Voyage With The Pirate King
Chapter 57 - What Are Looking At?

That was the day she decided to tear this man to pieces and scatter his soul. This is the only thing she could do for her big sister who raised her in that dark four-walled dungeon. 

As she recalled her beautiful blue eyes and gracious smile Rui Li curled up as her tears fell at the corner of her eyes. She was going to make him pay for all the pain he caused.

Ji Wen on the other hand was carefully observing the gemstone shimmering under the moonlight. He didn't know if these keystones were the reasons Qilin Hao left him or was it because she truly fell in love with that demon Rui.

His fist clenched with the keystone in his hand as he recalled the blueprint to open the portal that Ji Yao found in Prince Rui's study. If that was what she wanted then it was a good thing she left because he would never have helped her open that portal.

Clutching his chest he turned over and lay to his side with his long curly hair covering his face as though hiding his emotions from the world. As he turned to his side a shadow like that of a bird silently flew from the white pine tree outside his window vanishing into the darkness. It silently flew over the sea returning to report to its superior.

A few doors away from Ji Wen's room, Ji Yao lay with his back facing Rui Fei's direction. He could clearly sense the dark energy looming over Rui Fei but what was he supposed to say?

He also wanted to end that man for all the nocru and humans who had suffered in his hands. A cut for each life lost would suffice but he couldn't do anything about it as yet.

He closed his eyes forcing himself to fall asleep but just as his eyes closed he heard Rui Fei speak. His voice was trembling slightly expressing his suppressed emotions.

"What was your mother like?" he asked making Ji Yao's back stiffen. It was evident that Rui Fei had no idea that his mother left them to be with Prince Rui though now he knew there was something more beneath the surface.

Rui Fei didn't wait for him to respond as he carried on saying, "I don't have any memory of her..... neither did anyone tell me anything about her except that she simply vanished into thin air in front of everyone." He sighed deeply before shifting to lay on his side staring at Ji Yao's unmoving back.

"Sometimes I wonder if she is still alive or her vanishing like that was death. Dead or alive I am glad she could escape from that unending torment... Though at times I wonder if she was there with me would it have made a difference? Would the pain be more bearable? *Sigh... I know it's pointless but I can't help but think about it."

He had said so much but Ji Yao showed no signs of movement. It seemed he had fallen asleep already so Rui Fei could only shut up and try to sleep. What he didn't know was that Ji Yao was having a major internal struggle. He wanted to say a few words of comfort but he had never done this before so he had no idea what to say.

He pursed his lips with his fingers nervously clutching the quilt as he struggled to come up with the right words. All he could say when he finally plucked up the courage was, "My mother left when I was young as well." He didn't even know if that was in any way comforting but that's all he could come up with.

Rui Fei who had completely given up opened his eyes a little wider when he heard him speak. He moistened his lips before saying, "Then we are truly destined to be brothers. Since we are kindred spirits then we should look out for each other, right Yao-ge?"

"Mn," replied Ji Yao biting his bottom lip trying to stop himself from saying 'who is your brother?'

Rui Fei smiled like a fool while peering at Ji Yao's back like he could drill a hole into it the longer he stared. That short and concise kind of response was why he liked Ji Yao. He didn't go about things in a roundabout manner like the rest and he was true to his word.

"Good night Yao-ge," he said but his eyes didn't close. He was still peering at Ji Yao. Ji Yao didn't respond mainly because his mind was miles away already thinking about something else. Rui Fei didn't mind that he didn't respond. The fact that Ji Yao had spoken to him earlier was satisfying enough.

An hour later Ji Yao finally decided to fall asleep and unconsciously turned to his other side. As he shuffled around he was suddenly met with Rui Fei's narrowed eyes staring at him.

Ji Yao, 'What the fuck....'

Rui Fei's lips quirked up into a smile not at all embarrassed that he had been caught staring. What was he staring at? It's not like he was some kind of famous national monument attracting tourists from all over the continent.

"What are you looking at?" asked Ji Yao feeling like his entire body had been stripped by that probing gaze.

"You... who else would I be looking at? Yao-ge is very interesting to look at," he said with his head laying above his hand.

Ji Yao stared blankly at the cute innocent face staring back at him and couldn't help but retort, "Stop being a creep," before lying flat on his back.

Rui Fei was the least bit fazed by his words. In fact, he was much eager to start trouble so he spoke honestly, "I am afraid if I fall asleep I will have nightmares so I can only look at Yao-ge to pass the time...," but a pillow was thrown right in his face. Ji Yao turned to his side again giving Rui Fei his back.

Rui Fei couldn't help but chortle as he hugged that pillow thrown to him a second ago.. He didn't like showing his vulnerable side to people but to gain Ji Yao's sympathy he wouldn't mind as long as he could grasp his attention.