After Death, Love Unveiled (Elara and Lysander)

Daphne glanced at Asher and said, "Since Elara's not coming, why don't we just go without her and bring her something later?" "No need," Elara cut in, polite but firm.

Everyone knew Daphne as the considerate one, always being nice to Elara, even when others gave her strange looks.

But Elara hated owing anyone. She grabbed her things, stood up, and walked downstairs alone, purposely not joining them.

As they were about to leave, Daphne, following right behind Asher, asked, clearly confused, "What the hell's her problem? She's not even looking at you. Did you piss her off or something?" Asher kept silent, just as clueless. Normally, no matter how cold or distant he was, Elara would always stick by him like a shadow.

But since yesterday, she'd suddenly started acting all distant, and he couldn't figure out what had changed.

"Oh, by the way, you're still inviting her to your birthday this weekend, right?" Daphne asked, reminding him.

This weekend was Asher's birthday. Last year, Elara had thrown him a huge party at the Regal Crest Hotel. She'd taken care of everything-every tiny detail-and made sure the whole class was there.

The party had cost a ton of money, and people still talked about it. Being invited to Asher's birthday was like a badge of honor. This year was supposed to be the same deal. Just a few days ago, Elara had told him everything was set. But ever since yesterday, when she said she was "letting him go, Asher had felt off. And today, her distant attitude was making him even more nervous. 'If she doesn't show up, will the party even happen?" he thought. Watching her walk away, Asher tried to calm himself. Why the hell am I stressing? Elara's definitely gonna be there. No way she'd miss my birthday. Maybe she's just acting cold to mess with me, part of some surprise or whatever." Feeling slightly reassured, Asher turned to Daphne. "She's definitely coming."

Daphne nodded. "Yeah, she's always at your birthday. No way she'd skip it."

That afternoon, Asher and Daphne were tied up rehearsing for the school anniversary show, while Elara didn't bother waiting around for Asher and headed straight home.

When she got there, Lysander had already been waiting with his dog, Cotton. The sight of him standing there made Elara

smile.

There was just something about him-maybe it was some strange, time-travel vibe-but being with him made every moment feel like it mattered. Lysander caught the smile and was a little thrown off. He was so used to her being distant, even cold, that her warmth now was kind of unsettling. "You're here early," Elara said softly.

"Yeah, Lysander replied, keeping it short and simple.

"Come on, let's head to the study," she said, leading him upstairs.

Earlier in class, Elara had been struggling with some tough concepts, so she figured this was the perfect chance to get Lysander to help her out.

They settled in the study, in what used to be Asher's spot. But honestly, even when Asher was around, he never really helped her with her studies. Half the time, it felt like he thought she was just a distraction. Lysander sat down beside her, pulling out a couple of practice tests to gauge where she was at.

Elara took them seriously and handed them over when she finished.

As Lysander reviewed her answers, Elara, feeling a bit embarrassed, said, 'Sorry... I'm really bad at this."This belongs © NôvelDra/ma.Org.

"It's not your fault," Lysander said gently. "You just need a better way to approach it. Let's work through the basics, alright?"

Elara nodded. "Okay"

Lysander got to work, explaining everything clearly and breaking down the problems so simply that even the tough stuff started to make sense to her.

After a while, Lysander paused to take a sip of water. He noticed Elara watching him, which made him a little uncomfortable.

He cleared his throat and turned back to the papers. "What? You stuck on something?"

Elara gave a small smile. "No, it's just... you're really patient with me. But when you text me, you're so damn cold. You barely respond! Is it because of... Asher?"

Lysander quickly shook his head. "Fuck, no. It's not like that. My family was over yesterday, so I got tied up with them. I saw your message this morning. Next time, just call me, alright?"

"Alright, Elara said, her smile widening, feeling a bit more relieved.

While they were busy working, Elara's phone suddenly rang

She answered, and Asher's pissed-off voice came through loud and clear. "Elara, what the hell is this?"

Elara blinked, completely confused. "What did I do now?" She had no idea what he was so mad about this time.

"Did you seriously throw my stuff out?" Asher demanded.

Elara shot a glance at Lysander Hawthorne, who was sitting beside her. Without any hesitation, she said bluntly, I told you. yesterday-you're fired. Since you don't work for me anymore, why the hell would you still be staying at my place? I'm in the middle of something right now, so stop wasting my time. And with that, she hung up, not giving him a chance to say anything

else.

Asher stood there, staring at his stuff, all packed up and thrown out like trash. He couldn't wrap his head around it-Elara was actually kicking him out. "What the hell is her problem? he muttered to himself.

After ending the call, Elara turned back to Lysander. "Shall we continue?" she asked. Lysander nodded, and they went back to their work.

It didn't take long, though, before the door suddenly burst open. Asher stormed in, anger written all over his face. When he saw Elara sitting there with Lysander, a flicker of disgust flashed in his eyes.

Elara shot to her feet, clearly pissed off. "What the hell are you doing here?" she snapped. 'Doesn't he think I'm beneath him? Doesn't he fucking hate me? So why the hell is he barging in now, acting all dramatic?' she thought.

Asher stalked over, his voice laced with accusation. "Do you get off on humiliating me, Elara?"

Lysander immediately stood up too, instinctively positioning himself between Asher and Elara.

But Elara wasn't about to back down. She met Asher's rage head-on. "Humiliate you? Are you fucking kidding me?"

Her voice was sharp as she continued, "Asher Blackwood, you're the one who humiliated me. I've been covering your living expenses while you spend all your time with Daphne, treating me like some damn servant, freezing me out. Isn't that humiliation?" All she did was take-back what was hers to begin with, and now he's acting like a damn victim. She couldn't believe it

Asher's lips tightened, and his gaze locked on hers. "Don't think bringing someone else into this is gonna change a thing. I'll never like you, Elara, and we're never getting together. Let me be crystal clear-I'm in love with Daphne, and we're together now. You? I will never have feelings for you."

With that, he turned on his heel and stormed out, slamming the door behind him.

Elara walked over to the window and watched as he left, dragging his bags behind him, not even glancing back

Asher had always been so proud in front of her, even with his humble background. She used to admire that about him-the

way he never bowed to anyone for money. But now it just seemed pathetic

Lynder, noting her vanding there by the window, gently reminded her Miss Kensington"