluring aroma of the coffee beans. "It's fine," she smiled. "I can pick something up from the convenience store when I head home."

She started walking in the direction of the front door with her bag strap over her shoulder and I followed her.

"Do you need me to go with you?" I asked.

"I don't think bringing home a guy this early would have beneficial effects on my parents' heart," Luna chuckled as she slipped on her black boots.

"I guess..." I sighed and rubbed the back of my head. "Stay safe and call me if you need anything."

"I will," Luna smiled as she stood by the door while facing me.

Instead of leaving, she simply stared into my eyes with her sparkling amber ones. It was a gaze that I did not understand the meaning of. However, I still met it as I felt as if it must be something important.

"Alevian," she whispered in a soft voice. "Thanks for having me over."

"It's nothing," I looked away and blushed from embarrassment.

"Well," she chuckled and smiled gently. "Good luck on your final exams. Hopefully, we can get together over winter break."

"Yeah," I smiled and nodded in response. "We will."

She then smiled as she gazed into my eyes for a bit longer. Then, after about a whole minutes, she lowered her head as she turned the door handle.

"See you," she mouthed and slowly closed the door shut.