Because loving her from a distance felt safer… until now.
Until it wasn't.
Across the seas, Somto sighed to himself as he hurried over.
But even with his fierce actions, even with his sudden urgency to rescue Nnenna himself, it didn't mean he was ready to bring all those confusing emotions to light. Not yet.
And not while she was still just sixteen.
When she turns eighteen… he mused. Maybe then, these feelings, whatever they really are, will matter.
But until then, he would guard her like a soldier guards a sacred treasure. He would fight her battles from the shadows. He would protect her, no matter what it cost him. And not because anyone ordered him to.
Because he chose to.
On the other side, Little Sweetie was still in deep thought.
This, and countless other things, Somto had done for Nnenna, but almost no one knew. Not even Nnenna herself.
He had moved mountains for her in silence.
