After Death, Love Unveiled (Elara and Lysander)

If it weren't for his rivalry with Asher, Lysander wouldn't have even bothered with this competition

When Elara overheard Lysander-usually so straight-laced-make a rare comment about Asher, she couldn't help but chuckle

"Wow, never pegged him for the gossiping type, Elara thought, though she knew Lysander was just being honest.

"You're seriously something else!" she exclaimed. "I mean, look at you-handsome, smart, great at sports. Every pri at my table today couldn't stop drooling over you."

"I don't even know who they are, Lysander said flatly

Elara laughed. "I know you don't. That's not the point-I'm just saying, you've got people mesmerized"

Lysander didn't respond, staying silent as usual.

After a pause, Elara asked, "Aren't you worried people might start talking? I mean, us hanging out together, so publicly, at school? You know how people are."

"What would they say?" Lysander shot her a confused look.

Elara smirked. "There's this rumor going around that I'm, you know, some rich guy's sugar baby. They're always whispering about it behind my back. My reputation's already trashed."

Lysander's expression didn't change. "I couldn't care less about that," he said firmly, "Besides, do you even look like the type who needs some old dude's money!"

Elara laughed again, shaking her head. He'd clearly heard the rumors all along but never said a word-until now.

"He doesn't show up just to play knight in shining armor, does he?' she wondered.

The driver pulled up and dropped them off at a restaurant for dinner.

As soon as they sat down, Elara's phone buzzed. She glanced at the screen-it was a message from Asher, saying: [I'm sorry:] That made her pause. An apology from Asher? Now that was out of the blue. Seemed like he wasn't too thrilled about her hanging around Lysander. "Typical guy-acts like he doesn't care until someone else steps in, she thought.

"So, what do you feel like eating?" Lysander asked, snapping her out of her thoughts,

Elara smiled. "I'm easy, whatever you're having works for me."

Lysander ordered a few dishes, making sure to throw in some spicy ones, knowing she liked her food with a kick.

They'd been having dinners together more often lately, and things between them were starting to feel comfortable. Like they'd fallen into a natural rhythm.

"Has Mr. Kensington been back lately?" Lysander asked, his voice tinged with concern.Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDrâ/ma.O(r)g!

Elara shook her head lightly. "He's been swamped with work."

Talking about Barrett brought a flicker of unease to her eyes. Before she had traveled back in time, he had died in a car accident just before her SATE Now, she was working hard every day, hoping to boost her grades, but no matter how much effort she put in, there was never enough time to be with him. He was always buried in work, and even when she tried to get close, he wasn't around.

But Elara had a plan. When the time came, she'd make sure he stayed home that day-anything to stop that accident from happening.

Lysander watched as Elara slowly chewed her food, staring blankly at the table, clearly lost in thought. She did this often- Joming out at random insoments

His gut tell him she was hiding something serious, but since she wasn't talking, he wouldn't push her. Not his style

Asher walked into his house and immediately spotted Jefferson, waiting for him, arms crossed, his expression dark. The tension in the room was thick as soon as Asher stepped in. "How are things going with Elaral" Jefferson demanded, without preamble.

Asher, preoccupied with his own thoughts about Elara, replied in an almost bored tone, "Nothing's changed. He sounded as indifferent as he felt about Jefferson's question. "Nothing? Didn't I tell you to win her back? What the hell are you doing, slacking off?"

Asher frowned, his patience wearing thin, "Why should I? She dumped me. What, you want me to crawl back, begging for another shot? I've got some danm pride, you know."

Sure, part of him regretted seeing Elara with Lysander and sometimes had this flicker of wanting her back. But at the same. time, breaking up with her felt like a weight off his chest-especially when he looked at Jefferson now.

Before he could get another word in, Jefferson's face twisted with rage, and in a flash, he stormed over and slapped Asher hard across the face. "You useless piece of shit! Without her, where are we gonna get the money? Hand over everything you've got!" Asher stared in disbelief, his check stinging. "You've been gambling again, haven't you?"

"That's none of your fucking business! Don't talk to me like your mother did! You want me to beat you again? When you were with Elara, we had money rolling in. My gambling didn't matter then! But no, you had to screw things up with that broke-ass girl. Now look at what you've done! You let the big fish get away! Get her back, or I swear to God, I'll make your life hell!" Jefferson raged before storming out.

As soon as the door slammed shut, Asher rushed to the spot under his bed where he'd stashed some money. Sure enough, every last dollar was gone.

Living in this cramped, shitty house with Jefferson, Asher barely had any privacy. There were only a few places he could hide things, and his father always managed to sniff them out.

Elara had helped him out financially so many times, and Asher had been careful to save a portion of it for his college expenses, knowing he couldn't depend on Jefferson for anything. But even with all his precautions. Jefferson had taken it all.

As Asher stepped out of the house. Jefferson was already long gone, nowhere in sight.

Watching where his father had disappeared, rage bubbled up inside him. He clenched his fists, then, without thinking, kicked the wall hard.

After dinner, Elara and Lysander walked out of the restaurant together..

Outside, rain was coming down in torrents. The Hawthorne family's driver hurried to open an umbrella and escorted Elara to the car with a respectful nod.

Elara stepped out of the ear with her usual grace, and Lysander took the umbrella from the driver, gently guiding her toward the front door.

"The rain's too heavy. You should get going." Elara said with a soft smile, glancing up at Lysander.

In his calm, almost soothing voice, Lysander replied, "Goodnight."

His voice was so warm it made Elara's cheeks flush. She nodded, her voice a little quieter. "Yeah, goodnight. Take care. See you tomorrow.

Lysander gave her a small smile, nodded, and turned to walk back to the car, umbrella in hand.

Elara watched him go, her heart filled with a quiet happiness. Being with him was always so easy, so peaceful.

But just as the driver pulled away and Elara was about to step inside, a voice she recognized all too well cut through the rain. "Hey, Elara."

She froze, then turned around, surprised. Stepping out of the shadows was Asher, drenched, no umbrella, no explanation for why he was there. She had no idea how long he'd been standing in the rain.

Seeing him like that threw her off for a second. "What are you doing here?" she asked, caught off guard.

He'd already apologized earlier in a text, and now he was here in person. "Could my little act this afternoon have actually worked?" she wondered.

Asher's eyes were locked on her, intense and dark. He'd clearly seen her smiling just moments ago, and now that smile was gone, replaced by something colder. "Being with Lysander makes you that happy?" he asked, voice low, almost accusing.

Elara didn't miss a beat. "Yeah, it does. He treats me right, unlike you..." Her voice turned sharp, sarcasm dripping. "But look at you, showing up here, soaking wet, while you've got a girlfriend. What the hell do you want, Asher?"

Asher's gaze didn't waver. His eyes were intense, like he was weighing something heavy in his mind. Then, after a pause, he finally spoke. "If I broke up with Daphne... would you take me back? Like bEFORE?