Her Fear, His Obsession

That would have to change now...

Alia had spent the better chunk of a day in the office made for her. It was slowly coming back together, the broken furniture had been replaced, all the torn books had fresh copies, all the broken glass had been cleared up, there was even a little birdcage Luca had Viraj install for the bird Alia was nursing.

Honestly, he didn't care about the bird. What had driven him nuts was how close she was to Viraj. And since then, how she ignored him, but talked to every other male present.

The only thing that remained the same was the mirror glass was gone and hadn't been replaced. Luca had insisted on leaving it open and Alia didn't want to respond. Instead, she moved the couch so that the back was facing his office. Luca was irked but stuck. He didn't want to limit her freedom in the castle and this was her anger, he knew. Deep down, she cared for him still.

At least that's what he thought until that day. He peered into her office after finishing his meeting and saw her building a lego. He smiled, happy that she was at least occupied, until he heard her call, "Jay! I need a hand, please." The guard that had been assigned to her appeared, a smile beaming.

"Yes, my Queen, what may I do to serve you?" Jay scurried, too quickly for Luca's liking to her Legos and Alia.

"Give me your hand, Jay, and it's Alia," she chided him as she grabbed his hand and put it on the top of the tower. "I need you to hold this. You should sit- it could be a while," she noted, patting the couch near her. Jay sat, ensuring that he wasn't touching her.

Watching them so close made Luca see red again. As he was about to march over, he stilled, remembering last time. Taking deep breaths, he plotted. No yelling, just glaring. That should be enough to get this Jay to understand. And then he could punish him after.

He marched over and threw the door open. Jay and Alia looked over and Jay paled, dropping the Lego as he fell into a salute. The lego shattered to pieces and Alia looked distraught. Looking at Jay and then Luca, she stood up, "What the hell, Luca?"

Luca stepped closer, glaring, but silent. Jay further tensed, feeling the radiating power off Luca. It was awesome in might and forcing him to kneel further and further. "Am I interrupting, my love? I'm so sorry I got in the way of you and your friend, this pathetic excuse for a slave?"

Alia was taken aback. How dare he accuse her of cheating in a relationship she didn't even want. She knew it, all men were the same and he was only doing this so he could gaslight her when he finally left her. But she wouldn;t engage or give him the satisfaction. Letting out an exasperated yell, she ran off.

Behind her, Luca remained in her office, angry and confused. "You, get up," he gestured by kicking him lightly in the side. Jay stood, his head bowed, hands clasped in front of him, awaiting his fate. "I'm letting you go this once, because I need to go see your Queen, but you had best see yourself reassigned before I reassign you into another world. Jay gulped and nodded, before bowing and running off at top speed.

Luca sauntered down the hall. From Viraj, he learned that she had gone into their room and was just grateful she hadn't run away. He opened the room to see three maids kneeling by the door. He could hear sobs from the closet. Looking at the women, he cocked an eyebrow. The woman closest to the door bowed her deep, "I'm sorry, your Highness, we beg your forgiveness, but we were following our Queen's commands."

"Next time, her tears matter more than her commands- understood?" He hissed to them. They nodded fiercely. Jerking his head towards the main entrance, they all curtsied and walked away.

Taking a deep breath, Luca squared his shoulders, ready to walk into the fire.

As he walked in, he saw Alia curled into a little ball in the corner. Moving to kneel beside her, he stroked her hair. "What's wrong, my love?" he purred. "I know I've angered you, but I don't understand the crying. Please, my love, you know what it does to me when I see you cry. I can't bear it. Are you in pain? Is it because you think I punished Jay or Viraj? I swear, I haven't punished either of them. My love, my heart, I'm sorry," he implored. "Please tell me what is wrong. I swear I won't get mad."

After what seemed like a lifetime of apologies, Alia finally looked up. It was odd to her- she was crying because she was scared, but she wasn't just scared of Luca losing his temper, she was scared of losing him.

Even through his anger, he was a constant for her now. She didn't want to lose him. But she knew, like all other constants, he would one day tire of her and discard her. "You're going to leave anyways, so what do you care about what is making me upset?"

He looked at her, dumbfounded. Did she not see how much effort he was putting into making her happy, making her his Queen? How would he leave? Then, a guilt washed over him. He convinced her of his love, not his loyalty. Not his persistence. That would have to change now.