Hades' Cursed Luna novel Chapter 88

This chapter is dedicated to Monica_Ceja, thank you so much for giving me my first gift (⁠≧⁠▽⁠≦⁠)

Eve~

Kael pulled back, his jaw tightening as he laced my sneaker back on, his movements precise but gentle. He rose to his feet, extending a hand to help me up. For a split second, I hesitated, the weight of his gaze making my stomach churn. Finally, I took his hand, his grip firm but warm, grounding me as I stood. What I would give to know what he was thinking right now. Did he suspect anything. My heart was racing faster than when I was doing the warm ups.

"That’s enough for tonight," he said.

I started to protest. "But we just started. I can—"

"No," he interrupted, his voice resolute yet gentle. "Training on an injury will only make it worse. We’ll address this properly next time." He soft green eyes hardened before his normal expression returned. "You don’t have to prove anything to me, Ellen. Showing up was enough." No one needed to tell me that I had messed up.

My throat tightened, and I nodded, unsure of what to say. I had underestimated him because of his easy charm. But I was beginning to see why he was Hades’ second. He was vigilant.

He moved to grab a small, portable ice pack from a nearby mini-fridge and handed it over. "Ice it when you get back to your room. Fifteen minutes on, fifteen off. Keep it elevated. We’ll reassess the day after tomorrow."

"Got it," I muttered, clutching the ice pack in my hands like a lifeline.

Kael grabbed a towel from a rack and slung it over my shoulder. "I’ll walk you back."

My head snapped up. "That’s not necessary."

"Maybe not," he said, his smirk returning, this time it reached his eyes. "But it’s happening but far enough from our fire breathing dragon. Humor me."

I wanted to argue, but the truth was, I didn’t want to walk back alone. I had never walked though the tower so late before. "Lead the way."

Kael fell into step beside me. The tension from earlier ebbed slightly as we walked, his calm demeanor acting as a balm to my frayed nerves.

"You did well today," he said after a beat, his voice low.

I glanced at him, skeptical. "I barely made it through the warm-up."

"Doesn’t matter," he replied. "You showed up. That’s more than most people do."

A small, unexpected warmth flickered in my chest at his words. I looked down at the ice pack in my hands, the coolness a welcome distraction from the strange vulnerability his praise stirred in me. The steel grey eyes of a particular king flashed in my mind.

The elevator opened and I stepped in but Kael stood grounded where he was. "Rest up. We’ll continue."

I smiled relieved. I had been afraid that he would not want to continue. There had been something in his eyes as he had examined my ankle. There was a story there and I knew it. I wondered what’s it was. Did it have a large bearing on who Kael had become and who he was now? "You’re really committed to this, aren’t you?" I asked, trying to keep my tone light.

His expression shifted, the teasing glint fading as he met my gaze. "You deserve to know how to fight, Ellen. To stand on your own. No one should ever take that from you again."

I swallowed hard, unsure how to respond. It was a far cry from how Hades had reacted. So Instead, I nodded, my fingers tightening around the ice pack.

"Goodnight, Ellen," he said, his voice softer now.

"Goodnight," I murmured, stepping inside and closing the door behind me.

As I leaned against the door, the cool wood pressing against my back, I let out a shaky breath. Kael’s words replayed in my mind, intertwining with memories I wished I could bury. But for the first time, they didn’t just bring pain—they brought a spark of something else.

Hope.

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The next session was better and the Kael that I knew was back. The one who always seemed to have a joke just on the lip of his tongue.

When I entered the training deck, Kael was already there, stretching in exaggerated, almost comical movements that made him look like a caricature of a fitness coach. He arched backward with his arms flailing slightly, letting out a theatrical groan.