Chapter 65 - Fire Opal

(From Ella's Perspective)

Leandro woke me up in the morning. I saw that I was in the cave, but last night, I was in front of the lake under the ash tree where he took me. I had told him all about me that I could remember. The surprising thing was that I did not feel uncomfortable talking to him about those things at all. It was like he could understand me. As he promised, he did not laugh or pity me. I was glad that he kept his promise.

The way he listened to me surprised me a lot. It seemed like he was waiting to hear those things all along. But I did not understand why. He almost made me believe that he knew all along that there was a part of me that I was hiding. 

But after telling him all about it, I felt better. My life was never exciting but full of boring and stupid things. But last night, I got a slight hint that there were a few adventures as well. It was just me who could not see it before. 

"Did you carry me?" I asked as I got down the bed, fighting a yawn. 

"Who else?"

"Thanks," I muttered. "What's..."

Suddenly he handed me a stone. It was a_ fire opal. I always had a thing for different stones. I liked fire opal a lot for a very long time. But why was he giving me this? I did not ask for it. And besides, even if I asked for it, why would he give me this? He was not obliged to give me what I wanted. 

"Don't you want it?" 

"It's not like... It's a fire opal," I said. "Why are you giving me this?"

"I thought you like it."

"I do. But how do you know that?"

"That doesn't matter. You can keep it. It's for you," he said. 

"It's yours, right? I can't just take your thing," I mumbled. 

"But I gave it to you, okay? Just keep it. And besides, I've lots of them."

"Really? Will you show me?"

"You want to see some stones?" he asked as if it was nothing special. 

"Stop talking like I want to see some kind of trash," I hissed. "Will you show me tonight after I come back?"

"Alright, but I need to make a deal."

"Honestly, Leandro_ you're making way too many deals about literally everything."

"Do you want to see the stones or not?"

"Fine! What's your deal this time?"

"Don't get yourself in trouble and don't do unnecessary things. Then I'll show you the stones tonight," he said.

"Just this?"

"I know you. You better want to keep my words in mind."

"Okay, deal." 

I observed the stone. I had read about fire opals online, but I never got one myself. I had always been drawn to the beauty of a fire opal. It was like the sunset was drawn on it. 

"Thank you," I said and hugged him. He was taken aback. "I like it a lot."

"I'm glad," he said. 

"So, is breakfast ready?"

"Yeah, go freshen up."

I smiled at him and went to the bathroom, but first I placed the stone in the closet, under my t-shirt. I took a shower as quickly as possible. That was the time when I noticed it. The scar of the stabbing... It was not there anymore. But how was this possible? This type of scar could not just go away and most importantly, not in a single night. 

I wore my dress quickly and went out of the bathroom, almost slipping on the floor. Leandro was in the kitchen, serving soup for us. 

"Leandro!" I went there, running. 

"Why are you running?"

"The scar... The scar on my belly... It's gone," I muttered. 

"So?"

"So?" I repeated. "What the... You knew about it? I mean, you knew that it's gone? Did you do something about it? What did you do? Is there any kind of healing medicine here that removes scars as well? In that case, I've some bruises on my knees and elbows, and yeah, one on my left boob as well. Do you mind helping me remove those?"

"Are you sure you want me to remove those scars?" he asked, kind of mischievously. 

The last time he talked like this, he kissed me in the forest, pinning me against a tree. It was... I almost gave up. 

"First tell me how you did it," I said. 

"It's a secret of the marking. As you're mine now, I can heal your wounds. I suspected this a long time ago. Now I proved it."

"I don't understand. Speak in English."

"You know that I can heal my wounds quicker than other shifters as I'm not like them."

"Uh-huh."

"I had a feeling that if I mark someone, I might be able to heal their wounds as well," he said. "I wasn't sure. Then I thought of trying it. And see, it works."

"That means you can only heal me?" I asked, trying to think of the way he used to heal me. He could not just touch me and my wound would heal, right? He must have done something else. But the problem was I did not know what. 

"Yes."

"And other shifters can't heal their mates or whatever it is?"

"No, they can't."

"Cool! Anyway, how did you do it? Did you just touch the wound or something? Or did you have to make a potion or something like that with your body hair in it?"

He laughed. "What? There is a possibility," I grumbled.

"There is another way. You better not know it now. I'll show you some other time," he said dismissively. I always wondered how he talked suddenly like this as if no one dared to question him any more. 

"You're strange," I muttered. 

After breakfast, he accompanied me to the end of the forest. As always he stood there for some time, staring at my back, before going back. 

"Be safe," he said. 

"I..."

I was about to say that I was always safe. But then thought that he would not want me to say this. Perhaps he was truly worried about me. 

"I will," I found myself saying. 

I ran my way to the market till I met Jed. He looked angry for some reason. I had to admit that his angry face was nothing compared to Leandro's resting face. I had seen Leandro angry, but not too much. I wondered how he would look when he was way too angry. But I did not want to see him like that. He was better the way he was these days. 

"Two days! Where were you two days? I thought you died," Jed said. 

"I was sick," I said. "I couldn't come. Well, I could not even lift my body up."

"Why? Did you fuck?"

"No! Why would you think that? I had a fever and that's all."

"Anyway, that night... What happened? Where were you? You said that you'll come back. Then your man came and almost choked me. He was asking me where you were. I said that you told me that you were supposed to come back. Then he left and did not come back, neither did you. God knows what happened. I was worried dead," he said. 

"Rosaire died, do you know?"

"Yeah, the same night when I last saw you. Wait... did you kill her?"

"Honestly, Jed, get a brain," I said, rolling my eyes. 

"You're lying to me for some reason about a lot of things. And you're telling me to get a brain?"

"What... What do you mean?"

"I went to the cook. She never wanted to talk to you. But you told me that she wanted to and that's why you're going to come later," he said.

I surely had messed up fully. Now, what was I even going to say to him? Things were getting harder now. 

"It's not like that. Well, yeah, I lied. But if I hadn't, you wouldn't let me go. I heard the girl's cry and so, I went to see what was wrong. I went down the dungeon and found her there. I tried to save her, but she died. I got soaked in blood. You know, I hate blood. So, I freaked out and could not afford to come to Edrich's place. Lean... Lee found me then. I was in the abandoned alley."

"The abandoned alley? Don't you know the monster goes there? I mean, it can go there anytime," he said.

I laughed inside my head. Who cared if the monster went there? I literally lived with the Beast and also somehow developed some kind of weird feelings for him. 

"I don't care about the monster. It's not going to hurt me."

"How do you know that?" he asked.

"I know."

[Note- Fire Opal(2): Aside from its gleaming appearance, the fire opal gem has a worldwide cultural and spiritual significance. Many cultures believe it possesses a spiritual power that boosts one's creativity and passion. Cultural connections to the fire element, for example, promote independent thinking and a stronger intuition. Furthermore, it is thought to increase passion and vitality in personal relationships.. Finally, some cultural groups believe that the fire opal crystal aids in the healing process from past trauma.]