Khearia's Sun

LVIII

ㅤ"Seriously though, what did you say?"

ㅤJames hardly spared him a glance. "I'm serious. He wouldn't want me to repeat it."

ㅤThe discretion was curious considering James showed more hatred for Riley than he did for King Fabian.

ㅤ"I'm surprised you care," Alex expressed.

ㅤJams huffed in wry laughter. "No more surprised than I."

ㅤIt seemed that James was coming to the slow realisation that he cared for others more than he thought. Alex had always suspected it. But James had been so sure of himself, so sure of who he was, that it ultimately meant he knew nothing but the lies he clung to.

ㅤJames' apathy had never been about Eris, it had always been about his loneliness. He couldn't have cared for others when no one stuck around to form a relationship with him.

ㅤ"You're thinking about something tosh again," James said, nudging Alex with his shoulder.

ㅤAlex kept a straight face. "I don't overthink."

ㅤJames narrowed his eyes but determined Alex was teasing him.

ㅤ"That's a dangerous game you're playing," James warned. "If you're convincing enough I would have to strangle you just to prove a point."

ㅤAlex felt his lips quirk up. "I suppose I'll have to be even more convincing then."

ㅤJames' eyes lingered on Alex's neck, a heat smouldering in them. Alex chuckled, though he'd admit it stirred up some interest in him. The sensation had been intense the last time.

ㅤ"What's this about strangulation?" Yufus asked loudly, his voice carrying.

ㅤAlex looked back, wide-eyed. Four sets of eyes looked back. The horse snorted.

ㅤThomas groaned, his face crumpling, digging his palms into his eyes. "Oh, Gods. When will this nightmare end?"

ㅤ"You have good hearing," James complimented the mercenary. Alex couldn't determine if it was sarcastic or not.

ㅤ"I do," Yufus boasted, proud of himself. "I don't expect both of you got those marks from strangulation, though."

ㅤAlex blinked. Once, then twice. 'Both of you'?

ㅤAlex turned a slow glare James' way. James stared back, his face entirely neutral. But, Alex could tell. His face was too relaxed, too innocent. He was cackling on the inside. It angered Alex just looking at it.

ㅤ"You fucking bastard."

ㅤJames' lips slowly spread into a grin, splitting through his facade.

ㅤ"What?" he had the audacity to ask.

ㅤ"You fucking know 'what'," Alex snapped.

ㅤJames made a show of peering at Alex's neck, his eyes widening comically. "Oh my. What's that?"

ㅤAlex opened his palms and then clenched them shut again. He did his best to remain calm, but his words came out slow, low and tight. "Tell me right now. Has this been on my neck all day? When I talked to my brother? When I talked to Harrison?"

ㅤJames snorted. "Now, that's just a stupid question."

ㅤAlex's already sun-hot face began to burn with embarrassment, stinging. He despised the distressing ache of judgemental stares on his back, silently criticising him, mocking him, like he knew they were.

ㅤ"Oy, you're not innocent either," James said. He was smiling, but there was a chill in his tone.

ㅤAlex grabbed him by the collar but James' body remained pliant, soft. James raised his eyebrows in challenge, lowering his chin, appearing deceptively submissive. There was no debate that James still had the control in this situation, but it was what Alex needed to snap out of his spike of frustration, his heart fooled.