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“I don’t believe you.”

“Why?”

“Why? Why would I believe? That’s the question.”

“You’ve seen how I’ve felt about you all these years,” I whispered. “Isn’t that proof enough? Before, you found it so easy to believe I loved you. Then why is it so hard now? How are you going to explain everything?”

I watched with pleasure as a blush spread across her cheeks. Her lips parted, her lashes fluttered, and unconsciously, she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. So freaking cute.

“Everything… you… you kissed me a lot. You were… serious about them?”

I leaned forward slightly until my nose brushed her chin, my voice dropping to a low murmur. “Mmm. Right. I kissed you a lot. You remember every single one? What a good master you are, Mina.”

“Stop…” she raised a hand to push me away, her fingers trembling against my chest, too weak to actually move me, yet I played along, feigning the impact as I stepped back.

“I…” Mina whipped her head away, her eyes skipping frantically across the room, her breath grew ragged. She looked like trapped, desperate for an exit. “It’s too much. I… don’t even know how I ended up meeting someone like you. I… If I’d known, I wouldn’t have…”

“You wouldn’t have what, Mina?”

“I got so close to you.” She fiddled with the threads of her purple sweater, her eyes darting around the floor. Her mouth was open, sweat dripping from her forehead. “I went too far. If I’d known… I wouldn’t have crossed your boundaries.”

I drew a deep breath. I knew this day would come, but I was still nervous and had to be careful with my words. Just as I was about to respond, Mina went on, “But you’re the one who tricked me. So I won’t feel responsible.”

At those words, I smiled slightly. “Please. Don’t blame yourself. Just be angry at me.”

Direct those enchanting feelings only at me.

“Well, I’m not angry. I won’t. I don’t know why you became my robot, or for whom you did it, but there’s no need for that anymore. You’re right, you didn’t do anything bad to me, so I’ll forgive you for deceiving me.” She spoke quickly, took a short breath, and continued. “I’m past the age of needing a babysitter; I can take care of myself. Thank you for everything you’ve done so far, now our paths…”

“My beautiful Mina,” She looked up at me in surprise. “You better stop talking or I will really lose my temper.”

“What?” she asked innocently, I could only sigh.

“I’m saying I love you here. All those years we were together. If I don’t love you, why would I stay with you for that long?”

She couldn’t meet my gaze, only shook her head. “You don’t. It’s because of me… My behaviors… You must think you love me, your mind must be confused after all that… intimacy.”

Normally, I would have teased and tickled her until she screamed, but I held back because she was serious. Damn, she really thinks like that.

“Do I look like someone confused, Mina? I know how I feel.”

“We were both kids. We couldn’t know how we felt. And… I don’t even know you, Raymond. I’m sorry for everything, but you’re to blame too. Stop bothering me.”

Something inside my chest seized. My full name sounded so foreign coming from her mouth, so wrong, I could barely stay composed.

“You’re really going to pretend like nothing happened? Was it all that meaningless to you? Is our bond that shallow?”

A flicker of panic passed over her face. Her lips parted, then trembled, she shook her head.

“I thought… if I just acted like nothing happened… it would fade away. I thought that was the right thing to do. I… I’m sorry… I’m so sorry…”

I clenched my jaw. Seeing her like that, so visibly shaken, made something in me falter. That’s why I had to be careful with my words. One wrong step and the whole conversation would collapse in on itself. We might end up going nowhere.

“What are you apologizing for, Mina?” I murmured. “You did nothing wrong.”

“Sometimes… I had my suspicions. I should’ve asked, but… I couldn’t. I was afraid you’d leave, I didn’t want the dream to end. The same thing happened with Eli. I couldn’t speak, I got scared… and I ran. I just… I keep running. I’m so pathetic, so stupid. I did it again. No, no! I’m sorry, I’m so sorry!”

“Mina.”