. Was I In Love?

A loud screech sounded in the dining room as Mr. Canaan pushed his chair backwards to face her.

"I'm sorry."

"Why are you sorry?" She raised a brow.

"I can't find words to explain myself," he mumbled bitterly.

"You don't have to, it's not like I'm jealous of you or something. What if you now have a big house now? You're still my footstool. My family's rank is greater than yours by far."

It was now Canaan's turn to be perplexed.

"What do you mean?"

"I can remember many things, I can remember till 2 years before, but some things between are left out. I know you for sure, you were just as haughty then," she snorted.

Canaan gave a little sigh of relief; he must have taken the form of someone she knew from the past.

She yawned like a little kitty before staring at him. Canaan suddenly became self-conscious as his eyes darted around.

"I want to sleep!" She told him in a half yell.

Canaan motioned to the maids, and they took Nurna to the room they prepared for her. She was helped with her bath and had a change of clothes.

The old butler stood with his smile that hasn't faltered since their arrival.

"Here's a map of the house, my lady. You're allowed to go anywhere except for Master's bedroom and his study. There's a bell by your bed; you can summon the maids, they'll always be on standby."

She waved him off as if shooing a fly before sitting on the bed with her legs folded inwards. She suddenly held her hair like she was going to uproot them.

"Why can't I remember?!" She grunted to herself.

She had slowly regained her memory over the hours, but there seem to be evident gaps in her memory.

According to her memory, she was the second daughter of a peculiar family, whose power and influence are only second to that of the royal family, for no other reason than the fact that they had magic.

Her father was a very powerful man, with the power to control every element on earth. He had healing properties, he had super strength; the only thing that differentiated him from a demigod was the fact that he had a timespan similar to that of humans.

These powers were passed down, generations unto generations, from one male child to another.

Her father, Seth, was worried after bearing only one female child; they waited for years before his wife conceived once more. When he was told that it was a girl, he ordered her to be killed, but as the guards tried to take her from her mother, her hair suddenly grew and glowed till it almost blinded the eyes of the guards. That only meant one thing: she is the bearer of the light magic for the next generation.

To make up for her "inherent weakness" because of her gender, her father had her train rigorously for years, despite the fact that she actually didn't have all those powers.

Many a time was she tempted to kill her father so she could inherit his powers and end her misery. Unfortunately, her father was a tough weed; besides, her mother taught her better.

She remembers looking forward to something at a waterfall; she couldn't remember, but her heart ached anytime she tried to remember.

She also remembers working as a guard for someone.

After a while of deep thoughts, she took the map and went out of her room.

She was surprised to see a female guard and two maids outside her room, standing straight and alert. The guards followed behind her, but with one glare from Nurna, she retreated.

Pointing at the area marked with red ink, she walked quietly along the long corridor.

"Does he have a family?" She mused as she walked across the stretch of rooms.

She leaned on the wall that ended with a turn; she was heading straight to where she was instructed not to venture, the library.

Peering at the library, she saw that it was unguarded just like all other rooms in the mansion. A mischievous smile hung across her face as she walked towards the oak double door. Looking around, she pushed the heavy double door open with all her might and went in swiftly.

Stepping through the door, the scent of aged leather, old books, and polished wood washed over her. Her now woven hair bounced behind her as she clenched onto her white silk nightgown.

The library wasn't as dark as she expected it to be; the stars and the amber bulbs from outside illuminated a good part of the hall from the wall of glass that was facing the outside.

Towering mahogany shelves, that made her stretch till her chin was in line with her body, overflowed with leather-bound volumes.

She heard the distant crackling sound of fire. Looking around to find its source, she found a row of frames of paintings on the wall.

Just as she walked closer to the row of paintings, one of the paintings moved.

A light gasp escaped her lips as she quickly hid behind one of the shelves.

She caught the silhouette of the two people, a man and a woman walking out from behind the painting. She deduced that it would be Mr. Canaan. She watched the duo walk towards the door; the lady walked out the door, but Mr. Canaan turned.

Her eyes widened, and she leaned inwards hoping she doesn't get caught.

Her heart thumped louder and louder in her chest as he walked towards her direction.

He stopped abruptly when he almost reached where she was. It was his phone that rang.

Nurna stood there, rigid as a statue, almost not breathing. She was reminded of her first impression on him, with his almost imposing stature and cold lifeless gaze.

The call ended, and Nurna clenched her fist, readying herself to face his head-on.

Just as she sprang from behind the shelf, her head hit something soft yet sturdy, Mr. Canaan's chest.

Just as she tried to step back, her heel hit the shelf. She let out a soft scream, oblivious to the wobbling of the tall shelf behind her. Mr. Canaan was quick to catch her into his embrace as he moved them farther away from the shelf.

Nurna's head was now buried into his chest. Mr. Canaan held onto her lean frame as the faint scent of the rosewater from her bath earlier invaded his olfactory receptors. He had picked up the scent beforehand, and that was how he knew she was in the library.

Nurna also got lost in the familiarity of this embrace; her senses telling her it could be that thing she was yearning for whenever she thought of the waterfall.

Pushing him away gently, they both stood in between the little passage amongst the shelf, even though they couldn't see each other clearly, they felt one another's gaze.

"You read all these?"

"Yes," he replied.

"Then you must know me from the past; you said you knew everything."

"What do you want to know?"

"Was I married?" She asked defiantly.

"No."

Her question this time came out as a whisper, "Was I in love with someone?"

"Yes," he cleared his throat.

"Who was he?"

There was a long silence in the library. Canaan's throat worked as he tried to come up with an answer.