Façade

"You're quiet." were the first words he spoke after they had stepped out of the house half an hour ago.

Eva didn't know how to reply. Instead, she decided to use another strategy to distract him from noticing the reasons for her silence.

"Why doesn't this appear on maps? Why do you keep it hidden? I hadn't heard about a city named Eden all my life," she asked and felt her shoulders sag down in response. That question had been bugging the back of her mind for a while and she was glad to finally let it out.

He was silent for a while, and Eva darted her eyes around everywhere except for him.

"This is the only place where my people can reside without fearing the outside world," he said, and Eva kept her stare fixed on the ground and the shops. "My father and his commanders had managed to keep this place hidden for over a millennium. I'm only continuing his work since he's no longer alive to do it."

He had never talked about his family to her and Eva had no clue what happened to his father and mother. Did he have any siblings? It didn't seem like it, or she would've heard rumors from somewhere or someone. But rumors did circulate that the King had murdered his parents with his very own hands to take over the throne.

His tone had been emotionless when he was talking about his father and though Eva didn't want to pry, a small part of her was curious and wanted to know the actual story from his lips. She had never acknowledged random rumors and she wasn't going to believe in them now.

"It's beautiful," she commented, staring at the faraway snow-capped mountains with awe in her eyes. It mostly never snowed in Vermont. The only season Gleana experienced was summer and spring, winter extending to rain and cool winds only. Seeing real-life snow brought out her past desires, even though she had promised herself not to think about anything but getting stronger, honing her new powers, and getting retribution.

She could feel his eyes on her and was glad that the area in which they were walking was not so bright. The blush on her cheeks would be quite visible otherwise.

"How did you— your father keep this all concealed?" she questioned once again and her gaze flew beyond the buildings to the sea that extended onto a place she didn't know about. The waters were still, the Moon's light making it shine and glimmer but that wasn't what caught her eye.

They were standing far away and she squinted her eyes, wondering why the hell the sea was sparkling. Not glimmering because of the light but she thought she saw signs of blue glitter if she squeezed her eyes narrow enough to see.

His voice distracted her away from the breathtaking sight and out of habit, she looked up at him. The wind ruffled Theo's dark hair, his face unreadable.

"My ancestors were inhumane and cruel in all matters except for the safety of their people and family. If somebody ever harmed any of us, death was an easy punishment for them. Invisible barriers and controls have been set up for centuries to keep all this safe. The Court was made for talking and communicating with other Kingdoms since scenes could arise which are not pleasant to the eye."

His eyes drifted to the groups of kids and their laughter that filled the air. Eva's heart swelled in some unknown emotion as she heard him speak again. "Xandria was just a façade that was meant to deceive the people who thought that Eden existed. It has worked until now." he sighed, and Eva got a sudden glimpse of the man underneath all those impressive layers. That man looked tired and burdened and internally, unknown to herself, she wished desperately that he would share those secrets with somebody. It was obvious that all those burdens were weighing him down and considering how far he stayed away from his friends, he had nobody to talk to.

He was alone.

Just as alone as she was.

"This was all your father's idea?"

He looked down at her and Eva instantly looked away. Every time they looked at each other, it either ended with her getting close to him or her heart wanting to jump out and leap on his heart.

"Xandria was my idea. My father ruled over Eden along with my mother before their demise. I've been ruling Xandria for more than 500 years now."

F— Five hundred!? That was about 5 centuries altogether! Half a millennium? How old exactly was he!?

She secretly glanced up at him and none of his features betrayed his age. He was a vampire but still! Something should at least show. If she didn't know this new information, she would've thought he looked like a twenty-four or twenty-eight-year-old at least!

"Any more questions?" he asked, and Eva breathed out, her feet moving to follow beside him. His strides were always long but she wondered if he was walking slowly just for her sake right now. It bugged her for some reason and she increased her pace, suddenly walking— no, jogging ahead of him.

"None for now." was her short, brisk answer as her eyes continued to scan the beauty of the place so she wouldn't get sidetracked by the looks of the man behind her.

'Why can't he just leave me alone? Is taunting me one of his new hobbies? Do I look like I have more questions? Why is he so hellbent on distracting me? Ugh, and why does he look so fricking gorgeous in the moonlight?!'

While Eva was busy cursing him in her head, she could still faintly notice two intense, obsidian eyes on her back.

She didn't dare turn around to see if her notion was accurate.