"It looks like I have to start taking care of myself now that it's also affecting you, huh?" Aventurine chuckled bitterly as he carefully wrapped a bandage around the slash on your arm. Guilt and a newfound sense of responsibility weighed heavily on his chest, emotions he hadn't felt for a long time. He had a soulmate now, someone else sharing the consequences of his actions.

There had always been an unspoken connection between the two of you, with lingering emotions and unexpressed words hanging in the air whenever he was near you. But Aventurine knew that a man like him, in a world like this, would only bring trouble to anyone who chose to be with him.

"I used to scoff at the idea of soulmates and destined lovers..." he sighed, glancing at his own wound. "But it seems I've been proven wrong in the harshest way possible."

Aventurine realized he couldn't go on living life like a poker game anymore, not when it meantrisking yours alongside his.