Our forgotten past (#3)

39.

Chapter thirty nine | Amara
"Another word and you'll be a widow, Sestra."sister, Ivarsen states, his eyes shooting glares at Ezekiel who stands at the doorframe, looking unbothered by his threat.

"I'm still too young to be widowed, again." I joke, the dry sarcasm causes Ezekiel to glower back at me, "A joke." I clarify, raising a brow as my expression stays blank,

"Not funny." He deadpans, I roll my eyes and ignore him as I grab my sandwich, biting down on it, Ivarsen narrows his eyes accusingly, "You're not going to defend me?" Ivar complains.

I roll my eyes again at his dramatic action, "Can you stay in the same place as each other without one threatening the other?" I protest, rubbing a hand across my eyes.

"No." They both say in unison and I glare at them, a knock on the door stops their bickering and Ivarsen goes to open it surprisingly, Aurora steps inside, her expression hesitant as her eyes flicker to Ivarsen and then to me.

Her whole expression lights up as she strolls toward me excitedly, bouncing on her tiptoes as she sits next to me, I raise an amused brow, waiting for her clarification, "I got the job I wanted!" She squeals, she's been digging into options away from our world to become a fashion designer, she loved it, all her sketches are full of new and refreshing designs.

Ecstasy runs through my body at seeing her happy, my smile widens and pride rushes through my veins as I beam up at her, "That's so great, I'm proud of you." I mutter sincerely, my words calm and soft.

She smiles wider, "I'll leave in two months." She says and my stomach knots at the idea of her leaving but it's for her happiness so I'll have to live with it,

"What?" Ivarsen speaks with a rough stern tone, his whole expression transformed, her smile falters and she swallows, her throat bobbing with the motion, "You're leaving?" He asks, jaw tight, cheekbones sharp, eyes narrowed, he is irritated by the situation.

If this conversation execrates in a direction that'll bother her I'll intercept but so far he's smooth with his words, hence the tone he's using, "Yes." She breathes out softly, her eyes hesitant as they flit between my brother and I.

His Adam's Apple bobs as he swallows hard, sitting down in front of us, Ezekiel watches from afar, not interjecting our conversation but I can feel his eyes on me, "For how long?" He grits out, his tone low and measured, but I notice the way his fists are clenched by his sides, he doesn't support the idea.

Which shouldn't surprise me.

"I don't know—Years." She says and his expression dims further, and maybe any of the other two people with us would say that Ivarsen looks angry, but I know my brother better than any other, he's sad.

"Congratulations." He says dryly, not an ounce of joy in his tone, Aurora watches him for a beat, her shoulders drooped and her eyes flaming with emotions, she loves him, it's clear, "Thanks." Aurora forces out,

Ezekiel must sense the tension lighting up the air "Ivar." He says sternly, probably to distract him, and while many would think Ivarsen and Ezekiel hate each other, at the end of the day, Ivar trusted Ezekiel to take care of me, he's the reason we met in the first place.

And deep down, they both care about each other, maybe not love each other, but there's a sense of respect and trust between them, Ivar's eyes don't leave Aurora's but he replies dryly, "Yes?" Ezekiel squints his eyes slightly and exchanges a look with me before crossing his arms over his chest.

"We have stuff to deal with, you'll make us late." That was the whole reason why my brother was here in the first place, Ezekiel and him were going somewhere to finish some dirty work.

"What day are you leaving?" Ivarsen completely ignores him and directs his question at my best friend, she spills the date and time for him, his posture remains rigid, his eyes lost somewhere in his mind.

A beat passes and he stands up abruptly, his gaze lingering on Aurora's for a beat before he walks away, brushing Ezekiel's shoulder off in process as he leaves the house, closing the door behind him with a thud.

Ezekiel's eyes find mine, I blink softly as I stand up, walking toward him, "Don't be late for tonight," I warn, we're all going to the beach, it was Ekaterina's idea to celebrate Alexander's birthday, and of course, he couldn't say no to her even though I knew that he hated birthdays.

"I won't," he promises, a smile spreads over his lips, a second passes and he plants a kiss on my temple, brushing my dark strands and tugging them behind my ear, warmth spreads through my veins at the gesture and I caress his shoulder.

"Your brother will murder me if I stay longer." He raises his brows and smiles, seconds later, he leaves the house and I'm left with Aurora who just looks sad.

Her head is in her hands, her lost eyes find mine, "I didn't want to tell him in that way." She says forcefully, her words sincere and gentle, I nod curtly, knowing that this is probably her intention, and I lean down beside her, caressing her shoulder in soft movements.

"It'll be okay, he won't be this mad for long." I promise, knowing my brother, he will probably come here with a flower bouquet for her, she smiles and sighs, "Do you want to—bake some cookies for tonight?" I suggest.

Her face lights up at the mention of baking, "Yes!" She exclaims and gets up excitedly, strolling towards the kitchen hurriedly, opening the cabinets as she starts placing the ingredients.

And not three minutes later, everything is placed in front of us, messily, I huff out a breath of frustration and she smiles wider, knowing that the cause of my irritation is her disorganization.

"Okay, I have the perfect recipe for that, will you be the one cooking?" She asks and I instantly shake my head "I suck at that." I insist, she smiles and grabs a bowl, starting to place the flour in it.

I watch her from afar, not intercepting, my phone vibrates in my hands and I check the messages that pop up, they're from Ekaterina.

Ekaterina:
-can you buy some donuts? :)
-the chocolate ones!
-they're Alexander's favorite.
-also, tell your husband to put a zipper on his mouth (those are Alexander's words by the way)

She doesn't even need to clarify the last text for me to know that already, I don't even realize I'm smiling until Aurora nudges my shoulder, looking happy, she wiggles her brows, "What are you smiling at, hmm?" She asks, narrowing her eyes.

I shrug, rolling my eyes "It's Ekaterina." She doesn't look convinced, "Oh of course, so you're not sexting with your husband?" She raises a brow and I narrow my eyes, "Do you do that with my brother?" I'm turning the table but I'm honestly amused by all of this.

Her eyes widen and she plays it off by coughing in her fist and searching for god knows what in the cabinets even though everything is in front of her.

"No! What? Me? Never never." Very convincing.

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