Find me in your labyrinth (Stella and Jonathan) novel Chapter 2764

He didn’t know how long he’d slept when he suddenly woke with a start. It was pitch black, and the scent of disinfectant still hung in the air.

His mind was fuzzy, and for a moment, he couldn’t remember where he was.

It was only when he felt the weight of someone in his arms that he remembered the alley and the little girl being attacked by wild dogs.

A sense of alarm shot through him. He sat up straight, tightening his hold on the girl in his arms, and breathed a sigh of relief.

But soon, he realized something was wrong.

The small three-year-old child had somehow transformed into someone else, her head resting quietly on his shoulder.

His thoughts were jumbled. After a few seconds, it came back to him: he and Stella were trapped in an underground lab.

The girl was asleep, her breath hot against his skin. He touched her forehead and found she was burning up with a high fever.

The secret room was cold and utterly dark. He supported her with one arm, took off his coat, and draped it over her. Then he pulled her tightly into his arms and whispered, “Don’t be afraid. We’ll get out of here. Just hold on.”

He still had three pieces of chocolate in his pocket. He took one out and held it to her lips.

But she was unconscious, completely unaware that he was trying to feed her, unable to chew or swallow.

He put the chocolate in his own mouth, then lowered his head to feed it to her.

Her body was feverish, her lips searing hot. The chocolate melted quickly, and he used his tongue to guide it down her throat. If she didn't eat, her strength would fail, and she could die here.

The taste of chocolate lingered between their lips, slowly fading, but he found himself reluctant to pull away. Acting on instinct and a deep, ingrained memory, he deepened the kiss.

The darkness and the heat radiating from the girl left him feeling disoriented. He remembered being trapped underground with Stella, but it felt as if something else was missing from his memory.

A soft, pained murmur escaped the girl’s lips. Jonathan knew she was waking up and immediately pulled back, his face flushing hot at his loss of control.

Thank goodness it was pitch black.

Estelle slowly opened her eyes. She tasted the bittersweetness of chocolate, and her lips felt slightly numb. Assuming it was a side effect of the fever, she pressed them together and asked in a hoarse voice, “How long was I asleep?”

Jonathan held her tighter. “A long time. The people upstairs will find us soon.”

Jonathan raised an eyebrow. “Does no one else know? You just kill anyone who finds out?”

The girl closed her eyes, her voice indifferent. “The ones who know are people I trust.”

Jonathan said, “We’ve fought side-by-side these past few days, a bond forged by facing death together. We’re trapped here together—this might very well be our grave. Being buried together… what a stroke of fate. Don’t you trust me yet?”

In the darkness, Stella seemed to glance up at him. “I never realized you talked so much.”

Jonathan was speechless.

He just wanted to talk to her.

He wanted to spend a lifetime talking to just her.

After a moment of rest, Jonathan spoke again, his voice raspy but his tone insistent. “Come on, tell me. Am I someone you trust or not?”

Stella ignored him.