Juliet spun the ball lazily in her hands, smirking at the two standing across from her in the sand."Ready to lose?"
Nephis didn't even blink. "We'll see."
Sunny adjusted his stance beside her, trying to look focused… but his mind was already wobbling.
The whistle-in-his-head blew — game start.
The ball went up. Nephis moved like a machine, reading the arc instantly. Sunny followed, managing to bump the ball up for her to spike.
For a solid ten seconds, everything went fine.
Then Juliet jumped to block.
And Sunny's brain promptly stopped processing the ball.
He swore they were bigger than they looked in her clothes. Which… was not the kind of sports commentary his brain should have been running right now.
The ball hit the sand right between him and Nephis. Point to Juliet.
"Eyes up, Sunless," Juliet called sweetly. "On the ball."
I am looking at the ball, Sunny thought helplessly.
Just… not the right one.
They reset.
This time, Nephis served, sharp and clean. Juliet dove for it, flicking the ball just over the net. Sunny lunged, caught it——and in the process caught sight of Nephis turning to run back into position.
…Okay, seriously. Her back was lean, her form was athletic—how was it moving like that when she ran?
Another point to Juliet.
"Your focus," Nephis said between breaths, "is drifting."
"I'm fine," Sunny muttered, eyes firmly on the sand.
They kept playing, and to his credit, they actually held their own for a while. The rallies stretched longer, his and Nephis's coordination smoothing out into something almost impressive. But every time he thought they were getting somewhere—
Juliet would jump again, shadowing the sun for just a moment.Or Nephis would pivot sharply, hair swaying with the movement.
And just like that, his aim would slip by an inch, his timing a beat too slow.
By the time Juliet spiked the last point to win, Sunny was sweating more from mental effort than physical.
Well, suffice to say, both Nephis and Sunny had surprisingly good coordination and teamwork. Whatever gaps they'd had at the start were closed quickly enough.
But in the end…
They still lost to Juliet.
The match had dragged on longer than expected, and by the time it was over, all three of them were drenched in sweat.
Cassie and Avi had spent the whole time lounging in the hot springs, watching from the side with lazy interest.
"You are the reason we lost."
Nephis's tone was flat as she stood in front of him, still catching her breath.
Sunny, sitting on the warm sand and trying to do the same, blinked at her. "What? What did I do?"
As far as Sunny knew, he did nothing wrong.
"Your focus was elsewhere."
…Okay. Yeah. He did do something wrong. She had a point.
But honestly, how was he supposed to focus on a ball flying through the air when there were… well… other things bouncing around right in front of him every time Juliet jumped?
And knowing her, Sunny was almost certain she'd been doing it on purpose.
If so… it was working.
Definitely working.
Way too well.
Sunny opened his mouth, shut it again, and turned away with a guilty heat creeping up his neck.
There was no way he was admitting that one out loud.
Especially not when he'd also caught himself getting distracted by Nephis's back.
…And seriously, how did that move like that when she was supposed to be the lean, athletic type?
"Cut me some slack, it was my first time playing," Sunny muttered.
Nephis didn't blink. "That is no excus—"
Thud.
Before she could finish, she lurched forward, clearly shoved from behind.
Sunny, sitting with his hands braced behind him, didn't have time to react before she tipped onto him.He went flat on his back in the sand.
Nephis caught herself just in time, her arms bracing on either side of his head to stop her from crashing into him entirely. But that only left them… very, very close.
Close enough that Sunny could see every detail of her tantalizing lips.Close enough that Nephis could see the faint pulse in his neck, and see up close, his delicious looking lips.
She didn't dwell on who or what pushed her. For Immediately after falling down, and being in such a close proximity, her attention was… elsewhere.
Her gaze lingered — first on his mouth, then lower — at his neck, his collarbone. There was a certain focus there, a strange intensity in her gaze.
That, sadly, Sunny didn't catch, because his own attention had been caught somewhere entirely different.
Up close like this, he could confirm it beyond a doubt.
Yep. They were definitely bigger than they looked from a distance. Or under clothes.
And so the two of them stayed there, frozen, until—
Juliet rolled her eyes from behind them. "These two…"
She'd been the one to give Nephis a playful shove in the first place, hoping to spark a little chaos. Then she'd planned to run and make them chase her. But apparently, things had… escalated differently.
Still, she consoled herself, at least one of her schemes had worked perfectly. She'd made full use of her… assets to keep Sunny hopelessly distracted during the match.
It was far too easy, and far too fun.
And judging by the look on his face now, Nephis's proximity wasn't exactly helping him focus, either.
Besides, seeing Nephis from the behind on all fours, she could confirm now that her assets were not the only thing distracting him.
Her grin faltered for just a moment when her own mind wandered — remembering his heated stare on her earlier in the game… and the moment she'd pressed herself against his back before.
Such a perv you are Sunny … she thought. But the thought came with a heat she quickly shoved aside.
"Alright, break it up, you two."
Juliet stepped forward and grabbed Nephis lightly by the shoulder, pulling her back to her feet. Sunny sat up quickly, brushing sand from his arms like it was the most important task in the world.
A short while later, they were slipping into the hot springs. The warmth seeped into tired muscles, steam curling lazily into the cool air. Juliet and Nephis settled into the water with relaxed sighs, Cassie and Avi chatting softly from the shallower side. Sunny sank to his shoulders, letting the heat ease away the game's fatigue… and trying very hard not to think about the fact that Juliet, Nephis and Cassie were sitting just across from him in those swimsuits.
After a good soak, they dried off and gathered under the shade of a tree for lunch — grilled fish, fresh fruit, and warm bread. The mood was lazy and content; even Avi, usually a ball of energy, started nodding off mid-bite.
Soon, everyone was stretched out on towels or leaning back against rocks, the quiet lull of drowsiness settling over the group.
