Page 77 of The Freedom You Seek
Dion grumbled adorably in his sleep and tugged me even closer. “Shh.”
If I hadn’t been in a state of misery, I might have appreciated how adorable Dion could be when he didn’t want to stop sleeping, or how I enjoyed the feeling of him being so close.
“Please, wake up, Dion.”
“Stop moving,” Dion growled into my ear as he spoke, his breath on my cheek triggering goosebumps to break out all over my skin. However, his arms finally loosened up, and he regained some level of consciousness. “Shit, my head hurts.”
Those words invited my bad conscience to return with a vengeance because, in a way, I was responsible for his hangover.
Dion opened his eyes, and they instantly found mine. “Thank the gods you’re still here. How are you?” Silent for a moment, I could tell he was examining the wounds on my head, which was sweet but unnecessary. I barely felt any discomfort anymore, and I lacked the patience to wait until he was done checking every single inch of my scalp—twice.
“I’m so sorry, Dion. I said so many bad things to you and didn’t even mean half—.”
My apology was interrupted when the rough pad of Dion’s index finger brushed across the delicate skin of my lips, and my eyes widened in surprise. “Shh, Naya. Don’t. Yes, you rambled a lot of crap yesterday, butso did I.”
“Dion…I hope we can still be friends.”
“Naya, look at me. Here—in my eyes.”
I’d diverted my gaze away from him at the start of our conversation. Blood rushed to my cheeks as I followed his command, and for once, I didn’t fight him ordering me to do something, especially with my bad conscience written all over my face.
As Dion locked his eyes with mine, he observed the tears that I hadn’t even noticed streaming down my cheeks. He let out a low growl that acknowledged his displeasure. “Stop crying. You know that I hate it when you cry.” Gently, he lifted his hand to my face and wiped away the wetness.
“Listen to me. I know little about friendship. I’m still learning how to be a friend worthy of you. But what Idoknow is that you don’t throw everything away because of a stupid fight. Isn’t that right?”
“Yes, it is. And for what it’s worth, the truth is…I don’t see you as a problem, Dion. Just as a man with an ego a bit too big, and while some of your behavior can be problematic at times, in a way, that’s part of your charm.”
A low chuckle vibrated in Dion’s chest. “Oh, is it? Tell me more about how my ego ischarming.”
My cheeks heated again, and I lightly boxed him in his chest. “I’d rather not. That thing is inflated enough as it is.”
Dion laughed, and it was as if the sun rose. His smile melted the anxiety away that had plagued me since I’d woken up. “Naya, Naya…you should know by now that you can’t get rid of me, even if you tried much, much harder than yesterday. We would never have found you back in Credenta if our fates weren’t intertwined. Some things are so much more important than small, petty quarrels.”
I had no clue how to answer that. Thinking about the bigger meaning of our journey always made me nervous when I spent too much time dwelling on it.
Dion must have sensed I was out of words. “I have one very important question for you, though.”
“Yes?”
“As a token of proof that I’m trying to be less of—how did you put it?—ah, yes, a controlling bastard—I’ll attempt to honor your freedom to make your own choices. But Naya—I don’t want you to train with Thain anymore, and I don’t want him taking from your Potential. There’s no need to pretend I can’t see the toll training with him takes on you, even ifhe’soblivious to it. It makes me furious and holding back seeing how it’s slowly destroying your health…I won’t be able to witness that any longer, especially now that there’s an alternative. So—Naya, train with me. Or with no one. But not with him anymore. I’m done watching you suffer.”
I was stunned, and it made me uneasy that his speech sounded almost like begging. Dionneverbegged. Gods, he rarely asked for anything—he just took what he wanted. Nicely voicing his desires was already something akin to a miracle. But here he was, and it didn’t even occur to him that there was no need for pleading because he was simply right. I didn’t see Thain as bad of a person as Dion did, but I knew he was shallow and lacked empathy. The best example was our brief talk in the library when he wouldn’teven have considered asking me if I wanted to bind myself to him. He’d just presumed I’d be just as excited as he was.
Obviously, I was silent for too long because Dion hastily continued, “And I was honest with you—I’d never force you into a binding. Even if I don’t dismiss the idea of the Rite outright because unbound, you’ll always be in more danger, but gods be damned, I’ll protect you no matter what. So just forget about that stupid Rite, all right? You’re more important than any magic.”
“Oh, Dion…” His words had come from the core of his heart and were like a balm soothing my soul. It was crazy how he sometimes understood me on such an intrinsic level, and then, at other times, he was so—well, him. “That’s easy. You know…I don’t want to train with Thain anymore. I’ve thought for a while now that he and I aren’t compatible.”
“A blind person could see so.” Dion surprised me yet again. If I’d been asked, I would have bet everything on him turning smug at my words, but I was mistaken. Instead, hope bloomed on his face.
“If you want to, we’ll try if we’re a better match. So, yes—let’s just test how training together will pan out and then decide from there.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
“Concerning the Rite—you’re right. I don’t want to be bound, not to anyone. Nevertheless, I want you to explain. The book I’ve read wasn’t very thorough. Even if binding is out of the question for me, I want to have all the information.”
“I’ll tell you everything I know, Naya. And I won’t pressure you, that’s a promise. And should you ever change your mind about it, though—you’ll have to convince me it’s what you want. I’m not taking any chances when it comes to your happiness.”
I nodded, and warmth spread through me. On occasion, Dion was so sweet and perfect, and it almost made up for the times he was a giant ass.