The King's Mandate: Anomalous System

Chapter 432: An Inch

"Don't open them until I say so, okay?"

"Fine. Just don't beat me too hard, okay?"

Elena sighed. 'He took that seriously?' 

"Move your hands behind your back," She said.

Das moved his hands behind his back.

"If you open your eyes, I will seriously get angry, okay?"

"You are just tempting me more and more to open my eyes."

Elena grabbed Das' collar and moved her face closer to his; then, her lips moved closer to his. There was less than an inch distance between their lips. If any of them had moved even a little, they would have kissed each other.

Elena stayed like that for some seconds and moved her face back as she shook her head.

She stared at his face for a while and smiled, then rested her head on his chest.

"What are you doing?" Das asked.

"..." Elena didn't say anything.. She just stood like that. 'I really love him, and that's why I will do my best for him. I will live for him.'

She made some distance between them and said, "You can open your eyes now."

Das opened his eyes and glanced around, then looked at Elena's face and said, "What did you do?"

She turned around, saying, "It's a secret."

Elena walked some steps, but Das just stood there and kept looking at Elena.

His face flushed a little as a thought passed his mind. 'No, no, no. That was probably my imagination. What am I thinking?'

Earlier, when Elena tried to kiss Das, he could feel Elena's warm breath hitting his face. 'It was my imagination right?'

Elena turned around and looked at Das. "What are you doing? Walk fast, or I would leave you behind."

Das remembered that line. He had said the same line to Elena when they were going home together for the first time; on the day they met.

Das rushed to Elena and matched her pace. "Are you trying to copy me?"

"I just remembered how cruel and rude you were when we first met."

"..." Das was cruel to her, but for him, it was just like a normal way to treat a person he had just met.

"Even though I had injured my leg, you kept dragging me and forced me to walk."

"I tried to call the taxi, but you said you didn't have money, or you can't go alone in a taxi."

"That's because I wanted you to drop me off," Elena commented.

"I had also offered you to go with you in the taxi, but you still turned it down."

Elena glanced at Das and sighed, then mumbled, "You are really dense."

"If you have something to say, then say it on my face."

"All those things aside, what about the rude and mean things you said to me? What about how you treated me so far?"

"Well, sorry for that, okay? I am also regretting doing those things to you. Who would have imagined we would become this close to each other."

Das was unusually honest, and Elena had let her guard down after she tried to kiss him earlier, so all the things Das just admitted were too much for her to take in at once.

She slowed her pace and calmed herself down; then, her face flushed as she smiled at Das.

"I will do it after the exams."

Das heard what she said. He looked back at Elena with a confused face. "What will you do after the exams?"

She grinned as she jumped on Das, "My birthday is right after the exams. I am planning to arrange my birthday party at my favorite cafe. Will you come?"

'Birthday party? That means there will be so many people. Her relatives and friends and whatnot.' Das looked up at the sky and said, "I guess I will pass."

"You won't come?"

"I will wish you earlier that day."

"But I want you to come to my party."

"You know I don't like all that."

"Fine." Das couldn't see Elena's face as he walked in front of her, but he could feel the sadness in her voice.

'Dammit!' He clenched his fist.

'Even though she celebrated my birthday with me, I can't celebrate her birthday with her. I am a jerk.'

"If I arrange something on another day, just the two of us, would you come?" Elena said in a fidgeting voice.

"Yeah," He looked back at Elena with a gentle smile on his face, "I was about to ask you the same thing."

"Then it's settled, okay?! I will inform you when it's arranged, alright?"

"No need to be so hyper."

"It's my birthday. Of course, I would be hyper."

"When is it?"

"Nineteenth July,"

"Whoa, that's still far. Why are you excited from now?"

"Because birthdays are a very special day of our life." Seeing Elena's smiling face, Das couldn't help but blush.

'Dammit! Was she this cute before?'

'She looks so pretty.'

'Why does my body feel so hot? What's wrong with my heart?' 

Elena grabbed Das' hand and pulled him, "Let's go now. My curfew is seven at night."

"It's past nine, you know?"

"Yeah, maybe I will get yelled at."

Das curled up his lips and took a deep breath. "I will talk with your parents and tell them it's my fault that you are late."

Elena squeezed Das' hand tighter without realizing it and said, "You will meet my parents today?"

"I will need to meet them to explain why you are late, right?"

'What should I do? I should be happy he is coming to meet mom and dad, but it's past nine. If dad finds out I was with a boy, he will surely misunderstand and do something to Das.'

"What's wrong?" Das' eyes widened as he gasped, "If you don't want me to meet your parents, then it's totally okay. I understand."

Elena waved her hand as she shook her head. "It's not like that. It's just you know, it's late and I am a girl you are a boy you know."

'I don't really care, to be honest. But I guess it would trouble her.' Das patted Elena and said, "Alright, don't worry."

Elena was still holding Das' hand like it was completely normal. Das wanted to point it out to her but didn't say anything.