Chapter 323: Parting?

Back at Noah's mansion.

Aria's question got Noah thinking. He had a secret to tell her and it was something huge. She had to know about it, not because it was in any way involved with her but because it was his other identity that not many people knew about. He had inherited it from his family and that was something he could never give up. No. He could only wish Aria to understand him and accept who he was without kicking up much fuss.

Aria observed his face for some time and on seeing him being silent, she understood that there were some things she was yet to know. Noah was still hiding things from her. But this time, she was not angry. No. She did not want to lose her cool without listening to his explanation. She wanted to know what he had in mind and why he had not told her about it. She did not want to jump to mindless conclusions and blame him once again for no fault of his.

Aria held Noah's face in her hands and made him look at her in the eye. "Noah, what is it? Tell me." She said, gently assuring him with her eyes that she was here and would not leave him until he explained everything clearly. 

Noah pulled back making Aria get up with him and he distanced himself from her. Aria frowned seeing him getting anxious and wondered what he wanted to tell her and why he was behaving weird all of a sudden. She could not help but fear the worst as every minute passed with Noah staying silent. Her heart was beating wildly as she waited patiently for Noah to speak up. But when she noticed that Noah had no intention of opening his mouth, she could not stop herself anymore. "Noah, please say something. You are scaring me." She pleaded as she held his hands in hers and pressed on them gently.

Noah who had bent his head raised it slowly and the expression of helplessness was clearly marked on his face. She could see that he wanted to tell her everything but he was scared, scared of something she could not comprehend. "Noah, please tell me what is bothering you. If you do not want to tell me right now, it's fine. I'll wait. But at least tell me that it is not something serious." She begged waiting to hear his assuring words. 

Noah took a deep breath before he started to speak, trying to come up with an answer that would not shock Aria much. "No Aria. It's best that I tell you about it right away rather than you finding out from somewhere else and misunderstanding me." Noah took a glance at the girl's expectant face before he lowered his eyes and confessed softly. "I am the leader of the Underworld."

Aria blinked her eyes twice wondering if her ears were ringing and if she was imagining things now. She even had the ridiculous thought that Noah was playing tricks with her and she tried to laugh it off. "Noah, are you trying to play here? If yes, then it was a good joke." She complimented him and chuckled lightly but on seeing Noah's stoic face, she stopped laughing. 

"Aria, I am not lying to you. It is the truth. I am the leader of the Underworld and Joshua and Ian are also part of it too." Noah answered, his eyes not leaving Aria's shocked face, He could see that her expressions changed from normal to horror in a fraction of seconds and that was all it took for Noah to lose all hope. He had assumed that she would be understanding even though it was just a good dream. His relationship was at stake once again and this time, he was sure that it was the end of it. There was no way Aria would come back to him. However, he still tried to explain himself trying out his luck for the last time.

"Aria, please try to hear me out. I know this is shocking news but this is something I cannot ignore and hide from you forever." Noah shifted closer to Aria now and held her arms tightly lest she should leave without hearing his explanation. "Aria, this was something I had to do. It was started by my great grandfather and it has passed on for generations now. I cannot leave it even if I want to." He continued to blabber, his voice almost coming out as a plead in the end. 

"Aria, please speak something." He begged seeing her stay silent. He even tried to hug her but the girl backed off and held her palm at him ordering him to stop in his place. That was it. Her cold behavior broke Noah's heart as well as the thin line of hope he had in his mind. He now realized that this was the end of the relationship and this time, there was no way Aria was coming back to him.

Aria was silent for a long time and Noah was devastated by her reaction. He let her and moved to the extreme corner of the bed away from her. He wore the shirt he had discarded long back and lowered his head in dismay, unable to believe his luck. The one woman he had liked in his entire life was about to leave him and he did not know what to do now. Aria was the first woman he had been attracted to and presumably the last one too. Although at first, he had just been intrigued by her, slowly but surely he had fallen for her and now he loved her dearly. But seeing Aria's face, he could confirm that this the end of his love life.

Neither of them spoke for a long time and finally, Aria collected her thoughts when she started to feel something to be odd. She was feeling cold and wondered how it was possible when she was fully dressed. Only when she looked down, did she realized that her shirt was lifted to her chest and it had remained there even though she was in a sitting position. Her eyes widened and she pulled it down immediately before her eyes fell on the desolate man who did not even look at her even though he knew that she was staring at him.

"What happens in this Underworld?" Aria finally spoke to him. Although she did not sound cold or treated him as a stranger, there was no warmth in her voice either. It seemed as if she only interrogating him to know more about what he did before she decided to leave him forever. Noah was reluctant to allow her to leave. But if that was what she wanted to do, he would not stop her this time and she was free to walk out of her own will. Since she had asked him a question, he too made up his mind to give her all the answers she needed and part on friendly terms.