---- The question struck a nerve, his expression darkening.


    No.


    Oh.


    She frowned, her usual cheer dimming.


    Well, as you said everyone has someone, right? Not everyone.


    he replied curtly, his tone signaling the end of the conversation.


    Alex bit her lip, her bubbly nature warring with a sense of self-preservation.


    But she wasnt one to back down so easily.


    She had unveil this man.


    He was a mystery she has been struggling to solve for years, and now that he is in front of her? How can she let the opportunity slip by.


    Okay you got her.


    She didnt tell him the full truth carlicr.


    The woman in her vige weren''t his only fans.


    She was his biggest crazy fan.


    She had a full collection of postcard stamps which that had his photos.


    Cuttings of newspapers with his articles.


    Commander Damien was a distant dream for amoner like her.


    A man she had only wished and dreamed.


    ---- Yet she met him at the time of death.


    She watched him snatch her out of its clutches.


    How could she not be fascinated about him? A broken wed hero is what people call him after he was the only one who returned from the kingdom of darkness.


    They med him for not saving others.


    But for Alex? He will always be her hero.


    Well, I don''t have anyone either.


    So maybe that makes us the same.


    Damien shot her a nce, his gaze flickering with something unidentifiable before returning to its usual cold indifference.


    We''re nothing alike.


    Herughter was soft, almost wistful.


    Maybe not.


    But we''re both here, in the middle of this forest, and neither of us is alone right now.


    That''s something, isnt it? He didnt answer, but the slight loosening of his shoulders suggested her words weren''t entirely lost on him.


    Alex turned her face to the sky, the sun filtering ---- through the leaves above.


    You can try to ignore me all you want, but I''m sticking around.


    You shouldn''t.


    Why not? Because people who stick around me tend to die.


    She looked at him , surprised at his words.


    Their eyes sh, But Damien was no way ready for her reply.


    You borrowed me from death today.


    And I don''t really care if I die today provided ites for me before you.


    She smiles at him, the warmth fills her eyes and Damiens feels a crack in his heart.


    A frozen piece that thawed.


    Stupid woman.


    He deres, ignoring her and walking ahead.


    And she shrugs her shoulders to jump in his shadows.


    Boosting it as if it was an achievement.


    That I have heard before.


    Try something new.


    ---- Damien said nothing, his silence as heavy as the forest air.


    But for the first time in months, it didnt feel suffocating.


    He could breathe again and so could she: