Elysium: Desired by the Cold-hearted Princess [GL]

Chapter 432: Confession

Third-person POV

After a few long seconds of silence, Irina would turn back to face Penelope, the tension between them hanging as the silence stretched longer than it should have. The cigarette between her fingers had burned lower without her noticing, the ash barely holding on before it dropped to the ground, but she didn’t look down at it.

"Tell me what’s really going on," Irina said finally, her voice lower this time, but still firm enough to show that she wasn’t asking casually. She held Penelope’s gaze, watching her closely, trying to read the emotions that were so clearly sitting on the surface now. "What suddenly made you start questioning how I feel about you as a friend?" she added, her brows pulling together slightly. "And don’t give me something vague. I want the real reason."

Penelope didn’t answer immediately. She stood there, her shoulders tense, her jaw tightening slightly like she was holding something back, something that had been building for a while. Irina didn’t look away, didn’t interrupt, just waited, even though the silence between them was starting to feel suffocating.

"And what made you so sure," Irina continued after a moment, her tone more pointed now, "that I wouldn’t be your friend if Electra wasn’t around?"

The words had barely left her mouth when Penelope snapped.

"Because you think I’m unstable!"

The words came out loud, almost like a shout, breaking through the silence in a way that made Irina freeze for a brief second. It wasn’t just what she said, it was how she said it. The frustration, the hurt, the anger all mixed together in a way that made it clear this wasn’t something she had just come up with on the spot. This had been sitting inside her for a while.

Irina’s brows furrowed deeper, confusion flashing across her face as she opened her mouth to respond, but before she could say anything, Penelope continued.

"You said it," Penelope added quickly, her voice still tight, like she was trying not to lose control again. "Earlier today. When I called you."

Irina blinked once, clearly not following.

"You forgot to end the call," Penelope went on, her gaze locked on Irina now, not wavering even slightly. "I was still on the line, and I heard everything. I heard you and Electra talking."

The realization hit Irina almost immediately, and her expression shifted just slightly, not into guilt, but into something closer to understanding.

"And you said it," Penelope repeated, her voice quieter now, but no less intense. "You said I’m unstable."

Irina let out a slow breath, her shoulders dropping just slightly as the tension in her body shifted into something more tired than angry. She lifted her hand, running it through her hair briefly before letting it fall back to her side, clearly trying to gather her thoughts before responding.

"You heard that," she said finally, her tone flat, not defensive, but not apologetic either.

Penelope didn’t respond, but the look in her eyes was enough of an answer.

Irina shook her head slightly, letting out a sigh that carried more disbelief than frustration this time. "If you really heard the whole conversation," she said, her voice steady now, "then you should also know that Electra brought up something about your feelings first."

She paused for a second, watching Penelope carefully before continuing. "What I said about you not being stable wasn’t random. It was in response to that."

Penelope’s expression didn’t change much, but there was a flicker of something in her eyes, something uncertain, like she didn’t know if she wanted to accept that explanation or not.

Irina frowned slightly, clearly starting to lose patience again. "Do you really want to do this right now?" she asked, her tone sharper again, though not as harsh as before. "Because I told you I wasn’t in the mood for this kind of conversation."

For a moment, it looked like Penelope might argue, might push back again, but instead, she turned away.

It was a small movement, but it was enough for Irina to notice the way her shoulders tensed, the way her head tilted slightly downward like she was trying to hide something. It didn’t take much for Irina to realize what it was.

Tears.

Penelope stayed like that for a few seconds, her back turned, her breathing uneven, and Irina didn’t say anything. She didn’t interrupt, didn’t push her to turn back, just watched, waiting, even though she could already feel that whatever was coming next wasn’t going to be simple.

When Penelope finally turned back to face her, her eyes were slightly red, the tears still sitting there even though she hadn’t let them fall yet. There was something different in her expression now, something more resolved, like she had made up her mind about something she had been avoiding for a long time.

And then she said it.

"I love you."

The words came out suddenly, almost like she had forced them out before she could stop herself, and for a moment, the air between them felt like it had completely stopped moving.

Irina froze, not because she didn’t already know. She had known for a long time. It wasn’t something Penelope had ever said out loud before, but it had been obvious in the way she acted, the way she looked at her, the way she stayed close even when there was no reason to. Irina wasn’t blind, and she wasn’t stupid either.

But hearing it like this? Hearing her actually say it?

That was different.

Irina’s lips parted slightly, like she was about to respond, but before she could even form a single word, Penelope cut her off.

"Don’t," she said quickly, raising her hand slightly as if to stop her. "Just... let me speak."

Irina closed her mouth again, her expression unreadable as she watched her.

Penelope took a shaky breath, like she was trying to steady herself, but it didn’t do much to calm the tension in her voice when she spoke again.

"I’m in love with you," she repeated, more clearly this time, even though her voice still trembled slightly. "I have been for years. For almost ten years."

She let out a small, bitter laugh, though there was no real humor in it. "While you’ve always just seen me as... what? The younger friend? The kid you had to look out for?"

Irina didn’t interrupt.

"I never said anything," Penelope continued, her voice picking up slightly as the words started to come out faster. "I never told you because I was scared. I thought if I said it out loud, you’d reject me, you’d hate me, and you’d push me away completely."

Her hands clenched slightly at her sides, the tension in her body becoming more obvious with every word.

"So I kept it to myself," she added. "I acted like I didn’t feel anything, like I was fine just being your friend."

She paused, her gaze dropping briefly before lifting again, locking on Irina’s with a look that carried more hurt than anything else.

"I thought I was doing a good job hiding it."

Irina’s expression remained still, but there was something in her eyes now, something more attentive, more aware of just how much this meant to Penelope.

"But then today happened," Penelope went on, her voice quieter again, but heavier this time. "That call."

Her lips pressed together for a second before she continued. "I heard you," she said. "I heard everything. And that’s when I realized something."

Irina didn’t move.

"You already knew," Penelope said, her voice tightening slightly. "You knew how I felt."

The words hung in the air between them, heavy and unavoidable. "And you already rejected me," she added, her gaze not leaving Irina’s for even a second. "Before I even had the courage to say it out loud."

There was no anger in her tone now, just hurt. A deep kind of hurt that didn’t need to be loud to be felt.

"And that’s when it hit me," she continued, her voice dropping slightly, almost like she was talking more to herself than to Irina now. "If Electra wasn’t in the picture... you really wouldn’t even care about me."

Irina’s brows twitched slightly at that, but she still didn’t interrupt.

"I’d just be... nothing to you," Penelope added, her voice barely above a whisper now.

She let out another shaky breath, her eyes glistening slightly as she looked away for just a second before forcing herself to look back at Irina again.

"So what’s the point?" she asked quietly. "What’s the point of me pretending anymore? What’s the point of me hiding how I feel just so I can keep holding on to someone who doesn’t even want me as a friend?"