Elysium: Desired by the Cold-hearted Princess [GL]
Chapter 133 133: It's in the past

Third-person POV

As soon as they stepped into Seraphina's bedroom, Seraphina didn't even hesitate; she rushed to her bed, flopping on it with a dramatic sigh and an exaggerated groan of exhaustion.

"I'm so tired," she mumbled, her voice muffled by the comforter she had buried her face in.

Electra raised an eyebrow at her theatrics, leaning against the doorframe. "Shouldn't you, I don't know, go into the bathroom first and take off that dress?" she asked, gesturing vaguely at the dress Seraphina still wore.

The fabric of the dress was wrinkled and smudged with dirt, clearly worse for wear after the night's events.

Seraphina turned her head just enough to glare playfully at Electra. "This is my bed, Electra," she retorted with a mock pout, rolling on her back. "If I want to lie on it in a dirty dress, that's my problem."

Electra scoffed, shaking her head in disbelief. "Right. Of course. What was I thinking?" she muttered, sarcasm dripping from her tone.

She moved further into the room, taking in the scattered belongings that now felt oddly unfamiliar, even though this used to be her space.

Still sprawled on the bed, Seraphina sat up just enough to pull off her short heels and toss them carelessly on the floor.

She patted the space beside her on the bed, tilting her head at Electra. "Come on," she said lightly, her voice teasing. "You must be tired too, after playing superhero all night."

Electra stopped in her tracks, caught off guard by the comment. She blinked at Seraphina, the corners of her lips twitching as she tried to suppress a laugh. "Superhero?" she repeated incredulously. "Do you really have to call me that just because I helped you out?"

Seraphina shrugged with an exaggerated casualness, a playful glint in her eyes. "Well, for tonight, you are my superhero," she said with mock sincerity, clasping her hands together like she was ready to bestow an award. "Now, are you going to join me, or are you just going to stand there?"

Electra stared at her for a moment, a mix of amusement and disbelief on her face. Then, with a dramatic sigh of her own, she walked over to the other side of the bed. "You know," she began as she climbed into it, "when this bed was mine, I would have never laid on it in a dirty dress."

Seraphina rolled her eyes, lying back against the pillows. "Well, lucky for me, this bed is now mine and not yours, and I'm not as much of a neat freak as you apparently were," she quipped. She turned her head to look at Electra, her expression softening slightly. "Though I have to admit, you're right about one thing. This dress is disgusting."

Electra smirked, leaning back against the headboard. "Told you," she said smugly, folding her arms behind her head. "But no, by all means, keep rolling around in it. It's not like you're going to have to deal with cleaning it or anything."

Seraphina would simply chuckle lightly before going quiet and getting lost in her thoughts. Her mind kept circling back to the tunnel, and she kept wondering who had thrown her in there.

Her instincts screamed that it had to be Queen Jella. After all, the queen had warned her that she'd regret stealing the spotlight.

But as her thoughts spiraled deeper, something else clicked. If Queen Jella had done this, and if this wasn't the first time, it meant that as Seraphina Vale, she was expected to have already been familiar with such punishments, and yet, she wasn't because it wasn't her who had endured this before—it had to have been Electra.

The pieces began to fit together. The way Electra had shown up at the exact spot to save her, the urgency in her voice when she called out her name—it wasn't just luck or coincidence. Electra had known because this had happened to her before.

Seraphina's chest tightened. She turned her head slightly to glance at Electra, who still seemed lost in thought. Her expression was unreadable, but the sadness in her eyes betrayed the indifference she always tried to put up.

For the first time, Seraphina found herself looking at Electra not as the intimidating and infuriating person she had always known but as someone who had endured more pain than she let on.

She didn't realize she had been staring until Electra turned her head, her sharp eyes narrowing slightly in confusion. "What?" Electra asked, her tone carrying a hint of confusion. "Why are you staring at me like that?"

Seraphina hesitated, her mouth opening before she realized she didn't know exactly how to frame her thoughts. She sat up straighter, her fingers fidgeting with the edge of her dress. "I was just…" she began, then sighed, deciding not to beat around the bush. "Are you going to tell me how you found me?"

Electra blinked, her expression shifting slightly. She seemed to weigh the question, her lips pressing into a thin line. "Does it matter?" she asked after a moment, her voice devoid of its usual teasing. "You're safe now. That's what matters."

"It does matter," Seraphina insisted. "I've been thinking about it. You knew where I was. You knew how to get me out. That means…" She trailed off, not wanting to finish the thought aloud.

Electra turned her gaze away, her jaw tightening. She let out a slow breath before answering. "It means nothing," she said flatly. "I just figured it out."

Seraphina frowned. "Electra…"

"I don't want to talk about it," Electra snapped, cutting her off. Her voice wasn't angry, but it carried a seriousness that made Seraphina pause.

Seraphina watched her for a moment, then leaned forward slightly, lowering her voice. "I think it does matter," she said gently. "Because if what I'm thinking is true, then it's not about me. It's about you."

Electra didn't respond right away. Her fingers tapped against her knee, her body tense. Finally, she let out a dry laugh, though there was no humor in it. "You really don't know when to let things go, do you?"

"No, I don't," Seraphina admitted, a small smile tugging at her lips. "Call it a character flaw."

Electra shook her head, a flicker of something—amusement, maybe—crossing her face before she sighed again. "Fine," she said, her voice quieter now. "Yes, I knew where you were because... I've been there before. Happy now?"

Seraphina's heart sank, even though she had already suspected as much. "How many times?" she asked softly.

Electra let out a bitter chuckle, running a hand through her hair. "Enough times to know the place better than I'd like to," she said. "But it doesn't matter. It's in the past, and I'd prefer to leave it there."

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