Chapter 166: Sweeter Than Anything….

After enjoying hot chicken soup that warmed us from the inside out, sampling foods from the little stalls—the savory pancakes, sweet rice cakes, and skewers of meat we shared between bites—and finishing with an ice cream cone that left us laughing at nothing and everything, Deniz and I finally find a quiet spot on the edge of town, far from the warm lights and noise of the stalls.

The grass is soft beneath us, cool against our skin and springy under our tired bodies. I lean back, letting my weight sink into the earth, exhausted in the best possible way.

The kind of tired that comes from pure, uncomplicated joy—from hours of being present and alive and happy. We’ve been like teenagers tonight—running, exploring, discovering, living in a way I never allowed myself to in my old life.

Deniz lies down beside me, his head resting on his folded hands, his dark hair spilling across the grass like shadows.

Above us, the sky stretches endlessly—a velvet canvas scattered with stars so numerous they blur into a shimmering river of light.

The Milky Way arcs across the darkness, a bridge of diamonds connecting one end of the world to the other.

“From this height,” he murmurs, his voice soft and dreamy, carried away by the night breeze, “the stars look so big. Like we could reach up and touch them.”

My eyes stay fixed on the sky, on the countless pinpricks of light that have witnessed centuries of lovers lying just like this.

“Yes,” I say quietly.

“It feels like they’re close enough to hold. Like if I stretched out my hand, I could grab a handful of starlight.”

Silence settles between us, comfortable and warm, the kind of silence that doesn’t need to be filled.

Then Deniz speaks again, his voice carrying a different weight now. Something softer, more vulnerable.

“Zyren…”

I wait.

“Do you remember the first day we met?”

I blink, my gaze shifting from the stars to his profile.

His eyes are still on the sky, dark and thoughtful, the moonlight tracing the beautiful lines of his face—the curve of his jaw, the slope of his nose, the softness of his lips slightly parted.

He waits, patient, letting the question hang in the air between us like the stars above.

What should I say?

In the novel I read in my other life, in the story I thought I knew, the author never described Deniz and Zyren’s first meeting.

He was just a side character—a beta assistant who appeared when needed and faded into the background when not.

There were no details. No history. No moment of origin.

How can I remember something that was never written?

Deniz turns his head, his dark eyes meeting mine, searching.

“Zyren?”

I force a small smile, hoping it reaches my eyes.

“I don’t remember,” I admit softly.

He smiles back, soft and accepting, no judgment in his gaze. “Really?”

“Hmm.” I turn away, looking back at the stars, afraid he might see too much.

He turns back to the sky as well, and I watch his profile from the corner of my eye as he speaks, his voice carrying the weight of memory.

“Back then, I was such a newbie.”

A soft, self-deprecating laugh escapes him. “I was so nervous I thought I might actually throw up in the lobby. I kept rehearsing what I would say, how I would bow, what title I should use.”

He pauses, remembering.

“I thought my boss would be some older person—gray hair, a stern face, glasses perched on a sharp nose. The whole intimidating package.”

A gentle breath.

“But when I first saw you…”

I feel him smile without looking.

“You were sitting in the president’s chair, and you were younger than me. Younger, and more beautiful than anyone I’d ever seen.”

A slow, wistful smile spreads across his lips, visible even in profile.

“From that first glance, I thought you were an Omega.”

He chuckles softly.

“You were so delicate-looking. Your silver hair catching the light, your pale skin, your eyes that seemed to look right through me. I thought, ’There’s no way someone this beautiful is an Alpha.’”

He pauses, and something in his voice shifts.

“But soon I realized…” Another pause, heavier now. “You’re an Alpha with a bad temper.”

He stops abruptly, like the words slipped out before he could catch them. His eyes widen slightly. Worry flickers across his features, visible even in the dim starlight.

“I’m sorry,” he says quickly, turning to look at me.

“I didn’t mean—I shouldn’t have—”

I stay silent.

Alpha with a bad temper. He’s right.

There’s nothing wrong with that statement. Zyren was like that.

Cruel. Sharp. Unforgiving.

The novel painted him in shades of darkness—and those shadows weren’t entirely fiction.

Deniz rushes to apologize, his words tumbling over each other.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to say it like that. It just came out wrong. I only meant that you were—you had a presence that—”

He exhales in frustration.

“I’m not explaining this well.”

“No need.” My voice is calm, quiet, cutting through his rambling gently.

“You’re right. I was a bad-tempered person. Before.”

He blinks, processing my words, confusion flickering across his features.

I turn my gaze back to the stars, letting them anchor me.

“What about now?”

He raises his eyebrows slightly, still recovering from his near-miss.

“What about… now?”

“Hmm.” I keep my eyes on the sky, but I’m acutely aware of his gaze on me, the weight of his attention.

“How am I now?”

Silence stretches for a moment, filled only by the distant sounds of the town behind us, the rustle of leaves in the breeze. Then his voice comes, soft and certain, carrying no hesitation.

“Now…” A pause, as if he’s choosing the perfect words.

“You’re sweeter than anything sweet I’ve ever tasted.”

I stay silent, letting his words settle into my chest like warm honey.

Deniz shifts beside me, propping himself up on one elbow to look down at me.

“Zyren? Why are you quiet? Are you angry with me?”

I nod slowly, keeping my expression carefully serious.

“Yes.”

He sits up immediately and leans over me, his face full of genuine concern. His hand reaches for my shoulder, gentle, worried.

“I’m sorry. Please don’t be angry. I didn’t mean—whatever I did wrong, I’m sorry—”

I laugh—bright and genuine, unable to hold it in any longer. The sound bubbles up from somewhere deep and spills out into the night air.

He freezes, staring at me, his worried expression slowly transforming into realization.

Then he lets out a huge breath, his shoulders sagging with relief.

“You scared me.” His voice is half complaint, half laughter.

I reach up and grab his collar, pulling him closer. Our faces are inches apart, his breath warm on my skin, his eyes searching mine in the starlight.

“But I am going to punish you,” I murmur, a teasing smile playing on my lips.

His expression shifts, worry melting into something else—a knowing smirk, a spark of mischief in his dark eyes.

“How?”

Our lips part, the distance between them shrinking, shrinking, the moment stretching like taffy in the warm night air—

“Deniz…!”

A voice cuts through the night like a blade.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep