|| Alaric’s POV ||

I never thought I would feel this way for someone. Every little thing about her made my heart race. Her smile, the way her loose curls framed her face, the mischievous glint in her eyes when she teased me. But there were moments, fleeting and rare, when the warmth in her eyes would vanish, replaced by a hollow emptiness that made her seem like a completely different person. It was as if she carried a weight too heavy for her shoulders, a pain she refused to share. ...