The Cursed King

Loriel helped Elise to get to her bathroom and left her there. She said she could handle it on her own. So, he closed the door and waited in her bedroom while she soaked in her bath and tried to calm her mind.

The man sat on her bed and cast his glance around him. This guestroom looked almost exactly like it was before Elise moved in here. She didn't redecorate or add anything personal to make it look like hers.

Did she still consider herself as a guest and didn't want to take ownership of this room? This thought ached Loriel's heart. He wanted her to enjoy life and get the best of everything.

However, she didn't even make her bedroom become more comfortable according to her preferences. She kept it as is.

Loriel remembered how Elise redecorated her chamber in the palace, in their past life, to suit his taste because she wanted him to spend more time in her chamber.

He saw the beautiful four-poster bed, the dresser, the cupboard... they were all tidy like a hotel room. She only had one backpack where she kept her lunchbox and her phone when she went to work every day.

The backpack was placed on the cupboard. Aside from the bag, Loriel didn't see anything personal in this room. When he checked the cupboard and drawers, he only found a few clothing items. Elise really didn't have a lot of worldly possessions.

This made him feel guilty. How could he convince Elise to buy more stuff that she needed? Money should never be an issue. He wanted her to live in luxury and didn't have to worry about money or getting anything her heart desired.

How could he make her think that what was his was hers too?

Should he propose to her and ask her to marry him before telling her who she was? He could confess his love to her and told her he couldn't see his life without her in it.

Would she think it's too fast?

They had only officially known each other for slightly over two months. Even though Loriel had known her for over fifteen centuries, Elise didn't know all that.

"Ahh..." The man closed his eyes and pressed his temple. He shouldn't dwell on that thought. What's important now was Elise's health.

She must rest well and recover her health before Loriel could even think about proposing to her. 

Meanwhile, Elise also closed her eyes and tried to remove all the heartache and anger from her heart. She realized her mental state affected her physical state a lot. When she was in deep grief like this, she became so weak and sick.

She must recover quickly, so she didn't trouble Loriel further. The man had been so kind to her, but she kept bothering him. She felt so useless.

*** 

An hour later, Loriel was pacing back and forth in Elise's bedroom. It's been an hour but Elise still had not come out of her bathroom. Did something happen to her? Did she pass out?

Gosh.. what should I do? Loriel asked himself. Would Elise get angry if he barged in and saved her should something bad really happen to her?

"Elise... are you okay?" He knocked gently and called her. "I am here if you need help."

He knocked again, but there was still no response.

Loriel became panicked. He wanted to kick the door open when suddenly he heard her weak reply from inside the bathroom.

"I am alive..." said the girl, trying to lighten up the atmosphere. Then she added with a nervous laugh. "I can't seem to get up from the bath. My legs feel so weak."

Loriel let out a sigh of relief. "Can I enter?"

"Mm."

Loriel opened the door and entered the bathroom.

"I will not look," he said. He looked away while he took a towel from the cupboard and draped it on his shoulder. Then he reached out his hand to Elise who was sitting down on the bathtub, covered by foamy water. "You can hold my hand and I will pull you."

"Th-thank you..." Elise felt so embarrassed. She didn't know after calming herself down in the bath, she would be too weak to get up on her own. "But.. I want to wash up first and get rid of the soap."

"Okay."

Loriel turned around and focused his attention on the bathroom door, while Elise unplugged the bath and let the soapy water drained. Then, she took the showerhead and turned on the water to wash her body clean in a sitting-down position.

Loriel waited patiently until she was done. His heart palpitated as his mind imagined what she looked like naked in the bathtub when he heard the sound of water touched her skin.

Ahh... he missed being intimate with her so badly.  He wanted to kiss her and hug her and cuddle her in his arms.

"I am done," Elise's voice moved the man from his reverie. Loriel turned around and reached out his hand again. This time, Elise held it with both hands. He grabbed her hands and pulled her to get on her feet, still looking away.

"Thank you," Elise whispered as she got to her feet and automatically leaned on him.

Loriel's heart skipped a beat when he felt her soft body touching his. He took the towel from his shoulder and wrapped her body with it and then carried her in his arms, out of the bathroom.

When he gently put her down on the bed, he was surprised to see tears dripped down her cheeks again. 

He looked at her with confused eyes. Did he do something to make her cry again?

"Is there something wrong? Are you in pain? Did I hurt you anywhere?" he asked her softly. "Or... do you need anything?"

Elise shook her head. "No, you didn't hurt me."

She hugged her body with her hands, looking like a sad child. This sight made Loriel's heart ached. He crouched down and touched her knees.

"Can you get dressed? If not, I will help you."

Elise shook her head again. She bit her lip, looking so embarrassed.

"I think I will need your help again..." she said in a barely audible voice.

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