Page 80 of Everdoll

I inhaled sharply. She had said it with such hatred that my body temperature rose. Fuck. No matter what, being the target of her emotions always threw me off balance. Clearing my throat, I reached out again, this time to lift her up. Mina only let out a small “huh” sound, saying nothing else. Her mouth opened to scream, but I realized she was too weak to do so.

Yes, her anger was still there, but she no longer reacted to anything, didn’t resist, didn’t fight back. She was treating me the way I had treated my family.

A hollow shell.

I couldn’t let that happen.

I gently laid her on the bed, my veins tense.

“Nothing left?” Lifting my head, I studied her face intently. “No hope left in you for me?”

She regarded me with indifference, like a god gazing down from above. Her eyes, veiled by strands of hair, had turned the dullest shade of red, like burnt straw.

“Just… leave me alone. I don’t want this anymore. The game is long over, so why are you still here?”

“I’m not playing any game, I…”

“Then why did you deceive me?”

She yelled, her voice heavy with everything she’d been holding in. I fell silent immediately, waiting, while her lids dropped, she clenched her fists.

“Tell me… was it fun for you? Did you enjoy fooling me when I was pouring my heart out to you? What was I to you? A test subject? Some kind of toy for your amusement? You…”

Her gaze was intense, filled with fury, sorrow… darkness. I was the cause of that it. I was the target of Mina’s anger. She was finally looking at me again.

So sweet, so disastrous.

A wave of pleasure spread through me, but I managed to look at her with a straight face. I couldn’t respond, just shaking my head, denying.

“I… I don’t understand.” Mina looked away. “What did you want from me? If you’re a Loxton… Why did you stay with me all these years? Why did you keep lying? What about your iron arm? It’s so… Everything is so weird.”

“I had no choice, my beautiful Mina, I…”

“Stop calling me that.”

“I can’t. I need to show you nothing has changed. You must believe I’m still your Remi.”

She scoffed. “Stop this already.”

“I can’t. Your Remi…”

“I don’t have any Remi.”

“You have, and he’s madly in love with you.” I felt my ears burning, which was ridiculous. I had confessed countless times before, but this time… The big secret was uncovered. Mina saw me as a human being, a possible option for love. Finally.

“What?” she asked in a low voice, so close to laugh at any moment. “Are you… in love with me?”

“Why are you surprised?” I gently ran my fingers through her hair. “Haven’t I told you a hundred times?”

“Oh right, forgive me. For years, I thought no matter what I said or did, you were programmed to just agree with me.”

“Well, that’s not entirely wrong. I cannot refuse anything you say or want. Your wish is my law.”

She peered at me, tilting her head as her lips curled in a faint, mocking disbelief.

“Oh, how romantic you are, Loxton heir. You got a little too carried away with this game, didn’t you?”

“What game? My feelings are sincere.”