The warmth in his face was instantaneous, like he hadn’t seen her in years. There was genuine concern in his eyes as he rushed to her side.
“What happened?” he asked, his voice softer than I’d ever heard it.
Celeste gave a weak smile, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. “Oh, nothing too serious! Just a little mishap during a run with some of the warriors. Sprained my ankle, nothing to worry about.”
Her eyes flickered to me for a moment, then back to Asher. “You here for a check-up too?”
Asher hesitated, glancing at me briefly before answering. "Yeah, my friend 'little sister' here had a bit of a fever, so I brought her in to get checked out."
I was used to being called his ‘sister’ by now. Ever since Asher decided to keep our relationship on the down low, he’d introduced me as his friend's little sister—someone he was just looking out for. Only his closest friends knew the real deal.
“She’s staying with you, right?” Celeste asked with a knowing smile. “Of course, you’ve got to take care of her properly. You two go on ahead, I need to head over there."
She pointed toward the other clinic across the way.
Before I could process the sting of her words, Asher was already scooping Celeste into his arms. “Come on, I’ll take you to the clinic,” he said, completely ignoring me.
“Asher, I’m fine!” Celeste protested weakly, but she didn’t resist.
“Asher,” I said quietly, trying to keep the tremor out of my voice, “I’ll wait here.”
He didn’t even acknowledge me.
Watching him carry her away, I felt the last of my strength drain from my body. It wasn’t just in my head—when Celeste was around, his true feelings slipped out, clear as day.
I forced myself to smile, bitter and hollow, before turning to find the healer’s room on my own.
Inside, the healer frowned as she checked my condition. “You’ve had a severe allergic reaction,” she said, her tone serious. “Your skin is reacting badly to something, and your temperature is dangerously high. Your breathing’s getting shallow too. We need to get you on an IV with antihistamines and some painkillers to help with the swelling.”
I nodded numbly, her words washing over me like a distant echo.
Out of habit, my hand reached for my phone to call Asher. But just as I was about to dial, I stopped myself.
No. Not this time.