"How is she doing?" Alex asked Peter as they both glanced at Elizabeth who was asleep on the bed. She was currently inside Alex's room.
Peter narrowed his eyes as he stared at Elizabeth. "She's fine but it seems she exhausted herself way too much. She used too much of her strength while she is not supposed to," he replied.
Alex did not understand some parts of what Peter said. "I don't understand," he said. "What do you mean she isn't supposed to use her full strength during fights?"
"Because she's frail," Peter replied and then sighed before continuing. "You don't know, right? Fine, come with me, let's talk outside."
Alex furrowed his brows and then followed Peter outside after glancing at Elizabeth who was yet to open her eyes.
"So what is it that seems so important?" He asked his friend once they had gotten outside.
"Elizabeth is not truly the child of Victor Blackwood," Peter said. "She was just adopted because the wife of Victor could not give birth to her own child. There are circumstances surrounding her birth, like, she was born with a strange illness — One that endangers her life, or should I say one that could die from anytime."
Alex was shocked, anger now visible on his face. "How come she never mentioned any of these to me?" He mumbled. "I even let her fight in my stead."
"Well, you don't expect her to start telling anyone that she won't live long, do you?" Peter asked his friend. "Honestly, I do not know why she did that for you, she's never been so interested in anyone. And the way she's been acting towards you, I can not say if it's love or something else."
Alex fell silent. He was surprised to found out that Elizabeth wasn't as tough as she looked. If he had known, he wouldn't have agreed to let her fight in his place...And her sudden change of attitude towards him is something he didn't quite understand.
Is it truly love like Peter said? Or is she planning something for him?
Alex could not figure out the question — The answer to his questions is Elizabeth, he had to get it from her.
"I have heard you, I won't allow her engage in any serious fights from now onward," he turned and said to Peter.
Peter nodded his head. Hopefully, his friend would also accept the girl's feelings. "That's fine," he replied. "I'll be on my way now, also, don't let her get hurt anymore because you don't know when she might just die."
After Peter had left, Alex returned to his room and when he got there, Elizabeth had already woke up.
Meeting each other's gaze, Elizabeth looked away shyly while Alex frowned.
"Why didn't you tell me?" He asked her.
Elizabeth turned her head, seeing his frowning face, she frowned as well. "Tell you what?" She asked.
From her voice, one could tell that she was weak.
This of course didn't go unnoticed by Alex, as a result, he frowned even deeper.
"Why didn't you tell me about your health?" He asked, this time, plain.
For a moment, Elizabeth was taken aback because she didn't know that Alex eould end up finding out about her illness. But then... She wondered why he was bothered by it.
"Why should I tell you?" She asked him. "Perhaps, I should go around telling everyone that I am sick and is about to die?"
Seeing the look on her face, Alex knew that she was sad but that wasn't the response he was expecting to hear.
Alex clenched his fists, struggling to keep his emotions in check. "That's not what I meant," he said, his voice low but firm. "I just—" He hesitated, the words catching in his throat. "I should've known. I shouldn't have let you fight for me."
Elizabeth scoffed quietly, though the bitterness in her tone was hard to miss. "You act like I had no choice," she muttered. "I knew what I was doing. Besides—" She turned her face away, her silver-blue eyes shadowed. "It's not like my life is worth much anyway."
Her words hit Alex harder than any punch he'd taken before. "Don't say that," he said, his voice sharper than intended. "You… you don't get to decide what your life is worth to others."
Elizabeth froze at his words, her expression briefly unreadable. For a moment, the air between them grew heavy, thick with things left unsaid.
"You're an idiot," she murmured finally, her voice softer now, but still carrying an edge. "I don't need your pity."
Alex exhaled slowly, trying to steady himself. "It's not pity," he said, his tone gentler. "I just… I don't want to lose anyone else."
The silence that followed stretched uncomfortably. Elizabeth bit her lip, torn between pushing him away and acknowledging the warmth his words stirred in her. She wasn't used to anyone caring—especially not like this.
"So what now?" she asked, her voice quieter. "Are you going to lock me up and treat me like I'm fragile?"
"No," Alex said immediately. "I'm not asking you to stop being who you are. I just—" His gaze softened as it met hers. "I'll be more careful. And you should, too."
Elizabeth huffed but didn't argue. She was too tired to keep fighting both physically and emotionally. "Fine," she said, leaning back against the pillow. "But if you start acting like my babysitter, then I'm leaving."
A faint smirk tugged at Alex's lips despite the heaviness lingering in his chest. "Deal," he said. "But you're not going anywhere without my permission."
Elizabeth rolled her eyes, but a ghost of a smile flickered across her face. "Control freak," she mumbled under her breath.
Alex let the comment slide, relieved to see even a glimpse of her usual fire. But beneath that relief, the weight of what he had learned pressed down on him. Whatever her reasons for fighting, for staying close to him—he couldn't let her carry everything alone.
>>
Later in the day, Alex let Elizabeth return home so that her parent won't be worried about her.
While he was alone, he decided to go around in search of anything that might be useful for him.
Due to the recent happenings in school, they had not told them when they'd be having their end of the term's exam so the students were free to do whatever they want until the school gets back to them.
And because they were not yet qualified to go on missions, no one in their class is allowed to be seen acting like real heroes. Before any of them will be able to do that, they must have an ID — Hero ID— the only item that makes them qualified to be heroes.
Without the ID, they can not carry out any activity outside or within the country.
But despite knowing of all these, Alex was itching to do something.