Though Amani was no hero, she would never call herself that, for was she not more of the fallen angel? She was, and she was to act like it. She had always prided herself on her composure—a trait she had inherited from her father. But what she was now, no one would describe as composed, for she had blinked in shock and taken a step back—though there was nowhere to even step back—when he had raised his voice at her comment. Not out of fear, no, she wasn’t scared of Vincenzo, but out of shock. He was angry, on the verge of a breaking point and Amani steadied herself, she pursed her lips, and she could feel the thrum beneath her skin, an insistent beat echoing in her ears and pulsing in her throat. Her breath came in quick, shallow bursts, every exhale a struggle to maintain her exterior of calm indifference. It was as if a wild, untamed force had awakened within her, each surge of energy making her feel simultaneously powerful and fragile. Her chest tightened, the air around her suddenly thick and stifling, while a warmth spread through her limbs, demanding action, movement, an outlet for the tumult inside. The room seemed to close in around her, the walls pressing in as her vision narrowed, focusing solely on Vincenzo’s fiery eyes. Say nothing, she told herself, say nothing she repeated in her mind, keep up the act and tell him she was not acting but she couldn’t, because in that moment, she was terrified.
Terrified of the raw emotion in his voice, the depth of his hurt, the intensity of his gaze. She was terrified of his words. “I did care,” She finally admits looking down at her shoes like a little girl. “I suppose I did,” She opened her mouth, “But-” she shut her mouth. There was nothing to say, she didn’t know what else to say because there were no buts to it, and she couldn’t even feign one. Was this how King Rehoboam was when he lost his kingdom? Did he feel the same defeated emotion as her? There were similar in a way that they had lost a kingdom, only his was a physical one and Amani’s was an emotional one. She was over this, she wanted to change topics and luckily they did, as they began to talk about her dress, and her stoic mask returned.