“Are you sure, Sena?” He caressed her hair gently and looked at her with the same tender expression he always had for years now. Twenty years might have passed since their first introduction in a small temple in Luoyang, where he was training at that time, but in Sena’s eyes, he was still the same man from before. So she nodded with determination, her hand tracing his chest in circular motion as he dimmed down the light of the lamp and searched her eyes for hints of affection.

            She wasn’t capable of feeling intense emotions like she did to Jongin, but she allowed herself to fall back to love – a different kind that taught her to move on from the shadow of her past. Sena was thirty now, and him, thirty-one, and both were unwedded to anyone. The girl chased away all possible suitors including a very generous marriage contract from Kim Jongdae and all council members trying to force her into the scheme of wedding. It had been nine years since the funeral of Kim Jongin – eight, counting from her birthday then.

            Sena knew she was cruel. She wanted children but not marriage. And this man understood her heart and soul and gave her all and more. The king-sized bed made a small squeaky sound when he advanced nearer and took off the first tie of her top. He was already bare on the upper half, and she let him came onto her, let him took off whatever clothes was left that would obstruct them from becoming one. This was first, lust, and second, love. The moon was the witness.

            It wasn’t fair for anyone. It was incredibly selfish of her, but she was never selfless enough to begin with. The sound of grunts and pleasurable moans filled the room, as midnight turned to dawn, and the sun greeted them when he finally groaned tiredly and slumped onto her side. She was sure of him, the way she never was with Jongin. He would know, for their trust, love and respect was mutual for each other. He knew he would never replace that missing piece in Sena’s heart, but together, they would walk forward from memories of their past.

            “I love you, Sehun. I’m sorry that it took me twelve years to realise that.”

            Yoon Sena was never married to the end of her long-lived life. She was the longest ruler in the Seiryuu history, having lived for one hundred and fifty years and spent the last ten years of her life in seclusion, reminiscing the days of her youth after everyone she loved and cherished was gone from this world. She had one son and one daughter from the affair she had with Sehun, both of whom received a fair amount of the Seiryuu clan before she closed her eyes in her final sleep. All was well. She passed away in peace after fighting for so long.