Chapter 98: Chapter 98 Comfort
Her mind spun so fast it was making her dizzy.
She had assumed Bella must’ve seen her walking out of Leo’s room late at night and told her loudmouth friend. And those two witches must have posted that story to ruin her! But now Alan was questioning it directly... and worst part?
No one actually knew which married man she had tried to seduce.
Yet.
"You’re panicking." Alan’s voice turned cold. "Why?"
"I—I’m not! I just—ugh, I told you, it was hacked!" Alexa snapped, trying to regain control of the conversation. Her face burned, and her legs felt shaky, but she couldn’t show weakness. Not now.
Casper blinked, his brows furrowing as he slowly connected the dots.
"We always knew you liked Leo..." he said slowly.
Alexa looked up, her face red with tears.
"But we never thought you’d actually try to seduce him."
Alan gave her a long stare. "Yeah. We thought you were just jealous. Just being dramatic. You always had a crush on him, but we thought you’ll snap out of it."
"I-I didn’t mean to!" Alexa stammered. "It’s just... the way he looked at me... I thought maybe, maybe he—"
"What?" Alan cut her off coldly. "You thought he’ll choose you after crawling into his bed like that?"
Alexa’s lips trembled.
On no!!!
***
Bella woke up slowly, her head pounding with a dull, stubborn ache. Her eyelids felt heavy, like she hadn’t rested at all, even though she had been asleep for hours. The soft morning light spilled into the room, but it didn’t feel warm. Her eyes hurt... her chest hurt... she didn’t even know exactly where the pain was coming from—it was just there, clinging to her like a fog.
Her fingers twitched around something soft.
She blinked again and again, trying to chase away the blurriness, her lashes sticky from dried tears.
And then she realized.
She was holding something. Two familiar, comforting shapes.
Her vision cleared just enough... and her eyes widened.
"Berry!!! Moonbeam!!" she gasped, her voice cracking but full of surprise.
She hugged them tight to her chest, her heart suddenly warm despite the pain.
A weak, teary smile appeared on her lips as she pressed her face into them. Her voice shook as she whispered, "You’re here... You’re really here..."
And just as Bella was about to snuggle deeper into her plush toys, she felt it—another presence in the room.
Her eyes flicked toward the far side, and that’s when she saw him.
Sitting quietly on the couch, legs crossed, back slightly leaned into the cushion as he flipped a page of the book in his hand... was Leonardo.
Her breath caught.
He was wearing an olive-green shirt today, the sleeves rolled up just enough to reveal his forearms, veins lightly visible. The fabric hugged his chest like it was made just for him, outlining the solid muscle beneath. His dark pants matched the quiet strength he always carried, and his hair—messy but effortlessly perfect—framed his face like it belonged on the cover of some luxury magazine. Even in this still moment, with only the soft rustle of the pages, there was something dangerously calm about him. Something that made her heart thump louder than it should.
Bella almost blushed just looking at him.
Why does he look this good while doing nothing at all?
And as if he sensed her eyes, he turned.
His gaze lifted from the book, slow and deliberate, and those deep eyes met hers.
He didn’t speak at first. His expression softened in a way she rarely saw. And even though he didn’t smile, something about the way he looked at her made it feel like everything outside the room had gone quiet.
"You’re awake," he said, his voice low and smooth.
Bella gripped Berry and Moonbeam tighter.
"Y-yeah..." she mumbled, suddenly shy.
He closed the book gently and placed it beside him, never breaking eye contact.
"I thought you might want them," he nodded at the toys in her arms.
Bella blinked.
"You... brought them?"
He nodded once. "Of course I did."
Of course, he had already told his people to bring them from home as quickly as possible.
After hearing the doctor’s words, he figured that instead of human comfort, those toys might actually make her feel better.
After all, he had used them to threaten her so many times before and every single time, she had nearly given in to all his requests.
"Thank you," Bella whispered again, softer this time, still clinging to Berry and Moonbeam as her eyes shyly met his for a brief second.
She watched as he stood from the couch and began walking toward her.
Gosh, he looked even taller from the bed. Each step was measured, calm but there was an intensity in his presence that made her breath falter. She looked away quickly, pretending to be busy adjusting her blanket.
"I sent them away," he said, his voice firm but not cold, his eyes still resting on her.
Bella swallowed.
"Sent who away?" she asked quietly, already guessing the answer.
"Alexa. Casper. Alan. Zion."
She blinked. Her fingers tightened just a little on Moonbeam’s soft paw.
"Thank you," she said again, her voice holding more weight now.
A long silence stretched between them. He didn’t move closer, only stood at a respectful distance by the edge of her bed, his expression unreadable.
Then, after what felt like a minute or two, he finally spoke again.
"You can ask your friend to stay with you for a few days... if that makes you feel better."
Bella froze.
Her wide eyes snapped up to him.
She must’ve misheard.
"...What did you say?" she asked, slowly, carefully, as if afraid the words would vanish if she acknowledged them too quickly.
His gaze remained steady, lips not quite smiling, but not cold either.
"I said... they can stay," he repeated. "If you want."
Bella blinked at him, stunned.
The same man who just yesterday called Scarlett "loud" and accused her of being a bad influence... was now letting her stay?
"...Why?" she asked without thinking, her voice quiet but honest.
Leonardo didn’t answer.
His gaze lingered on her, unreadable... almost as if he wasn’t ready to explain himself or didn’t know how. He stood there for another second, then slowly shifted his attention away, letting the silence settle again.
Then, he looked down at the stuffed animals in her arms and said, almost offhandedly, "He looks pretty."
Isabella blinked, a little surprised by the sudden change in topic.
She looked down at the plush unicorn with starry eyes and giggled softly. "He’s Moonbeam," she said with a small smile, hugging the toy a little tighter. "He always stays close when I’m scared."
Leonardo nodded slowly, as if memorizing the name like it was something sacred.
"And... him?" he asked, pointing to the smaller strawberry bunny squished beside Moonbeam.
Isabella brightened. "That’s Berry."
There was a soft warmth in her voice as she said it. "He likes snacks. And sometimes he fights with Moonbeam, but only when I sleep too late."
Leonardo’s lips twitched, just slightly, the tiniest ghost of a smile threatening to appear.