Chapter 45: Awkward Silence
>>Aelin
The walk back to the room was unbearable. Draegon’s hand rested lightly on my back, a gesture that should have felt comforting, but all it did was make the awkward tension worse. I was not used to it and with everything that had happened, it just felt strange.
I didn’t know what to say to him, and the weight of the silence between us made my thoughts feel louder than they should have been.
When we reached the door, he pushed it open and motioned for me to enter first. I hesitated for a moment, noticing that this was our bedroom, the one in which we spent our first night together.
I still stepped inside.
The room felt suffocating the moment the door closed behind us. He stayed near the entrance, while I found myself frozen in the middle of the room, arms crossed over my chest.
I glanced at him, my heart hammering against my ribs. He stood there, his expression unreadable, his purple eyes flicking toward me briefly before he looked away. The air between us was thick, heavy with words neither of us dared to speak.
"How did you break through it?" I finally asked, my voice quieter than I intended. There was nothing else that came to mind so I asked him this.
Draegon’s gaze shifted back to me, his jaw tightening slightly. For a moment, I thought he might not answer me, but he did
"It wasn’t easy," he said after a pause. His voice was calm but carried a weight that made my stomach twist. "The spell wasn’t like anything I’ve encountered before. It wasn’t just magic—it was manipulative, invasive. It made me believe things that weren’t real. Things I’d never..." He stopped abruptly, as if catching himself, "There were times I had no idea what I was doing. Even my mind wasn’t there."
I took a step closer, my curiosity outweighing the tension. "Then how did you fight it? What broke the spell?"