"Just some teasing words, and—" she suddenly paused.
"And what else?" he raised his eyes to look at her.
"He said if I truly like you, then it must be to the bone, just an ordinary affection is far from enough for you," she said. Dorian Howards suddenly saying this to her actually surprised her quite a bit.
His eyelashes fluttered lightly, "He is right, just ordinary affection would never satisfy me. Mabel, if you like me, can this affection be engraved into your bones and etched into your heart?"
"I..." she hesitated. She knew she liked him a lot, but could this affection be so deep and intense? She wasn’t sure.
His eyes dimmed slightly, "I know that I have not fallen in love with you yet, and it’s unfair to demand your feelings unilaterally. But for me, my demand for your emotions may only grow stronger in the future, perhaps so strong that one day even I won’t be able to control it."
If that day truly comes and she doesn’t love him enough, what would become of him? Would it be dissatisfaction and greed, imprisoning her in a place where only he exists until she’s left with nothing but him in her eyes and heart? Or would he become insane like his father?
Mabel Quinn thought for a moment, then replied seriously, "I don’t know how deep an affection must be to be called engraved into the bone, but I know I am growing fonder of you. Kyle, I’m not someone who easily likes others, but once I do, I treat the feelings between us very seriously. Whether it was you with a six-year-old’s mindset or the you now, I like you a lot. Today, when I saw you pinch the prisoner’s dagger with your fingers, I felt like my breath was about to stop, and the only thought in my mind was that nothing could happen to you! Tell me, how much do you think my affection for you is?"
Hearing her words, Kyle Kinston’s expression, which seemed to be frozen in ice, appeared to be gradually thawing. The corners of his lips slowly raised into a slight arc, so subtle that you might not even notice it. "Then like me even more, blend this affection into your bones and blood, never forgetting it in this life or the next."
As his voice fell, his lips captured hers, holding her entirely in his embrace. It turns out, she craved her affection this much.
What should it feel like to be liked by someone whom you care about?
As a child, maybe just a few more accidental words or glances from his mother would make him overwhelmingly happy. He earnestly hoped that one day, his mother could like him. Therefore, he made himself very obedient, enduring his mother’s beatings and scoldings no matter what.
But as he grew older, the look in his mother’s eyes became increasingly filled with a complex hatred. "Why do your eyes have to look so much like his?"
And every time his mother said this, he could only tightly close his eyes, not allowing her to see them any more. Later, he realized that the "he" his mother referred to was his father.
After his mother’s death, he was taken by his father to Falling City. He thought, until her death, his mother never liked him, even though he was her only child.