Chapter Two

"Sure." The words felt like gravel. I sat beside him on the bed, the mattress dipping under our combined weight. The feeling of guilt was a living thing now, coiling in the pit of my stomach, tightening with every second of proximity.

He leaned over slowly, his movements less predatory now, more seeking. He rested his head on my shoulder, his warm weight a surprising comfort. His arms wrapped around my waist, holding me tightly, as if I were a lifeline. His breathing was soft against my neck, a steady rhythm that contrasted with the frantic beat of my own heart.

“I’ve been so lonely these days...” His voice was muffled by my shirt, thick with an emotion that was painfully genuine. “I can't see anything anymore. Only you can make me feel better, Rachel.”

"You've me. I'll not make you feel lonely." The promise was a lie, but the pat I gave his back was real, a small, human gesture of comfort for a man drowning in darkness. The contradiction was tearing me apart.

He tilted his head up, his face turning toward mine. A faint furrow appeared between his brows, his clouded eyes seeming to search for something he couldn’t see. His thumb brushed softly over the back of my hand, a gentle, questioning touch.

“You sound a little tense today. Did something happen downstairs with my mom?” His tone was curious, laced with concern. “She's been harder on you lately, hasn't she?”

The observation was so astute it stole my breath. He might be blind, but he wasn’t oblivious. He could hear the strain I worked so hard to conceal. "No, kai. She's just stressed about your health." I reached up, cupping his face in a gesture I’d seen Rachel use in old photos. The stubble on his jaw was rough against my palm. "She'll be good when she'll find a donor for you."

He leaned into my touch, a silent acceptance of the weak excuse. He turned his face, pressing a soft, warm kiss to the inside of my wrist.

The touch sent a jolt through me, a mix of revulsion and a strange, unwanted thrill. His dark eyes, though unseeing, felt like they were looking straight into my soul, seeing the fraud lurking beneath Rachel’s voice.

“I don't care much about getting my sight back.” The confession was quiet, devastating. “I just don't want to lose you, that's all.”

The feeling of guilt ate me more hearing him. It was a physical ache, a hollowing out. But I couldn't pull away. I was acting as his fiancé. I had to redirect this, to steer us away from the precipice of his devotion. "Kai, do you remember how close we used to be..." The question was a desperate gambit, a plunge into the fictional past I was supposed to inhabit.

His fingers, which had been tracing idle patterns on my arm, stilled. They moved up to my shoulder, then paused at my jawline. A soft, nostalgic smile tugged at the corner of his mouth, transforming his handsome face, making him look younger, more vulnerable.

“Of course I remember.” His voice was a warm, distant thing. “That rainy day we kissed in the campus library, you got my favorite sweater all wet. I still think about it all the time.”

"Yeah i remember." The two words were all I could muster. I was drowning in the details of a memory that wasn't mine, picturing a rain-soaked library and a sweater I’d never seen.

He pulled me closer, his thumb brushing lightly, perilously, over my lower lip. His voice dropped to a low murmur that vibrated through me, full of a longing so potent it felt like a physical force. “Can I kiss you? I just... I need to feel you right now. It's been so long since I've had you this close.”

My heart stopped. I curse at myself. I had walked straight into this, a mouse tempting a trap. I put myself in more trouble. Panic sparked, cold and sharp. Then i got an idea. A flimsy, desperate idea. "Kai i was thinking of something."

He froze, his hand lingering on my lip. He pulled back slightly, a faint look of confusion crossing his features as he tilted his head, listening intently. “What is it, baby? You can tell me anything, you know that.”

"I was thinking what if wait until your birthday." The words tumbled out. "I mean, I've a surprise." It was a delay tactic, nothing more. A stay of execution.

He blinked slowly, the confusion melting away into a soft, fond smile that made my chest constrict. He squeezed my waist gently, nuzzling his face against my shoulder again. His breath was warm through the fabric of my shirt. “A surprise? Alright, I'll wait. I'd wait forever for you, Rachel.”

The sheer, unadulterated trust in his voice was a weight I couldn't bear. "Now let's rest, okay?"

He hummed in agreement, a low, contented sound. He shifted, lying down and pulling me with him, his arm a secure band around my waist, tucking me against his chest.

His voice was already slurred with sleep, tickling my ear. “Alright, baby. Stay with me tonight, don't leave. I sleep better when you're here.”

*I bite my lip. Ahhhhhhhh what do i do now? This man is so clingy, god will cook me in hell for doing this to a blind man.* The internal scream was silent, a chaos contained within the shell of my body. "yeah sure. Why would i leave? The lie was becoming a reflex."

He squeezed me gently, a soft, satisfied sigh escaping his lips as he pressed a light kiss to the back of my neck.

His breathing began to even out, slow and deep. The warmth of him seeped into me, a false comfort. He mumbled drowsily, the words barely audible. “I love you so much, Rachel. I don't know what I'd do without you here with me.”

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