“Do you really want to know me?” Her voice trembled, fragile as a leaf caught in a storm.
Noi’s lips, pale from biting, quivered as she hung her head.
Her thick lashes veiled the emotions swirling in her eyes, a curtain drawn tight against the world.
It was a question, but to Lyte, it carried the weight of an unyielding refusal.
He had brushed against the girl’s deepest defenses, a wall thicker than any he’d ever faced.
Should he press her, force his way through?
If he let this chance slip, would he ever uncover Noi’s past again?
Lyte was no mastermind, no strategist weaving intricate plans.
At his core, he was a warrior, a man of action, not calculation.
How long could he keep up this slow, steady companionship?
What if fate intervened before he could unravel her secrets?
But Noi was hurting.
She didn’t want to speak of her past.
Could he, in good conscience, force her to relive it?
Was that what he truly wanted?
Yet, what if this was his only shot?
What if Noi’s silence built an even stronger barrier, hiding the very spark that could lead to her undoing—or the world’s?
His thoughts clashed like swords, a chaotic duel of doubt and determination.
For a hero gifted in battle, this inner conflict threatened to split his mind apart.
The air grew heavy with their unspoken tension.
Just as Lyte resolved to bide his time and approach her gently later, Noi, silent until now, spoke.
“…”
Her words, heavy with melancholy, painted a vivid scene in Lyte’s mind: a white-haired girl, confined to a hospital bed, staring blankly day after day.
Her parents, consumed by the need to pay for her treatments, were absent.
The stark white walls, lit only by the harsh glow of fluorescent lights, offered no comfort.
Her only solace was a phone her mother had given her.
When its games grew stale, she gazed through the unbreakable window, watching a world she couldn’t touch.
The other patients, too, stared out those windows.
Were they yearning for freedom or cursing the iron bars that kept them caged, offering no escape from their sentenced lives?
Condemned by illness, some snuck cigarettes in defiance, filling the ward with the acrid stench of despair.
The smoke seemed to choke the lungs of all who breathed it, Noi included.
This was the world in which she grew up.
Listening in silence, Lyte felt his heart constrict, as though an invisible weight had settled in his chest.
He hadn’t expected Noi’s past to be so… singularly bleak.
When she finished, her voice soft and spent, Noi let out a faint sigh—whether of relief or defeat, he couldn’t tell.
Glancing around, Lyte’s eyes caught on a vendor selling balloons, clad in a whimsical costume.
An idea sparked.
“Wait here.”
With that, he hurried off, leaving Noi alone, her expression a mix of shock and reluctant longing.
Noi found a nearby pavilion and sank onto a stone bench.
Her hands pressed against her knees, her body hunched forward, white hair spilling over her cheeks like a veil.
People milled about, their laughter and chatter filling the air, yet none of it touched her.
In the midst of the crowd, her heart ached with a hollow loneliness.
Self-doubt consumed her, her spirit drifting as she drowned in regret over her memories and emotions.
When Lyte left, she felt warmth abandon her, like the sun sinking below the horizon, leaving only the cold glow of a lonely moon.
He’d left her behind, forcing her to face the icy solitude of the world alone.
The pavilion’s shade blocked the sunlight, and Noi, curled up on the bench, shivered in the shadows.
Even in the warm air, her heart felt doused in ice, the chill spreading through her limbs.
‘I shouldn’t have said anything…’
‘I shouldn’t have!’
‘I knew Lyte would care, and yet I went and made a fool of myself.’
Her eyes scanned the crowd, searching for him, but he was nowhere to be found.
Burying her face in her knees, she whispered to herself.
‘He left because he’s disgusted with me, didn’t he?’
‘It’s only natural…’
‘A clueless, sickly girl like me, stuck in a hospital bed—how could someone like him, who’s seen the dazzling women of the capital, ever look at me?’
Tears slipped from her eyes, falling with soft patters onto her pale thighs.
“Ugh…” Noi wiped at her tears with the back of her hand, but they kept coming.
‘I don’t need any man.’
‘I’ll live my life well enough on my own.’
So what if I let myself feel something for Lyte? It’s just a delusion. I’m finally free, finally healthy—I shouldn’t be crying.’
But the more she tried to console herself, the harder her tears fell, overwhelming her until her sobs threatened to choke her.
Through her tear-blurred vision, a clumsy figure in a brown bear costume lumbered toward her.
The bear knelt awkwardly before the weeping girl, its oversized arms waving in a flustered attempt at comfort.
A familiar, magnetic voice, laced with urgent concern, broke through.
“Don’t cry, don’t cry—look at this!”
A bundle of balloons, tethered by strings, floated before her.
Noi lifted her swollen, red eyes and mumbled, “I don’t want them…”
“Hmm, that’s tricky. How about this, then?” The bear, in a playful flourish, pulled a rainbow lollipop wrapped in sandpaper from behind its back.
Noi glanced at it, then turned away with a huff, ignoring him.
The bear scratched its head, patted its backside, and began a comical dance, twisting left and hopping right.
Noi’s attention flickered.
She watched, captivated by his awkward movements.
Unfamiliar with the costume, the bear tripped over its own bulky legs and tumbled to the ground.
The absurdity of it broke through Noi’s sorrow, and a laugh escaped her lips.
Seeing her smile, the bear scrambled up and enveloped her in a warm embrace.
They held each other for a long moment, Noi’s cheek pressed against the soft costume.
“Lyte,” she murmured, her voice soft and sticky with emotion, “thank you.”
The bear removed its headpiece, revealing Lyte’s sweat-dampened curls plastered to his forehead.
He grinned gently.
“Cheer up. Try the lollipop.”
Still drenched in sweat, Lyte fumbled with the costume’s clumsy paws, trying to unwrap the lollipop’s sandpaper coating.
His futile efforts only made Noi laugh again.
She took the lollipop, peeled off the wrapper, and offered it to him first.
“Mmm! No surprise there—it’s my pick, after all. Delicious. Your turn!” Lyte’s rare, goofy grin lit up his face as he awkwardly gripped the lollipop in his oversized paw.
Noi’s lips brushed the candy, and her eyes crinkled with delight at the sweetness.
As they savored the lollipop’s sugary tang, their shared smiles felt sweeter still.
“It’s so hot—take that off already,” Noi said, her smile soft as she helped Lyte shed the heavy costume.
She hadn’t realized he’d left to don the bear suit, and the revelation lifted a weight from her heart.
He hadn’t abandoned her—he’d been trying to make her smile.
The misunderstanding dissolved, their bond strengthened by the moment.
Noi listened quietly as Lyte shared lighthearted stories of everyday things, steering clear of sensitive topics.
She nibbled her lollipop, her smile bright and genuine.
The beach’s yacht area was far from the mock battle zone, but with Lyte by her side, the distance felt too short.
She wished they could walk together, unhurried, for a lifetime.
The yacht area, officially called the “Swimming Assault Boat Zone,” was split into two distinct sections.
The spacious left side was for zooming around in boats, while the right, more intricately designed, hosted multiple water obstacle races.
As Noi and Lyte stepped into the area, a staff member approached, saying the supervisor had been expecting them.
They followed the staff to the right side, where a sharp whistle cut through the air.
A lifeguard, burly and dressed for duty, sprinted across the water’s surface to scoop up a struggling child.
The boy’s father swam over in a panic, checking his son before thanking the lifeguard and asking, wide-eyed, “My God, how did you walk on water?”
“Water affinity, kid,” the lifeguard replied with a grin, striding back to the shore.
A staff member greeted him, relaying news of Noi and Lyte’s arrival.