Everyone except Sunny.
And… Juliet.
Which made it inevitable that when he slipped away to sit at the edge of the hot springs again, lost in thought, he wouldn't be alone for long.
Sunny sat at the edge of the hot springs, knees drawn up, staring into the steam curling over the surface. The evening air was cool enough to make his skin prickle, but the water's warmth bled into him, keeping him suspended somewhere between drowsy and restless.
The others had gone quiet after lunch, sprawled out on towels or curled into makeshift naps under the trees. He thought they were all asleep.
He was wrong.
A shadow fell over him from behind, and before he could turn, a warm presence slipped into place — Juliet, settling herself so her legs were on either side of his hips, straddling the stone edge. Close. Much too close.
Her knees brushed his sides, her warmth bleeding straight into his spine, and his heart jumped instantly into overdrive.
"Deep in thought, Mr. Sunless?" she murmured, leaning just slightly forward.
He swallowed, forcing himself to glance away from the faint reflection of her in the water. "…Just thinking."
"About?"
"About earlier." His voice firmed. "About what happened before today. About you, taking on that fight alone." He tilted his head slightly back toward her. "Don't… don't take those decisions by yourself next time. Tell me. Or tell someone."
Juliet's smirk softened, her voice lower. "…Worried about me?"
She put her head on his shoulders, drawing closer now, her cheeks brushing against him.
"Yes," he said, without hesitation.
She sighed, before looking at her arm, which had perfectly healed in the time they had taken to arrive here.
Though, knowing that he cared enough made her warm inside, she remembered again his words before.
"'She's the older sister I never had.' huh," she said in a low voice and chuckled at his reaction.
Sunny froze, embarrassed that his quiet admission had been heard by her.
The silence stretched, filled only by the faint bubbling of the springs. Then Sunny suddenly became far too aware — her chest was pressing into his back. Warm. Soft. Distractingly there.
His ears burned. "…Are you going to let go?"
Juliet's lips curled against the shell of his ear. "Are you enjoying this?"
His Flaw struck like a hammer. "Yes."
Her smirk deepened, and her tone turned syrupy with mischief. "Do you… want to enjoy more?"
Sunny's mouth worked before his brain could stop it. "Yes. Every day."
She froze — just for a heartbeat — before he felt the warmth of her flush even without looking. Then fell silent again, seemingly thinking something for a long while.
Before—
"…That's your Flaw, isn't it? Always telling the truth."
A bombshell of a question.
Sunny froze again — he had been doing that quite a few times today — but now his secret was exposed.
He could only pray that she didn't ask him about anything else, otherwise if Shadow Bond came to light, he truly didn't know what he would do.
This was the reason he didn't want to get close to anybody in the academy. At least if he knew no one, when it came to it, someone learning about his true name, he could make the cruel and ugly decision faster.
But now, his plan to quietly stay at the academy had backfired.
Even his plan to keep a distance from other Sleepers — and especially to keep his distance from Juliet, even if he was relying heavily on her — was gone.
He answered only when the pain in his mind became unbearable.
"...Yes."
At least, he knew he could trust her, even if his secret might get exposed.
He had felt it before, after all. He already knew that sooner or later, someone would figure it out — especially spending time with him — though he didn't expect it to be this quick, and neither did he expect it to be Juliet.
"So that's why you first answered that when you just woke up from your Nightmare, huh."
He nodded.
She was silent again before asking, "Can't you stay silent? Refuse to answer a question?"
"No and no. If I can stop them before they ask their question, then yes."
She was silent again — well, likely in consideration of getting to know his Flaw, I guess.
After all, she must know it herself — Flaws are not random after all.
Sunny had figured out early on, a Flaw by its name gives a person an opportunity to grow, to adapt.
Sunny, who worked by lying and deceit, must now grow using truth as a weapon.
That made him wonder — what would be this deadly Ascended's Flaw?
As if hearing his thoughts, Juliet spoke up again.
"My Flaw is that I am dead."
Sunny was surprised, though more at her explanation. Confused, he slightly tilted his head to glance at her.
She continued, "My body is dead, my soul core is fractured actually, and… I can maintain semblance of life by… by absorbing the essence of those that I kill. My soul core constantly leaks essence, and I can't regenerate it on my own..."
She chuckled wryly, her hold on him tightening, as if she wanted to draw comfort from his body and heat.
"So you were right. I don't work in the government for loyalty or righteousness, but because by that I will always have things to kill, without fully jeopardizing my safety by going to some dangerous and lonely Citadel."
She laughed again, a broken sound. "Now you know, Sunny, why I am crazy, why they call me a killing machine, why… I am alone."
She ended in a soft and vulnerable voice.
At least now Sunny understood all the rumors about her, and the reasons for them — and that they were nothing but false and fake.
"...I could care less what others say. They didn't help me when I was nothing. You did. And you are… the most beautiful woman I have ever seen, and also the strongest one."
He scoffed. "Your Aspect makes you lonely, yes, but that is what makes you stronger. You could stand alone even without anyone… Take Cassie — she is strong too, so strong even with her Flaw."
He continued in a really strong and domineering voice…
"And lastly, who said you are alone? Can't you see those three sleeping there? And I am with you, am I not? And I will be with you for the whole life you live. I promise."
He ended in a resolute voice.
Her hands shifted slightly at his sides, fingers brushing his ribs. "…Dangerous thing, Sunny. You shouldn't tell a woman like me things like that unless you mean them."
"I do," he said quietly.
That was when the silence grew heavier — not awkward, but charged, the kind of stillness where something could happen if either of them moved just a little closer.
Juliet didn't move. Neither did he. But the air between them seemed to spark faintly in the steam, and for a moment, Sunny forgot all about the water, the night, and even his own thoughts.